TRAVEL - single special memory of a place you've been?

Margo, tell me some more of Barcelone I would like to go one day, may even buy a property there

Hiama

My time in Barcelona was brief, and coloured by the "near terminal" cold I developed~ (ever the drama queen!)

The city has an interesting feel to it - different to the south (which is my favourite part of Spain). More bustling. More ?driven? It's so alive, but with an underlying hint of, what - excitement, danger, chaos?? (This may have been tinged by the fever I had) The weather was good when I was there, so the light was fantastic. The streets were full of people (I was there just before Easter!).

The architecture was fascinating, and those Gaudi buildings are something else. Ramblas for fantastic people watching. I think it'd be a great place for just hanging around. I love Spain, and I wish they'd move to closer to Oz. I envy those who live in Europe and can get there easily and cheaply So many fabuous places; so little time (and $)

Are you thinking of a holiday house??? (waving!)

For you Lake Powell fans:

Frommers newsletter advises a deal n houseboats on Lake Powell :
http://www.frommers.com/book_a_trip/deal_lodging/deal.cfm?articleid=939&destid=LODGING

Sounds magic - I don't know if it's a good deal or not.

Small story, me in my black travel suit again, in Lucca, at my very small hotel not far from San Michele church and, to the other end of the street, the square with the bronze statue of Puccini.

I am having an aperitivo made by the desk clerk and we are both staring at the Kuerten-Rios tennis match, Swack! Thwop! Swack! Thwop! ... and so on. I fumble with my dreadful italian. Somehow we start conversing about tourists, as we discuss how I much I appreciate Lucca, and the fact that it doesn't have many of them. Although - I have since read that it is popular. Still, I only saw two clumps of tourists in my four days there. The hotel fellow expressed admiration for my visiting solo, not like all those other...."spaghetti eaters". Che dice? Spaghetti eaters, you know, all they eat are spaghetti specials....

It is true, I did notice, people warmed up to me, the woman eating alone, when I hoisted the menu and picked the most interesting dishes I could find. Not usually the whole shebang, which would put me on the floor from gustational overload. But always something interesting...

vienna : by day and by night. oct 2001 my wife and i went to vienna for three weeks - what a beautiful and livable city(lived in vienna as a boy for a year in 1940-1941; i was able to find my way around again rather quickly). by day: my wife and her sister wanted us (self and b-in-law) to take them for a horse-and-carriage ride( a FIAKER). i was not impressed with the idea - but once we got underway and the coachman started to give us his spiel i truly enjoyed it(almost felt like one of the old hapsburg royals - how decadent!). at night: after a performance at the opera house we simply took the streetcar for a ride around the ringstrasse which encircles the inner city. all the famous buildings were lit up like christmas-trees; what a wonderful experience. to sum up vienna: friendly people, music, good food and drink - heaven on earth. hbg

hbg, Did you ride the Vienna Giant Wheel (Das Wiener Riesenrad)? When I visited Vienna, I went to Schonbrunn Palace with a couple of ladies to attend a concert. We had dinner at the restaurant in the square fronting the palace, and the kitchen sits in the middle of the dining room where the patrons can watch the chefs cook. That was memorable. Another attraction we took in was im Passauerhof Grinzing. Good memories all. c.i.

c.i.: my wife and i just looked at the pix and little rememberances we brought back - i usually keep theatre-ticket stubs, restaurant bills etc. and it sure brought back great memories. YES, we did ride the ferris-wheel and also rode the little choo-choo train(if that isn't romantic!). we had earlier in the year been told that it would be difficult to get tickets to major performances, but since many of the american tour groups had cancelled, we had no problems getting tickets for the opera, musikverein and volksoper. ONE of the many highlights was a performance by the bratislava opera in the votiv-kirche(it was a benefit for church-restauration - an evening of verdi's music); another one was benefit concert for the united nations children's fund in the golden saal of the musikverein. we are ready to go back anytime - what a wonderful city and what wonderful people. hbg

hbg, Yes, a wonderful city. I can still remember sitting at an outdoor restaurant in the downtown area, watching the world go by. We even visited one of their grocery stores, and remember seeing many different types of cheese. Isn't the name of their cathedral St Joseph's? My visit to Vienna was in September of 1994 - ten years ago. We stayed at the same hotel as Thomas Edison, when he was invited to turn on the switch to the first lights at Shonbrunn Palace. c.i.

