10 of the best
Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Great food, great hospitality |
| Disadvantages: |
Not enought time to do more |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
Thinking of 10 places i have visited on either short or longer vacations I hereby list them but in no real sense of priority - each, as you will see, has its own merits and because of geographical location, cultural differences etc and the time I spent at each, it would be inappropriate for me to prioritise. Food has always played an important part in any vacation and I have brought back recipe books from most places... I also tend to combine touristy things with days of pure relaxation. So here goes!1. Florida - OK so most visitors to Florida immediately think of Orlando or the beaches of the Gulf Coast. For me, though, the beauty is spending time with friends in a more "behind the scenes" kind of way. Combining a day or two doing really touristy stuff, like Universal Studios or a Casino cruise for example, with going to livestock auctions and helping choose tile or paint for redecorating is just bliss. 2. Israel - I have holidayed in Israel many times, always basing myself in a hotel on the Red Sea. Over the years I have day-tripped to Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, the copper mines at Timna, the rose-red city of Petra (in Jordan), the Sinai desert (on camel!) and again combined these really touristy and full-on experiences with days just lounging at the Dolphin Reef (starting those days with a snorkelling sesh with the dolphins) or by the pool with a great book. A truly fabulous vacation destination.3. Cyprus - a beautiful island set in the far east of the Mediterranean sea it is closer to Israel and Middle Eastern countries geographically. I base myself in one of the great beach hotels in Paphos (I have tried Limassol and Larnaca but prefer Paphos, even though it is very touristy!) and spend my time either pool/beach-side or hiring a car and day-visiting local sites. It is a couple of hours from Paphos to the heart of the Troodos mountains and if you take the less travelled route you go via some beautiful and virtually unspoitl traditional villages - imagine fields of yellow daisies being grazed by chocolate brown donkeys, Greek Orthodox priests harvesting oranges.. it is charming! 4. Finland - I first visited on business and then made a point of going back both for long weekends and slightly longer vacations. Helsinki is beautiful, especially during summer when it barely gets dark, very buzzing with great nightlife and all the noise and bustle of a city. Finns are courteous yet fun to be with - will take their cue from you as to how involved they will get. Finnish lappland is great also for fly fishing, hanging out in log cabins, and of course in winter is fabulous for cross-country ski-ing (there is some downhill but not much).5. Paris - it has been too long since I was last in Paris but there really is something magical about this city. The traffic is truly nightmareish but sightseeing on foot and by metro (subway) is very straightforward and although it is a large city, its division into arrondissements, each of which does retain a great degree of its orignal "village" nature, makes it easy to pick where to go and what to do. Parisians are legendary for pretending not to understand a non-French person when they try to speak French but it is always great fun to bring out the phrasebook and try and get a baguette and not a book!! 6. Malta - a very tiny island in the centre of the Mediterranean has an extraordinary history. Definitely a place for great seafood and discovering prehistoric archaeological remains. The capital, Valletta, has some super hotels and the local buses (the main bus terminus is just outside the city gates) are wonderfully rickety old buses from the 1930s although, sadly, many are being replaced with modern ones that aren't nearly as much fun. The island is easily gotten around and the fishing villages are well worth a visit - the boats are all brightly painted, many quaysides have craft stalls selling local wares and freshly caught shrimp in garlic together with a glass of local wine makes a delicious lunch.7. Germany - having worked for a German company where I had to live in Frankfurt for weeks at a time I am kind of biased as I got to know it a little "behind the scenes" as well as a tourist. Travelling around the country is superbly easy, by car, train or regional aircraft, and Rhine boatrips are brilliant ways to spend a day or two. Germans are very hospitable and everything just works so it is an easy vacation place. 8. Costa del Sol, Spain - its been a few years but I stayed with friends in a village up behind Fuengirola during Feria (festival) season which was great! A Spanish village festival includes all generations - from little girls and boys in flamenco costume right up to grizzled grandparents quietly watching proceedings - all being entertained by local bands and eating out! The beaches are great and there is no shortage of things to do and beachside restaurants to eat at!9. Turkey - gulet cruising - hiring a gulet, a traditionally built Turkish boat + crew and just cruising the islands off the southern coast of Turkey has to be one of the most delightful of vacations. During the mornings the boat relocates to a new spot, via charming swimming holes and inlets, after lunch there may be more cruising or sighsteeing local historical sites and at night you moor up at a fairly out of the way fishing village. Lots of swimming, snorkelling and just snoozing on mattresses under canopy on deck is sheer joy! 10. W Coast of Ireland (near Bantry) - hiring a car, renting a cottage or staying at bed&breakfasts is the way to see Ireland. During holiday season you should always book ahead and if you allow yourself plenty of time to drive at leisure, lunch at leisure and dine at leisure you can have a grand time. People are friendly, hospitable (although many have kissed the Blarney stone and can tell a fine tale!!) but you need take their advice about time/distance with a pinch of salt! "Just over there" might be just over there or it might be 10 miles on!! Food is great, outdoorsy things (horseriding etc) are readily available and there is a great sense of history.OK I could rattle on about other places.. and i haven't even touched on places I would like to visit but... that's it for now!!!
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