Top Ten List

Travels

I was thinking more about it and it seems like a reasonable top 10 list to pull together would be to rank some of the cities we were lucky to have visited in 2005. We actually were able to hit a fair number of places this past year and my memory is fading fast so I’d better get this recorded before I forget whether I liked a place or not. You will be able to tell from this list that Chizzy and I are strictly tourism travelers and we haven’t strayed outside the safety of Europe yet. We were not roughing it in any sense of the word so you won’t see any tucked away secluded villages on here. Many of these cities we just hit on a weekend jaunt so my ranking is mainly just a ‘first impression’ kind of thing. These are my rankings in a countdown, excitement-building format. I’m sure Chiz would have a different list.

10 - London

I like big cities in general. The crowds and activity just suck you in. It is great to stand on a street corner and have all four directions look like they hold something interesting. I was really looking forward to England because we wouldn’t have any language concerns, but ironically most people in the service industry didn’t seem to understand me or speak good English at all. Might have ranked higher if our hotel room wasn’t disgusting.

9 - Munich

I’ve wanted to check out Germany since sixth grade when I chose it as the topic of my country report. As with most of these European cities, the history is what makes them interesting and the WWII connection here was the highlight. We also got to see a fair number of traditionally dressed Bavarians drinking from enormous steins so we got our stereotypical view as well. Aside from a few bits of history and men in short pants, this pretty much could have been any medium/large US city.

8 - Vienna

Had high hopes for this city when we put it on the travel agenda for my folks visit. It certainly had the great feel of a European city with the outdoor dining and old buildings, but it was all just a bit too spread out and the amount of construction (while probably a great economic indicator) sucks for sight seeing. If you are into museums, opera, and classical music you’d probably find this place more interesting.

7 - Bern

Just a short train ride away from our home base here you will find number 7 on my list. The capitol of Switzerland. You probably couldn’t even kill a weekend here, but this city is just unlike anything I have seen before. The geography of the town is really unique with the river and although the main street is high above the water, you feel like you are walking through a valley with the unending wall of shops. At first, I thought it was a bummer that the trams just barrel down that main street, but after a couple more visits I think it really adds to the uniqueness.

6 - Tallinn

Our most recent destination. This city just came out of nowhere from my perspective. Chiz had visited here many years ago and though it would be a bit of a unique place to spend our first anniversary. It didn’t disappoint.

5 - Brussels

This was one of the very first cities we decided to visit which might be why it sticks out as so great. It was the first place that I realized the whole European feel of sidewalk cafes, narrow and winding cobblestone streets, and sweet looking old buildings were really a lot of fun. We worked the food correctly here too. The mussels in Brussels are amazing.

4 - Zermatt

Another Swiss city. More like a village really. A mountain village. A ski village. A ton of fun with J and CM here. And the Matterhorn? Come on! The Matterhorn! I owe a proper post on this place.

3 - Stockholm

Stockholm is fantastic. It’s got everything. Old city. New city. Fresh water. Salt water. Islands. Amusement park. Pippi Longstocking. It was great.

2 - Rome

Major debate between Rome and number 1 for top honors. Hands down, this city is far and away the best place I have ever been in terms of seeing some incredible sights. Absolutely incredible.

1 - Paris

Also some incredible sights to be seen here, but Paris wins out mainly because it is a city you feel like you could spend a lot of time in. In fact, we’ve been to Paris more than any other city on this list and I can’t wait to go back. It’s huge and crowded and very spread out, but it just doesn’t seem to matter here. You can just walk around and get lost and always feel like you are having a great time. I wanted to hate Paris, but it’s just not possible… it’s the winner.