I am looking forward to the New Year and will undertake a major step in achieving a major goal in my personal life, in getting my career not just back to where it was before but more, in trying to be as healthy as possible and in fulfilling my travel objectives.

For sure, I am so tanned now from hanging out too much at the beach and pool, from trekking and hiking, from walking a lot here in Asia. My Mom was even surprised, telling me that she has never seen me this dark, considering I go to the beach and hiking a lot in California too. She even joked that "you are now tall, dark and handsome." Not sure about the handsome part. I am just decent looking. Somehow I think the traveling just made me look haggard. My kind of traveling is not what I consider luxurious since I really go out there and try to experience the outdoors, the nature, the local life and even go to neighborhoods where most tourists have never been. I try to capture everything with my camera and to experience its environment fully. The only thing I care about when I travel is where I stay. It has to be clean and very comfortable with an air-conditioner, and the host (if it is an AirBnB) or the receptionist (if it is a hotel) has to be friendly and helpful. If not, I tend to move to another place right away. I hate rude people. A smile definitely makes someone's day. It is easier to smile than to frown.