I vowed, after I retired, to travel more, and to relatively exotic places. I’ve managed to take a few good trips in the last few years, which I’ve documented here (Antarctica, the Galápagos, etc.), but Covid largely put the kibosh on travel. Now I’m ramping up again, and would like to crowdsource some travel destinations. Here’s my travel schedule for the time being, but two of the three trips are work-related:
May: Amsterdam and environs to give a talk and a separate interview/discussion. (one week)
August: South Africa to visit Capetown and then Kruger to see the animals (one month)
October: CSICon Conference in Las Vegas to give a talk (four days).
Two of these trips are work-related, but I take work trips only to nice places or alluring meetings, and it would be a pleasure for me to visit Amsterdam again as well as to go to the CSICon conference, the Skeptical Inquirer meeting. However, this still omits the longer and purely recreational trips I’d planned to take. Therefore here I’m asking readers to suggest destinations for me.
Here’s what I’m looking for:
- A trip of several weeks to a month
- A destination that’s not a place I’ve been before (yes, I’m sure nobody knows all the places I’ve seen, but many know of some)
- Some place that’s fairly exotic and not a classic tourist destination (i.e., Thailand compared to Italy). Examples: a few places I’ve contemplated include southeast Asia, the Yucatan, Argentina, and Australia (the last one seems to me to require a trip of several months, so I’ve shied away from Oz although it attracts me greatly). But that’s a very small sample.
- A place where I can travel independently as opposed to in a group. (Cruises are an exception if it’s to a place like Antarctica or the Arctic where you more or less need to travel in a group on a ship.)
- Ideally, it should have good (local) cuisine
I don’t require luxury as I travel not too differently from how I did when I was younger and penurious.
I’m no spring chicken, and so want to go to the “harder” destinations when I’m still relatively healthy. I’ve always feared that my greatest regret on my deathbed would be not to have experienced the diversity and glories of this planet, which is so varied, beautiful, and fascinating.
If you give suggestions, any other ancillary information (reasons why I should go, things to see, etc.) would be appreciated.
Thanks!
Jerry, I recommend a getaway in Monteverde, Costa Rica, the heart of the cloud forests in Central America, where spider monkeys, toucans, blue morphos, and hummingbirds abound. In addition to the fresh coffee, I will never forget the fresh fudge I had there. (I seem to remember that you like fudge as well as coffee.) I could wax poetic about Monteverde, but in the interest of saving time, refer you to their tourism Website for more info.
https://www.monteverdeinfo.com/
Also been there, too, as part of my OTS course in grad school. Lovely place, and the place where I saw my first Resplendent Quetzal. But I hear there are now plenty of tourists there.
New Zealand, especially the South Island
I spent a month in NZ not that long ago, mostly on the South Island. I loved it.
We very much enjoyed a cruse on the Douro River in Portugal and a trans-Canada trip by train.
The best Canada railway journey is the Rocky Mountaineer , the journey across the plains imo is somewhat deadly, mile upon mile of plains until you get to Quebec and then onto NB and NS which is ok but not special.
I took the train from Vancouver, B.C. to Toronto back in 1989 and I can confirm this. The first 24 hours, crossing the Rockies, is truly spectacular. Then you have 24 hours crossing the wheat fields of central Canada, where the most exciting sight is the next grain elevator. And then you hit the lakes of Ontario, which is an interesting terrain.
Good to hear you enjoyed the Douro, a friend wants to go on the river cruise and I said I’d go with her.
I did a trip by RV from Banff to Jasper, it was amazing. Lake Louise and the Athabasca Falls. Wow.
Argentina – glaciers, food, and visit the Welsh colony of Patagonia.
For the Africa trip, it would be good to rent a camera with a good zoom lens. Mirrorless cameras are lighter. The most compact of these would be an OM camera (formerly Olympus), where the weight and size of the lens is scaled down considerably and yet they have a long reach. A big zoom lens alone is a good way to see the wildlife, since they don’t always get close.
