SHOULD I stay or should I go? A question many of us ask ourselves these days. Should I stay in Malaysia this summer or should I go on an overseas vacation?
Will I be able to leave, and maybe even more importantly, will I be allowed to come back if I do?
If you are an oldie like me, I'm sure you can't help but sing the first sentence of this article. A sentence any true punk rock fan will immediately know to attribute to the British band, The Clash.
While this iconic song, released in 1982, talks about love, relationship and an inevitable breakup, it could just as well become the new anthem of holidaymakers worldwide.
For years, many Malaysians and foreigners living here have planned, booked and taken vacations abroad, no big deal.
As is the human condition, we all feel the pull of the exotic. The further we travel, the greater our anticipation of good times, memorable experiences and true relaxation for our body and soul.
Leaving on a jet plane, to cite another catchy tune, seems a bit of a gamble these days.
Airlines aren't operating their pre-Covid routes and the few that do advertise prices more becoming of highway robbers than serious carriers.
Sailing, as Rod Stewart famously croons, is not an option either. Also, the notion of possibly being locked up in a cruise ship cabin for weeks, should anybody on board catch a cough, ruins any joyful anticipation of a holiday on the high seas. What are we to do now?
Try as we may, it looks like this year our best alternative is a staycation. Not a bad option actually, far from it.
Have you ever chatted with travellers, globetrotters, wanderers and tourists about Malaysia? Have you ever had a feeling that they know your country better than you do?
That they have visited sites they describe as absolutely extraordinary, but you have never heard of, let alone seen?
Let us discover Malaysia this year, why don't we? Plan a stay in a lavishly luxurious beach resort, for instance.
Too expensive, you say?
Not really, since you save on plane tickets, visa fees, currency exchange. Or how about an extended weekend in a Kuala Lumpur city centre hotel? Experience your capital city as a welcome guest for a change.
Marvel at the city's skyline from a rooftop swimming pool, high above your usual vantage point.
You can save yourself the trouble of buying all sorts of silly souvenirs, which you generally regret having acquired in a foreign country.
Have you ever spent a few nights in a traditional longhouse? Have you fed orang utans in the wild? Have you blown darts from a blowpipe in the rainforest? Every foreign tourist has, why not you?
We have all been a good sport, dealing with the Movement Control Order, home office, and all sorts of restrictions for weeks by now. Surely we deserve a reward, a vacation, a change of scenery.
But do we deserve jet lag? Do we crave endless queues at a check-in counter? Aeroplane food? Cramped seating arrangements? Delays or flight cancellations?
This year, let's do ourselves a favour and visit Malaysia, truly Asia.
Next year, well next year, maybe, we will hear London calling (courtesy of The Clash), again.
The writer is a long-term expatriate, a restless traveller, an observer of the human condition and unapologetically insubordinate
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times