My One Place: Tokyo, Japan

We’ve all thought about it: what is the number one place you want to visit in your life? Chris Guillebeau took that question one step further and come up with an interesting and fun exercise to get you there.

The rules? 1) You only get one place. 2) It has to be somewhere you haven’t been yet. Pretty simple right?

My one place is Tokyo, Japan.

Now here’s where it gets interesting: you have a deadline of 3 years to get to your one place.

For myself, I have decided that I will make it to Tokyo by the summer of 2013, or within two years. That is still a pretty generous timeline though, and I would like to make it there much sooner. This is one goal I will be chronicling the progress of on this blog.

Once you have chosen where you want to go, do something to help you get there today. Read a book, research your place, or start budgeting your money. I have already read a lot of resources on Japan and even about finding work to stay long-term if I chose to. I will begin learning Japanese before the end of the year.

As noted by Chris, you can get to almost anywhere in the world saving only $2 a day (or less). Money is not what holds us back from goals like this, but actually making the decision to go and actually following through.

I have never been outside of the United States, and earlier this year I wanted to change that. I planned a trip to Australia, got my passport, and even booked my flight. Unfortunately the trip still managed to fall through, but taking the plunge and hitting “purchase” on what would have been the biggest purchase I’ve ever made (college loans notwithstanding) was definitely the hard part.

Your turn. What is your one place and how are you planning to get there?