Travel Thread

[Ciki]

I don't know about you,but i just love traveling!

 

I love learning new languages,meeting new people and finding out about other cultures and countries.

 

So,i wanted to chat with my fellow travel-lovers here.

 

I have a couple of questions I'd like to ask:

 

1. Where have you been to?

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

5. Why fo you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

 

Of course,you don't have to answer all of these questions.I can't wait to read all of your stories and replies😊💖

[Rose89]

1. Where have you been to?

not that many countries yet, unfortunately, but: Denmark, Sweden (had my exchange semester there), London, Greece (Rhodos), Venice, New York, Japan, South Korea (I travelled solo in Japan and South Korea and I love travelling solo), worked in Brussels for three months last year.

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

South Korea. I have a friend there and found a lot of new friends. The people are awesome and the food is just the best.

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

I definitely have a lot of locations on my list. But I want to visit Rome this year and London (again), this time with my brother and we want to take a weekend Harry Potter trip  For next year: New Zealand.  But I will probably visit South Korea again first, there is a lot to see.

5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

I would love to travel for work. But I am mostly just traveling, because I love to travel. I want to know more about other countries and cultures and I want to widen my horizon. I am just kind of addicted to it. I am the kind of person who never gets homesick or jetlagged and I just feel home wherever I currently am.  I am even thinking to emigrate, but unfortunately I am such a German and it is hard for me to take a risk. 

[blunose2772]

1. States I've been to in the US are Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, Hawaii, Colorado, Indiana, Georgia, Florida, and Kentucky. I've also visited Australia, Thailand, Japan, and Mexico as part of the US Navy.

 

2. I loved Sydney Australia. I wished we were in port a few days longer so I could experience more. I'd love to go back as a tourist sometime but my wallet won't allow it. As for inside the US I have fond memories of pretty much everywhere I've been but really loved my time in San Diego. As for going on vacation I gotta with Florida for Walt Disney World. 

 

3. Can't really say I had much in the way of culture shocks. 

 

4. Like I said I'd love to go back to Australia. Maybe New Zealand. I have German heritage so a trip to Germany would be nice.

 

5. Since leaving the Navy I travel for pleasure. Seek out new places, meet new people. In fact if I hadn't tried exploring new places I wouldn't have met my best friend. 

 

I have a ton of stories of trips to Disney parks, Las Vegas, and get togethers with friends across the country. I love to share stories if anyone has any interest. 

[Jarynrb]

Hello yes I love traveling very much and wish I could make a full time career out of it 

1. Countries I have been to include, England, Netherlands, Germany, Austria, France, Spain, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Mexico, and Canada. In America I have been to California, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, and Washington DC(Not technically a state but you know lol)
 

2. Oh you're really going to make me choose??? I have loved something about each and every country/state I have been to. 

3. I haven't really experienced any notable culture shocks. I've known someone from almost every country I've visited, so they'd spoken of their home a lot before I got there so nothing was really new. I expect to experience more cultural shock on my upcoming trip. 

4. This summer, me and my friend are going to France, Portugal, Hungary, Romania, Greece, and Egypt. So I am super excited for that trip, but a place pretty high up on my bucket list to go to is Scotland!

5. I mostly travel for vacation and adventure. I love traveling and I love seeing new places and learning about the different cultures and the people who live there

[Ciki]

29 minutes ago, blunose2772 said:

. I love to share stories if anyone has any interest. 

Sure,if you want to,you can post your stories on this thread or you can simply message me and we can chat and share our traveling stories as much as you'd like😊

[T.Hunter]

1. Where have you been to?

I've traveled most of the south coast under sydney all the way to the victoria boarder and took a trip out to Broken Hill with mum, been to sunshine coast and cairns to see dad. 

 

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

I love most of the places mum and I explore but the one that comes to mind was a camping ground 1h drive from Glen Davis, it was so pretty and we were camped in this little valley but as the sun rose in the morning , the light would hit the rock on the top of the mini cliff and it would glow bright orange. Same with sunset. There was a river that ran through and you could walk along it and it disapeared into the trees which was like walking into a fairy tale. And of course the friendly wildlife would come and say hi.