I would vote for Australia, and I agree that would deserve more than one trip.
But I also wonder about some of the more unusual places, like Vietnam? That is definitely a possibility!
Sadly NZ doesn’t fit your criteria, or I’d suggest you come here and give the local lunatics a tune up while you were at it. Oz is indeed vast, but you could contemplate just doing a smaller part of it. I recently watched an excellent four part travel documentary “Bill Bailey’s Australian Adventure” (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt30021952/) in which the English comedian Bill Bailey tours Western Australia, a part of Oz I’ve never been to, and it does look a fascinating place to visit. I’m certainly keen to go after seeing the tv series.
During the pandemic, my wife and I bought courses from TheGreatCourses.com. We’d watch an episode a day of something we hadn’t seen before or known anything about. A real eye-opener was a History of Eastern Europe (24 hour-long lectures). See link to the course below. We had no idea about Eastern Europe. In school in the 1960’s and 70’s here in the U.S., history was all about *Western* Europe. Eastern Europe was treated as a terra incognita—a vast exotic wasteland inside the Soviet sphere. That course on Eastern Europe was fascinating!
Anyway, Eastern Europe is a very big place—so I can’t suggest anything specific, nor have I been there. But you might want to consider somewhere in the region, particularly if you haven’t been in the region before.
https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/a-history-of-eastern-europe
Romania, spectacular mountains and forests, lovely people, visit Draculas castle and not expensive.
Argentina for a month – Buenos Aires, Pinamar, Mendoza, Valdes Peninsula, Perito Moreno, El Chalten, El Calafate, Ushuaia. Merlots and Beef 🙂
I highly recommend Australia but you’re right about time needed. We also really enjoyed Croatia.
My suggestion: island hopping around North Sound – Virgin Gorda – British Virgin Islands.
Nearby Saint John – US Virgin Islands is unmissable!
Queensland. Fly into Cairns and rent a car. Enjoy the tropical lowland with banana plantations. Head north to the Daintree for the tropical rainforest and salties. See the Great Barrier Reef from Port Douglas (what’s left of it). Then head inland to the tablelands filled with coffee and mango plantations. Take a walk around the rim of an old volcano and see kangaroos down in the center. Then go see the lava tubes at Undara and stay in an old railroad car. Watch bats come out of the tubes in the evening and take walks surrounded by blue butterflies. In the evening they take you out to the top of an old cinder cone to watch the sunset over the outback enjoying a glass of wine. But don’t go to Queensland for the food!
The South Island of New Zealand. It’s glorious by any measure (mountains, glacial lakes, breathtaking fjords) but for an evolutionary biologist it’s doubly entrancing because it has so many unique plants and animals. The North Island isn’t too bad either, but the South Island will make your jaw drop. If you do visit the North Island, we’ll put you up for as long as you like, Jerry.
Echoing some of the above: Western Australia, Croatia, Yucatan (Mayan sites), Nepal (maybe you’ve been there?), Patagonia
Have you considered Sri Lanka? English is widely spoken there, so you could probably travel relatively independently. Things have settled down politically, I believe, although this is something that you would have to keep an eye on in the run-up to any trip. And it would give you a chance to see some South Asian biodiversity – relatively wild areas are not so difficult to access as they are in India.
Madagascar might be another option, although getting around within the country seems to be getting more and more difficult and there are areas that you definitely should avoid. And French is the lingua franca, which can be a problem. But I spent three weeks there on a very tight budget back in the 90s and was still able to see a lot of wildlife (this was very much a “Last Chance to See” tour, unfortunately, and the conservation situation there doesn’t seem to be getting better). The beef they serve you there (zebu) is the best I’ve ever had.
Looking forward to South Africa – wow!
Otherwise, hmmm…
Alaska? – a wilderness/taiga exploration.. actually I think PCC(E) already flew over there… food though, eesh.
Himalayas? Or that sort of thing… food might be rough.
The suggestions sound great – Yucatán…
How about Italy?! Food should be amazing!
