Favorite City

What is your favorite city? Which place would you return to again and again?

I think we each have different criteria by which we make our judgment. It can be the culture, but what does that mean? You and I would probably define it differently. Is it the people? the music? the food? the physical environment? the ease of traveling about the city? the comfort one feels when there?

Brussels in comfortable for me. I have stayed in two different hotels and each provided a different feeling of the city. Still I love it for the food: waffles, chocolate, beer, mussels, and frittes. There is something whimsical about their sense of humor. Perhaps it is simply because my genes are at home there. There are other Belgian cities I would return to, especially Ghent which I prefer over the more touristy Brugge.

London has an advantage in that it is easy to communicate. No worries about the language issue . I love the Natural History Museum and the Victoria and Albert. Every trip I must visit them.I have lost count as to how may times I have been to London but it is comfortable for me and has places I like to revisit.

Singapore and Bangkok are definitely not on my list to return to. I had some great food there and found both interesting but for me, once was enough. Decided I did not like the Singapore Sling but Raffles does have an amazing brunch.

Glasgow. I have seen so many different parts of the city and I love the museums as well as the people. Once your ears adjust it can be quite an adventure and the people are so kind. Edinburgh to me is limited in that the castle seems to be the only thing of interest.

Paris is a city many find off putting. Again I do not recall how many times I have been there but it is never enough. While many find the French to be rude, I cannot say I have ever had that experience. Quite the opposite. The food, the wine, the museums. Comfort in walking almost anywhere. Again part of that may be because I have most of the time said in a small boutique hotel on the Left Bank of the Seine across from the Louvre. I cannot get enough of this city despite the language issues.

Brisbane, Sydney, and Cairns. Again the language makes it easy. I enjoyed my time there and did not want to go home at the end of the three weeks but I cannot say I am anxious to return. Perhaps it is so connected to Bob; it was our first international trip together where I met so many of his international friends.

Buenos Aires was an adventure aided by Bob’s friends and colleagues. It is an interesting city with many cautions. Of course tango in the streets stimulates one’s interest in the exotic. The necropolis is easy to get lost in and without a map it is guarantee. I would love to go back to attend an opera at Teatre Cólon which has recently been reopened  after a renovation.

Lima Peru was worth the visit for me primarily for food and shopping, although I did visit several museums including the anthropological one of sex. Really not interested in returning with so many other places to go.

Mexico City was a surprise to me in that I felt so totally comfortable walking around Zocalo by myself with my almost nonexistent Spanish.I enjoyed my time there as a solo traveler and will be going back in a few weeks.

Of the German cities Berlin, Dresden and Núrenburg left the biggest impression on me. i really liked exploring East Berlin and I found Berlin quite easy to navigate alone. Dresden was magical in how they rebuilt after the destruction by the Allies. Nuremberg was sobering in that I visited the courtroom in which the trials were held. I just remembered the Güttenberg museum in Mainz which was amazing. I stumbled upon it by accident. The Güttenberg Bible is there, in a vault. Everyone interested in the printed word should visit sometime in their life.

Salzburg I will always have a warm feeling for the week plus I spent there. During the music festival is a wonderful time to be there for anyone with an interest in music.Touring Mozart’s home is also worth the effort.

My most memorable moments of Vienna is seeing the Venus of Willendorf. The airport at the time I went did not have security barriers; just dogs ant it made it so civilized.

Zurich was comfortable and clean but not a place that made me want to return. I still would like to visit Lausanne where there is a museum with the art of mentally ill.

The Canadian cities I have visited were so much like being in the States they did not capture my desire to return. In my travels, interacting with Canadians has not changed my mind.

Johannesburg was scary but Cape Town I loved and would return anytime.Not sure why except for the diversity of the landscape that includes Table Mountain, the vinyards, the food, the sea, the art. This was a surprise for me in that I had not been interested in Africa at all, but I do like Cape Town.

Tangiers in Morocco;  I want to be with a group and not alone! So, going back is really questionable.

Istanbul is so exotic and I have been there several times and have yet to get tired of it. Many of the highlights of the old city I would love to return to. I have walked many of the streets alone and obviously am here to tell about it. I attended outdoor opera, found a museum little visited by tourists that was an amazing history of civilization as well as all the highlights such as the Blue Mosque and Agha Sofia.

Athens I cannot say is a favorite or somewhere I wish to return to in the near future. The Partheon is definitely worth the visit, but as a woman alone other than the Dionyous theatre for Norma is not something I would return to soon.

Rome is not a city I am not anxious to return to and I suspect part of that is due to the location of the hotel in which I stayed. I do think there are better places to stay that would influence my experience.

Lisbon I loved the history and the people even though I got lost so many times and it challenged me. Definitely would return.

Malaga, Spain was one of my favorite port cities since you could leave the ship, walk a wide boulevard and be near everything from shops to restaurants. Plus the Picasso museum.

I have such mixed feelings about Barcelona. Probably because everyone I have talked to loves it and my expectations were too high. Maybe I just selected the wrong hotel in the wrong part of the city to stay. I did find the Guadi art interesting and worth seeing. Did not like Las Ramblas, the tourist street, but did love the Opera production I saw.  It was the most creative interpretation of The Magic Flute I have ever seen. Because of where I stayed I needed to take the metro and is easy to use or a taxi so it really was not a walking city to me.

Presently I am in Madrid and overwhelmed by the Prado plus Reina Sofia with all the contemporary art. Presently, I do not know if I will put it on my list of cities to return to which is one of the criteria for me of favorite city. Yet it is still a possibility.

At my age and as a solo traveler I am realizing the hotel and its location does make a difference. I  do not have the energy to be out and about for 8-12 hours at a time so need to be able to return to the hotel to recharge my batteries.