The ABCs of Travel

The ABCs of Travel is a trend that was pretty popular with travel bloggers… about ten years ago! But, since I’ve only been in the blogging game for a little over a year, I’m bringing it back, just like my use of the word rad.

So what are they? Well, basically, the ABCs of Travel are a look at some of my travel experiences. They’re similar to a Q&A in a way, but for these, every letter of the alphabet is preassigned to a specific question. I like things like this because it gives the writer time to think back and reflect on specific types of experiences.

My memory is quite good when it comes to useless information, so let’s see how I do!

My ABCs of Travel

A: Age you went on your first international trip:

My first international trip was to Canada with my grandparents and my cousin when I was around 15 years old. We were technically only headed from Pennsylvania to Michigan, but we ended up taking the long way and drove around some of the great lakes.

While I can’t say that this trip sparked my interest in international travel (this was a lot of driving for two hyperactive teenagers!) It was a great trip that I remember well.

One thing that especially sticks in my mind was a picture my grandfather took of me shaking hands with a Mountie. I was apathetic about it at the time, but now I really wish I could find that photo. I miss him and know he’d love to hear about my trips.

B: Best (foreign) beer you’ve had and where:

This is a difficult one because whenever I go somewhere, if I’m drinking, I always order “the local beer.” As such, I don’t usually have them enough times for anything to make much of a long-term splash, even if they were good. There are, however, two that stick out.

I remember really enjoying Kilimanjaro beer in Tanzania, and I also enjoyed Budweiser… in Canada.

But wait! Budweiser isn’t a foreign beer! Well, when I was in college, my friends and I had the idea to drive to Montreal for the night. I went to college in Connecticut, so this was a bit of a hike for a failed mission.

At the first club, we went to, we all ordered Budweiser because we “felt like having an import.” Plus, we were also being smartasses since 100% of the people already there were Canadians drinking Labatt Blue.

Anyway, that Budweiser was the freshest and best tasting I have ever had. I don’t know if the recipe is different from what they send to Canada but definitely tasted better than any other. Granted I’ve probably only had it once or twice since graduating college.

C: Cuisine (favorite): 

Italian! When it comes to food, I love Italian. It’s my favorite when I’m home and it’s my favorite when I’m abroad. I’m a notoriously picky eater. It sucks and I wish I wasn’t, but I’m good with all things Italian.

D: Destinations, favorite, least favorite, and why:

Africa in general stands head and heels above other places as my favorite destination.

If I had to narrow it further, I’d say Tanzania just for the sheer amount of adventure I had there. While there, I climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and learned about Type-2 Fun, took four different safaris, got my advanced open water SCUBA certification, took in some sun on the beautiful beaches of Zanzibar, and met some great people, some of which I’m still in contact with today.

It was a good, full trip that just hit different.

I don’t really have a least favorite destination as I choose everywhere I go out of a desire and don’t go anywhere just for the sake of going.

I do, however, have a least favorite trip. That would be my second visit to the Bahamas. My first trip to the Bahamas to see the hammerhead sharks was great, but on the second, not so much. For starters, it was at a high end resort, which I never do, so boredom ran high. Then my tiger shark diving (the entire reason I went) was canceled due to wind. There was also lots of unnecessary drama happening that didn’t help things.

E: Event that made you say “wow”:

On my first trip to Switzerland, while riding the cable car up to Mürren, I remember looking at the glaciers across the Lauterbrunnen Valley and saying how amazing they looked to an American couple. While pointing, my exact words were “That is so freakin cool.”

It was my first time ever seeing anything like that and even though it has become much more difficult to truly wow me, this memory stands out in my memory.

Fun fact: This beautiful valley is what Lord of the Rings author J. R. R. Tolkien based Rivendell, the home of the Elves on.

F: Favorite mode of transportation:

Trains! I love riding trains. I’m primarily talking about long, sleeper trains, not the crowded, morning commuter trains into NYC. Something about them excites me. After that, it would be by boat and then by motorcycle.

G: Greatest feeling while traveling:

The freedom of being able to go wherever you want (part of why I usually refuse to admit defeat when things are going poorly), and the awe of seeing something new. I’m not big on destination repeats, and that’s because there’s so much new stuff to see!

H: Hottest place you’ve ever traveled to:

Despite my love of Africa, I haven’t been to any super hot locations yet. That’s because I consciously don’t travel to areas when their temperatures are hottest.

The hottest place in recent memory is Uganda. I was right on the equator and the temperature hit a very humid 104 degrees Fahrenheit a couple of times. It’s the humidity that really gets you.

Granted, where humidity is concerned, Thailand blows Uganda out of the water.

It was probably way hotter than 104 while I was in Egypt, but that was a dry heat so it’s not nearly as bad, or noticeable, which can be dangerous.

I: Incredible service that you’ve experienced and where: 

I’ve definitely had some friendly service, but I don’t really travel anywhere that has people jumping off the walls to serve their guests. I usually don’t even like people carrying my bags.

J: Journey that took the longest: 

My flight to Namibia, and then back to the USA from Botswana took 40 and 38 hours each way. Yes, my flights technically took up two full work weeks lol Layovers were involved, but that’s still a lot of time to be traveling from point A to point B.

K: Keepsake from your travels:

I collect refrigerator magnets and lapel pins (Pokémon Gym Badges) because I’m basic af lol They’re small and easy to transport. Though I have recently started pairing this down a bit and somewhat limiting them to being country specific. I also get Christmas ornaments if I see one worth getting, but it has to be extra unique.

The other thing I occasionally buy is street art. I have cheaper $10 pieces, ranging to those that cost several hundred, including my most expensive one that’s so big while framed that I have nowhere to put it. It has leaned against the wall in a room, wrapped in brown paper for over a year now. Go me!

