Goodbye, 2006!

Another year is coming to a close less than two hours from now. Yet I’m here at my sister’s house in my jammies with only the sound of the ticking clock for company. There’s a TV less than 10 feet away from me and I can’t even bring myself to reach for the remote and open it.

December 31st here in Melbourne is certainly different from New Year’s Eve in Manila. For one thing, I can’t smell any smoke from firecrackers set off by the neighbor’s. It’s really quiet here. Too quiet.

There were some fireworks earlier, I reckon. I can hear them faintly, must be coming from the city. Of course, when I was putting the kids to sleep, I thought it was the sound of small feet running in the halls. But how can that be when the kids are on either side of me on the bed? That’s right Nina, scare yourself on your first night home alone in a new house.

My brother-in-law actually asked me a couple of days ago if I wanted to go out for NYE. Automatically, I said no because I honestly can’t remember a time when I ushered in the New Year outside our house, be it in Makati or in Quezon City. I suppose all the years watching the news showing firecracker injuries really made an impact on me. Not to mention the karma (nyuknyuknyuk. Sorry, inside joke).

Then again, I’m not really one for going out to socialize. You can only make me go to a bar or club or whatever when I’m with my friends. I can go out to eat at a restaurant alone, but to go to a place that people flock to to socialize? Uh, no thanks.

Anyway, 2006 has been a really great year for travel. I started the year in high spirits, woke up the next day with a terrible cold, recovered after a week and resolved to travel more this year. I set my goal to travel to two domestic destinations and two international destinations, and I was able to meet my target.

March 11 – 13 Cebu, Philippines
May 17 – 27 Bangkok, Ko Samui & Ko Pha Ngan, Thailand
May 27 – June 3 Singapore, Singapore
October 8 – 11 Tabilaran & Panglao in Bohol and Cebu City, Philippines
December 12 – Bacolod & Silay, Negros Occidental, Philippines
December 26 – Singapore
December 27 – Present Melbourne, Australia

Yup, it’s been a pretty good year for travel.

New goal for 2007: pay off debts from travelling to be able to travel even further in 2008! I kid, of course there’s going to be a couple of trips for me next year, but mostly to domestic destinations.

Here’s to a great year, and for another awesome year ahead!