Interesting to think…
Can one travel to the Oldulvai Gorge to visit the digs there?
Non touristy, yet safe with decent accommodations and good food is a big ask in this day and age of travel. That said, most countries, even Italy, has much that can be done “off the beaten path” or “off-season” to avoid tourists and enjoy the area like a local.
Perfect example: In November I spent three days of my two week vacation in Pompeii. I avoided the main ruins (worth seeing but I’ve been before) and instead I visited three independent villas near the area (Oplontis, Arianna and Villa San Marco). The only other people on site were the two people I was travelling with.
No need to comment on the food & wine, it’s Italy!
That said, if ever in Pompeii, you must eat at Add’u Mimi. One of my top two favourite authentic restaurants in Italy. Roberto is the owner. Do order a bottle of his house red. It’s the smoothest red I’ve ever had, and I don’t say that lightly!
But most of all… Carpe Diem!
I suggest Namibia. The dessert and the animals in the dessert. And then Victoria Fall and Chobe National Park. That makes an amazing 2 weeks trip.
One of the places I most want to go to.
I would imagine most animals are savoury by nature and therefore would be unsuitable for putting in a dessert.
🙂
I’ll add one more criterion: I make it a point never to drive in foreign countries, especially if they drive on the left side!
Well that buggers my suggestion which was going to be Iceland, but I think you really do need a car to travel beyond Reykjavik.
You’d be surprised at how easy it is to adapt to driving on the wrong side of the road. I’ve done it many times (where wrong is on the right from my PoV), but you don’t get to see much of the landscape whizzing past. If you want to really experience a foreign country, public transport is almost always the best way, in my opinion.
Some suggestions:
1. AK Coast – Vancouver BC Northbound. Maybe the Aleutian Islands. Drive Denali, Fairbanks, Dalton Highway to Deadhorse. If you can fly, reach any port at the Bering Sea. Min. three weeks.
2. Mongolia by car. But rental cars are only with a driver. It can be an advantage. Maybe you can touch Lake Baikal (Russia!). More than a month.
3. Vietnam by car from N to S. A month or more.
4. Perhaps, you can extend your trip to South Africa to Lake Victoria with the entire river system.
Also, you can vizit Romania pending the summer – min. one mounth – by car, the mountains, the important carstic zone from Apuseni, the old monasteries, the Danube Delta. In this case, contact me for details.
I’m afraid Mongolia is out (unless things have changed a lot in the 20 years since I was there). Jerry wants good local cuisine, and the food in Mongolia back then was the worst I’ve ever had – mutton, mutton, and more mutton (no spices). Fascinating country otherwise!
I think Argentina would be very interesting. Or Scandinavia, if you haven’t been.
Jerry,
My wife and I take about 6-8 motorcycle vacations a year in the USA but when we do fly it is always Thailand. We spend most of that time in Chiang Mai, but last February we added a couple of days in Phuket. November – February is prime weather.
We generally do November to attend the Yi Peng/Loi Krathong Festival (3 days of gratitude including the lantern festival). We spend much of the 3 weeks we visit at an Elephant Sanctuary, some visiting Temples and the rest taking in the food and feline culture as well as the varied nightlife. Visiting Thailand is relatively inexpensive, food is fresh and creative, English is spoken widely and getting around without a personal vehicle is pretty easy and there is the University of Chiang Mai to make professional contacts. We have encouraged 15 people to visit and assisted them with suggestions, travel tips and introductions.
We will be going again for about 3 weeks this November accompanied by some friends who enjoyed our visit last February, enough to sign up for this years trip in November. 1 person is a very adventurous eater, the other 2 quickly learned to say “mai pet” which means “no spice”. Peace to you Mr. Coyne and thank you for all you do,
Stephen and Gayle
My experience with Thailand was in the early 80’s when I had three separate 6 week trips to a southern city called Songkhla. I was working on X-ray machines in the local university. My hotel was 10 miles or so east to the ocean shore. Daily hour plus walks on that beach were an absolute joy. Small pleasures such as crabs eating jellyfish or flip flop parts washed ashore. Simple food absolutely fantastic. For a few bucks hired a taxi driver to be where I needed him each day and he also took me to several local natural wonders and even to Sunday lunch with his family. Ah, sweet memories.
