Where are you and what do you miss?

As it is the holiday season, I am just wondering who is currently traveling? Where is everyone? What do you miss when traveling during the holidays? How do you celebrate when you're traveling?

Me, I am going to be in England to visit girlfriends family for the holidays. We already saw my family for thanksgiving, so that is covered. Looks like next year I'll be somewhere in Aus.

So where are you all?

08 was in Boquete Panama for Christmas, went out for pizza Xmas eve, took a walk around town X mas day & Havana New Years (50th anniversary of the Revolution), watched fireworks over the Malecon & partied until dawn with new friends.

09 was in Bangkok for both, spent Xmas eve on Khoa San Road & had traditional Xmas dinner at Muligans bar there, quiet New years at a hotel

This year my new home in Playa San Diego, El Salvador, not sure yet

Sure don't miss the cold & snow!!

My family has a tradition of going skiing out West every year over the break- this year I'll be skiing at Telluride, Colorado assuming they get more snow. So our Christmas on the road involves traditions such as my brother finding the biggest knife he can in the condo and tromping off into the national forest to get us a tree while my sister and I make a star and ornaments out of aluminum foil (in Hungarian tradition baby Jesus and the angels bring the tree along with the presents on Christmas Eve, so not like we'd want a tree before then anyway).

I confess I wonder what will happen next year as it looks like both my brother and I will be in graduate programs in Europe and I won't be surprised if my sister is engaged or married this time next year. Maybe we can convince them all to move our ski vacation to the Alps?

My initial answer before reading the post was "I'm in NZ and miss travelling!"

Last year we prepared for Christmas in Romania, but were in Turkey by Christmas day.
The year before we celebrated the advent season in Laos (we must have been the only ones in the whole country singing carols I think!) and then celebrated Christmas Day at Angkor Wat, having zipped there via Bangkok (Busman, perhaps we were there at the same time) to pick up friends for our Cambodia leg.
Our preparations include daily readings of the entire story of God from creation to Christmas and to the future too. When possible we find a candle to light just coz we like candles! And we sing lots of carols together.

Mama-to-many I returned to Bangkok from Myanmar on Dec 21, spent a couple nights at the airport 13 Coins, 4 nights including Christmas at Shambara hostel just off Khoa San Road, just had to experience it, then until Jan 3 at the 13 Coins downtown before heading to Chiang Mai,laos, Vietnam, Cambodia & back to Thailand for the 3rd time

snap busman. We trained down from the Lao border/Nong Khai to arrive on the 20th, just stayed three days at the Train Inn next to the train station while we waited for our friends coming from NZ, who were held up in Brunei due to plane delays for 24 hours before heading on to Cambodia, Vietnam, China and northwards before turning west!

My return should have read Dec 22, so I was out by the airport deciding what to do while you were at the train station. So close yet so far!!

In Delhi, leaving to Gorakphur (near Nepali border) in about an hour.

I miss good mash potatos! I just had "mash potatos" at this place...wow, don't quite know how to describe it. I can't even tell if it was potatos I was eating.

I'm a single male Canadian living in southern Yemen. One can imagine Christmas isn't exactly a major event around here. I have been living in non-Christian countries for the better part of 2 decades now. And to be honest, it was never that big a holiday in my household when i was growing up. But without question the biggest thing i miss is SNOW!

I am in India and I really miss quiet, peaceful streets and organized traffic....

Cheers,
Renee

Thinking a little more about this thread because I've missed major holidays before but not Christmas- that one's non-negotiable.

Most recently I was in Argentina over (American) Thanksgiving for the first time- was in Argentina for work and used the holiday to explore. Did not find a turkey meal in all of Argentina for the date itself but the thing was I wasn't homesick until calling home and chatting to everyone who'd just had the feast and were about to cut into the pumpkin pie... It's strange because you can't not call home on major holidays, but all it did was make me upset. I suspect such phone calls are more for those doing the same ol' things without you though, as you wouldn't notice the specialness on yet another day on the road.

I am in Cuenca, Ecuador with my partner. We actually rented an apartment here for 5 weeks, moving in the day after Thanksgiving and we'll be here until the 30th so we'll have our Christmas here. We were looking for a place to rest for a month, having been traveling 8.5 months now, and it happened to coincide nicely with the holidays.

We were able to cook a big Thanksgiving dinner with a friend, though we had to settle for a chicken. We certainly missed our families' cooking, my chicken sucked! But the stuffing was good.

Mostly, I miss my friends and my family. It also doesn't quite feel like the Christmas season without the cold weather but I shouldn't complain about that too much.

And I miss big, proper Cheeseburgers. Always cheeseburgers...

I am in Albuquerque, going to school.

I will be in Florida with my father over christmas, and hopefully it will be warm there.

I will be in Mexico for a full week, imagine that! soon after I come back from Florida.

Plans are to see Teotihicuan, Xochimilco, the David Sigueros mural, Diego rivera art, and the National museum of Anthropology. If my companion turns out to be a marxist, we can see the home of Leon Trotsky. If not, I'll skip it!!!!

I supoose we should see the 'leaning cathedral'. It always gives people a little surprise, though they have stabilised it finally, I think. Yeah, great idea to build a massive cathedral on sandy soil without going to bedrock or use deep enough pilings.

Interesting answers. It is hard not to miss anything during holidays when abroad.

Busman - Havana for NYE? That sounds amazing.

Tortuga_traveller - I am in florida now and it is freezing... almost literally. Lows tonight 32-34 and that is in southern Florida. Bundle up!

Funny that I also dont get homesick until I call home during the gatherings. Thats when I miss the family. This year Im going to be in England visiting the girlfriends family before our 12 month Work holiday to Aus all next year.

Not sure about anyone else, but while traveling I definitely get reflective right before I leave for a big trip and during holidays.

I am in South Korea teaching English and have been here for exactly 10 months to the day. Holidays are huge for me and it's my first time away from home, but thankfully I have my boyfriend to celebrate with.

Even though it has snowed here already, we are originally from Maine and so we miss big snow storms, quiet back roads winter driving and all of the Christmas lights on people's houses!

Even though a lot of people "celebrate" Christmas here, it's not the same. For Thanksgiving we got together with some friends and enjoyed a roast chicken dinner, (no turkey here!) We don't even have ovens so we had to buy it cooked from the market.

I am still trying to decide what to do on Christmas day. Most friends will be traveling so a party is out. We decorated a mini tree (our first fake one ever) and will try to make something nice for dinner, but like I said, without an oven it's hard. No matter how many Christmas carols I play on Pandora it still doesn't feel like Christmas here..

oh well! The sacrifices we all make for amazing experiences