My favorite part of my trips

I’ve been living a (hashtag) blessed life as I had the opportunity to travel to different places as part of my work as an Automattician. Now that the Division Meetup in Munich, Germany is passed, I want to recap some of my favorite things from my travels so far.

Orlando, United States of America (2019)

This was the highlight. This was my very first major overseas trip and it was for Automattic’s Grand Meetup. I also fulfilled my childhood dream of visiting NASA Kennedy Space Center. This is a dream that was built since elementary school.

Bonus: Another best part of this trip is the Indonesiamatticians ? I’m glad my first Grand Meetup trip was with them, as I learned how to prepare myself for more trips in the future.

Langkawi, Malaysia (2022)

Not exactly an overseas trip, but Langkawi fast became my favorite place in Malaysia. I love the beautiful outdoors and the island hopping activities. The beaches are out of this world: The azure sky with turquoise sea is a match made in heaven.

Madrid, Spain (2022)

Hands down: The Royal Palace of Madrid and Museo Nacional del Prado. One of my dreams is to come back to Madrid and properly enjoy the museum and the palace. Someday.

Denver, United States of America (2022)

This was Automattic’s first division meetup after the pandemic, and while Denver’s cold climate was rough on me, I enjoyed some parts of the town that “quintessentially American”: The diner.

Some Automatticians decided to take a stroll and ate in a diner nearby (The Delectable Egg, if you must know,) and I remember a couple more of non-USmatticians joined with the same idea as I did: “We are curious about US diners and we want to try it.”

Bonus: Nearby to our hotel is this candy store (I just found out the name of the place: Kilwins) and I tried my very first caramelized apple there!

Japan Trip (2023) — Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka

This is hard. Similar to Kennedy Space Center, visiting Japan has been my dream since my teenage years. There are tons of favorite parts on the trip that I hold dear to my heart, but if I got to choose one, that would be Kyoto with its temples. I wish to come back to Japan and enjoy Kyoto and its stories and beauty.

Sapporo, Japan (2023)

Another hard choice. I went to Sapporo for a team meetup, and there have been so many of my favorite parts of the city as I was extremely lucky to witness the transition from late summer to early autumn. If I must choose, it would be the park nearby the hotel: Sapporo Odori Park.

Munich, Germany (2023)

My latest trip in 2023. My favorite part is Englischer Garten (the English Garden) that located right next to our hotel. Division Meetups tend to be packed with activities and workshops, so it was really refreshing to be able to take a 15-minutes walk on the park, and realizing why Munich is one of the capital cities of fairy tales. It’s easy to imagine a magical toadstool castle suddenly appears on a turn behind an oak tree!

Here’s to more seeing the world.