St Augustine

     I can't even begin to tell you how travel has changed my life. Especially for the past 10 months, I feel like I've been riding on Expedition Everest ( one of the most popular rollercoasters in Disney World) back and forth but the thrill and excitement never fails to surprise me. It's scary and exciting as the roller coaster pulls you back really fast in the dark with sharp and sudden turns, drops and forward and backwards movement, for one second I would ask myself "Ok, now what ?" .. but don't you think that's the best thing ever ? Stealing the quote from Steve Jobs, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust the dots and will somehow connect in your future. While scrolling up and down my old notes I wrote on the road, I still found it hard to believe how thoughts become things, dreams turn into reality and the bad things I worry about never happened. While travel also teaches you to let go and enjoy the present, I love how the journey leads you to meet new people. Each of them leave mark and inspiration.
    The crazy thing is, you never know who you'll run into when you travel : could be this handsome tall guy from the other side of the world who loves rice and chilly paste more than any Asian people you know but you can't resist to kiss - oh well, a little holiday fling won't hurt, or an artist who's looking for inspiration, little kids who don't really speak your language but then you'll find it's so easy to communicate and laugh with them, an old lady who sells pretty hats that really enjoy chatting with you about her life, or maybe some cool chicks inspire you to travel more and be brave, oooh yes don't forget about crazy drunk backpackers who wear the same t-shirts for a week and busy searching for the meaning of life, etc etc. Even some days where you feel the going gets tough and you wonder if you can make it to the next step, the struggle only build you stronger. It was pretty much what Chanapha and I felt during our weekend trip to St Augustine about a year ago. Arrived in one of the oldest cities in the USA early morning ( without having a single clue where we were but always enjoy whatever life's trying to surprise us ) St Augustine had stolen our heart. Unique, charming, bold with a very laid back city atmosphere. We purchased one day pass of Old Town Trolley Tours St Augustine to see most of the point of interests like the old churches, vintage shops, museums, Castillo de San Marcos, Fort Matanzas National Monument, the light house and the beach. Didn't make it to all the museums but my highlight was definitely chatting with random people I met there, from Captain Conrad - the owner of The Pirate Haus Inn, Corey Wood, the lady who owns a hat shop, to a local artist who left Orlando years ago and settled in St Augustine, it was one fine day sharing stories with strangers. Of course watching the sunset from the port continued to dinner in town, Nutella Popsicle for dessert and being able to share the whole experience with my best friend just made our day even better. 

Love, G & C