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Q. If you've ever gone away for the holidays, which was the best trip?

A. This past Christmas, my husband and I went to Whistler, Canada. It was my first time seeing so much snow on Christmas and now I want to always be in a place with snow during the holidays. One of the most spectacular sights I’ve ever seen was on the Peak 2 Peak Gondola ride, which rises to about 1,400 feet off the ground, and you see the gorgeous snowcapped mountains from a bird’s-eye view.

Q. What are your five favorite cities?

A. Mumbai, Varanasi (India), Vancouver, Barcelona, Tulum.

Q. Where have you traveled to that most reminded you of home?

A. I visited Morocco when I was studying abroad in Spain back in college and I remember feeling like the culture and the people were so similar to that of India. Even though the language is different, it felt like home. I consider India my other home outside of the United States.

Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?

A. Yoga pants, vegan protein bars for when I can’t find vegan meals, a good book, a journal and warm socks for the freezing airplanes.

Q. What would be your dream trip?

A. I would love to spend a few months in Europe with my husband, visiting historical sites, learning about different cultures and traveling by car or train to see as much as possible in between each destination.

Q. What is your best and/or worst vacation memory?

A. I went to my best friend’s wedding in Mumbai with my husband last year. I was so excited for it and also to show my then fiancé the city, because I used to live in Mumbai for a couple of years before I knew him. I had very precisely planned all the people I wanted him to meet, the places I wanted us to visit and for him to just see what my life was like when I lived there. I got so sick the day we arrived, that I ended up missing half of the wedding events and not being able to do any of the things I had planned for my husband and I to do in our short visit. I was so depressed, but the beautiful thing about it was that I was able to just let go of all the expectations and plans I had for the trip, which were actually stressing me out, and I learned my lesson that you can only plan so much and then you just have to go with the flow. We ended up having an amazing experience anyway. I’ll never forget how compassionate, loving and wonderful my husband was when he had to take care of me. These are vacation memories that you can’t plan.

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(Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and travel writer. You can respond to this column by visiting her website at www.jaehakim.com. You may also follow “Go Away With…” on Twitter at @GoAwayWithJae where Jae-Ha Kim welcomes your questions and comments.)

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