To Travel or Not to Travel, that is the question
By Himawan Prajogo
Well, let’s be completely transparent here. We are a travel site. We WANT people to travel, especially for golf. And if you decide to take one of our great travel packages, mucho excellente. However, we understand with the economy what it is and with Swine, Avian, and possibly soon Turtle Flu running amok, we understand if you might be reluctant to travel. Well, today’s blog entry is all about reasons on why you might consider golf travel once in a while. Hopefully we’ll be able to help you make up your mind instead of just gazing longingly at the golf travel magazine articles.
1. The H1N1 virus has gone global. No matter where you are, and this is not to take the Health Authorities lightly, you now stand a chance to catch the virus. It is of course important for you to take care of your personal hygiene, dose up on the vitamin C, take plenty of rest and water and remember not to shake your caddy’s hand right after he has sneezed into it (even if he did climb a 50 meter deep ravine to retrieve your expensive Callaway V1x ball.. just give him a nice big tip). It is also important to not be in close proximity with lots of other people if you can help it. This is the one time I’m glad that golf is not a contact sport and is played in wide open spaces. Bring your facemask if that doesn’t hamper your swing, and take care out there, we hope you’ll be fine.
2. You’re in a golfing rut. If you can sleepwalk through your usual 18 or 9 holes in your normal course in your normal weekly round, it’s time for a bit of a change. Go to a strange new country on a brand new course you’ve only heard about. There’s nothing like the feeling of standing in a fresh new fairway, checking out the scorecard and yardage, and then, moments later, finding new ways and places to lose your ball. There’s also the challenge of trying to decide whether you are going to try to cut across an unfamiliar dogleg, not knowing what lies behind those tall trees. That and of course listening to your flight mate yell from somewhere deep in the rough “Where the !@#@ is the !@#@ pin ?? Oh my God ! Look at that friggin’ bunker !!”. And, if by sheer luck, you manage to get on in two at a long, unfamiliar Par 5, imagine the smug grin you can plaster all over your face when you say “Easy course, first time playing here and I got an eagle putt.. how ‘bout that ??”
3. Your spouse might need some, er, space. If you happen to be a golfing couple, excellent, by all means plan it as a family trip. But I’ve been very happily married more than 10 years to a nongolfer, and my wife is the light and the soul of my life, but there are times where she is glad I am taking that golfing day trip to Malaysia so that she can take my daughters shop for clothes without me ‘grumbling and looking constipated’ (which is how she describes my mood if I have to stand around a ladies’ clothes department for more than 10 minutes). Find a good time, make sure you are not timing your trip to coincide with your son’s lead role in the school Hamlet production or anything, and enjoy a bit of time and space by yourselves. Absence makes the heart grow fonder .. just don’t overdo it :-)
4. Travel broadens the mind. Don’t stop at 18 holes. There are many exotic and interesting places near almost every golf course. Unless you go to a golf course like the Lucifer’s Anvil Golf Course (http://www.keisterphoto.com/gallery/fs_golf.htm), it’s a good bet that there are fun things to do within an hour of your hotel and golf course. Do you love the view of the Tanah Lot temple from the Nirwana Bali’s fairways ? Make sure you go to the actual temple after you finish your round. Playing a round at Cambodia’s fantastic golf course at the Phokeetra resort ? Make sure you don’t miss Angkor Wat as well. And don’t forget the hiking, diving, parasailing, or just plain old lying at the beach gazing at your navel that you can do as well. In fact, it’s a good idea to leave a golfing-free day or two at your location just so you can do everything beyond the 18th hole.. We will not earn a penny as our revenue is purely golf-based, but go right ahead. You deserve it :-)
5. And most important of all, Travel reboots your brain. When you are faced with the daily slog of going to and from your office, when the daily press of humanity in the MRT at rush hour or the bumper to bumper traffic in PIE just gets to you until you feel like running naked through your block just to see what will happen, your best bet is to quickly book a weekend getaway to Bintan or Batam just to clear your head. I’m sure you’ll find it’s hard to argue that sipping margaritas by the pool after a great (or even a crap) round beats going to NTUC to do your weekend shopping . (Non-singaporean readers, excuse the Singaporean references in this one :-) ). You will come back feeling refreshed, and when the daily rat race gets too much again, well, letsgolfasia.com is but a click away :-)
If we still haven’t managed to convince you, we understand. You’ll have to make up your own mind. But remember that life passes us but once and as a wise man said once: Carpe Diem (as your caddy goes down that ravine to get another one of your sliced Titleists)