I am a city girl; born and fully bred in the capital city and I am truly proud of my city heritage.

There is just always that affinity I have with cities in general and is also clearly explains my constant obsession with traipsing cities even when I am on vacation.

I am generally greeted with raised eyebrows, dropping jaws and exclamation marks when I respond to questions on my choice of destination for a short break or my idea of holiday and I mention the name of another city.
Sometimes it is an even more populous one than the one I am already in at present; or actually most of them are denser than my own living city anyway.
I could have actually said that I was heading to Jupiter to warrant such attention.
It is incomprehensible that a city dweller would look to escape the chaos and stress from one city, to well, another city far busier than the one she was already from.
I can understand that, it sounds far-fetched, but I also understand my own attraction to cities.
It is just magnetizing.
Don’t judge.

Cities are always my thing and even when on vacation, I will always end up in some city.
I don’t mind even taking a break in a city, and to me, that is a break. No kidding.
I can go from city to city, and an escape could be just to another city.

I don’t usually travel during public holidays which are often the peak season and reasonably so as it is a time when everyone is given valid time off synchronously and there is no need for leave application (for those at work and school). It can be challenging to maneuver through the crowds and the massive queues at the airport, cafes and well, just almost everywhere.
However, my work schedule of late has left me with no choice but to join the trend in welcoming the long weekend with open arms and just take some time off to breathe.
It was an impromptu decision to take advantage of the long weekend in conjunction with the Labor Day followed by the celebration of the Buddhist’s Vesak Day.
I know, Labor Day is a nationwide and even internationally observed holiday and joining the crowd in traveling on such a major public holiday is almost equivalent to suicide.
Throw in another major holiday and that is just double suicide.

Imagine the crowds not just at our very own airport, but also at the airport of our destination and then of course, there is the navigation at the city of our destination.
It is almost as if our idea of a vacation is to join the crowds, intentionally.

Well, our expectations and anxiety over the crowds at the airport and everywhere was surprisingly and quickly smothered upon arrival at the departure hall.
 I was quite frankly taken aback by the quiet atmosphere at the airport.
Is the economy situation that bad?
(Perhaps it was our local airport which was just not that popular with the travelers anymore, and they could have headed to the other airport which is buzzing with continuous take-offs with their attractive offers?)

The city of my destination was another surprise; for despite the dense population within the small area of coverage, the crowd was just below my expectation.
I was kind of expecting more of a stampede-like environment and I am not sure whether I should be disappointed or elated that it turned out the other way around.
I guess I would go for the latter and count my blessings that I get to enjoy the city with fewer disturbances.

I still welcomed the break, crowd or not, for I really needed to just take some time off to just clear my mind and just look at the world.
I mean, Look at the world out there.
It is constantly filled with activities and things are always happening all over the world, and what I am going through does not even add to that small percentage of the world’s problems.
It is something to ponder upon because really, the world does not revolve around us; or me and I really do know that.
There is just so much out there that being overwhelmed with my own work and life is just nothing compared to the world’s troubles and also the many things I am unaware of. I am not being godly here nor am I trying to preach to show that I am such a motivated person but more on a self-realization and just purely reflecting on my own life’s perspectives.
That’s what travel does to you, and we don’t need to fly far but sometimes just take that step outside our office or house and just look at the skies or even beyond the door/fence/window.

Birds chirping, cars and motorcycles passing by, joggers on the run, dogs and cats running after each other, and sounds of buses or even trains and occasional humming sounds of an airplane in the air could even be heard.
Well, especially in the city.
Life is buzzing all around, and the city is full of them.
I chuckle at myself as I make my way towards another city far more hectic and populous than mine, and I call it in the name of vacation.
Well, I do like that and that is my idea of a vacation.



Fast paced walking on the streets, cling clang sounds from the trams, furious cabs swerving on the roads, double decker buses appearing side by side intermittently on the road and mass congregation of people crossing the roads are subtle descriptions of the city I visited recently.

Of course, towering skyscrapers forming the panoramic skyline and the buzzing life even after dusk is even more synonymous to this city which is one of the busiest and happening cities in the world.
There is no prize to guessing the city with such non subtle hints depicting the typical scenes in the city; or well, it is almost the same in every city anyway.
It is not my first time in this city, and there is just so much to look forward to in this city.

Besides, I could never get lost in a city.
Did I mention that I grew up in a city, and that I just love cities?
It is that in-built navigational sense; it is almost intuitive when I am in a city, I kid you not.
It is just the same with shopping malls, though that is a separate topic altogether.



Just a little perspective and sharing on my love for cities, there just doesn't seem to be an end to it...

Do you love cities just as much as I do?

I look forward to sharing stories from my short short trip and city getaway :)