 

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

Never had much of a cultural shock but i was shocked when i went to Broke Hill and found out the crows there have a broke hill accent.

 

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

Mum and i would love to travel around New Zealand, Tasmainia, Scotland and the english country side. 

 

5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

We travel because we enjoy the adventure and its a nice break from busy lives

[Skycaptain]

Spain, Iceland (several times), Eire, Netherlands, Belgium (fleetingly) 

 

Favourite is Iceland, I'd move there if I could 

 

No real culture shocks 

 

Going to Sweden next, want to go to Canada, but fates are against me at the moment 

 

All of the above travel has been for AVEN meetups😋😋

[Ciki]

17 minutes ago, Skycaptain said:

Going to Sweden next

I've been to Sweden just this summer.It's awsome,i highly recommend it😊💖

[Skycaptain]

https://www.asexuality.org/en/topic/188952-scandinaviaeuro-meetup-in-stockholm-27-29-of-march-2020/#comments

 

 

Lots of us are going there. Really looking forward to it

 

 

[Sianna]

1. Where have you been to?

Just the US (Washington, Michigan, Florida, Illinois, and California) and the Bahamas, unfortunately! 😧

 

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

Nassau! It was warm, but not as humid as Florida (at least when I was there!), and I got to go to a big chocolate factory there and made my own dipped chocolates as well as tried raw cocoa butter and the bean! (kinda ew, btw xD)

 

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

Because I've only ever been in touristy areas, I guess I'll have to go with the buses on Nassau. They just don't stop for you, you just grab and jump on. Thankfully, I didn't have to catch one, but I watched locals get on and I'm a little terrified!

 

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

Oh, so many places! I want to go to Japan, Korea, France, Spain, Germany, Peru, Australia, Scotland, Ireland, England, Wales... basically, all over the world! Canada is probably next on my list, because it's only about another three hours from where I live currently (with traffic and border), but somehow I've never gone. 😮

 

5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation).

I've only ever gone places on vacation with family, but I really do just have wanderlust and want to travel for the sake of seeing the world. 

[VibeN]

I've not travelled a lot in my adult life until recently due to being scared, but thanks to my school I was able to see a few places

1. Where have you been to?

With my school I went to France, Norway, England and Greece. With my family I went to Lanzarote, plus Germany a few times (also went there with my school) This last December I went to Spain

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?
Spain by a 100 miles. Not only did I get to meet my best friend in real life, but I also felt a freedom I hadn't  felt in a long time

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

Can't remember I've had any culture shocks, though I was surprised that in Spain apparantly you don't take your shoes off inside, as that's very unheard of in my country

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

Back to Spain to see my best friend again 

5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

Growing up it was because of my school. I went to a private school that by many people outside it were considered upperclass, and I don't remember the exact price at that time, but now it costs around $521 each month for two children, and my parents were by no means rich, so the only time we ever got to go on a holiday was when my father won a trip to Lanzarote, and a few times we'd go to Germany to get candy and stuff. Now that I've crossed the internal border I had and get over my fear I want to travel more for my own pleasure

[Writer In The Forest]

1. Where have you been to?

Most of the fifty USA states, a lot of western Canada, and the Dominican Republic. 

 

2. What was your favorite place you traveled to?

You want me to pick?!?! XP Well, there are a lot of really pretty Canadian and American National Parks (Jasper, Banff, Mesa Verde, Arches, the Rockies, the North Cascades, etc. I've been to SO many) to hike, kayak and canoe in but I also love some adrenaline with roller coasters, ziplining, and whitewater rafting.

 

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

Probably Dominican Republic since they mostly speak a whole other language (I hadn't started Spanish classes at that point in time, I'm in Spanish II now) and the airport was outside in the summer sun (I flew in from Seattle, WA)

 

4. Where would you like to go next? 

Rome or Greece or Egypt, somewhere with a lot of history and lore, I'm obsessed with ancient mythologies. At the same time, foreign cultures fascinate me and I love learning more about new ones, so it'd be cool to visit Japan (or I guess the other three still have that and Japan has a lot of really cool legends, I've just recently been immersing myself in that one specifically).

