8 Most Interesting Places We have Visited

Travel is in my blood; I have been doing so since I was a small child. I was lucky that my parents would take me on every trip they went on, so I would see other cultures and how people lived. I must say that it helped me to both appreciate what I have and make it easier to me to relate to people of different cultures. Since I have grown up (some may question whether I have) I have continued this traveling streak by visiting many continents. I have so far visited 4 continents with at least another 3 on the horizon in the near future. When I met my wife Laura, I was pleased to see she had traveled and shared my traveling nature and became an excellent travel partner. We have travelled apart but most enjoy traveling together due to our adventurous streak to want to enjoy the local cuisine and culture.

I have compiled a list of 8 interesting places we have visited:

1. San Francisco / Pacific Coast Highway

I travel quite often to San Francisco on business, but I absolutely love visiting for pleasure. San Francisco is one of the few true pedestrian friendly cities in the US. We once walked over 29km in one day around the city. While our legs were exhausted, we saw many of the sights that made me fall in love with this place.  The city has an excellent cuisine and an energy to it that I can’t describe. One of my favorite things to do in the city is walk or run along the Embarcadero and then go the Ferry Market building. They have a fantastic farmers market and lovely boutique shops that I could live at. The city has a lot of things to do if you are interested in food, the arts or nature. I love how San Francisco combines all of those elements but is still has some of the “big city” feel. Although I have never been a fan of walking up a long hill for an extended period of time there is just so much to do in San Francisco that you barely notice.

Here is a list of some of my favorite places in the city

The Pacific Coast Highway in California was a side trip we took. I have traveled the highway a few times, but the trip that stands out in my head is when we rented a gold Cadillac to drive from San Francisco through Big Sur on our way to Las Vegas. This is probably one of my favorite drives ever. The view is fantastic and there are many delightful places to stop along the way. You reach a point going down the PCH where there are no other roads you can cut off of for nearly 1.5 hours. I was thinking to myself half way through, that would be a total pain if you lived 45 mins in and forgot to pick up the milk. It is a beautiful landscape, with a ton of really cool little places to stop along the way. If you love to drive you need to seriously consider this trip.

2. Berlin

My multiple visits deep into the heart of Germany have been really interesting. I have only traveled to Germany on business, but I am extremely fortunate to have been able to enjoy many of the sights and sounds that make this city what it is. First, I will start by saying there is a lot of history in this city. Despite the 60 years that have past, you can still feel that something significant happened here. I would be lying if I said you can’t help but feel that the impact of WWII still hangs over the city. You feel it while walking on the streets and seeing the many reminders of a regretted past. The first day that I went to my new job, I walked across Checkpoint Charlie. I was amazed that only 18 years prior I would not have been allowed to do it. It is hard to believe that there was a massive wedge driven between the city, even given all the reminders. On one trip, I was fortunate to visit the city only 2 weeks after the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall. This is a magnificent city that is in resurgence. There has been billions poured into it to restore it the arts and culture capital of Germany. The food is wonderful and eclectic, as many people from around the world have settled here. There are fantastic historical sites, new and old. There are so many concert halls and museums to visit.

When Laura joined me on a business trip we were lucky enough to visit the Christmas markets that are truly lovely experience. I look forward to the day when I can visit this city for pure pleasure and get to know it a little bit better. One of my favorite moments was running around the Siegessäule (Giant gold statue on a column for the uninitiated). One of my favorite U2 songs is “Stay(Far Away, So Close)” there is something special about hearing the lyric

“With satellite television
You can go anywhere
Miami, New Orleans, London, Belfast and Berlin”

When you are running through the Brandenburg gates as you hear this lyric your heart just soars.

3. Mayan Riviera

I had traveled here 6 times with family and friends before we went on our Honeymoon. I love visiting here, because of a lovely combination of people, culture, food and tropical backdrop. Let’s start first with the people. It has been nearly 5 years since I have visited here, so I can’t speak to the latest unpleasantness, but whenever I visited people treated us so well.  People are alive and full of energy. There is a fantastic nightlife in Mexico filled with music and food. Let me start by saying that I love Mexican food, so I am fortunate that I get to taste so many wonderful dishes. I really try to escape the tourist traps and visit some of the small towns, where I can get authentic food. The culture is fantastic there is so much to see. I personally like to visit the Aztec temples and take in a bit of the Inca heritage. Finally, the scenery is beautiful. Long walks on white sand beaches are absolutely amazing.  One of my favourite memories is of taking my wife snorkeling for the first time. We were going snorkeling for an entire day, so I thought it would be best to teach her the basics prior to going. She put on her mask and dipped her face into the water only to jump out screaming. She yelled “Honey! Honey! There are fish in there!” to which I calmly replied, “Honey it’s the ocean”. After she got over the initial shock, it turned into a lovely adventure. I look forward to the day when we can return and dip my toes into the water.

