What's the most exciting city or place you have been to, and why was it so?
Do you think you'll ever go back there?

GREAT topic Diamond.

This is a hard one...can I say two? LOL

My first thought was Budepest, Hungry. What a magnificiant city. The buildings are just awe-some!

Then Venice, Italy came to mind......talk about unique beauty.

I would like to go back to both - will we? I don't know.

ohhhh ohhh, and I thought of a third. (sorry)

We were on a trip back from Finland, and we had a stop over in Keflevic, Iceland. We were actually traveling with our church, coming back from a conference. People were buying Iceland T-shirts (I was just rolling my eyes, as I don't feel that a stop in an airport consititutes an actual "visit" to the place).

Anywho, an annoucement came over the loudspeaker that a flight to NY was overbooked and they were looking for people to give up their seats. That wasn't our flight...but this little voice inside of me said that ours was going to have the same issue. So, I found my hubby, grabbed our tickets, and went to stand in line at our airline to find out if we were going to have the same issue. No sooner was I the 4th person in line, when the announcement came for our flight.

WOooohoooo. They needed 4 couples to let go of their seats, they would get a free roundtrip ticket to anywhere in the world, an overnight stay at a hotel in iceland, all meals, AND a tour the next day. We were in. O.K. Talk about nice "christian" people climbing all over each other to try to get to the top of the pig pile (I mean line). LOL It was, uuummm, interesting.

So, we got off the flight, and had a dream 24 hours in Iceland. The only yucky part was not having clean undergarmets and socks -- we had already been on the road for many, many hours.

The food was the freshest seafood I had EVER tasted. The dinner we had was buffet style....talk about seafood with every type of sauce.

There were two other couples from our church(and another random couple) that got bummped, we walked up and down the streets after dinner...played cards...it was wonderful.

The next day we got to go on the tour....wow. We saw a fish processing plant...AND...we got to go to the "blue lagoon". Now who here would willingly RENT a swimsuit. WELL, I have to tell you - I was NOT going to miss this experience. The blue lagon was a natural hot spring (HUGE) surrounded by volcanic rock, FUELED by the volcano, sitting in the shadow of the power plant that the hot springs generated power for. The temp of the wate was 101 degrees, the air temp. was in the 30's, so there was a beautiful mist rising from the waters.

So, I RENTED a swimsuit, and partook in a slice of sureal heaven!

I would loooovvveeee to go back and see more of Iceland. What a country!

Thanks for letting me share. lol

Danita

Jamaica, mon!
That was probably the best and most romantic week of my life.
The reason, Me, my husband, no kids, on a beautiful beach at an all inclusive club where the staff treated us like royalty.
No worries!
I'd love to go back someday.

Danita, yours sounds like it was a great time!

[ February 25, 2006, 12:10 PM: Message edited by: TVC15 ]

I never thought of Iceland as a place to visit but your trip made me think about it for sure.

This is a hard one as we travel a lot. I think St Tropez in Southern France. It's clean and beautiful with wonderful restaurants and little shops and huge yachts all along the coast.

We had lunch at this wonderful restaurant on the water with music playing and nude people sunbathing and the menu was the owner (in his speedos!) taking you to the kitchen where his mother was the chef and that's how you chose what to eat.

The bar was outside and the bartender was topless. After a while, you don't notice it anymore. There was a little clothing shop that had a runway show going all the time.

They didn't take credit cards...cash only. Just a lot of wonderful memories and we've gone back again and will probably do so again.

WoW Danita talk about being well traveled, so cool....

While growing up in Indiana with parents that didn't have much money left over to vacation outside the USA we went to places like Wisconsin Dells, had a summer place in The Indiana Dunes and of course to see the Redwoods in California and Yosemite National Park, your regular tourist stuff. As a young adult I came to Las Vegas for a vacation and was blown away, so much to see and do here. Years later I decided to pack up the kids and moved here. I have always wanted to see my beloved Italy but never have (YET) one never knows. I know its nothing like being in the real places but for now this will have to do, I visit Paris, Venice, Egypt, Rome, San Tropez, Rio and Treasure Island all right here in my back yard and never have to set foot on a plane...Works for me!....

[ February 25, 2006, 09:07 PM: Message edited by: chatty lady ]

Chatty,

THAT is what I LOVE about Vegas. I've been begging my husband to take me back - I didn't get enough of the "world of Vegas". I want my kids to see it too....just amazing! LOL.

I think YOU have the best of all the worlds...you can go anytime -- no language barrier, no issues with currency...and you can sleep in your own bed. LOL!

