Sunday, June 14, 2009

160 - When people don't take advantage of the opportunities to do stuff when they're on vacation

I went to Bintan, Indonesia with my class for a week on our graduation trip. The Nirwana Gardens Resort was so nice. To be honest, it was a lot of fun, and there wasn't a whole lot to hate. There was one point on the trip where I was reading my biological-anthropological book, by the pool, near the beach, tanning in the sun, with a citrusy alcoholic beverage by my side, next to a plate of spaghetti, and half a dozen sticks of chicken satay. Life could not get any better, all my needs were satisfied.

I know my classmates may be reading this, waiting to see what Michael hates now, what Michael just didn't feel right about, like the many times he didn't think see any good in something or someone.

So I will give it to them.

Half of us tried to go out as much as possible. We went kayaking, swimming in the pool and at the beach, played beach volleyball, ate local food (e.g., pineapple fried rice, calamari, seafood, nasi goreng), saw the sunset, drank, sang karaoke, played poker and blackjack, did some archery, and rifle-shooting, and dancing at the resort's club. Right now, my skin is peeling like crazy from going out in the sun so much, but the finished product should turn out to be awesomely tan in a couple of days.

I was so surprised by the fact that the other half of us stayed inside the resort villas as much as they did. They even brought their laptops, and their Playstation 3, and all the technology they would fill their time up with back here in Hong Kong. At night, they would watch movies, and in the early daytime, they would sleep. They did go to the pool, but only for the poolside bar, and they did go to the beach, but only for a few hours altogether.

I don't get it. Why not just do that in Hong Kong, on an island in Hong Kong? What a waste of money it is to go to some foreign place only to sleep in and stay indoors. Why is everyone just going to sleep when they feel tired? Sure, everyone is tired, but now that we're back, you have the rest of the summer to sleep and rest, don't you? Wasn't this supposed to be a graduation trip, filled with late-night chats, and late-night dips in the ocean, and late-night card-playing, and drinking, and bonding?

Sigh, but to each their own, I suppose. Some people like to take advantage of the locally available facilities, while others would rather use the time to relax. There are people that actually like to travel the world, and 'test out' different hotels' services, to compare their customary quality. I could never be one of those people... I must try out the food, learn a bit of the language, explore the place...

What do you guys think?
And did you miss me? (I promise noooooow I'll be a more active blogger.)

3 comments:

J.J. in L.A. said...

I'm like you, but for a different reason. At home, I do nothing but sit around. So when I'm on vacation, I want to DO something.

I can understand that people work hard and just want to sit on the lanai (sp?) in Hawaii, but I wanted to see the volcano...and did.

My most memorable vacation was a week in Minnesota, followed by a week in Connecticut. We stayed up til dawn, partied, played cards, visited relatives. We figured we could sleep when we got home. We still talk about how fun those 2 weeks were.

chloe said...

I am a lot like you...Would try to cover as many new cites during my vacation..Infact when I recall everything..I am actually more active during vacation than in my normal college days..But people are different and they tend to take rest and do nothing else..Well nothing wrong in that though, for those who work round the clock during their normal days..I dont prefer going with such kind of people..And I am lucky that I haven't seen any of my close friends or my family spending vacation like that.Else I would have gotten irritated like hell!
I do have a bad habit though.But not my fault.I just tend to forget stuffs that happen during vacations.Even the places I visit during those times.I seriously dont know why!

lost_in_woods said...

thank you for posting visti for servicrs turnstile gates dubai
tripod turnstiles dubai