4. London

We visited London for  the wedding of some very good friends. We were able to turn this into this into a longer trip and adventure around the city. This impressive city is filled with many interesting sights. I personally gravitated to the WWII sights all around the city. One of the most impressive places to visit was the Winston Churchill museum. The museum accounted his entire life and was actually situated in the bunker he lived in during the blitz. I feel a certain kinship with Churchill, as he felt a calling to do something great. I feel this same calling but, still do not know what that thing is. Seeing the sights, such as Nelson’s column, was impressive as well. I won’t lie though. With exception of the Indian restaurants, the food was underwhelming. I found it very interesting that there are more people employed in Indian food restaurants than the entire British government. I did a little test in this city to see what was actually cheaper than Canada. The only two things that I found cheaper were beer (in certain places) and soccer shoes. There is a saying in Britain that everything is the same price, but in Pounds instead of dollars. We checked out some of the Harry Potter sights including the 9 3/4 platform set up for the tourists. The monarchy was dominant throughout the city. I still find it amazing that people exalt others like that without any accomplishment other than a hereditary birthright. The concept of looking before you leap was also important, due to the driving on the other side of the street. I never got a good reason as to why they drive on that side, but then again some mysteries are better left unanswered.

5. Rome

All roads lead to Rome, or so the staying goes. The capital of the Roman empire has aged but still amazes. You feel every bit of history walking through this city whether it be walking through ancient Rome or walking around the coloseum. I must say, my family did catch me a few times saying, “ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?” ala Gladiator. Being Italian, I could not help but feel proud at the work of my ancestors. Literally 2-3 generations of craftsmen would spend their entire lives building some of the wonders seen in Rome. I am often critical of going out for Italian food given that my mom or grandma could usually cook it better. Rome is luckily an exception to this rule, as there are fantastic places to eat around every corner, with a Gelato stand to match. I love to walk around this city, but we did take a carriage only to trigger a vicious allergic reaction from the horse.  My eyes turned beet red and my face swelled impressively. That aside, this trip was absolutely fantastic. We sat in the back of a cathedral during a wedding, and the music just filled my soul. One could spend a month exploring this city and barely scratch the surface.

6. New York

John Lennon once said “Today America is the Roman Empire, and New York is Rome itself”. This city truly is a modern marvel and remains the standard to which all modern cities are measured. Visiting Manhattan for the first time was amazing. In most large cities you have a 10×10 block radius where you have large buildings while the rest are smaller. In New York, it seems like all the buildings are large. As the birthplace of the modern skyscraper, the architecture around New York is amazing. Unlike many of the historical cities mentioned, this was amazing because people were able to erect wonders in record time. New York is a cultural hub of the world, being a center for the arts, fashion and  business. I am already planning many a trip back to there to visit the MET and to catch a few performances by world-class musicians. There are countless museums that we got the opportunity to visit and explore. I have had the good fortune to eat at a few wonderful restaurants in New York, but know there are countless more. I was struck when visiting Ground Zero, probably one of the most influential moments in modern history, and knowing the repercussions of that day will be felt worldwide for decades.

7. Cinque Terre

Nestled into 5 inlets, Cinque Terre is a Unesco protected sight on the Italian Riviera. This is an adventure worth taking as these little colorful buildings tucked into the hillside proudly pronounce themselves against the sparkling blue ocean. Life goes on almost exactly as it did 100 years, with the feeling that there is minimal interruption from modern times. The illusion was broke with the string of Internet cafes, but other than that,  it was truly a great experience. Generations of people have fished the seas just off the coast of this enclave, and I found this just absolutely fascinating. If you are looking for an adventure off the beaten track, this is a place that you want to visit. I undertook this adventure with my brother and Dad, while Laura stayed on the ship. It was great to spend some time with both of them and adventure something new.

8. Nigeria

While I was not lucky enough to go on this trip,I was lucky to hear the account of this amazing place. This trip is a stark juxtaposition to some of the trips we have been on. Laura was fortunate enough to go with a group equivalent to the Doctors Without Borders program. She and her sister (an emergency room nurse) explored this land that was different from any they had ever seen before. The faces of the people were so filled with hope and happiness despite facing many of the challenges they face. At one point Laura actually came down with Malaria, and I felt helpless, being on the other side of the world. Needless to say, this was probably one of the most stressful times of my life. Nigeria  is a land filled with amazing riches and resources while many starve, and a  few powerful individuals exploit the masses. One story that struck me was that despite having power plants available to produce electricity, the system is turned off intermittently because the people who sell generators have a “deal” with the power plant. The lack of infrastructure doesn’t hinder the mood and enthusiasm of the Nigerian people as they celebrate life every day in their smiles and dances. Laura was always struck at the amazing lengths that the Church and Mosque would go to compete with each other via loudspeaker at 5:00 am in the morning. It seems the search for believers began before the sun rose and it was at the behest of a loudspeaker. This trip was an eye opener and would change the way she looks at the world forever.

Summary:

I used Nigeria trip as my final place, because even though I was not on this trip it exemplified why my parents wanted me to travel at a young age. See the world and see different cultures and understand that we live differently than others. Rather than using those differences as rationale for excluding them or judging them, it is a reason to celebrate different people and their culture. I was personally attracted to what I considered the seats of power of 3 powerful empires. This in part because I have always been a student of history. I also found it important to understand to know how we go here and use it as a compass to know where we are going. As we are on the verge of having our first child, I could not think of any better way to help introduce them to the world then by helping them travel all parts of it.