L: Let-down sight, why and where:

The mountain gorillas in Uganda were amazing, but I was a bit let down by the silverback. When we found him, he was hidden in the bushes and mating with one of the females. He finished 45 seconds later and immediately laid down and fell asleep, while the female kept trying to wake him up to go again.

Typical, right?

I barely have a picture of his face, and even that is down in the dirt.

M: Moment where you fell in love with travel:

I was in love with travel long before I started doing it. I’ve always had an inherent need to explore, going all the way back to when I was a kid and getting lost in the woods.

But that first “solo” (group trip with strangers) was my first real deep dive into traveling. I was hooked.

N: Nicest hotel you’ve stayed in:

You all know the type of travel I do, and nothing about it is lux. I have fallen into a few nice hotels, but nothing I’d consider opulent.

Laguna Lodge Eco-Resort & Nature Reserve on Lake Atitlan, Guatemala was pretty nice, but not anything I’d write home about. They did after all have the worst pizza on my entire foodie page.

O: Obsession – what are you obsessed with taking pictures of while traveling:

Little brightly colored lizards. I have tried so many times but I can never catch them. I’ve run, hunted, and chased them but they’re too fast. I’ve gotten a few chameleons, but the little guys still elude me.

I checked and I’m so bad at getting pictures of them that I don’t even have one of them running away from me.

P: Passport stamps – how many and from where: 

At the moment, I currently have 75 stamps in my book. This includes two from the Liechtenstein tourist office that aren’t real passport stamps.

Q: Quirkiest attraction you’ve visited and where: 

I’ve been to a few weird art museums, but the quirkiest… maybe the marionette museum in Prague. Some of those puppets were pretty damn creepy looking! I thought I had some pictures of it but can’t seem to find them anywhere.

I also just recently saw the world’s tallest filing cabinet in Vermont. Whoop whoop!

R: Recommended sight, event, or experience:

SCUBA diving! Being down there and floating through the water is so fun and relaxing, especially when you get to see something cool like sharks or whales.

S: Splurge – something you have no problem forking over money for while traveling:

Experiences. I’ll try and save, save, save… but once something I think will be fun comes up, I’ll totally blow my daily budget and shell out some extra money for a cool experience. In fact, more often than not, specific experiences are what I plan my trips around.

T: Touristy thing you’ve done:

I’m not really sure. I live about an hour away from NYC so going there to see certain things always feels extra weird to me. I won’t even bring a camera to the city.

But really, who cares if something is touristy? Touristy things are touristy for a reason. They are often the most fun, and can only be seen and done in that location. I don’t travel to these places to sit in a café for hours and read a book. If I’m in Barcelona, I’m going to see La Sagrada Familia, even though it’s the tackiest and IMO, God ugly (sorry, not sorry) looking cathedral in the world. (Castles and Cathedrals are my two favorite buildings to see so I’m extra judgy.)

I once had a good friend get irrationally angry at me for wanting to dive with great whites, see the penguins, and climb Table Rock in Cape Town, South Africa. “You just named the three most touristy things in the city!”

So what? Where else are you going to get a chance to chill with penguins, see great whites up close, of have that view? It’s not like these things were created just for tourists to have a fake experience.

Because penguins in South Africa are viewed as touristy, I’m never allowed to see them? They’re not exactly swinging from the trees in North America and the only ones I’ve ever seen are in cramped zoo conditions. (I hate most zoos.)

This would be like me getting angry at someone visiting NYC for the first time and wanting to see The Statue of Liberty or Times Square. You’re not seeing them anywhere else.

U: Unforgettable travel memory:

All of them!

Hmmm. If you were going to twist my arm and make me choose, either summiting Kilimanjaro or maybe celebrating Holi in India. That day was so so so much fun. It’s one of the few things I’ve done that I’m actively planning on repeating in the near future.

I don’t mean the entire trip. I mean literally just fly to India, celebrate Holi, and fly back. Four days. High speed, low drag. You in?

V: Visas, how many and for where: 

In my current passport book, I have four full-page visas that are more than just a little stamp or sticker. China, East Africa, Russia, and Vietnam. Of them, only China and East Africa are still valid. And much to my extreme annoyance, Customs in Vietnam decided to put their sticker overtop a page full of stamps rather than on the last completely empty page I still have.

W: Wine, best glass of wine while traveling and where:

I don’t drink it.

Grk? I think that was the one? In Croatia was supposedly amazing. I tried it, and it definitely tasted like wine, I guess?

X: eXcellent view and from where: 

The most beautiful view I’ve ever seen was in Switzerland of the Lauterbrunnen Valley. It’s so beautiful, especially from above. It looks like a postcard.

I recently mentioned this while in Lofoten, Norway. I said, “this place is giving me the Switzerland effect.” What I meant by that is that no matter where you stop, the views are beautiful and photo-worthy.

Y: Years spent traveling: 

While I did start earlier, I’ve only been TRAVELING the way I currently do for the past nineish years.

Z: Zealous sports fans and where:

Let’s go Yankees! Kidding, we celebrate, but we have so many championships that we don’t lose our minds and riot when we win another. Lookin’ at you Philly, act like you’ve won something in your life. And I wouldn’t even consider Philly fans as zealous, so much as bad.

Internationally I’ve yet to have much experience with other sports fans. I do hope to remedy this however by eventually going to see some major sporting events such as the world cup.

Well, there you have it, my ABCs of Travel

I may be the last one across the finish line, but I enjoyed writing my ABCs of Travel because it allowed me to reflect a bit deeper on some of my trips over the years.

Who knows, maybe I’ll do an ABCs of Travel take two in five years to see if any of my choices have changed. Is that something you’d be interested in? What letter did you find the most interesting? What about your ABCs of travel? I know that would be a rather long comment, but I’d still love to know!