For the long term readers of my blog, you may recall a few City breaks I have been on with my blogger babe Boo Brown from “does my blog make me look fat?”
November 2015 we went to Warsaw for a few days, then in September 2016 it was Budapest. Finally n December 2016 we hit Prague. Most of our trips last 3-5 days and we love to see the sights and take part in activities in the Cities we visit.
Now it is 2017 and it is time to look for new adventures.
So I thought I would look at a wishlist of City breaks I would love to do, in turn maybe giving us some ideas of where to venture to next.
Top of my list is Berlin.
I have never been to Germany and as it has called to me for many years. I learnt German in senior school, passing my GCSE and then in my first job I worked in a department that took calls from all over the World. I used to answer the German calls and had lessons in my lunch breaks. Sadly, 25 years later I have forgotten nearly every word. But the City still intrigues me.
I would love to visit The Brandenburg Gate, The Reichstag and the Neues Museum. Having a huge interest in Egyptology, I would love to see the Nefertiti bust there.
The Brandenburg Gate
There are many places with ties to the Second World War which I would like to see, to learn more about the actual events. This would round out some of the knowledge we have learnt by visiting Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic which had atrocities during this time.
Secondly, Split or Dubrovnik.
Now, I was supposed to visit both of these places back in 1985/86 as part of a school cruise around the Mediterranean. However during those years, the economy became very unstable and issues and conflicts started breaking out. This eventually lead to the Balkan conflict and the Country was split into several new ones. The cruise company decided it was to dangerous to take a boat full of schoolchildren to this area and re-routed the journey.
Sadly this meant we missed out on what is a stunning part of the World. The Dalmatian coast, which is where Split and Dubrovnik are located, in what is now Croatia.
The Dalmatian coast
The scenery of these two places look stunning. Medieval buildings, 16th Century City walls and museums galore. The cable car above Dubrovnik looks wonderful, and the idea of walking around these ancient Cities really excites me.
Next on my list is Vienna.
This was one place we considered for the Christmas Market instead of Prague. It is just such a beautiful City that I have had it on my to do list for quite a long time. Schönbrunn Palace looks wonderful and in the summer would be an amazing place to wander around in the gardens there.
The Imperial Butterfly House looks like such an interesting place to go. I visited a butterfly house years ago and just loved watching the different specimens flying around.
Wonderful Vienna
Vienna has a wonderful history of music and composers who lived and worked there including Beethoven, Strauss and Mozart. Having such a love for classical music, I really want to hear it being performed in a stately building for which Vienna has so many to choose from.
Fourth on the list is Moscow.
For years I have been fascinated by the beautiful construction of St Basil’s Cathedral in Red Square. The colours, the Onion domes and the patterns just need to be seen to be appreciated. The Kremlin is another building that needs to be visited once in my life. I absolutely love unusual architecture and design, and Moscow is full of it.
St Basil’s Cathedral
An evening spent watching the Bolshoi Ballet is my idea of heaven (not sure about Boo) and to watch it in it’s home would be a thrilling experience.
Again there are museums galore, which I could happily spend hours walking around. My favourite choice to see would be the Diamond Fund, which is a small museum full of diamonds, precious stones and metals. What a sparkling place to visit!
My last choice is Istanbul.
This is a bittersweet choice for me. I visited her in 1985 and it was the most wonderful City I have ever set foot in. The smells, colours, sights and sounds just spoke to me. Two days spent wandering the souks and bazaars before hitting the museums and religious buildings filled my soul with delight.
I can still remember walking into the Hagia Sophia and seeing it’s soaring domed ceilings and mosiacs. I had never seen a building quite so beautiful in my life. And then I went to the Topkapi Palace.
inspiring Istanbul
Topkapi is now a museum and boasts collections of everything from Japanese Porcelain to Huge diamonds.
Out of all the places in the World I have been, Istanbul has always been the one place I wanted to return to. Sadly at the moment, due to the current economic and political climate, it is not really somewhere I would want to travel without a tour company/guide.
As this defeats the object of travelling around on our own, it doesn’t seem likely to be chosen as a destination for us.
But I will get back there one day!
What do you think to my little list? Would you choose any of these destinations? Where would be on your list?
Till next time,
Tx