Which country / island do you want to visit

[clo]

43 minutes ago, iancal said:

 More than once we have seen frustrated travelers make complete fools of themselves and embarrass themselves and their fellow countrymen through their arrogance and their  heightened sense of entitlement and superiority.   Seems to me those that do well are the ones who are not afraid to venture out, try new things,  and roll with the punches. 

 

[navybankerteacher]

3 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

...

 

That kind of thing may seem tedious but believe me, when you are on the ground, you're happy that you did the advance work. 

 

..

 

 

 

I have found that the “advance work” is part of the overall fun of travel - and it can really pay off when put to use:  like using RER in addition to Metro in Paris,  or the trams in Rome - even the busses if you are feeling gutsy and have time to spare - a good way to get  back from a meandering exploring walk.

[iancal]

We do a fair amount of research.  Before we go and on the fly.  We have stayed in a number of wonderful B&B's and eating establishments where our hosts did not speak a word of English and we did not speak a word of Spanish, Italian, Thai, Vientamese, Malay, Turkish, Greek...whatever.  It always worked out very well. 

 

Is is part of the travel experience that we would not want to give up.

Edited June 15, 2020 by iancal

[Aquahound]

20 hours ago, Lois R said:

I ate at a family run place in Venice last year........there was only one menu but many of the diners were English speakers....it was a recommendation from my hotel concierge and was fabulous.😃 It is called VINO VINO........

 

That sounds familiar.  I looked it up and according to location, I think it's the same place my hotel concierge recommended.  I remember eating the best pasta and clams ever! 

[cruisemom42]

30 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

or the trams in Rome - even the busses if you are feeling gutsy and have time to spare - a good way to get  back from a meandering exploring walk.

 

I enjoy the buses in Rome as long as it is not high season. Especially if I am headed somewhere less touristy (gives me a chance to try out my Italian and feel more like a local, lol).

 

I do warn you though -- the buses in Rome catch fire with frightening regularity:

 

https://www.thelocal.it/20190925/another-bus-fire-brings-romes-total-to-23-this-year

 

In a fun quote from the article:  "Bus fires are nothing new in Rome. In fact, they're so common they have their own nickname among Romans: "flambus", a reference to Trambus, as Atac was formerly known."

[George C]

We hired a truly great taxi driver for the day in Naples in 2001 he kept apologizing for his English which was fine , this was during the mad cow time, he referred to it as crazy cow . 

[iancal]

We have taken the 64 bus from near the Vatican to the Wedding Cake numerous times.  And in the past the small electricos  (no longer operating) that used to wind their way around the crowded inner streets and up to the Villa Boghese. 

 

Fire is always an issue but the bigger issue, IMHO, is pickpockets on that route....especially when the bus is crowded with standing room only.

Edited June 15, 2020 by iancal

[Lois R]

1 hour ago, Aquahound said:

 

That sounds familiar.  I looked it up and according to location, I think it's the same place my hotel concierge recommended.  I remember eating the best pasta and clams ever! 

It is quite near the hotel I stayed in and on one of the side streets....they had a few tables outside as well.

The area has a lot of restaurants to choose from and many are family owned. 

[Ride-The-Waves]

Switzerland.  Could live there with ease.

 

Dubrovnik.  Have visited 25-30 times (lived in Beograd in the late 1980s).

 

Spouse wants to see Mongolia and travel the Orient Express.  Add the Silk Road to that list.  We keep missing Casablanca do to factors like COVID-19.

 

Other than that we have set foot on all 7 continents, safaried in Tanzania and Kenya, driven 30,000 miles through eastern Europe, visited India for for the golden Triangle and Mumbai, been to Karachi, walked the Great Wall and Hadrian's Wall, traveled to Lhasa, visited both Canadian coasts and all 50 US states, and loved OZ and NZ.

[Lois R]

40 minutes ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Switzerland.  Could live there with ease.

 

Dubrovnik.  Have visited 25-30 times (lived in Beograd in the late 1980s).

 

Spouse wants to see Mongolia and travel the Orient Express.  Add the Silk Road to that list.  We keep missing Casablanca do to factors like COVID-19.