David 83yo WASP
I don’t know if you’ve ever been, but my daughter recently spent a semester in South Korea, and she enjoyed it very much.
How about Albania? The country is fascinating and the people are great.
Japan. With a Japan Rail rail pass one can visit many interesting places (from Tokyo to Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima, perhaps even beyond). Many interesting things to see north of Tokyo as well. Excellent food everywhere. And at least recently the dollar was very, very strong against the yen.
+1
My favorite places are Italy and Croatia, but my most favorite place is Bali. I spent only three days there, as opposed to years in Italy and Croatia, but it was an absolutely amazing stay – food, culture and people. One I cannot forget.
I too vote for Australia, practically a different planet as far as biology is concerned. But a close second would be New Guinea, which is also a very different world, and one that may require some physical abilities that you may lose as you get older. Birds of Paradise, crazy plants, very unusual culture….
Well if you want to go the most wonderful 100 year old Inn in the United States, the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. Over 10 US Presidents have been there. President Obama has been twice. Once I got to shake his hand!!
Professor Emeritus Dr. John C H Laughlin
Possibly my favorite trip ever was visiting ancient cave art in southern France. We saw about 5 or 6 important sites in addition to the well known site of Lascaux. Each was unique and very interesting. As we toured the sites over 10 days we stopped at a number of locations/museums dedicated to individual modern artists. Matisse, van Gogh, Cesanne, Toulouse Lautrec…
We drove a rental car. Driving is on the right. I’m sure there must be small tour services as well. Arles, Marsaille, Aix-en-Provence, etc. I need not mention the food.
laughlin@averett.edu
Italy, for it’s food, history and atmosphere (supposedly art too, but the philistine here can’t comment on that).
Pantanal and Atlantic Forest in Brazil for their dazzling biodiversity. Downside: food is mediocre. And depending on when you are traveling: right now, dengue is causing havoc.
Japan, although I’ve never been. The cultural experience and food must be amazing.
I would recommend Sri Lanka as well. I spent 5 weeks there volunteering for Mercy Corps after the Tsunami, and found it a fascinating and exotic place. The birds are extraordinary. Watch out for Viper snakes, however. The down side is the the Island, which I understand Marco Polo said was the most beautiful island he had ever seen, is being overrun and trashed by humans. Visit the Temple of the Tooth, the tea plantations, Buddhist temples, and Adam’s Peak, which contains a rock formation that looks like a footprint (It takes some imagination – but doesn’t all religion?) at the top that is claimed to be the footprint of Adam, since it was the place he landed after being cast away from paradise. It is also claimed to be the footprint of St Thomas, Buddha, and Shiva. Needless to say, pilgrims come from all over crowd the place, and it is quite a climb. (I couldn’t do it now.) But take a look at the images under google and you get a good idea of how unusual Sri Lanka is in so many ways.
We are heading to Borneo next month and it checks all the boxes of your interests. Fascinating geography and unique wildlife including proboscis monkeys, sun bears and a sea turtle hatchery.
If you are open to river cruising, we have done Cambodia to Vietnam on the Mekong river which was fantastic.
If you want an extension from South Africa, Botswana is also fascinating and you get a side trip to Victoria Falls
I agree with Andrew above that if you go to Australia, you don’t necessarily need to do a huge amount of it. It is remarkable in many many parts, and has many wonderful things (places and fauna among them) worth seeing. —-I would also recommend going there by flying to the east, taking Emirates airlines, landing in Dubai in time for a nice supper and an overnight stay in a real hotel bed. Then go on the next day to Australia. This is much pleasanter than doing the trip by flying to the west coast of the US and on from there to Australia.