 

5. Why do you mostly travel?

Vacations with my family. Most of the time it's driving over summer break. We've driven around the US (coast-to-coast) twice and are going for a third next summer! Last summer was a Canadian roadtrip, Hawaii was a Christmas flight (hello climate shock), and Dom. Republic was a summer flight.

[Ciki]

24 minutes ago, Writer In The Forest said:

Rome or Greece or Egypt, somewhere with a lot of history and lore, I'm obsessed with ancient mythologies. At the same time, foreign cultures fascinate me and I love learning more about new ones, so it'd be cool to visit Japan (or I guess the other three still have that and Japan has a lot of really cool legends, I've just recently been immersing myself in that one specifically).

Oh.My.God.

Same here.

I can't believe it!

Ever since i was a child,my parents surrounded me with books about Greek,Egyptian and Roman mythologies.My personal favourite is Greek.

I also love Japanese legends and myths.They are all so creative and often even send shivers down your spine.Sadly,i don't know that much about Norse or Slavic mythologies (which is truely a shame since i'm Slavic myself),but i'll try my best to learn as much as i can about them before school kills me.

I guess i just love to learn about ancient civilisations and their way of thinking as well as their explanations of many things that people today consider common knowledge.

Glad i found a fellow mythology lover in here😊💖

[Astrobot]

1. Where have you been to?

The list is long but some of them were just for business or for less than a day: UK, Greece, Turkey, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Iceland, Norway, Finland, Russia, Monaco, UAE, Mongolia, South Africa, Chile, Peru.

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

I liked all of them but I think the most impressive experiences so far have been Iceland and Peru.

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

I think the extreme inequalities between the rich and the poor in Peru and the extreme security measures at homes in Lima and Cape Town.

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

Anywhere outside Europe. 

5. Why fo you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

All of the above. Some of my furthest travels were because of work (e.g. Chile, South Africa) and all school trips were within Europe (e.g. France). I enjoy travelling alone but I think I prefer the company of a good friend. When I visit a place I want to see everything I can I see in that place and I often do activities like hiking, cycling or other sports.

[Writer In The Forest]

2 minutes ago, Ciki said:

Oh.My.God.

Same here.

I can't believe it!

Ever since i was a child,my parents surrounded me with books about Greek,Egyptian and Roman mythologies.My personal favourite is Greek.

I also love Japanese legends and myths.They are all so creative and often even send shivers down your spine.Sadly,i don't know that much about Norse or Slavic mythologies (which is truely a shame since i'm Slavic myself),but i'll try my best to learn as much as i can about them before school kills me.

I guess i just love to learn about ancient civilisations and their way of thinking as well as their explanations of many things that people today consider common knowledge.

Glad i found a fellow mythology lover in here😊💖

oh. my. gods. yes.

Greek's my favorite too! Perhaps because it was my first but I just love it! 😜

Norse has a crazy story behind it, you'll have fun with some of the weird myths about Thor in a wedding dress or dwarves evolving from maggots. It's cool and fun and great.

I love Egyptian as well and my experience with Roman stemmed from Greek, and I've got to agree on the Japanese front. I ended up learning a bunch of the honorifics and customs alongside everything else with yokai and kami and everything =D

Okay, this is great, sorry for rambling, look me up if you ever want to chat myths!

[Ciki]

2 minutes ago, Writer In The Forest said:

Okay, this is great, sorry for rambling, look me up if you ever want to chat myths!

No,no,don't feel sorry.In fact,i'm glad i found somebody who loves mythologies as much as i do.It's super rare to find somebody who loves reading and exploring ancient myths and legends (both in real life and in Internet).So,when you finally do find somebody who shares the same interests as you,it's perfectly normal to get excited and start rambling.

Oh,and i surely wouldn't mind chatting with you about myths and legends.Message me anytime you feel like it,and i'll reply asap☺💖

[blunose2772]

I've got a lot of stories of different trips I've been on but this one is my favorite to tell. 

 

In late March of 2013 my best friend finally talked me into applying for my dream job of working at Walt Disney World. (How I came to love the Disney parks however is another story for another day, lol). So I filled out an application figuring that would be the end of it but at least could honestly say I tried. By that time is was getting pretty late so I decided to turn in for the night.