 

Other than that we have set foot on all 7 continents, safaried in Tanzania and Kenya, driven 30,000 miles through eastern Europe, visited India for for the golden Triangle and Mumbai, been to Karachi, walked the Great Wall and Hadrian's Wall, traveled to Lhasa, visited both Canadian coasts and all 50 US states, and loved OZ and NZ.

WOW.......sounds like you have been able to live quite a good life.  Kudos to you both🙂

[lenquixote66]

3 hours ago, Lois R said:

WOW.......sounds like you have been able to live quite a good life.  Kudos to you both🙂

I have been to most of the USA states and every province in Canada and I am quite happy.

[rkacruiser]

On 6/13/2020 at 8:47 PM, ilikeanswers said:

 

I liked Reykjavik but compared to all the waterfalls, mountains, canyons, craters and sea cliffs of Iceland I would not rank it that high. You must a real urbanite😂.

 

An urbanite?  Me?   🤣  I need to add that to when I write my obituary, I guess.

 

Maybe I have been fortunate to have seen too much during my travels.  What I observed in Iceland were sights that I expected to see, but they were not exceptional.  

 

Fjordland National Park in New Zealand:  the fjords with its surrounding mountains, seeing lava flowing into the Pacific off of Hawaii, the fjords/canyons of Norway and of Chile, the rock formations that I saw as my ship traveled through Prinz Christian Sund in Greenland, and so much more were yardsticks that I used to compare with what I saw in Iceland. 

 

I'll admit that my impression may well be colored by the days that I when I was there when I was confronted with cold, windy, horizontal rain.  It's difficult to fully appreciate what one is seeing when one is wind blown, trying to keep my hat on, and being wet.  

 

I have been fortunate enough to have had 3 visits to Iceland's Capital city.  Each have been enjoyable and visits that I looked forward to having.  

 

Would I return?  Yes.  If for no other reason than I would love to buy more of their excellent chocolate!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ilikeanswers]

44 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

An urbanite?  Me?   🤣  I need to add that to when I write my obituary, I guess.

 

Maybe I have been fortunate to have seen too much during my travels.  What I observed in Iceland were sights that I expected to see, but they were not exceptional.  

 

Fjordland National Park in New Zealand:  the fjords with its surrounding mountains, seeing lava flowing into the Pacific off of Hawaii, the fjords/canyons of Norway and of Chile, the rock formations that I saw as my ship traveled through Prinz Christian Sund in Greenland, and so much more were yardsticks that I used to compare with what I saw in Iceland. 

 

I'll admit that my impression may well be colored by the days that I when I was there when I was confronted with cold, windy, horizontal rain.  It's difficult to fully appreciate what one is seeing when one is wind blown, trying to keep my hat on, and being wet.  

 

I have been fortunate enough to have had 3 visits to Iceland's Capital city.  Each have been enjoyable and visits that I looked forward to having.  

 

Would I return?  Yes.  If for no other reason than I would love to buy more of their excellent chocolate!  

 

It is the interesting thing about humans we can look at the same thing and see something different😉. I've been to both Norway and Hawaii and I can't say they remind me of Iceland. The Norwegian Fjords are grand but Iceland's West Fjords were greener and lusher plus the puffins probably make me bias😂. Hawaiian waterfalls were cute but IMO can't compare to the raging torrents of Iceland. Haven't seen anything comparable to Landmannalaugar yet but it does seem there are still many places for me to visit yet😉. As for food I really miss that Iceland pancake bread. It had a wonderful aromatic taste and it made the best road trip snack. Hopefully get to make a second visit perhaps with Greenland this time as that is another place I would love to explore. 

Edited June 16, 2020 by ilikeanswers

[clo]

1 hour ago, lenquixote66 said:

I have been to most of the USA states and every province in Canada and I am quite happy.

I'm guessing you wish you had done some intl. travel before you became disabled. 😞 

[lenquixote66]

28 minutes ago, clo said:

I'm guessing you wish you had done some intl. travel before you became disabled. 😞 

I have been unable to fly since 2010.However,I have been traveling since 1961 and never had the desire to travel to other countries.In hindsight that was a major error in my life.

 

[clo]

10 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

never had the desire to travel to other countries

I wonder why. Not that there's not plenty here in North America to keep us occupied for several lifetimes. Wishing you well.

