iaint's VirtualTourist Home Page
| Page Views: 7,665 | Be Bold by iaint - last update: Jun 18, 2009 |
| the Youth, giving an opponent a good skelp... |
Getting the Bug My first real travel experience was age 13, going all the way from Edinburgh to Metz (France) by rail. It was a school exchange trip. Looking back, we probably spent more time on the train than we did in Metz. At 15, it was a school trip to Moscow & Leningrad via Riga. Cruise ship to Riga, Aeroflot to Moscow, train to Leningrad, then ship home. Can you imagine 1960s Aeroflot for your first flying experience? This was summer of 1968, and all we heard on Soviet radio (no TV back then) was non stop ranting about Czechoslavakia. Only when we got home did we learn what was really going on... |
Moving on My 20s were in the 70s. A year playing rugby in Toulouse provided trips all round SW France (Castelsarrasin, Carcassonne, Foix, St Gaudens, Cahors, Mazamet etc), and I added a couple to Barcelona and Marrakesh. That was followed by several summers working on Long Island (Westhampton Beach), but not much chance to travel beyond that. Upstate once (Rochester), Manhattan of course, a few trips to the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania (Rolling Rock when no-one else had heard of it) and into Connecticut once to play rugby (Fairfield, I think - anyway Connecticut Yankees were the host team). |
30 something... A few trips to Greek islands (Crete + Karpathos), and La Gomera (no, its not a pub, its a little undeveloped island near grotesque Tenerife). Singapore and Hong Kong to visit friends, with side trips to Macao, Vietnam and Thailand. |
life begins at 40 Many trips to Thailand to visit in laws in the 90s. Occasional side trips to Singapore and Hong Kong, curtailed when the next generation of world travellers appeared on the scene. Lots of business travel - all round Europe on various projects. Vilnius, Riga, Tallinn, Bratislava, Sofia, Warsaw, St Petersburg...endless list. Didn't miss out many western European countries either. Berlin just as the wall came down, but still in 2 countries. Nostalgic trip to US, taking in NYC, the Lobster Inn at Shinnecock, & Washington DC. |
| Vranov nad Dyji in the S Moravian borderlands |
the new millennium Instead of the millennium bug I got a divorce, so no more hols in Thailand. No more business trips either, thanks to a career move. Instead, something child friendly and nearer home. Eurodisney, then the Florida version. Crete a couple of times, Cascais & Lisbon. Berlin, Geneva, Lausanne, Stockholm for weekend breaks and ice hockey games... Czech Rep for ice hockey (no not Prague) and Istanbul for culture |
| Laggan Locks, Scotland...in deepest December |
to come Not many places left that appeal - maybe Macchu Picchu, Iceland, T'blisi, Samarkand. Ironically, Junior is booked up for a 6 week expedition to Peru in 2010, so he'll see Macchu Picchu before me! I'm trying to go back to a few places I've been on business, but didn't see much of, such as Belfast and Dublin recently. Shetland & Lewis are also on that list. I've had the urge to go back to Vilnius recently... |
Sports travel... My son plays ice hockey, which takes us all round Scotland each winter, and has also taken us to Ireland and England. If its a long trip we try to make it an overnight stay and see a bit of the destination as well as just the ice rink. Last big trip was to Newcastle in August 08, for a pre-season tournament. I've adopted horse racing as my summer sport - probably because its fast like ice hockey, but its the antithesis because you're mostly outside in the fresh air and sunshine! There are only 5 courses in Scotland so travel is required. We went to Royal Ascot (near London) in June 08 and I had a trip to Haydock Park (near Manchester) in July 08. I've been to Limerick & Laytown, but want to go back to Ireland for a big meeting at a big course like The Curragh. Ticked the box with Deauville in October 08, and just booked a trip to Chantilly (near Paris) for July. £6 return with Ryanair - too good to miss! |
2009, planning... Managed a long weekend on Speyside (Scotland) in February. Too much snow - scary driving! Enjoyed a couple of days in N Ireland in April. Junior is off to Thailand with his mum for 5 weeks in the summer, so I can do what I want! Booked up for Ljubljana, Zagreb & Sarajevo in July - adventure time! |
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scottishvisitor Mon Jun 22, 2009 21:46 UTC
Head North & West & you too can discover the undiscoved in Scotland = Thanks for your comment on Skipness!! | zanzooni Sun Jun 21, 2009 08:52 UTC
Rochester-My very old past life "Home". Rolling Rock-as in beer??...lol ~ | leics Fri Jun 19, 2009 16:52 UTC
You'll enjoy Slov, i think. It's tiny but hugely variable in landscape, and the people are v nice (imo). Try Union and Lashko beers and see which you prefer: big rivalry between them. :-) J | Pinat Mon Jun 1, 2009 09:04 UTC
Hi there! Thanks a lot for the reminder of Sivasspor. It's worth mentioning: I'm gonna add:) |
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