When I was a younger man growing up in Minneapolis, I briefly dated a girl that seemed a little small, as a person. Then she came out and explained the farthest she had ever been from Minneapolis was Door County Wisconsin. And that pretty much put an end to that date.

At that point of my life I had traveled extensively throughout Europe, and the US, and I was just in my 20’s. I have nothing against those whose lives have turned around in such a way that travel was not on the menu. But extensive travel often seems to expand the mind.

Where have you traveled that has expanded your understanding of humanity, culture, behavior, beauty, danger, or something else?

Please describe your experience.

H&K-Guy

Bora Bora for my honeymoon. It was amazing and the culture of the 'simple' life leaves a lot to be desired.

New Jersey

most out of the way for me was Diego Garcia Island.

A fun-filled few days off-loading T-LAMs from the Long Beach onto the Iowa before we heading up into the Persian Gulf for Operation Earnest William (escorting re-flagged Kuwaiti tankers through the Persian Gulf).

Fascinating. Holy Land Tour, Masada was the highlight for me, an awesome trip back in time to the way people lived so long ago

Beautiful. Magens Bay, St. Thomas. Married my smokin' hot wife there



"I have nothing against those whose lives have turned around in such a way that travel was not on the menu"

"And that pretty much put an end to that date"

Ahem..

Beautiful and out of the way - ANWR right before the Inupiats started whaling season so the polar bears had migrated in anticipation


Nasty and out of the way - Goma,Congo. Surrounded by 5 volcanoes and a huge freshwater lake. During a civil war the population of the city doubled due to rebel activity (eg rape squads with HIV) in the country at the same time one of the volcanoes erupted with lava flowing through downtown to the lake so they lost 1/2 their infrastructure. 2 years later, we’re driving through downtown at the level of 2nd story and everything is volcanic black and everywhere you look are UN peacekeepers.

Fiji, for my honeymoon.

Most out of the way? Johnston Island in mid-Pacific.

Most interesting? New Zealand.

Most culturally challenging? Iran.

Most beautiful? Can't make a choice -- too many.

flashguy

I'd say the most isolated was Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge. It's in Northwest Nevada and runs a bit into southern Oregon. I drove on a dirt road for about 80 miles and only saw horses, antelopes, wild sheep, and cattle. It was great actually.

Seen many beautiful and exotic places in my travels but probably the ones that stands out the most are Zion National Park and the Bavarian Alps.

The nastiest was Dachau, I couldn't get the perceived stench of death off me for days.

quote:

Originally posted by sig 226:
Bora Bora for my honeymoon. It was amazing and the culture of the 'simple' life leaves a lot to be desired.

Same - we stayed at a tiny little from which you could see Bora Bora in the distance.

Interesting note - Karl Rove was there at the same time as us. We chatted him and his wife up in the pool a bit. .

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
New Jersey

It goes without saying that this falls in the Nasty category.

Pattaya Beach Thailand was the most exotic.

Subic Bay and Olongapo City Philippines the nastiest.

Most fascinating was the Kow Loon district in Hong Kong (while Hong Kong was still British)

Rural and urban Japan and Taiwan are extraordinary.

Wyoming. Of course.

The eeriest was Yellowstone. It is like there was just a thin crust between you and hell.

Kabul, Kandahar, Mazar-i-Sharif & Jalalabad AF.

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Not very exciting, but not very easy for a civilian to get to. Spent five weeks there last year as a contractor.

The Colorado river through the Grand Canyon.

Exotic:

Volcanos National Park, Hawaii. All the beauty of a tropical island with the fury of a pissed off mother nature.

Beautiful:

So many to choose from. But I would have to say Bryce Canyon National Park at sunrise after a fresh dusting of snow.

Interesting:

Pompeii, Italy. Wish I had more time to spend there. Absolutely an amazing place to get a glimpse of what things were like.

Fascinating:

Rhodes, Greece. A medieval walled city built by the Knights of St. John as their base from which they directed the crusades. No what one would expect to see in Greece.

Nasty:

Nogales, Mexico. It's a Mexican border town, enough said.

Out of the Way:

Haines, Alaska. That is so far... You have to make an effort to get there. A 15 hour drive from Anchorage in good weather, enter Canada, exit Canada and re-enter Alaska, 150 miles off the ALCAN and at the end of the road. They have a weird weather system where the river doesn't freeze until later in winter. There's a late October/early November salmon run that attracts 3,000 bald eagles to migrate to the valley to feed on them.