 

The next morning I got up and checked my email. There was an email from the Disney at the top of my inbox. I was kinda afraid to open it fearing it was a generic "Don't call us. We won't call you" form letter. Turns out they wanted me to fill out a 2nd application. So I filled it out and sent it back. They said I'd hear back one way or another within a week. I figured I had 7 days left to dream. 

 

I had a dachshund names Winnie at that time and remembered I hadn't taken her out yet. A half an hour later I came back from our walk and went up to get started on what I needed to get done that day. My email was still open and saw another email from Disney in my inbox. That didn't take long. Again I opened it with dread. This time they were inviting me to Orlando for a face to face interview at the date and time of my choosing.

 

Within the hour I had booked an interview for 10 AM 2 weeks from that day, had plane tickets to Orlando, and reservations at a Disney resort. My plan was to fly to Florida the day before the interview and fly back the day after. 

 

On past trips to Disney I always stayed at the All Star Movies resort. I decided to try something new this time. My friend (the same one who convinced me to apply) had once recommended the Pop Century resort themed to Pop Culture from the 50s to the 90s. 

 

Finally the day came to travel to my interview. I'm going to jump directly to the interview itself at this point because it is of minor importance to the story as something happened the day before.

 

In my excitement I arrived at the Disney casting office a good hour before my appointment. I sat there in a waiting room with several other people for what felt like years. My heart was pounding so hard I was sure everyone else could hear it. A girl sat down next to me just as nervous as I was if not more. We talked and calmed each other down.

 

Finally we turn came. The interview went pretty much like this:

 

Interviewer:  "You live in Illinois?"

 

Me: "Yes."

 

Interviewer: "Will you move to Florida even without this job?"

 

Me: "No."

 

Interviewer :"I believe we're done here."

 

My heart sank. I look to the waiting room and shot the girl a thumbs down and walked out with my head hung down. I was so close just to blow it. But then I remembered the events from the day before.

 

So I arrived in Orlando the day before the interview and decided to take it easy which is out of character for me since I usually hit the ground running on any trip. The Disney resorts show a movie by the pool every night. That night's movie was Pixar's Ratatouille. I hadn't seen it before so i sat down to watch it. Halfway through the movie the projector died and they couldn't fix it so the rest of the movie was cancelled. They'd try again the next night. I was bummed but these things happen, even at Disney. 

 

I was wearing a blue T-shirt with my name (Tony) and Tinker Bell on it which was given to me by the same friend who got me to apply to Disney and stay at that particular resort). Again out of character for me because I start off wearing my Ariel shirt. 

 

Since the movie was a no go I decided to hit the food court and get something to drink. Along the way I passed by a boy and his Grandmother. The boy asked her why the movie stopped. Always wanting to help I told them what the Cast Members told me about the projector. Suddenly his Grandma's eyes filled with tears and she locked me in a bear hug to the point I almost couldn't breathe.

 

When she let me me go she apologized for scaring me and explained her son Tony was a huge fan of Tinker Bell. He recently passed away and she prayed for a sign he made it to Heaven ok. 

 

So I wasn't meant to get the job but I was meant to be at that place, at that time, in that shirt. There were way to may variables involved for it to be a chance encounter. Especially since I did a lot of things of out of character. 

 

I immediately called my friend and told her because she was just a big a part of this as I was. 

 

[thegreatwolf]

1. I've never left the United States but I have traveled to another city in my state and other states mostly to Louisiana and once I went up north and visited Maryland, New York (New York city to be exact) , Pennsylvania and Washington D.C

 

2. Probably New York  , so much cool stuff I especially loved going to central park zoo

 

3. Not sure if this counts but the traffic in New York city was crazy and we mostly rode in cabs, rickshaws and tour buses so we weren't driving and it was still crazy also the concept of something being a block when really if felt longer then a block was different

 

4. Would love to go back to New York and see all of what I missed. I also would love to travel outside the country especially to the Untied Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Italy, and Australia or possibly just see all of the world I can

 

5. Mostly due to family , sometimes vacation

 

 

[Kelly]

1. Where have you been to?

 

Argentina
Bahamas
Belize
Brazil
Canada
Chile (including Easter Island)
Cuba
Guatemala
Jamaica
Mexico
Peru
United States
Uruguay
 