Australian American here. I rarely visit Australia but the last 2 trips, 2010 and 2020 I went via Dubai and Qatar, much better than via LAX though it takes a little longer. However a few days stopover in the Gulf is excellent.
D.A.
NYC
hi Jerry,
you might have been there – but if not, i recommend warmly iceland 🙂
best, andrea
The Balkan peninsula?
Serbia:
Nice people, lots of history, fantastic food (particularly my mother in law’s); hardly any tourism.
Albania: the same benefits as above (besides my mother in law)
Monto Negro + Croatia: as above (more tourism)
One could round up the trip by invading Greece from the north and let it end in Athens, Crete or Istanbul…
Kipling’s travel writings start by saying that it is good for every man to see some little of the great Indian Empire and the strange folk who move about it. It is no longer an Empire, but much that Kipling writes about travel there, might well inspire you. He has a wonderful description of the cynical English traveler, seeing from the train the mists lifting off the Taj while it takes a hundred new shapes, each perfect and each beyond description. He will certainly make you want to go to Jaipur and the Amber Fort.
I haven’t written about this much, but I’ve been to India more times than any other country except, perhaps, France. I’ve seen a lot of it, including the Taj and most of the interesting cities in Rajasthan, but there are parts I’ve missed, particularly the SE bits including Chennai.
My wife and I did a trip from Chennai south thru Mamallapuram, Trichy and Tanjore (to use the shorter forms of their names) and finished up at Madura, tho you can go further and see more. It’s completely different from northeastern Indai (we’ve been to Varanasi several times) or Rajasthan. The area around Badami and Hampir in southeastern India (Karnataka) is fascinating too. We’d love to go back, but, alas, our traveling days are over.
I also second the votes for Argentina. We loved it, but then we had friends there. But so, probably, do you. The area up northeast around Humahuaca is gorgeous.
Tasmania. Rugged. Beautiful. Interesting flora and fauna. Of course the rest of Australia while you are there. I only really saw a bit of Sydney and Melbourne. Sydney is iconic. Melbourne has a great vibe. But seeing Australia without driving on the left is a challenge. It is a bigger challenge if you drive on the right.
I’m not much of a global traveler, although I’ve traveled exenscively in the US (hit 49 of 50 states at one time or another). Having said that, three suggestions:
1. Northern Scotland. We did a 2 week driving tour and visiting (among other locations) Glasgow, the outer Hebrides, Inverness, the Orkneys, and Edinburgh. I particularly liked the Orkneys – we hired a guide, and it was well worth it.
2. Central and Southern Europe. I haven’t seen much of this, but I did get to spend a week in Prague on “official business” and one in Barcelona visiting my study-abroad son. I loved both. And my late sister spent a good deal of time working in the former Yugoslavia – Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, and Montenegro – and had great things to say about them.
3. Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. I’ve been there a couple of times and am looking forward to returning. Suggestion – fly into Salt Lake City, rent a car, and take a leisurely tour through red rock country. And for adventure, take the 50 miles of dirt road to Toroweap Overlook, where you can look straight down 3000 feet to see the Colorado River from the north rim of the Grand Canyon.
Several people have mentioned Croatia. I have never been, but I work with several people that grew up there, ALL of whom still spend several months there every year.
It looks to be beautiful, is on the Adriatic, and has several other historically interesting near neighbors.
Croatia, Albania, Montenegro, Greece might be an interesting journey.
Good to hear you enjoyed the Douro, a friend wants to go on the river cruise and I said I’d go with her.
I did a trip by RV from Banff to Jasper, it was amazing. Lake Louise and the Athabasca Falls. Wow.
