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Watching the sunset from the Pont Neuf in May. It was a gloriously sunny day, the humidity was high and everyone was pausing their cameras to marvel at the grandness of the moment.
It's the sensuous climate that gives Paris it's reputation for romance. The atmosphere moves you to it. |
Wandering around London's St. Paul's Cathedral at dusk.
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Happening to be in Rome on Saturday December 8, 2007 - the day of the Immaculate Conception - and seeing the Pope go down the street of my hotel on his way to bless the Statue of the Virgin Mary at the Piazza di Spaggna.
And, along with that, being in Rome on the day that the Italian citizens celebrated their first day of Christmas shopping! If you ever questioned taking a trip to Italy in December, that trip told me why it's far better than going in May or June when all of the tourists go (which I've also done). Felice Anno Nuovo! |
When my ATM card FINALLY worked in Budapest. The stupid VISA people did not unblock it when I left the US as I had called and asked them to do. It was a hassle getting things straightened out, as they kept insisting everything was fine (Yeah, that's why we were talking in the first place). For about 36 hours I walked around with my stomach churning with what felt like were machetes.
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Fun thread! I am having a hard time with the ONE moment. Our trips are so fabulous and my husband is so amazing that each and every moment is great....
The moment when the bus came over the hill at St Gilgen and we saw the "onion dome" church from "Sound of Music" and the aqua Lake Wolfgangsee....ahhhh bliss! Then, a meal on a drizzly day in the castle-like setting of Stiftskellar St Peter with torches burning on the walls and warm soup and cool white wine. |
Standing in the middle of the Marienplatz in Munich during the Christmas Markets at night. I had a mug of gluhwein in one hand and a nutella crepe in the other. Simple, yet wonderful. :)
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Taking my grandson the Rome for his fifth birthday in May. We took him to the Med to go swimming. He had the time of his life and is still talking about it.
Of course, his mom & dad went along too. It was a trip of a lifetime! |
Well, totally uncharacteristically, I had only 2 days in Europe in 2007 - in Amsterdam, so it's easy to single them out as being my favorites.
But had wonderful times in NYC, Boston, Chicago, New Orleans, and Kenya, so can't complain. |
Oh this is easy. Kissing my new Parisian "friend" at Pub St Germain last March. Ah bliss.
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1. A 10 days stay in Weggis/Lucerne, Switzerland and taking a daily drive to one large mountain pass and covered many of the mountain passes.
2. Journey by cruise ship between the three Scandinavian countries |
Standing on the ramparts of the ruins of a castle in Terena Portugal, at sunset, with my husband in my arms and a vodka & tonic in my hand.
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I was lucky enough to be able to return to Paris and London in October (after a very long absence!)with my 16 year old daughter who was on her first visit to both cities. We had many memorable moments but for me, my favourite was when I discovered that at Place de la Concorde I could simply stand in one spot and in one turn take in such wonderful sights and see iconic attractions such as the Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysees, Eiffel Tower, the Ferris Wheel,Tuileries,D'Orsay and Paris traffic (among others!)- a truly parisian experience!
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Two more Turkey moments. We were driving back along Med heading back towards Ephesus. Stopped in small fishing village, looking for a hotel. We park on a street and while SIL is going to check one out, a man comes out to car and says he has rooms in his hotel. Check the guidebooks, reocmmended, and since it is on the ocean side, we say OK. We enter the room and wham, view hits you...overlooking Med (30' away), harbour, islands, fishing boats coming and going.Priceless. No windows, so at hight you could hear waves hitting shore. When we left we all commented on how we should have planned our trip to spend a lot more time in this town.
Second moment was on leaving this village. Driving along side of mountain, twisty roads, with Med on one side. My SIL remembers a "secret beach" so we are on lookout. We come around a corner, look way down, and there is this white sand beach...but what told us this was special was the colour of the water. Blue/greens like I had never seen before. I had heard of the Med colours, and we had seen some on our previous days, but this was amazing. So we parked and walked down to the beach. As we swam, tour buses would stop and park up top, so people could take pictures of this beach. As someone famous once said, I'll be back. |
Our first trip to Paris - and our honeymoon. Kissing my husband at Trocadero while the "twinkle" lights are flashing on the Eiffel Tower. Yep, that would be it.
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While visiting the Tower of London with my family, I watched as my history-loving daughter gazed in awe at the grafitti carved in the walls in one of the prison towers. She was overwhelmed by the tangible evidence of the presence of people she had read about, and I was so happy that her Dad and I could give her the experience!
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Sunset on a patio overlooking vineyards in Tuscany near San Gimignano while drinking the wine made at the agriturismo at which we stayed, and eating local cheese. The owners also made us appetizers - fried squash blossoms - and we enjoyed it all with the lights of San Gimignano going on about a mile away. Perfection!
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What a wonderful thread! Micheal Paris, what was the name of the small fishing village in Turkey? I'm keeping notes on all of these wonderful moments for future reference.
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Walking up the 18th fairway of the Old Course in St. Andrews for my last round of the summer--and seeing the familar landmarks of that mesmerizing place with my Scottish friends, Bryce and Willie. I am truly blessed.
Jinx Hoover |
I think my overall best travel moment of 2007 would have been the whale trip we did out of Provincetown, MA when the whales were so close to the boat we could nearly touch them.
In Europe, it was probably visiting the Haras National in Tarbes, and seeing, firstly, the beautiful buildings, and secondly, the beautiful horses. |
One of my favourites from 2007 would have to be the Pena palace in Sintra Portugal ,a loolypop coloured eclectic fairytale castle perched on top of a mountain overlooking the delightful town and spectacular coast. An inspiration of human excess and imagination.
