Reminiscing: 2008 in travel

Another year of crazy plane-hopping, jetsetting, and general travel mayhem. I think this year, there was generally more restraint and more domestic-ness in my travels. I did my first ever day-trip to LA for work, and even flew coach to Europe. (Don't try it at home...babies and people who kick your seat for 14 hours straight suck.) Didn't make it back to 1K, but at least I'll be Premier Exec again next year. :)

So here are 2008's cities in no particular order:

Tahoe Honolulu Savannah Portland Orlando New York City Boston Munich Las Vegas Vancouver Charleston Whistler Flagstaff Scottsdale Napa Seattle Klamath Istanbul Ashland Phoenix Albuquerque Sonoma Grand Canyon Los Angeles Denver Chicago Frankfurt Arcadia Mcminnville Kaneohe

Miles flow - 51,509

Most surprising hotel - W Istanbul. Cooler, hipper, and way less tired-looking than any of its Stateside cousins. They really *do* do things differently in Europe.

Most random flight itinerary - SFO - Denver - Orlando - Chicago - Portland - SFO. Ew. The things we do for work.

Shortest trip - 12 hours in LA. Took the 6am flight out, and came home on the 6pm flight. Again, the things we do for work.

Longest trip (without a plane) - 10-day road trip up the Pacific Northwest. I love the Pacific Northwest!

Most nerve-racking travel moment - (tied) Locking the keys in the trunk of a car during said road trip (I had to climb through the luckily-open sun roof to pop the trunk) in Ashland. Being almost run off the road coming back from the Grand Canyon in the middle of the night by a giant trucker going 90MPH. Uphill. My crappy rental PT Cruiser didn't stand a chance.

Most awkward place to visit - Albuquerque, New Mexico. Went there for a friend's wedding -- turns out that every other Asian person we saw at the airport, the restaurants, and the city were all there for the same wedding.

Most awkward tourist attraction - Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia. It was eerily beautiful, and extremely popular due to the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. But I still felt like I was trespassing the entire time I was there.

Most visited cities this year (and frequency) - Vancouver & New York City (3), Los Angeles, Boston & Las Vegas (2)

Shortest time between 2 continents - 15 minutes. We went from Europe to Asia in just 15 minutes on a ferry in Istanbul. There was no "Welcome to Asia" sign on the other side. I was disappointed.

Most thematic tourist destination - Ashland, Oregon. Home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, almost every hotel, restaurant and store in town is named after something Bard-related, including the Best Western Bard's Inn.

All beds, and breakfasts, too - This year, I finally took advantage of the actual breakfast portion of B&B (unlike last year). My two favourites would be Morical House in Ashland for its contemporary modern design and yummy food, and the A'Tuscan Estate in Mcminnville for its delicious gourmet breakfasts (ostrich egg omelets!).

Best "3 Days or Less..." destination - Well, it was more like 4 days, but Istanbul, Turkey takes the cake. So it's a bit crazy to fly halfway around the world for 4 days, but hey, why not?

This year, I'll probably be taking it easy due to my shoulder recovery. But there are still some interesting travel destinations on the horizon...including my first Sundance in January, maybe cherry blossoms in Japan in March, and some eating trips here and there. :)