South Africa is an absolute must. Cape Town is the most beautiful city in the world – I am biased as I have lived here most of my life. Kruger Park is to die for. We have the Garden Route and the Wild Coast. And more and more. We have not covered ourselves in glory recently, but tourists continue to visit our shores. Expatriate friends from Australia visited our shores for a month in January. They said it was supposed to be their final visit to SA. They now say that they will return. Jerry, you can sleep on my couch in Cape Town. I have a tuxedo cat 🙂
Egypt is always top of my list. I’ve been there many times. I like getting off the beaten track there. Siwa Oasis in the Libyan Desert is quite a trek, but sunrise is amazing, and there are so few lights at night that the stars are breathtaking. Last year I visited Amarna for the first time. There’s not a lot there, but it was on my bucket list to walk where Nefertiti walked. I plan to do a Lake Nasser Cruise as I’d like to see Abu Simbel again, and at night, and see more Nubian temples.
How about getting a rail pass and going by train from the northern tip of Norway (when the Northern lights are active) down to Istanbul (amazing city). Stopping at Verona on the way for an opera at Verona Arena (a Roman amphitheatre).
Marrakesh is lovely.
Saigon was fascinating for many reasons. I only had a brief time there and would love to go back.
Kuala Lumpur was interesting. Very handy that my sis was working there 😁
Bangkok is on my ‘return to’ list but not Bali. Not a fan of Koh Samui either.
I fancy doing Singapore properly. I only had 2 nights there, passing through, and I was jet lagged. You said you’ve been there already I think. Been to a few other places around there, will need to check my photos to jog my memory.
I was in Florence in December. It’s a bit touristy but the art galleries and museums are superb.
My travelling has had a hiatus due to covid too, but I’m getting back on track and will visit India in the autumn.
Scotland is great too 😁😉
If you think you might fancy any of these places I have photos and can give examples of what to see.
Egypt is really great. Been there 9 times, first time in 1989. Can’t seem to get enough of Egypt. Sudan is also great, but due to war now not possible to visit safely
Colombia is also a nice place to visits . I am here right now (Colombian wife and family). Really nice people down here and not at all as dangerous as most people think.
I’ve lost count of my visits. I took a break after the Deir El Bahri bombing, but go regularly. I usually like to arrange my own travel, but they restarted full length Nile cruises in 2022 so I took one for the chance to see Amarna as I’m not keen to travel through Minya or the Asyut on my own.
Greece.
Copenhagen.
A North American road trip might be something to think about, if: 1. you enjoy driving (I do), and 2. there are still significant areas of the continent you haven’t explored.
A few of the places I’d love to visit or revisit include Cahokia Mounds in Illionois, L’anse au meadeaux in Newfoundland, Acadia National Park, the Badlands, and the Museum of Appalachia in Tennessee.
On edit: It occurs to me that as an Illinois resident, the Cahokia mounds are in your backyard, so never mind!
I enthusiastically recommend Australia, my favorite continent. The biota is otherworldly, it’s English-speaking (sort of), and it’s wonderfully uncrowded. From the moment you get off the plane, you’ll be inundated with exotic bird songs (bells, whistles and chortles) like you’ve never heard before, and of course the marsupial mammals are fantastic. In a few weeks, I’ll start sending you photographs of numerous Australian birds for our Sunday postings. All of Australia is amazing, but you could get a great introduction to it by just doing a tour of the East Coast, from Tasmania to Queensland. Downsides for you would be the food (mediocre, but with a huge variance of course) and driving on the left (but that adjustment is easier than you might think).
Greece is a must if you have never been there. Seems to be quiet and calm at the moment, unlike many other hot spots. You need to prioritize: are you travelling for R and R , art, or nature? My first choice for art (and food) would be Italy…also because the people are great. The whole country is a work of art, so much great stuff, so many wonderful cities, churches, piazzas. It’s in its own category. As for natural treasures: Iguassu Falls in Brazil as well as the Pantanal and the amazing hill towns with dozens of fantastic old churches (Ouro Preto is at the top of the list).
Andalucia with special attention to Granada, Cordoba and Seville, with a stop in
Barcelona…old towns, churches, parks, etc. In the end: Greece, Italy, Spain to the list. Asia involves such long trips, unbearable heat and humidity but great food. Maybe consider Nepal but you would need to include a short trek as well as spending time in the three main cities if visiting shrines interests you.
