"Welcome-Bienvenido-Benvenuto-Bienvenu-Willkommen" Varinia's Profile


Maui-Hawaii

If you visit California, you can still catch a 5 hours flight to Hawaii.
On the right a picture of a beautiful Maui on my way around the island!
It rains sometimes, but usually for a short time.
It is less turistic than the main island. Although I heard that it is becoming more developed....unfortunately.
Dining in Maui is expensive due to the fact that most of the restaurants are gourmet.

Ahlan wa sahlan- Pari yegak - Bruchim habayim-

Hello,
Welcome to my page. My name is Varinia, it means Versatile in Latin, it's an old roman name (featured in the film Spartacus). I live in California which is heaven on earth as far as weather and geography. California enjoys a mediterranean weather. But if you go north in the winter there are mountains full of snow , go south and you will find desert and beaches. The lowest temperature in winter is 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
California is big enough to have Hollywood (another story by itself) + good Universities (Caltech, UCLA,USC), Modern Architecture (The Walt Disney Hall by F.Gehry) and a beautiful Geography (Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Mammoth). And the most international group of people which means Eclectic Fashion and Cuisine.
This is a great site for people who share their travel experiences and value friendship around the world. Welcome newcomers!

A view of Florence from Brunelleschi Dome

A medieval masterpiece of Engineering. In Florence, I felt the urge to climb up the Dome at the Duomo Complex in Florence. 463 twisting, turning stairs to the top! It is a true engineering marvel designed by Brunelleschi, the first dome of its sort since the Pantheon in Rome.

Christmas 2007 in Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna.

We had a great time this Chritsmas in Vienna!
It was freezing for us, we are used to our heavenly California temperature.
It is a custom to visit the schonbrunn to have a hot applecedar with a liquor of your choice, buy Austrian christmas ornaments in a freezing day.
Love Vienna!
The leaders of the Austria-Hungary empire summered here.

Eiffel Tower

Paris is simply beautiful! The Parisians are so blessed to have their city intact after WW II. A modern master piece of engineering.

Who wouldn't believe that the Eiffel tower was once a controversy.... in spite of big protests and harsh criticisim of Parisians and French intellectuals, its construction began in 1887 and finished 26 months later in 1889.

This controversy sounds familiar? the glass Louvre pyramid by I.M. Pei which is hated and loved by parisians; but no doubt it was the most practical solution for the site, brings light into the underground museum.
The tower was built for the Universal Exhibition in celebration of the French Revolution centenary, the Eiffel Tower hoisting the flag to the top was inaugurated on March 31st 1889.

The metal tower was planned to be demolished only after the Universal Exhibition of 1900. I'm so glad that radio transmission carried out by the French military right before the deadline of the destruction plan finally saved the tower.
Without the Eiffel tower, we wouldn't be able to enjoy all the great views of Paris...

Cruising on the Sienne

A view of Notre Dame from the distance...

A view of Paris...

...from the Eiffel tower, it was freezing!
We decided to go to the top next time during the Summer.

Frankfurt

A rebuilt city...
Frankfurt has the highest skycrapers in Europe, some designed by the most prestigious architects.
I visited the city just to see Commerzbank Headquarters designed by Sir Norman Foster, is said to be the world's first "ecological high-rise."

This picture was taken coming out from the train station, I was advised not to walk around this area.

  • Intro Updated Jul 17, 2009
  • Report Abuse

Comments (71)

Post a Comment   Submit Comment  
  • richiecdisc's Profile Photo
    richiecdisc Dec 19, 2009 at 4:56 AM Report Abuse

    Thank you for your sweet thoughts, Varinia. She had a wonderful life and so very glad I was part of it.

  • jumpingnorman's Profile Photo
    jumpingnorman Nov 1, 2009 at 10:18 PM Report Abuse

    Hi Varinia! How have you been doing --- you think you might have a jumping picture for my collection of jumping VTers on my homepage? Thanks....Cheers, Norman :)

  • zolasteve Aug 6, 2009 at 2:03 PM Report Abuse

    great pages varinia, thank you :-) Steve

  • alusru's Profile Photo
    alusru Aug 5, 2009 at 2:32 PM Report Abuse

    Thank you so much and also a very happy bithday to you! Ursula

  • a2lopes's Profile Photo
    a2lopes Aug 5, 2009 at 9:57 AM Report Abuse

    Happy birthday Varinia and many happy returns of the day. Greetings from Lisbon which is waiting for your visit

  • Donna_in_India's Profile Photo
    Donna_in_India Aug 4, 2009 at 8:34 PM Report Abuse

    Happy Birthday Varinia!

  • Sirvictor's Profile Photo
    Sirvictor Jul 17, 2009 at 2:01 AM Report Abuse

    Your tittle means in Turkish "Hoshgeldiniz" Thank you for your good wishes for my birth day. Hope you have better days in the future. Dont die before visiting Turkey.

  • Pieter11's Profile Photo
    Pieter11 Apr 2, 2009 at 11:02 AM Report Abuse

    Thank you for the birthday wishes! :) I'm having a great day so far! :)

  • BarryAir's Profile Photo
    BarryAir Mar 22, 2009 at 7:11 PM Report Abuse

    Bravo!

  • Skorpios's Profile Photo
    Skorpios Nov 5, 2008 at 4:06 AM Report Abuse

    Thanks for your whishes.

Share your travels with the world!

Join Now!
Varinia's Profile Photo

Varinia

“The Zest of Life is...to travel”

Online Now

Female

Top 5,000 Travel Writer
Member Rank:
0 2 9 5 6
Real Name
Varinia
Location
California, United States of America
Member Since
Mar 12, 2002

Badges & Stats

  • 61 Reviews
  • 119 Photos
  • 31,988PageViews
  • 9 Countries
  • 13 Cities

Latest Activity

See All Activity

Travel Interests

See All Travel Interests (5)

Top hotels

Paris Hotels
26625 Reviews - 51992 Photos
New York City Hotels
19521 Reviews - 30170 Photos
London Hotels
26554 Reviews - 43845 Photos
Orlando Hotels
3820 Reviews - 5652 Photos
Las Vegas Hotels
9801 Reviews - 16221 Photos
Rome Hotels
14029 Reviews - 24808 Photos
Dubai Hotels
2643 Reviews - 5910 Photos
Sharm El Sheikh Hotels
1513 Reviews - 2285 Photos
Barcelona Hotels
11814 Reviews - 20913 Photos
Myrtle Beach Hotels
387 Reviews - 422 Photos
Kuala Lumpur Hotels
7102 Reviews - 12683 Photos
Goa Hotels
2324 Reviews - 3734 Photos
Panama City Beach Hotels
219 Reviews - 281 Photos
Istanbul Hotels
8966 Reviews - 18403 Photos
Bangkok Hotels
11758 Reviews - 20955 Photos