BTW, I'd love to go back to that area of the world to visit Salzburg, the home of Mozart - the musical genius who played the piano at age three, and composed music at age six. c.i.

c.i.: it's st. stephan's cathedral or DER STEFFEL to the viennese.hbg

hbg, That's right! I wonder where St Joseph's came from? c.i.

I found a brochure from the cathedral. It says, "For more than 850 years, this is the site of one of the most important masterworks of ecclesiastical architecture. The first churche (1137-1147) was built as a parish church of episcopate of Passau. Duke Rudolf IV laid the foundatin stone for the Gothic style nave. In 1433, the south tower was completed, and in 1469 the Diocese of Vienna was created. As of the bombing of WWII, the cathdral caught fire in April 1945, and was almost half destroyed. The "Steffl" - as it is popularly known - is not only a landmark of Vienna, but also of Austria." Dean KR Dr. Anton Michael Guber, parish priest

I try to collect these little ditties for keepsakes, so when I look at my photo albums, it brings back the details of history.
c.i.

So many wonderful places in the world. One day of pure pleasure in Bermuda, We biked along to St George's, and found this cove of perfectly clear water. I swam and floated in it all day - never wanted to come out. We had dinner at some little restaurant overlooking the water. One of those days just peaceful and beautiful.

Another, different experience was my first sight of Michaelangelo's David in Florence. I remember looking at it down a corridor, and for the moment was struck dumb.

On reflection, though, I realize I'm probably easily awed - doesn't take much. A sunset coming down the mountains to Malaga in Spain, but then too, a sunset right outside where I live. Maybe, at this age, I'm getting simple.

mama, Simple is good! At 67, I can't seem to get enough of this world's wonders, and try to take in two or three world travels every year while healthy enough to enjoy. One of the best advise I ever heard on one of my trips was, "I hope my last check bounces." I think that says it all! c.i.

c.i. : i'm with you. we travel on the "travel now, pay later" plan whenever possible(that is, only if it's interest free). i guess someday, someone is going to be surprised(i hope it's not me). on of the really beautiful sites of the world is right on our doorsteps : the shoredrive along lake ontario going west to prince edward county; there we usually go for a long walk along the sandbeaches and sand dunes(but usually only in the summer and fall - but we have also driven out there in winter when the ice is piled up several feet high along the shoreline - quite an awesome sight). usually wind up in a nice little country restaurant for lunch. c.i. : would you believe that some really first-class vineyards are right in that very same area? hbg

Not surprised at all. Wines from all over the world are now competing with old name French, German, and California wines. Not only on price, but quality as well. I purchased some Eicewine when I visited Niagara Falls many years ago. The quality was very good, but not to the standards of the German wine. c.i.

the price of canadian icewine has been driven up quite a bit lately; the demand for icewine in JAPAN has outstripped supply! hbg

c.i. : getting back to st. joseph's - did you perhaps think of SAINT JOSEPH'S ORATORY OF MOUNT ROYAL(montreal). it was founded by brother andre about 18__(?). www.saint-joseph.org hbg

hbg, Had the opportunity many years ago to visit Montreal's Oratory of Mount Royal. The view from Mount Royal was spectacular too. Also visited Notre Dame, and still remember that beautiful blue-hued chapel. c.i.

A special travel memory I will never forget is from my very first trip abroad. I was 25 years old and on a whim, bought a ticket to Paris with my student loan money (I figured that if I didn't take a major excursion abroad then, that I never would.) Mind you, the biggest vacation that I had taken up until then was a weekend in NYC.

I was alone, amazed at my decision, afraid of the French, and jetlagged. My ultimate destination was Prague, and after a couple of days sleeping in Paris, I went to the train station a couple of hours early because I was confused by the military time. I sat outside waiting for my train, and was approached by a man who was about my age and who needed gas money. I was grouchy and tired and on a budget and so I told him "no." He started to argue with me that because I was an American (how did he know that with my artful "french outfit" on? ) that I should have plenty of money to buy him gas.

After having experienced extreme culture shock and the classic French rudeness entirely too much for one little southern girl to take in just a couple of days, I went off on him. I yelled at him that I was just a waitress and was lucky to be there and that I barely had enough money for myself. I calmly (exhaustedly) sat back down. He paused, then said "Oh. Sorry...I didn't mean to upset you." And we proceeded to have a really cool conversation until it was time for me to find my train. I was so grateful to have someone to speak to and grateful that a potentially bad situation turned into a pleasant one. That one conversation helped me keep a good attitude toward the rest of my trip and helped me relax and enjoy the experience a little more. Life is beautiful!