[lenquixote66]

13 minutes ago, clo said:

I wonder why. Not that there's not plenty here in North America to keep us occupied for several lifetimes. Wishing you well.

Thank you

[clo]

8 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

Especially if I am headed somewhere less touristy (gives me a chance to try out my Italian and feel more like a local, lol).

Have you been here?

 

https://mymodernmet.com/giambologna-colosso-dell-appennino/?fbclid=IwAR169sbTl8_J2-uGx0CANw5e8n4LCnNNCbpghgtYpGLw4C5cFHUiXNU_QxE

[cruisemom42]

28 minutes ago, clo said:

Have you been here?

 

https://mymodernmet.com/giambologna-colosso-dell-appennino/?fbclid=IwAR169sbTl8_J2-uGx0CANw5e8n4LCnNNCbpghgtYpGLw4C5cFHUiXNU_QxE

 

Fascinating. Haven't been there....yet. I tend to go for things about 1300 years older, at a minimum. 

 

This was a wonderful jaunt from Naples, however -- a real once in a lifetime experience: 

https://www.napoliunplugged.com/grotta-della-sibilla.html

 

The Cumaean Sibyl was written about by Vergil. She was said to live in a cave near Cumae and was like the oracle at Delphi -- a teller of fortunes couched in riddles. She supposedly was the author of a number of books of prophecies about the future of Rome that one of the ancient Roman kings acquired -- these were treasured and kept in a temple in Rome for hundreds of years and were consulted whenever there was some crisis.

 

There are at least three candidates for the actual "cave of the Sibyl" in the Campi Flegrei, an area near Naples. I've visited two of them. This one is by far the more -- interesting? eerie? -- experience. Carlo, the owner and guide, walks ahead of you with his stick, oil lantern and dog, like a sort of modern Charon...

 

He tells a great tale, but he only speaks Italian. Unfortunately, according to the link above, he can no longer take visitors. 

 

This is one of those things I love about Italy. There's always a place, where a man has a key -- and if you can find the man with the key and jingle a little cash, you can have a truly unique experience.

 

Don't even get me started on the "guard" at Pompeii who let my friend and I into a number of closed houses (some had not been opened in years); for years I was the object of envy among several archaeologists!

 

 

[ontheweb]

10 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

I have been unable to fly since 2010.However,I have been traveling since 1961 and never had the desire to travel to other countries.In hindsight that was a major error in my life.

 

I did no international travel until our honeymoon. We have done a lot since, though it really started with a Western Mediterranean cruise for our 35th anniversary. DW had flown to other countries prior to meeting me since as part of a airline family (he father was an executive with British Airlines), the family flew for free.

[lenquixote66]

My honeymoon was at a hotel in the Catskills the name of which I cannot post here .I am sure you know what I am referring to.It begins with the letter H.

We went to Canada in 1969 ,is that international travel ?

[Lois R]

1 hour ago, lenquixote66 said:

My honeymoon was at a hotel in the Catskills the name of which I cannot post here .I am sure you know what I am referring to.It begins with the letter H.

We went to Canada in 1969 ,is that international travel ?

Hi Lenny, why can't you post the name of a hotel? That is not prohibited on here.  I know one of the most famous 

one's is Grossinger's

[George C]

33 minutes ago, Lois R said:

Hi Lenny, why can't you post the name of a hotel? That is not prohibited on here.  I know one of the most famous 

one's is Grossinger's

As a single in late 70’s I did Grossingers And also Concord both had excellent entertainment Johnny Mathis was one of the performers, it was cheaper than a cruise which I also did at that time. 

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi Lenny, why can't you post the name of a hotel? That is not prohibited on here.  I know one of the most famous 

one's is Grossinger's

When I was a high school senior, the Key Club (junior Kiwanis) had its convention in Grossingers, and we were the host club. (I guess Liberty did not have Key Club in their school.

 

I did caddy a little bit as a teenager at the Concord, but mostly at the Laurels.

 

Sadly none of these hotels exist now. The second generation of owners pretty much let them all go to seed as they waited for casinos in the area.

[lenquixote66]

6 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi Lenny, why can't you post the name of a hotel? That is not prohibited on here.  I know one of the most famous 

one's is Grossinger's

I cannot post the name of the hotel because it is spelled and pronounced like a sexual reference.