Danita

Danita..My son's best friend is getting married and my son is his best man...they are going to Iceland for a 5 day Bachelor party in May...12 guys and the groom"s Father...when he told me this I was dumbfounded...the last 3 weddings he was in, the bachelor parties were in Vegas...which I thought sounded great...but Iceland?? So I went online and did a search on Iceland and was completely blown away by what I read and saw..The Hot Springs, Fabulous restaurants, all kinds of entertainment and very reasonable travel packages. I really hate the cold weather..but I must admit...this looks like a very tempting place to vacation...

I love Islands though...and we have been lucky to travel to quite a few beautiful ones over the years...but I still think my very favorite is Bermuda...Maybe because we went there on our Honeymoon...it was like a dream come true...but we have been back there 3 more times and it never disappoints us...

Chatty, that's so cool...that's why we love going
to Vegas twice a year : ) And when we go there is
never enough time to cover everything...have yet to
see Jubilee!!

Girls, love reading your posts!

I have so many places I'd like to return to.
I am so in love with Germany, as I lived there as
a small child, then later again as an adult. We
lived in Kleinluder, a wee little town about one
hour away from Frankfurt.
We loved driving just about everywhere in Germany,
always went to the German Alps for ski vacations
(mostly to the town of Garmisch-Partenkirschen)
just a little south of Munich.
Over and over again we'd go to Rothenburg-ob-der-
tauber...very old and quaint German town loved by
tourists.

These days we find ourselves returning to very
exotic Bangkok, Thailand. I also want to return
to very exciting Hong Kong next year : )

Now I still need a long tour of the USA East Coast!

Diamond...I forgot to mention how much I loved Maui...all of the rainbows...breathtaking!!!I live on the East Coast though so I really hated the long plane ride to get there...so next time we visit Hawaii I told my hubby we should plan to stay for at least a month:) ...he rolled his eyes!!

Edinburgh, Scotland was like stepping back in time. The Royal Mile (which is a long mile from the top of a mountain to the base) was fabulous. A castle at the top, and a castle at the bottom. There were shops on either side of the tiny streets to please ANY shopper's taste, several churches, a cathedral with a lone Scotsman in his full dress playing his bagpipes, castles, as stated, and history galore. You could walk the entire city in a day and the friendliest people on the planet.

The evening food was so-so, but the rest of the fare was great. Especially breakfast and Tea-times. Everyone talks to you, and they are all very interested in the States. They seemed to be fascinated by Southern accents, or should I say, "redneck?" They asked me if I knew Lewis Grizzard. HA! They think if you are from the states, then you must know all the famous people.

My son said their WORST golf course was 10 times better than our best ones. He was in heaven.

Even their graveyards were worth spending time in viewing the gravestones and verage on them. I wish now I had written them all down. Oh, and this was where Sean Connery lived as well.

At the foot of the Royal Mile was a beautiful castle where the Queen stays when she visits. She was coming the day after we left...boo hoo!
JJ

Wait! I thought YOU were the Queen!?

I am honey....of humor...This was the Queen of one of those countries. You know? She has much bigger ahh...er...ahh...headaches.

teehee...JJ

My goodnes, you people are far more well travelled than I am.

I can think of a few places I particularly loved. One was Hawaii, which is by far the most beautiful place I've ever been. Then there was the week on Adros, in the Bahama Out Islands, the perfect place to get away from it all. And the rain forest on the Olympic Penninsula in WA. I've never seen anything else like it and couldn't believe we were still in North America!

Jackie...my daughter and her husband are stationed in Washington..NW of Seattle...is the Rain Forest you speak of near there? It sounds beautiful and I would love to see it when I visit them in the summer..this might sound stupid...but how do you tour a rain forest? Is it possible to drive through it?

Nancy, I just love Maui too--I just don't get there
often enough for one who lives two islands away, LOL!
We are always going to the other states or out of the
country. The last time I went to Maui was 2 years
ago and we stayed for 2 weeks. We stayed in the
Lahaina Kaanapali area : )

Cindy...we stayed at the Ritz Carlton in Kapalua(sp) but we did some shopping in Lahaina and I bought a watercolor of it and hung it in my bathroom..it makes me feel warm and sunny everytime I look at it...

I love your signature quote...it's so true..

You certainly could. The Olympic Pennisula is easily accessable, just a few hours from Seattle, but in a different world. We took our son there for 2 days after he finished graduate school at UW last June. It's like nothing I've ever seen in my life. Mountains on one side, wild ocean beaches on the other and rain forest in between. The rain forest is part of Olympic National Park. You'll want to park your car and go on one of the walking trails. I had tendonitis in my ankle when we were there and could still manage some of the shorter loop walks. There are boardwalks all over the place and park rangers who love to help. There are also some more challenging hiking trails. My husband and son took one of the longer nature walks and came back with pictures of an elk who wandered across the trail. I was so jealous that I couln't go with them. Someday I want to go back and meet that elk, too! Be sure you pack your foul weather gear. They call it the rainforest for a reason.

