International Travel Vacations

Stress can easily result from a daily dose of driving through heavy traffic, working the same kind of job in the same setting from nine to five daily, and the strain of keeping your house in order. Most health experts agree that stress can take a significant toll on our bodies, weakening our immune system and adversely affecting our vital functions. It can also make us anxious, depressed, irritable, and even impair our memory and thinking.

Vacations are intended to break this stress. This is the reason why the government mandates employers to provide a number of days of paid vacation for their employees. A problem arises, however, when vacations, instead of relieving stress, actually cause more. This can happen because taking a vacation involves much more than not going to the office, boarding a plane, and basking in the sun. Indeed, there’s plenty of work to be done before you can step on the plane.

First, you have to plan for your vacation, looking for suitable places, checking out airlines, and comparing costs. You may also have to conduct some research about any foreign country you plan to visit. Learn something about their culture, food, and of course, the travel documents they may require. If you have pets, you have to plan for them too. If no one is going to be left in the house, you have to ensure that your security system is working properly. And then there is the packing, waiting in line at airports, running after flight schedules, and jet lag.

Being in an unfamiliar territory where you never really know if the person you are talking to is trying to con you can also be worrying. When in a tour group, all too often the operators pack so many activities into the tour that they can be exhausting. With not enough time to rest, you can feel more tired than relaxed.

For all these reasons, it is not unusual to hear stories of people returning from a vacation needing another vacation to recover from the stress of their first vacation.

People travel for different reasons –business, vacation, or to visit family and friends. Traveling, whether by car, bus, train, plane, or ship is generally safe, yet there remain unscrupulous persons who are out to take advantage of tourists and travelers who are new in town and are unfamiliar with the locality. It is because of criminals and con men like these that travelers should take extra precautions while on the road.

Before even leaving home, you can begin to take measures to lessen the possibility of attracting the attention of criminals, by adopting the Minimalists’ motto “Less is More”. Try not to travel with your expensive and showy equipment or jewelry. If you can do with an inexpensive digital camera, you can leave your Nikon D3X at home. If you have to bring it, at least do not flaunt it, and try to keep it within sight at all times.

Back up all travel documents, especially when traveling to foreign countries. Make several photocopies of your passport and visa, travel insurance, plane ticket, travelers’ check receipts, and other legal documents that can identify you. Leave copies of these at home so that they can be faxed to you if needed, and distribute the other copies among your luggage. A copy of your birth certificate may also be useful if you lose your passport.

Your money, credit cards, and passport are the most important items that you should look after when traveling. Keeping them in a pouch bag worn in front of you is perhaps the safest way to secure them. Wearing it behind your back or putting your wallet in your pant’s back pocket only provides thieves the opportunity to slice them and wait for your money and credits cards to fall off.

When checking into a hotel, verify if all of your bags are delivered into the lobby with you. Check out where the room keys are stored at the registration counter. If they are easily accessible to anybody passing by, you may find a stranger rummaging through your stuff upon entering room after spending some time out.

If at all possible, do not get a room higher than the 6th floor. Fire ladders normally reach only up to that level. Stay near elevators or staircases if you can. They may be noisier but they are a lot safer.

Different people have different ideas about what makes a good vacation. Typically, they seek a change of environment so that people living in rural settings seek to visit the big cities, while those in the urban centers travel to distant places where they can be away from their daily dose of hordes of people, traffic, pollution, noise, and haste.

Tucked away in the northwestern corner of Luzon, the largest of the Philippines’ 7,107 islands, is a province named Ilocos Norte. Lying almost 500 kilometers from the capital city of Manila, the province is relatively remote requiring a 10-hour ride by bus, or an hour’s flight.

Explored by the Spanish conquistadors and Christianized by the Augustinian friars in the late 16th Century, Ilocos Norte is a land of imposing churches and belfries. Notable among them is the St. Augustine Church in the town of Paoay –an earthquake-proof edifice in baroque architecture that is included in the World Heritage Sites List of UNESCO. North of Paoay is Laoag City where you can find the Sinking Bell Tower. Although it now stands 45 meters, the very low entrance where one has to stoop to enter is seen as evidence that it used to be taller. Indeed, stories abound that in the olden times a man on a horseback can easily ride into the tower.

There is life in Ilocos Norte beyond its churches and belfries. Barely seven kilometers to the west of the sinking tower is an expanse of sand dunes abutting the South China Sea and providing an awe-inspiring vista. Enterprising locals offer tourists an exciting ride up and down the steep slopes on 4 x 4 jeeps and for those who want to get close to the sand, sandboards, which are used like snowboards, are available.

The beaches of Pagudpud are Ilocos Norte’s answer to the more famous beaches of Boracay. White sand and calm and clear blue water entice swimmers and snorkelers to spend the entire day just playing and lazing in the sun. Motorized sea crafts are not allowed in the area assuring you of a clean and pollution-free environment.

To the southeast of Pagudpud, the Cordillera Mountain Range begins to rise. Nestled within these mountains is the town of Adams, the ultimate in getting away from it all. With a population of 1,800 souls dispersed over 160 square kilometers of pristine forests crisscrossed by countless rivers and streams, Adams is anything but crowded. You can trek to the 18 waterfalls scattered all over the town and dive into their refreshingly cool waters. There are 10 hanging bridges linking the hillsides with each other. If you are a little adventurous, you can hire a motorcycle and speed through the swaying hanging bridges. And you can celebrate your successful run with a glass of Tapuey, a local rice wine, or Bugnay, wine made from wild cherries. These will also help keep you warm on those chilly nights in Adams.