Albania
Austria
Belgium
Bosnia & Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
England
France
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Ireland
Italy
Kosovo
Liechtenstein
Macedonia
Malta
Moldova
Monaco
N. Ireland
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
San Marino
Scotland
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Ukraine
Vatican
Wales
 

Egypt
Ethiopia
Israel
Jordan
Kenya
Saudi Arabia
Turkey
Uganda
 

Indonesia
Japan
Korea (ROK)
Malaysia
Singapore
Taiwan (ROC)
Thailand
 

Australia
Fiji
New Zealand
Samoa
Tonga
Vanuatu
 

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

 

That is difficult to say. I have been on a lot of fun adventures.

 

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

 

Islamic countries. The people were so very nice, even in Saudi Arabia. It was quite a contrast to some other places that I have been.

 

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

 

Samarkand, Uzbekistan, and Timbuktu, Mali

 

5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

 

My previous job of 20 years made me travel all over the world on a frequent basis. But it also gave me hundreds of thousands of frequent flyer miles and two months of vacation per year, so I traveled for fun and adventure, too.

[LeChat]

You'd probably enjoy reading this thread, then. https://www.asexuality.org/en/topic/193411-solo-travel/?tab=comments#comment-1063647415

 

20 hours ago, Ciki said:

...I love learning new languages...finding out about other cultures and countries...

I've liked these things, too, which is why I've borrowed language learning CDs and foreign films from the library, and watched documentaries, etc. I'd probably be over a million dollars in debt, if I'd followed my childhood fantasies of travelling all over the world.

[blunose2772]

Other of my favorite travel stories.

 

In September of 2012. I was in Walt Disney World celebrating my birthday. I just got off my favorite attraction in the Magic Kingdom the Jungle Cruise. I was walking back toward Main Street when I saw my favorite of the Disney Princesses ,Ariel, doing meet and greets. The New Fantasyland area hadn't opened yet which is why she was in Adventureland instead. Never one to pass up a chance to meet Ariel I jumped in line. 

 

When it was my turn Ariel instantly took a liking to my lanyard full of Disney pin. She complemented my collection and asked if I knew her favorite item in her collection. Having only seen The Little Mermaid 4 billion and 3 times I know it was the Dinglehopper (fork). She asked how many Dinglehoppers I had. While I mentally counted the forks I had in the silverware drawer at home she was looking through a box. 

 

I finally said about 20. She said "Now you have 21. Happy Birthday" and presented me with a plastic fork. 

 

I still have it to this day in a display case. It's my favorite birthday gift I ever got. Not for what it is, but the story behind how I got it. 

 

 

[Guest]

On 2/14/2020 at 1:52 PM, Ciki said:

1. Where have you been to?

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

5. Why fo you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

 

1 - I have so far traveled every nook and cranny in the UK, to Philadephia, NJ and NYC, Haiti, coast to coast in Canada, Japan, the Philippines and China. 

 

2 - By far, Hong Kong. Was there a few days ago, actually. Just has this special thing about it. I am biased. I have a soft spot for coastal cities near the ocean. 

 

From the hustle and bustle of their downtown core, to the scenic hikes and coastal villages, some of which only use bicycles, you get a bit of something for everyone. 

 

3 - Definitely the Philippines. Their extremely lax idea of time rubs off on you. Coming back to western society felt like hitting the ground running. 

 

Also the service level is second to none regarding the hospitality overall. 

 

4 - I will have to convince the significant other, but North Korea. Just to visit a place stuck in time in terms of them compared to most of the rest of the world would be awesome to me.

 

We will otherwise settle for Vietnam, or Taiwan. New Zealand is on my radar as well as Australia. 

 

5 - Mostly for vacation. At work, for business but isn't as frequent. 

[- Saph -]

1. Where have you been to?

• France, Belgium, Ireland (both countries), UK, The Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland (the French and German cantons), Spain and Tenerife, Portugal and Madeira, Greece and Creta.
• South mediterranean countries: Turkey, Tunisia
• USA: NYC & Texas.
• Asia: Thailand

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to? 

Thailand was mindblowing. I loved the nature there (exotic animals, beaches and mangroove forest), the art and architecture. The people were also nice and chill.

