Several months ago, I reserved my October travelling slot for an event that subsequently did not happen. A week ago, I wanted to see Autumn cherry blossoms in Japan, but just as I hit the "Pay" button for the airfare, the carrier also adjusted the price upwards. I then thought about having dinners with my younger son in Sydney, but he was too busy for them.
My fallback travelling destination is Shenzhen. Since I became an Arbitrator of the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration in 2015, I have visited the city pretty regularly to learn and work, and noticed its changing environment. Days ago, a travel guide book publisher suggested Shenzhen as the second best city to travel to for 2019.
I jumped the gun, departed for the city yesterday and checked in a boutique hotel. Not only did its look and feel meet my expectations, the hotel also delighted me by advising my check-out time would be 14:00. For the Tokyo, Sydney and Gold Coast hotels I stayed in September, the check-out times ranged from 10:00-12:00, noon being a rarity.
Travelling from Hong Kong to Shenzhen was not expensive and tiring at all. While doing nothing there was quite an option for me, I had the leisure to glance through a book that was deposited in a partition shelf, literally within an arm's length from my dinner table. I am convinced that having a monthly routine to break away from daily routines is great!