Travel the World

This was a fun island, with a lot more things to see and do than I expected but boy, it was a bit more expensive than I was expecting. Unless you get a gyro, plan on spending a minimum of 25€ a person for dinner and drinks - on the upside, the food was very good quality. There is a couple of must-sees while on the island so the best thing you can do is plan on renting a car. Of course, if you are not part of the EU, you must have a valid international driver's permit. The roads at times could be a bit scary but because we went during the offseason, traffic was light so there weren’t too many times that we encountered traffic in what seemed like a one-way street. I tend to shy away from driving while on vacation but to be honest, this was the most fun I’ve had driving since I was in my 20s - yes, a long time ago. Why did I have so much fun, because we rented a manual transmission and it was so much fun knowing I could still drive a stick. It's the little things in life that make me happy. 😎 if you only have time to see one thing, make that thing Sarakinko Beach - it's just breathtaking.

Sarakiniko Beach

Catacombs of Tripiti Village

Ancient Theatre of Milos

Beautiful scenery everywhere

This was my second trip to Paros and it did not disappoint. Well, there was no beach weather but there was time well spent relaxing and enjoying the scenery. The problem with going in the offseason is the limited amount of things to do - partially due to the weather but mostly due to the locals closing up shop for the season. Yes, 80% of the restaurants were still open but to be honest, the quality of the food was just so so - it also didn't help that the prices were so high. Would I come back in the offseason next time? I would, but maybe a couple of weeks earlier.

There is a special quaintness to this island that I just love. Is it the beaches? Maybe. The laid-back feeling you get while enjoying a beer while watching the sunset is a great way to decompress. But I mostly enjoyed the boutique hotel (Apollon Boutique Hotel) we stayed at. I don’t know why I love this hotel so much, it could be the staff or just the attention to detail that was incorporated into the design but if I visit a third time I will definitely stay here again.

So much fun - yes, Cappadocia was a great adventure. 3 days is all you need to see everything but a 4-day trip will give you time to relax and enjoy everything without exhausting yourself. The history from the underground caves to the open-air museum are must-see sights, but they are probably most famous for the hot air balloon extravaganza. So beautiful seeing all the colorful balloons in the early sunrise. Our pilot was fantastic and skillful almost to the point that the flight was boring. The $70 price tag was a bargain that will be a lifelong fun memory.

Of course, you are in Turkey so the best advice I can give you is to be careful not to overpay. In the town of Göreme where we stayed, every other shop is a travel agent so walk around and see who offers the best price.

We took a taxi to the underground without negotiating a price but our driver was an excellent tour guide so I felt that the knowledge and insight he provided was worth the extra money. When he suggested other things to see we wholeheartedly agreed. I'm sure he saw sucker written on our forehead but I had fun so if he thought he was bamboozling us I'm okay with that because I enjoyed the adventure. One of the places we went to is Aladdin ceramics and yes, we bought a plate which again I'm sure we paid too much for but at some point if you like something then sometimes you have to bite the bullet and pay their price. Well, not their initial price - to give you an example, the price as marked was $3400 and we wound up paying $1200 - in my opinion, still too much. Hopefully, by the time we get home and see it, we will be happy with the purchase but currently, I'm having a bit of buyers remorse.

Overall, the food was delicious and we had great weather - a fun time was had by all!

Göreme

Göreme Open-Air Museum

Uchisar Castle

Derinkuyu Underground City

Hot air ballooning

I love this city! The people, the old town, the street musicians, wow, they are fantastic. I've been here two other times and I cannot remember the street musicians being so talented. Maybe it's the pandemic and professional musicians are out of work so they try to earn extra income playing for tips. What a joy it is to be able to sit in a park, or walk the streets, and have the sounds of live music everywhere. If you have the means, please tip these people, they have worked hard to accomplish this level of talent and they deserve to be compensated for your enjoyment.

The Covid precautions aren't as strict as other European countries we visited so you feel like the pandemic is over and that can be troublesome. They do require you to wear a mask indoors but depending on the establishment, sometimes the mask rules aren't enforced. Personally, I always wore a mask indoors so this is just an observation of others.

The food here is fantastic! It's more a meat and potatoes countries but I did notice a few vegan places. The restaurants are always fun and they make it interesting with their themes which I'm sure the proprietors thought of when they were intoxicated. You have the most expensive restaurant in the world, a bunker restaurant where you have to give a secret password to get in and upon entry, you are given a shot to drink. If they suspect you are Russian, they will throw you in their jail cell. The coffee house where you can mine for coffee and they will put it to fire to crystalize the sugar. The Arsenal where there are no plates or silverware but you will enjoy the best ribs ever. Then there's a restaurant with no menus. That's right, you tell them what you want and if they can, they will make it. There are a lot of other places so plan on gaining a few pounds and enjoy the silliness.

Our favorite thing to do is sit in the Ivan Franco park and drink dollar beers while people watching. It's a great time to relax and gain your energy for your next adventure.

Statue of Taras Shevchenko
Ukraine's greatest nationalist writer, rises up in the middle of pr Svobody. It was a gift to the people of Lviv from the Ukrainian diaspora in Argentina, the bewhiskered poet set against a wave-shaped relief of religious folk.

Saint George Monument
This monument is dedicated to the policemen of Lviv who lost their lives in the line of duty. The monument stands in front of the police office. St George is represented sitting on a scared horse, wanting to kill the serpent with his spear.

The Monument to the Victims of Communist Crimes
Is a historical memorial to the millions of innocent people who became victims of the Soviet power and Stalinist regime. The memorial is placed to remind people of those times of despair and hopelessness so that kind of tragedy never occurs again. Fresh flowers are often put at the foot of the monument.

Monument to the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus
The place where the statue is located is also called the Square of St. Mary. The statue is a tall figure of Mary with a sacred crown over her head.

[b]The Statue of Liberty
This beautiful and unique monument to liberty in Lviv. It is set on the dome of a house that was constructed in 1870 - 1890. The statue was designed by the same master that made the famous Statue of Liberty from New York.

Church of the Jesuits

Opera House and Fountain

Rynok (Market) Square

Ivan Franko Statue

Ivan Franko Park

Beer Belly of Ukraine because it's Ukraine 😂

Street Flower Mart

Street Musicians

Not so much

Don’t leave home without it, your vaccination card that is. They don’t require masks everywhere, but if you are using public transport you are required to wear a mask and show proof of vaccination whenever asked. I’m okay with this, the last thing I want is to ruin my vacation because some numskull didn’t care about protecting others.

The train station in Vienna is fantastic. It’s not ornate or old-school pretty, but it’s large, functional, and extremely clean. The big negative was our stop was closed in one direction so that made for a fun game of, where the heck are we and how do we get back to the hotel in the pouring rain.

I don’t have a lot to say about Vienna because we didn’t see much due to the rains but I will acknowledge that I probably gained 5-pounds because the pastries are delicious and by delicious, I mean, I couldn’t get enough of them. 😉

Most of your sightseeing will consist of museums, so if you enjoy museums this may be a place you would like to visit. We did go to the Belvedere Palace, which was a beautiful building, but everything inside was paintings - I prefer palaces that show how the people lived.

We stayed close to the main train station (a 5-minute walk) which was very convenient. It’s a 15-minute train ride from the airport and a 7-minute metro ride to the center. Maybe staying in the center would have been better with the bad weather, but because we split our time between Vienna and Budapest we thought the convenience of being close to the trains and busses would work out better. I think if I ever return, I’ll stay in the center, but to be honest, it’s not at the top of places to revisit.

Belvedere Palace

Stephansdom Cathedral is a thousand-plus-year old cathedral

Central train station