Others include the Andalusian triangle of moorish delights in Sevilla , Granada and Cordoba. |
Hi Lily,
The town name is Kas. It is small, village is built on hillside, many interesting shops and restaurants, no need for car - all walkable, small harbour with boats offering tours. It seems to have so far escaped the hotel/resort development at some of the other places along Med. I was also in Goreme (Cappadocia)and would consider a combo of the two towns as a perfect escape from city life. Mike PS...don't tell too many people :) |
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WOW jumper - what a fantastic sight! My favorite moment of 2007 had to be my first glimpse of the Temple of Segesta presiding majestically over a valley in Sicily with the wildflowers in full bloom last April. It still makes my heart jump for joy. |
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Gondola ride down the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. It was heaven.
Being in the historical D-Day locations in Normandy. It was emotional. Staying at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes, France. This is the hotel in the Hitchcock movie "To Catch a Thief" starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. |
Only one? It must have been walking along the Appia Antica on a cool Nov. afternoon. The basalt stone road with the ruts from chariots brought tears to my eyes. Watching a flock of sheep cross this road with the sheepherder and dogs in tow made me want to give up my whole life here and truly join that slow, peaceful way of life.
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Waltzing over the Danube across Szabadsag Bridge while listening to Strauss's "An der schönen blauen Donau" on headphones.
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Michael & Lilly,
Ahhh, Kas & the beautiful and unique Turquoise Coast!! This is also a fantastic area to explore by boat and it is VERY cheap to do this in Turkey. We loved pulling into the harbor at Kas and exploring the town. There is a spectacular little island nearby that can only reached by boat....one of the most peaceful & charming places on the planet. http://www.soultravelers3.com/blog/B...28E175AA6.html The hospitality of the Turkish people also is amazing and like no where else. Definitely one of our highlight countries. I was amazed at how similar the Turquoise Riviera ( in non built up areas like Marmaris) was to Croatia....both beautiful and pristine. |
WTnow,
Your pictures brought back some good memories. We took a day trip out of Kas to Kekova and the sunken city. Glass bottom boat so could see ruins, urns,etc...below. And multiple pit stops to swim in the Med. A fun and cheap way to spend a full day. We started our Med visit driving from Antalya till Marmaris, then headed inland. Antalya was quite developed, and we'd probably not go back, while Marmaris, destination for many tour package operators, would have been interesting to see more. Agree that Turkey is a great destiantion and affordable (if chosen wisely...still hurting over US$450 hotel room in Antalya) |
ttt
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jumper and WTnow, Beautiful shots!! WT, How goes it?
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Lunch at the Grand Vefour in Paris, and thinking about all those famous and not-so-famous who might have sat in the same banquette over the last 200 years
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Visiting the area of Poland where my grandparents lived and are buried. Soaking in the Polish atmosphere while doing so.
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For me this year I had 2 favorite European moments...
1. Taking a balloon ride over Cappodocia in Turkey...the moment I realized I was actually floating was amazing and the landscape took my breath away. 2. I spent Christmas week in Rome with my mom. She hadn't traveled internationally in about 15 years and after spending years caring for her mother and my dad this trip was her re-introduction to the travel bug. We arrived in Rome to find a rather grey and drizzly day, but our driver was there waiting for us. As he drove us into the city to our hotel he made a side trip to the Aventino neighborhood (unbeknown to us) and brought us to the keyhole where you can look through and see the city and the dome of St. Peter's. Even through the dreary grey day, we could make out the dome and my mom was almost moved to tears...she said what a wonderful way to be re-introduced to Rome! I was so thrilled at that moment and knew this was going to be a great week in Rome! And it was :) |
Visiting the Old-New Sinagogue in Prague, with the recently uncovered Jerusalem stone floor -- a flood of emotion that should have been expected, but somehow wasn't
Second was to climb the path to castello Vezio in Varenna |
I too will jump on the Paris bandwagon...
1. An unexpectedly memorable meal at Wadja in Montparnasse. Steak frites with good company, including the owner's small dog under our table. Marked by general feeling of bliss. 2. Snorkeling for the first time off Provo (Turks and Caicos)... scared out of the water by an exceedingly large stingray. Very exciting! But the better moment probably entailed touring the few bits of the island that are not yet developed. |
Sitting with my DH in a flower filled field with our picnic lunch on a walk from Guarda to Ardez in Switzerland. A perfect June day of blue sky, gentle breeze, insects buzzing, cows bells, no one else for miles and wondering if the kids were looking after our house back home!
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Paragliding off the First in Grindelwald, Switzerland......ooohh.....scary!!!!
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I know the question was what was your single favorite moment... but everything about our family's August 2-21, 2007, trip to Italy was amazing considering what could have been.....
We live in a suburb of Minneapolis and August 1, 2007, was the night of the deadly I-35 bridge collapse. Our college-age son was several blocks away at the Univ. of MN taking a final exam at the time and would have been on that bridge approx. 1 hour later. We feel very grateful but sad for the families that lost loved ones. We spent 1 week at an agriturismo near Lake Garda, a week at another agriturismo outside of Assisi in Umbria and 3 days in Venice. It was our 4th trip to Italy and we have loved every place we've visited, but one of our favorite memories is just sitting outside of our agriturismo sipping wine (or peach ice tea for the kids) and eating olives and p. reg. cheese. Even better when the scent of sweet jasmine and lavender is in the air. Something so simple but very memorable. |
oops...just realized that one of my moments was in the Caribbean---not Europe.
Bella--- just curious, what were the names of the agriturismos where you stayed in Italy? The bridge collapse must have been extremely unnerving for you and your family; I'm so nervous the day before a trip for no real reason at all. |
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