Downright nastiest: Liberia, circa 1998, during a lull in their series of civil wars. Infrastructure shot, sporadic fighting by tribal/political factions, and unburied dead from various points in the 20-odd-years of fighting.

My favorite: Hong Kong, before and immediately after the handover. Intersection of Asia and the British Empire.

Here

I grew up the son of a U. S. diplomat, and before I had graduated high school had lived on three continents.

This instilled in me the travel bug, and fifty years later still take every opportunity to see the world (damn you, coronavirus!!!).

Perhaps the most other-worldly place I've been to is Iceland, a volcanic island in the north Atlantic, near the Arctic Circle. On the other hand of the spectrum, Morocco is as culturally and visibly alien as anything I've encountered. Living in Thailand as a child, I had the opportunity to attend the elephant roundup in Surin. The beaches then were spectacular, but nowhere near as built up and commercial as they are today. My mom contracted hepatitis in Hua Hin, which caused her to be bedridden for quite some time after.

I lived and traveled behind the Iron Curtain, which left a lasting impression on me; I never want to see the U. S. become like those countries, and will die defending her against it, if need be.

Ancient civilizations fascinate me. The Mayans of Central America, the norsemen of Scandinavia, the ancient Buddhists of Asia, and of course, the Romans all have left their lessons. We just have a very hard time learning them.

One thing I have learned is that we ARE NOT ONE WORLD. Globalism as a goal is doomed to fail. Mankind is tribal in nature, and as has been demonstrated time after time, attempts to "blend" people and cultures is a futile effort.

Finally, I don't want to disregard the U. S. A. I have been to all 50 states, and some of the most gorgeous land on the globe exists right within its borders: Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Bryce Canyon, Kilauea, Grand Teton, Death Valley, Rocky Mountains, Florida Keys, Alaskan Glaciers, New England Autumns, The Great Plains...

I recently traveled to Central America (Costa Rica, Belize) and I have Australia and New Zealand on my bucket list.

My life has been immeasurably enriched through the travels, sights I've seen, people I've met, and food I've eaten.

I've been to some of the Southern Fjords in Norway, and it was simply breathtaking. I really wanted to get to the Northern Fjords, but time didn't allow on that trip.

quote:

Originally posted by 2000Z-71:
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.

Back in 2007 the big cruise ships made a port call at Haines. I thought it was the most enjoyable of all the port calls, but for some reason none of the ships stop there any more.

flashguy

We drove to Banff and Jasper Provincial Parks (Alberta, Canada) last summer in our RV. Their lakes are beautiful (Maligne Lake and Moraine Lake). I couldn't believe the colors I saw in the pictures are real when we got there. I will post some pictures tonight.

Baalbek Lebanon,Rhodes, to many places in the Mediterranean to mention. Shit hole is a toss up, India, Nigeria,Newark NJ.Jackson Hole is certainly a wonderful place to visit anytime of the year.

Most beautiful: Eagle's Nest/Hitler's Teahouse
Exotic: Hong Kong (when owned by Brits)
Interesting: Kodiak Island in the early 60's
Fascinating: Holy Lands
Out of the way: Outback

Been to most major cities in the US working an IT job in the trade show business.

Hawaii and Southwest Germany might be my favorite places I have been so far. My ex was born in Germany, so we had a place to stay with her mother and I didn't feel like a tourist at all. That was great. It was fun to learn some SW German dialect, but found that most folks we met wanted to practice speaking English....

One of the most interesting and beautiful trips I have made was Reno to Virginia City, NV. Spent the evening with 6 females at the Bucket of blood saloon.

They all got pretty drunk by 11PM and I had to deal with them while driving a shitty minivan rental while distracted on the the way back to our hotel in Reno. Up for work at 5AM the next day.

Wife went to India for work in 2018. She said that her trip fits 100% of the OP's subject line criteria.

Sudan and Ethiopia in the early 90s. I think they checked all of the boxes in the title.

Exotic: Bangkok, Singapore, Saipan and Tinian

Beautiful: Saipan, Sequoia National Park and associated areas, Spectacular: rural Alaska (not the North Slope obviously), Yukon Territory, and the Aleutian Chain

Interesting: Israel, Egypt, Italy, and Jordan

Fascinating: The Vatican, the Castles of England, Scotland, and Ireland

Nasty: Two fun filled weeks on the ground in Haiti, Bombay (30 years ago, cleaner now), Paraguay wasn't so great either.

Out Of The Way Place: Inuvik, NWT, Saipan, About 100 miles outside of Karachi (nasty also), Dutch Harbor, Aleutian Chain

My wife is from the Philippines, although we've travelled to a few popular areas of the country; we had to go thru some pretty remote places to get there. And the travel isn't always easy either.

The most beautiful place I've been is Exumas chain, Bahamas. Basically Highbourne Cay to Cave Cay.

Shithole: Colon, Panama.

The Blue Mountains in Jamaica, and sailing a Hobie Cat just offshore at Ocho Rios. “Nasty” was the only descriptor from the thread title that didn’t apply.

Nastiest place I’ve ever been is downtown Tacoma, which is about neck-and-neck with downtown Seattle but has a grittier vibe. Before that, it was a pig ranch I went to outside Juarez once, but a mountain of dirty diapers next to a mountain of scrap next to a pig pen doesn’t compare to human filth everywhere.

Most interesting or fascinating place I’ve ever been was the Metropolitan Museum in NYC, though I qualify that by saying I haven’t been to the Louvre or any of the famous European museums or sites from antiquity and would absolutely love to.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: P220 Smudge,

quote:

Most Exotic, Beautiful, Interesting, Fascinating, Nasty, Or Out Of The Way Place

if this can include "fastest way to kill your buzz":

summer 1967 I was working on the Lower Hells Canyon Dam, night shift. During the early-mid afternoon, exploring the Canyon features prevailed. Downstream from the river curve just below Oxbow Dam, there was an antique, rarely used yet still open, ironwork bridge across the river.

I thought it was only a few hundred yards across the river at that point. And checking with locals, I was assured it was still in occasional use.

The approach from either bank was not intimidating, just single lane. And the ironwork itself was fascinating. Still, once in the middle of the bridge proper, feeling the very flow of the current within a matter of feet from my now clenched nether regions, the charm of the cast iron plate riveted on the railing, was suddenly moot. The opposite shore suddenly seemed a mile away. The hours dragged by in the effort to depart from center-span and get back to where I now realized I belonged.

The Hells Canyon environment is absolutely full of adventures unexpected as well as self inflicted. Give it a whirl some day. Check out Kleinschmidt Grade as well. If the old iron bridge is still there (probably not), you'll have a scenic chance you never quite expected.

... the Internet

The Neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit.

The rest of them really don't mean all that much.

Fortunate enough to have honeymooned in Hawaii, did some scuba diving there. Also dove Palancar Reef in Mexico. Toured the Tuscan region of Italy about 10 years ago. By far my most memorable and out of the way trip was Iceland about 7 years ago. Got to witness the Aurora, which had been on my bucket lust forever. Awesome time, great people, excellent sushi, beautiful country side. Wanted to dive there as well but just ran out of time. If you’re east coast I highly recommend Iceland. Make a nice detour to Europe actually.

For the out of the way and nasty category I’ve been to Grafenwoehr Germany. It’s pretty much the asshole of Germany, if not Europe. Winter or summer I can promise you that you’ll hate being there

Tame in comparison to many already posted here but the main overlook at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is stunning. 400 foot sand dunes steeply inclining down to a beautiful blue lake Michigan. Probably a frozen hellscape in winter but in July/August a slice of Heaven for sure.