Top Ten Tuesday [36]

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish that allows bloggers to share their top ten lists for that week’s topics

Top Ten Reasons I Love Travel

I'm still alive! And back in the states!  This open top ten list coincided perfectly with my return from the trip (I got back late Sunday night).  A perfect way to kick start my blog again, I was able to read quite a few books while away (hooray long train rides and flights!) so I have some reviews lined up to write.

1 - Food - I'm a huge foodie, so to me nothing beats sitting in a restaurant ordering traditional local food and enjoying the meal

2 - Local Alcohol - There are so many different types of alcohol that you've never heard of all over the world.  Even the typical things, like beer, wine, vodka, etc. are so different when you have them locally.  My latest trip was all about the wine (France and Italy, how could it not be?) and I drank some of the best wine I've had in my life.  It's not just about what you're drinking though, it's also about the experience of drinking it, allowing it to enhance the experience, not become the experience.

3 - Learning Local History - Being a history nerd I love wandering cities and taking in the history of them.  Looking at old buildings and imagining what life was like 100, 200, 500, years ago.

4 - Seeing Amazing Works of Art - I'm not hugely into art, but I definitely do appreciate it.  I'm including architecture as works of art, just look at some of those old buildings, they're incredible!

5 - Shopping - I go a little shopping crazy, especially when I'm abroad.  I never buy the kitschy touristy stuff, I go for the good stuff.  It's a lot of fun to go into smaller local stores too, you get to see a different side of the cities.

6 - Scenery - Geography can be amazing, gorgeous mountains, sunsets over rivers and seas, turning a corner on the road and a beautiful view appears.  Windy streets in small towns, towns nestled in valleys, or perched on the side of a mountain.  There's always something amazing and picturesque to see.

7 - Learning New Languages - I love languages, and I try to learn as much as a can while I'm in a country (I can say 'thank you' in an absurd number of random languages).  

8 - Experiencing New Cultures - This goes along with the food and drink and shopping, it's all about the culture of the place, trying to meld into pace of the place you're visiting, trying not to be an annoying tourist.

9 - Arriving at the Destination - I absolutely love the anticipation of arriving, especially when I'm flying.  I love the window seat on planes, as we make our approach I'm glued to the window, watching my destination materialize beneath me, and get larger and larger until we bump onto the runway and we're there.  It's the best feeling.

10 - The People - The people I'm travelling with, when you travel with amazing people the overall experience of the trip is so much better.  The people you meet during your travels, it's so much fun to meet people and give advice and tips to them and they do the same to you, we found some really cool places this trip that way!