What place have you traveled to that vastly exceeded your expectations?

I’ll go first. Australia blew my mind. When I first learned my wife and I would be visiting Melbourne and Sydney I wasn’t super jazzed about it. The flight to get to Australia is just BRUTAL. To be honest I’d never really felt the urge to visit Australia. I suppose them destroying all those guns and the images of that burned into my memory didn’t give me many fond thoughts when I considered visiting Australia.

I was wrong. That country is incredible. Yes, the flight was absolutely brutal and the time change doesnt help either but I had the time of my life there. The food, sights and people of Australia were all great. I was even fortunate enough to meet one of our fine Sigforum members down under and get a tour of the Great Ocean Road which is quite possibly one of the most beautiful places on this planet. We got to visit Bells Beach, which if you are a Point Break fan (like I am) and an avid surfer is almost a religious experience.

The plants and animals there are just so different from anything I’d seen before. The smell of the eucalyptus trees was quite unique. The car culture there is also incredibly unusual. I saw so many vehicles I didn’t even know existed. For a car entheusist like myself this was a wonderful surprise. I discovered the Holden Maloo and decided that one day I will own one. Sydney’s harbor is just stunning, the area around the Opera house is packed full of shops and restaurants and is just a dang fun place to be. Even with that incredibly long travel time (basically one full day of flying) I can’t wait to visit Australia again.

I have family there and an open invitation. My hang up is the flight. I have enough FF miles to book a flight but theres no way I'm flying coach, premium economy at a minimum but when I checked earlier this year the flights were $4k. I'm assuming you flew AA/Quantas out of CLT->LAX

I need to stop being a baby and pull the trigger for early 2020.

Yepp. CLT to LAX to MEL. It was heck of a journey.

Phuket and Pattaya Beach Thailand with Darwin, Australia being a close second.

Loved Thailand the first time through the seventh time I've been there. Great place to hike and explore, relax and drink a beer, buy custom clothes and souvenirs, and site see.

Darwin is the place to kick back, drink a cold one, and enjoy the heat (or monsoon depending on when you're there).

All travel arrangements provided and fully paid for by the US Navy.

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
Yepp. CLT to LAX to MEL. It was heck of a journey.

Coach???

Yepp. But we had a front row seat so we could stretch our legs a little more than everyone else. I got up to walk around quite a bit. I had fun chatting with some Aussies on the way back. I love how they will tell you what’s on their mind. If you enjoyed an Aussie beer from a brewery they dislike they will certainly let you know the beer you enjoyed actually sucks. . The flight crew didn’t care if we hung out in their area and chatted while raiding the snack and drink bin. Those Tim Tam chocolate biscuit bars were pretty good! They tried to make the flight as comfortable as possible.

Havana. The results of a brutal dictatorship slaps you in the face.

It’s amazing what the people manage to do with so little. The city is a snapshot of life in the 1950s but everything is crumbling.

The people, the music and the cigars are amazing.

I don’t understand why they don’t rise up and throw the bastards out.

People's Republic of China.

I was astounded at the rate the Chinese were modernizing their country.

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
Yepp. But we had a front row seat so we could stretch our legs a little more than everyone else. I got up to walk around quite a bit. I had fun chatting with some Aussies on the way back. I love how they will tell you what’s on their mind. If you enjoyed an Aussie beer from a brewery they dislike they will certainly let you know the beer you enjoyed actually sucks. . The flight crew didn’t care if we hung out in their area and chatted while raiding the snack and drink bin. They tried to make the flight as comfortable as possible.

I understand Quantas to be top notch when it comes to service.

One of the cities that surprised me the most was Nashville. I first visited Nashville for work back in 2013 before things went apeshit with new construction. I had WAY more fun than I'd expected. No one ever really spoke of Nashville like they did Vegas/Miami/Chicago but it's definitely my speed. It flew under the radar for a long time.

Love Australia but wasn’t surprised by much. Paris and how filthy it was. Dog poo everywhere. Idaho for how surprisingly beautiful and the state camp grounds are excellent.

I love traveling and have seen most of the world at least once and my favorite places many times. But to answer your question, the Middle East. And not in a good way. Immediately upon landing for the first time I thought I was on another planet.

We spent nearly 2 weeks in Hungary in 2005. I wasn't sure what to expect before we actually went there. The countryside, at least where we were, looked like it might have been anywhere in the Midwest USA. I didn't see any evidence of "dirty" or unsavory environment. We spent most of the time in Kecskemet and near the small village of Jakabzallas near their airport. The wife was able to take a bus tour of Budapest which she thoroughly enjoyed.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2340:
People's Republic of China.

I was astounded at the rate the Chinese were modernizing their country.

Concur. I had a preconceived notion that was completely and utterly smashed after visiting Shanghai and Beijing. The huge banner of Chairman Mao in Tianamen Square was eerie feeling, but I missed seeing any of the Great Wall.

The Taj Mahal in Agra, India was another amazing destination (and quite the eye-opening 1/2 day car ride from Dehli). The Taj is a beautiful architectural accomplishment, but it’s in dire need of help to keep it from deteriorating any further.

Taiwan. Once you get out of the Taipei shithole, the country is beautiful, the people gracious, hardworking and generally very well educated... and the food is delicious. About 70% is mountainous country side, with clean rivers and organized white water floats.

I found a great Scotch distillery while there last week - Ka Va Lan. Sorry about the image; can't figure out how to re-size it.

Early Western visitor, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Russians knew how to live, back in the day....

Chicago. I figured I'd hate it. Had a great time.

This was ten years back, but London and Paris...I was surprised by the amount of muslim women I saw with MULTIPLE small children. Can't imagine it now.

There is no “u” in Qantas!

Yes Sydney was awesome.

Japan, by a long stretch. Mind-blowing.

I visited the Socialist Republic of China in the 80's and India too. It gave me some perspective about socialism and capitalism. Didn't get to see extreme poverty in Chinese, by a long shot but saw it in India. Two systems, none perfect.
Been recently to Havana, not a pretty sight.

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quote:

Originally posted by Doc H.:
Early Western visitor, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Russians knew how to live, back in the day

Yep, Karlsbad, Czech Republic. Had a four course meal on table linens for $3.75. Great service, great people. Had a drink of public mineral water also. Really good time, but driving there is seeing the old, graying commmunist state.

Edited to remove duplicate pic

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