We used the Olympia National Park website to help plan our trip.

Oops! I meant Olympic National Park.

Jackie, sounds so good. I have yet to visit the Pacific Northwest. I want to explore that part of WA state and also BC/Vancouver Island.

Thanks Jackie...I just spoke to my Daughter and she and her hubby are going to check it out for me in another month or so...I sent her the link to the Olympic National Park website...I'm so glad you mentioned this...because they hadn't heard about the Rain Forest aspect and now they are excited about a new adventure to have to look forward to...Thanks alot...

Glad I could help. We really love the Pacific Northwest. Today my son asked me why I thought he kept going out in the cold NY winter without a hat and gloves. I told him his mind was still living in Seattle!

We spend a day in Victoria, took the high speed ferry over from Seattle. It's beautiful there!

We took the Ferry to Victoria last summer...it was just beautiful...I loved the gorgeous mountains in Washington and I thought the flowers that were blooming everywhere were unbelievably vivid in color...much moreso than in Pennsylvania where I live...but I couldn't truly enjoy it all because I knew at the end of my visit I would be leaving my little girl out there...and it was breaking my heart... ...I'm such a wimp when it comes to leaving my kids...I hope I grow out of this stage soon....

Don't hold you breath, Nancy. I've decided I'll never grow out of it. At least when Ed was going to school out there, we knew he intended to move back east when he finished. It's so much better having both our kids close enough so we can be with them in a couple of hours by plane if we need to. Poor Ed's credit card debt was so high with all the flying back and forth he did when his Dad was so sick last year!

When my kids come to visit, I always cry when they pass through the security gate at the airport. But, I feel it's easier for me to get on a plane after visiting them and I'm not sure why. Maybe because I'm the one leaving and not the one being left. Being a mom can be difficult at times, no matter what the ages of our children.

As a bonus to this thread, why don't we all tell what our favorite food was in our favorite places?

France: the bread and pastry.

Dianne, I remember seeing my son walking towards me at the airport his first visit home from college. Gosh, he looked so good, so happy. I was tickled to see him. I get teary eyed thinking about it.

My favorite vacation spots are all beaches:

Caneel Bay, St John
Little Dix, Virgin Gorda
Kapalua and Mauna Kea in Hawaii

We've been to several islands, but these were my favorites.

Favorite vacation spot with the kids:
Atlantis in the Bahamas.

Best food is always the homemade breads and pastries at the resorts. I'm a carb addict. Just ask the women in the diet forum.

Jackie, instead of paying the school directly, we charge the tuition and pay the credit card company immediately. That way we get frequent flyer miles and our son flies for free. He's flying home for spring break for FREE! Gotta love those free flights.

My kids both arrange and pay for their own travel arrangements, and they use frequent flyer miles whenever they can. Unfortunately, our financial circumastances are such that we cannot afford to pay for those ourselves, although we help as much as we are able.

My brother used his frequent flyer miles to fly us to LA to visit once, and he put us in first class. Now THAT was an experience. They tell me it's not as nice these days.

Now that's what I call a VERY nice brother Jackie...my husband used to work for a company that flew us First Class wherever we went...even to Spain..I felt so spoiled...he left that company
after a few years though...and now I hate to fly...my mother used to tell me..."You can't miss what you never had" she was so right!!!

I really loved St. John Dotsie...it's amazing to see all of the high school kids in their uniforms riding on the ferry to St Thomas every day to get to school...and the natural beauty on that little island is so breathtaking...sigh..I sure could get used to that lifestyle...island living really calls my name...

my favorite island treat is a chocolatey cocktail called a Bushwacker...and all of the fresh fish those islands seem to offer...

blondi, I loved St John, but hated flying in there. We landed on a dirt path wile the goats scattered making room for our arrival. As much as I loved that place, I'm not sure if I'd go back for that reason. But the beauty of the island is out of this world.

The only time we flew first class was coming home from London. I wom a trip the first year we were married and the people at the airport thought we were newlyweds so they bumped us to first class!

Dots..we flew into St.Thomas and took the ferry to St. John...I wouldn't want to go back if I had to land on a dirt road either..

First class to London? Not too shabby ...don't you love when unexpectedly fabulous things just happen to you?

oops, my mistake. So did we. It was Virgin Gorda where we flew in on the dirt road scattering goats.

Where was the post that I mentioned taking my son away on spring break? I'm losing it. Anyway, soemone asked where we were going.We're heading to Jamaica.