A WWI tour along the lines of Farewell to Arms. Start in Slovenia. Ljubljana –> Lake Bled for a day or two –> Kranjska Gora and then up over Vrsic Pass, passing the chapel built by Russian prisoners of war, & to the top where there’s a nice hostel. Then the descent where you begin to pick up various fortifications from past centuries, and start to see remnants of the WWI conflict. There are various trails related to all of this, including along the front – the Soca River. Continue down to the museum in Kobarid. That’s as far as I got, but from there pick up the trail that Hemingway traced in the book. You could easily spend three wks doing that, I think.
A bit about this from Rick Steves: https://classroom.ricksteves.com/videos/slovenia-s-julian-alps-the-soca-front-and-world-war-i
If you haven’t been to the yucatan or only went to Cancun, I’d suggest seeing some of that area then moving to guatemala …see Antigua, Tikal, Lago Atitlan. If you like scuba diving…that area is nice. Go to isla de las mujeres in Mx, or one of the cayes in Belize (if you dont want to rely on your Spanish. Same goes for Roatan or one of the bay islands off La ceiba, Honduras.
I suspect you’re a birder— costa rica or okavango delta in S. Africa
Cape Town is a brilliant choice, the most beautiful city in the world ( and elsewhere 😀). I know a very good B&B where you can stay (I have no financial interest there) but I’d suggest you contact me on my Facebook inbox or my email address for some advice.
Actually, I have friends I’m staying with there, but thanks for the offer. Should I email you for other advice?
Thanks.
Athayde Tonhasca Júnior gave you many reasons to visit Venice in today’s RWP. I know you’ve never been to Italy. For me, it’s the best European vacation destination. France is great, but if you like Paris, you’ll love Florence or Rome or Venice. French food is renowned, but it doesn’t compare to Italian food imo. Sorry if I offend. And the art, architecture, history, natural beauty is endless…I’ve visited a few times, and it’s always been the highlight of vacations in my life. Very friendly people as well.
Looking forward to reports from S. Africa…that trip sounds like a real treat!
I suggest SE Asia. Thailand is extraordinary: lovely people (especially outside Bangkok), sophisticated and refreshing cuisine, Thai massages, stunning beaches and jungle, unique architecture, and Theravada Buddhist culture. I have never visited Viet Nam or Cambodia, but when I am in Thailand and encounter travelers entering from these countries, they enthusiastically recommend visiting. (As for me, I’m excited about visiting Iceland, Finland, and The Netherlands for six weeks this Summer!)
Echoing Patrick, Thailand is stunning, the people are friendly and the food is superb. The Buddhist temples and culture makes the entire experience exotic. I enjoyed learning about the Buddhist influence on Thailand’s history and culture while exploring them. And about Thailand’s third gender, Kathoeys. While in the neighborhood, I’d visit Taipei before the possible change of governments. The museum there can eat up many enchanted days. And the food rivals Thailand’s.
Lao. Fly into Luang Prabang and stay for 3 days. Then take a boat up the Mekong to a couple of the various tributaries and villages (A week to 10 days of exploring). The overland to VN or, with a visa, head into Myanmar. French baguette with frog soup in LP is quite the treat.
The camino de santiago. It is an extended walk through beautiful countryside. You don’t have to carry anything, not even a bottle of water. There is a place to get something to eat and drink every mile or so. You can get a taxi easily if you get tired. There is a service that takes your bags to your next lodging for a few euros. Sarria to Campostela is about 70 miles and makes a great week. I don’t remember the food as great, but that isn’t what I was paying attention to. You meet lots of interesting people from everywhere.
But beware the bedbugs!
I will be sending some photos soon, to whet your appetite for the Kruger Park! Agree with the comment above, a good camera is an absolute must, and there should be plenty of rental outlets in Cape Town if you are not bringing one with you. With regard to travel suggestions, Namibia is probably one of the most scenic countries you could ever wish to visit, and also very safe. Travelling independently may be a challenge though, as distances are vast and public transport not readily available outside of major cities and towns.