In Europe I like a lot of countries but each one has specific qualities. I loved cosmopolitan Manhattan and San Antonio (TX). I may visit Turkey again.

 

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

In Tunisia, the overall misery of the people and the ruined houses (incl. gunshots in the wall) were quite a shock. I could meet very poor people and see devastated places in Thailand (post tsunami) as well but the atmosphere was less tense. The staring of the locals was quite intense in Tunisia. Of course we standed out because we were very white and not dressed like muslims. This made me feel unsafe. One year later, terrorists attacked tourists in a hotel, right in the city that we visited.

I also got a similar unsafe feeling from some areas around Houston (street gangs, firearms,...). Fifth Amendment culture is not for me.

 

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)  

Next month I will finally discover a Nordic country 🙂 but my dream is to do a Japan circuit.

 

5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation). 

It is now half for work and half for vacations.

[blunose2772]

My last 2 stories were from Disney. I'm gonna change it up and tell a Vegas story. On my first trip to Vegas after turning 21 I witnessed something I didn't think possible. I was in a small casino called Slots-A-Fun sitting at a video poker machine facing the door. I don't know if any places in Vegas still do this put they had a machine that once a day you could pull the handle for free to get people in the door. If anyone ever wins at these free pull machines it's only like a quarter on something like that. 

 

This great big guy (not heavyset, just a big muscular guy) walked in wearing lime green shorts and one of those awful Hawaiian shirts. I'll never forget his name. Eddie Bologna. (seriously it's hard to forget a name like that). He walked up to the free pull machine and pulled the handle. All of the sudden sirens go off and lights flash. He's freaking out thinking he's gonna get arrested for not putting any money in the machine. Turns out he won $4,000 on a $0 bet.

 

I sit here and raise a toast to Eddie Bologna, the only true Vegas winner.

[Zagadka]

The only places outside of North America I've been are England, Norway, France, and Greece. Norway was with a bunch of friends, but Greece was an adventure alone, and it was fantastic. It kinda felt a little like easy mode since everything is also in English there, though.

 

We went to Greece in late September, after everything for tourists had closed, and we had basically the entire place to ourselves. Empty, beautiful beaches and restaurants, no crowds at the sites. It was an adventure because I've always loved history and spent so much time reading about these places, and getting to see them was amazing.  I'm not a huge fan of going on vacations to stay at hotels and relax, but some of the places we stayed were very old and cultured,m so I stayed interested.

 

Norway I've been to twice, but never outside of Oslo. Loved it, it is just a fantastic place. Paris and London were nice, but it was very tourist heavy, so while i enjoyed seeing the sites, I didn't enjoy the time in the cities. They say "I liked visiting it but I wouldn't want to live there", but I feel like the opposite is true for me. I'd really love to live in London or Paris. They happiest I've been was living in San Francisco, and I'm just more comfortable in those urban situations and the European cities are way better at it than American ones.

[Zagadka]

In short, I love traveling to see historical sites. I have zero interest in going to a resort or beach or anything. They can be nice to look at, for like 5 minutes. I'd rather have experiences than vacations.

[Blaiddmelyn]

1. Where have you been to?

 

My parents like to travel, and I've stuck with it. In brief: all four parts of the UK, Ireland (Dublin), France (Vur-sur-Meilles), Germany (Nuremburg and Bamburg), Austria (Vienna and some other places as a kid), Belgium (Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp), NL (lots of places), Spain (Madrid, Alcala de Henares and a few others), Italy (Venice, Rome, Florence, Riccione), Portugal (I forget where), Luxembourg, Greece (I forget where), Finland (Helsinki and Lapland), Sweden (Stockholm), Croatia (Split and Zagreb), Romania (Brasov, Bacau region, Salatruc), Latvia (Riga), Lithuania (Vilnius), Estonia (Talinn and Tartu), Slovakia (Kosice and Bratislava), Czech Republic (Prague), Slovenia (I forget where), Bulgaria (I forget where), Tunisia, Russia (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Golden Circle, Siberia (Novokuznetsk and Kemerov region)), Canada (mostly Eastern), San Marino, USA (NYC, LA, San Diego and San Francisco), Australia (Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle), New Zealand (Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Blenheim, Kaikoura, Christchurch), Taiwan (Taipei and Sun Moon Lake).