Here's the scoop. He and his buddies searched forever to find a cheap spring break vacation they could all afford and couldn't find one.

I took this as the perfect opportunity to do something nice with him since his 21st birthday is just around the corner. So the two of us are heading to a sunny beach for four days. I figure we both like the sun, books, beaches, tennis and eating. Why not? I'm getting excited.

That's Awesome Dotsie..your son will always remember his special 21st birthday gift/trip with his Mom...I hope you have fabulous weather and lots and lots of laughs while you are there...You can't go wrong with Jamaica..are you staying at an all inclusive?

I'm going to a semi Spring Break with my 21 year old daughter too....we're going to Daytona Beach where she will be competing in the College Cheerleading Nationals for 3 days but then we are going to stay another 3 days for some fun in the sun too...I think we are lucky to have kids who want to share these things with us...don't you?

Both of you are to be given kudos and high fives for being so involved in their lives. The trips sound fab, and I just bet you all have the time of your life! Good for you...

JJ

Dotsie and Nancy,

Both of your spring trips with your children sound awesome! I'll be vising my kids in NY in a couple of weeks on our way to VA for Chuck's sister's wedding. We'll be staying with Ed in his apartment, Laura is taking a day of to spend in the city with us and they're taking us to a Broadway show. I'm counting the days!

Wow saw a program last night about Ireland and really saw what wonders our JJ has to look forward to when visiting there this spring...If I were wealthy I believe I would spend my time between Ireland, Italy, Greece and of course USA. JJ best be careful however there are 10,000 pubs in Ireland and they all prepare scrumptious meals of lamb, corn beef and cabbage, bacon fried potatoes, oh my!!! It all looked so good I nearly gnawed on the TV legs....

Yummmm, Chatty.
We love Irish corned beef and cabbage!

Blondi, Yes, I feel so blessed. I can't wait.

I haven't seen you in a couple days so maybe you are already vacationing. Hope you are having a great time. Let us know how your daughter's cheerleading team did.

Jackie, what show are you goign to see? When I went to NY with the girls we saw Mama Mia. It was the perfect show for a bunch of midlife women.

Chatty, I roared when I read you almost ate the TV legs.

I love corned beef and cabbage. I've had it tiwce in the past couple of weeks. My maiden name is McNamara.

One night Dad made it in his crock pot and brought it to us so we could all feast. Another night I made it. I also do it in the crock pot. It's so easy.

We're going to see "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee." It's one of the few hit musicals that my daughter the theater maven hasn't seen yet, and it's supposed to be wonderful. I can't wait! Chuck and I met through a community theater group, and my kids inherited our love of live performances.

Sounds like fun.

Do, or did you and Chuck ever perform?

It was great fun. I performed on stage there and in high school and college. Chuck was on-stage a couple of times in small roles, but preferred to help behind the scenes. Mostly, we were a production manager/stage manager team for several different groups. We loved it but gave it up after the kids were born. I've thought about going back to it but decided it wouldn't be the same. It was a wonderful part of our life, though.

You know what they say about Corgi's...

the Cardigan Welsh Corgi has the tail but the
Pembroke Welsh Corgi has the Queen.

oh...about where we've been...the first time I ever needed a passport it was to fly to Russia. Dave and I left the USA on Mon a.m. and got to Moscow on Wed p.m. /I don't care about "time zones"...my body said it was 2.5 days!/ The man who hired me for the job wasn't there, was in Armenia and wouldn't get to Russia for a week. He had a "no-neck ABC guy" pick us up and we left for a 5 hour van ride with two guys who knew /being a relative term after all/ English...at least one of them did. I eventually called him Col. Klink but he didn't understand why.

Being in Russia was wild in a way visiting other places wasn't wild...we couldn't speak nor read the language and were *totally* at the mercy of other people. I just LOVED that trip!

My most exciting trip was around the world. I left from the East coast and returned to the west coast. Took a couple of months and visited tons of places all the way around.

Of all the places though I loved Paris and Hawaii best. I know they are tourist traps and cliche, but they are just so beautiful.

Thistle, talk about time zones, we left Tokyo one day and arrived in Hawaii the day BEFORE. It was weird.

But best of all though are the car trips through the U.S. I love seeing things up close and the scenery going by.

Love the Virgin and Greek islands and the coastal towns along the Mexican Baja. But don't like cruises at all.

smile

smile, I'm with you on the car trips. I'd love to see all 50 states and may continue that mission when the kids leave the nest.

How many states have you visited?

Thistle, are you going back to Russia?

JAckie, sounds like fun. I have a friend who does occasional lcal dinner theaters and loves it. That's something she's going to do more of in her empty nest.