In Italy, you need Roman Jewish cuisine, which is quite special. It includes Roman Jewish fried artichokes. There are some excellent Jewish restaurants in Rome.
This isn’t super exotic but I recommend Skomer Island in Wales. It is one of the largest Puffin colonies. Wonderful place and limited access. I also recommend the Botanic Gardens of Wales
https://www.welshwildlife.org/visit/skomer-island
https://botanicgarden.wales/visit/
Vietnam. Fly to Hanoi, take in the city, stay on a junk in Halong Bay, maybe make a jungle trip. Then take the train south, stopping off where the mood takes you: Hue, Da Nang (with a side trip to Hoi An), Nha Trang, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), maybe Da Lat as well (bus or taxi). The Viet Cong tunnels at Cu Chi outside HCMC are worth a visit, as is the Mekong Delta. The people are friendly, travel and hotels are reasonably cheap (or they were 10 years ago), and the food is excellent!
If it weren’t still so expensive and somewhat physically arduous, I’d recommend a trip to the International Space Station. People who have gazed upon Earth from the station’s large viewing cupola tend to wax poetic about the experience.
But, of course, the International Space Station doesn’t rotate to create artificial gravity. What if it did rotate? (Assuming it had a design appropriate for rotation.)
At the link below, a digital artist has done a masterful job of exploring the “natural” lighting inside a hypothetical rotating space hotel — given an unlikely plethora of large windows.
The constant rotation creates a very interesting play of light and shadow. In reality it would probably become annoying, if not dizzying, so I imagine that motion-stabilized video screens would be both more practical and congenial.
The hotel (or cruise ship) shown in the 6-minute video is first in orbit around Earth, but it then passes a few other planets before heading beyond the Solar System. With one exception, the artist did not include hotel guests, since the video is mostly an exercise in lighting.
(If the link doesn’t work, search for “ONE REVOLUTION PER MINUTE – a short film by Erick Wernquist.”)
*ERIK Wernquist (spelling correction).
For a shorter trip with Vietnamese food, try Leipzig. The connection between East Germany and Vietnam has left in its wake, several Vietnamese restaurants, some which are OK (near the University) and some which are terrific.
Thanks to all for their suggestions; much appreciation. I am now pondering them, and hope to hit on a destination soon!
—PCC(E)
I’ve been away a few days and missed the party but I’d like to second Borneo, in particular Danum Valley. Just extraordinary. And as much as I’d like to recomend my own fair land of Australia, if you don’t want to drive, particularly on the left, you may be a little stuck.
Tasmania and Western Australia
Reasons:
General – Aussie food and wine culture eg. from Things you will never hear an Australian traveler say: “I wish we had coffee like this back home”. https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/reviews-and-advice/the-13-things-you-will-never-hear-an-australian-traveller-say-20170821-gy0xh6.html
General – Aussie flora, fauna, diverse ecological systems, and geological history.
Tassie ideas for starters: Cradle Mtn, Lake St Clair, UNESCO World Heritage, Freycinet Peninsula, site of world’s only successful genocide (Books I’ve enjoyed on Tassie include Robert Hughes Our Fatal Shore, Richard Flanagan Gould’s Book of Fish, and Timothy Egan The Immortal Irishman),…
WA ideas for starters: stromatolites (or visit thrombolites for shorter drive), Ningaloo reef, kauri forests, southwest peninsula, Valley of Giants, Rottnest Island,… (Reading ideas Mike Dash Batavia’s Graveyard)
If you do WA, stop in SA to visit the Natural History Museum and check out the Ediacara display including first sexual reproduction (not a bad claim to fame), maybe first vertebrates?, and first brain?.
If you do decide on Aus, feel free to reach out as I have some “must do” recommendations for you.
Finally, please keep up your fantastic work. I love what you have created here, and not just because I’m a science junky and foodie.