 

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

 

Blimey. Hard to say. Probably New Zealand, but tbh, I have really fond memories of Estonia, Canada and Russia.

 

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

 

Probably Siberia as a teenager. I wasn't quite ready for life there. In my adult life, maybe Taiwan but I really enjoyed myself. I just had to accept I had no idea what was going on and hand gestures were the way to go.

 

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

 

I'd love to see either Hawaii, Chile, Costa Rica or Argentina. 

 

5. Why fo you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

 

To see more of the world and get new experiences.

[ColeHW34]

1. Where have you been to? Most of the US except the central north, Poland, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Czech republic, Slovakia, and Costa Rica but not including Mexico and the UK because i haven't stepped foot out of the airport just for layovers only.

2. What was your favourite place you traveled to? Either Monteverde, CR or Gdańsk in Poland.

3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere? Just how truely lazy Tico's (a term for Costa Ricans) are 

4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit) Iceland or Sweden

5. Why fo you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation) Mainly for a Vacation but hopefully one day I'll find myself living and working in Costa Rica.

[Siimo van der fietspad]

On 2/14/2020 at 6:52 PM, Ciki said:

1. Where have you been to?

In no particular order: Wales, Scotland, NI, Eire, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Vatican City, Austria, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Czechia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia, Finland, Greece, USA, Hong Kong. Some of these I have visited only one area or one time, some multiple times and multiple places. I think the country I've physically been in - ie crossed the border - the most times is France (the crazy BE/NL border in Baarle-Hertog doesn't really count) but the country I've most visited as a destination is Germany.

 

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2. What was your favourite place you traveled to?

 

In terms of the overall experience of the trip, probably Hong Kong.  It was an orchestra tour with a really quality group, so the concerts were top-drawer and we had plenty of free time to experience the wonders of this city-state, all the islands and the mega skyscrapers and the always-on metropolis . In terms of feeling 'at home' it would be Germany and the Netherlands. I feel like I fit right into the culture of both countries and I had some wonderful experiences with friends in these places. Estonia is quite magical too.

 

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3. What was the biggest cultural shock you experienced when going somewhere?

The fact that Hong Kong never sleeps. After midnight there are still loads of shops open and people out and traffic.  Then there was getting off a train in Paris after having been in a tiny Swiss mountain village about ten hours previously - that was a culture shock! I was also struck by how much more independant Dutch kids are to ours - it's because of the bikes.

 

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4. Where would you like to go next? (Like a dream place you want to visit)

I would very much like to see the Northern Lights in Norway, and West Africa for the music. There are lots of places I would like to cycle tour too. Because of the environment, I don't intend to fly again, but I decided that I would allow myself to take two more return flights in my lifetime if it was impossible to get to the destination overland/sea. If we include this clause, then I would say New Zealand as well

 

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5. Why do you mostly travel? (Is it because of work,school,adventure seeking or a simple vacation)

I never really had 'normal' holidays. In the beginning, we would go to stay with friends in Germany, or go with my family to France or other parts of the UK by car. After this I started going on orchestra tours so we got to put on concerts and meet people in a way that wouldn't be possible. When I was an adult I discovered airbnb and couchsurfing as well as travelling by train across the continent rather than flying. Nowerdays I go on cycle tours for proper holidays - a mixture of camping and couchsurfing. This means I usually visit multiple countries and cities in one trip and connect to the land and the people in a really special way. They are definitely an adventure with lots of unexpected things, but it's quite a safe adventure, I follow marked routes and good roads, and always seem to meet other travellers with interesting lives.

 

[Rare Aztec Whstling Chickn]

I haven't done anything too exciting really. Having always lived in south east Queensland, I haven't really travelled out that much in this corner. Furthest north I've been is around Fraser Island. I've done lots of trips down to Brisbane to see bands. I have family down in NSW, so I've done a few trips down, and have been to Canberra, Goulbourn and Batemans Bay mostly. Those were usually accompanied by a somewhat longish road trip in between those three places. I also flew into Sydney last year for a music festival, which was a nice little change.