The Legend of the Flashpacker: Part 2

BASED ON A TRUE STORY


Have you ever wondered why your friends never ask you to join them on a trip BEFORE the actual trip?

You have no time to pack and be in Bangkok ASAP even if it's just about two hours away. Or is it three? You close one eye while the other looks at the red and blue calendar on your wall.

Alarmed, you get up right away and take a closer look.

You got a long weekend coming right up!

No plans at all. Yes, you have nothing planned. At all.

You imagine your friends in Thailand may be heading to Phuket. You take a deep breath, wishing they invited you earlier so you could have at least planned for it.

You convince yourself that envy is one of the Seven Deadly Sins. You want to create your own adventure! You don't want to be stuck again at your apartment building, waiting for your frozen soda to melt.

You MUST do something productive this long weekend. And you are willing to spend what is left of your performance bonus just to experience the sheer pleasure of being away from home.

The late afternoon showbiz talk show is about to end. Even without looking at your wall clock, which needs a battery replacement badly, you know it is almost 6PM.

You rush to your makeshift coat hanger and grab your two-week old yellow towel. You jump into the shower, change into your usual white shirt and denim shorts weekend getup, and take the train going to the nearest air-conditioned sanctuary you know  - (insert drum roll here) - the mall.

The announcement on the train says it is your stop. You check your watch. It's almost 7PM. If the mall closes at 8, you got about an hour to shop for your next long weekend adventure.

"Miss, what time do you close?"

The information desk clerk is giggling and busy tinkering with her cellphone and asks you again, "What was that sir?"

You repeat the question and she tells you you have about two more hours.

Good.

"Do you have a travel agency in here?"

"We have two. But the other one closed about half an hour earlier", she responds. She directs you to proceed to the basement, walk past the food court, to check if the other travel agency is still open.

Lo and behold. It still is.

As you wait for your turn, you spot a young couple (probably planning to spend their honeymoon somewhere) grabbing what seemed to be free travel flyers. You wait for them to finish and once they settle at the corner of the waiting room to compare Bali and Boracay, you stand up and examine the flyer rack.

Bangkok 3 Days 2 Nights - $299
No. You don't want to bump into your friends and be suspected of being a stalker.

Tokyo 5D, 4N - $649
No. Too long. And too expensive.

Guam 3D, 2N - $499
No. Still too expensive. You almost spent all your bonus, remember?

Hong Kong 3D, 2N - $168
One hundred sixty eight dollars? You pull out your phone and tap your currency converter app. Not bad.

"Number 3", you hear the staff calling. That's you.

The lady at the counter is tired but tries to fake a smile and asks you how she can help. 

Smiling from ear to ear, you show her your Hong Kong flyer and blurt out, "I'm taking this." •