Thoughts & Things

Places I Would Like To Go

Recently I wrote a blog about places I have had the privilege of traveling to during my life so far. I believe that travel can be an important part of education and creativity, if used in the right way. We can always learn from books, and our imaginations can take us anywhere, but truly going to a new place can be a whole different kind of inspiration and learning. I wish it were easier for more people to manage. I wish it were easier for me to manage, ha. Travel can be difficult physically, mentally, and especially financially. I have found it rewarding for myself despite struggling with those other aspects.

This post contains a small list of the places I would like to go and why. I have contained it to a list of seven so that it doesn't get too long, as my imagination is significantly larger than my wallet, and more durable than my body.

England
I have always been a huge fan of English history, ever since I was a little girl. As a child, it was primarily the medieval history that caught my attention. The grand castles, the knights, the nobles, and even the simple, hardworking lives of the lower classes. I have always been a fan of the darker side of history, so I was also fascinated by the Black Death and methods of execution. As I have grown older, my tastes have expanded. Most of English history is incredibly fascinating to me. Much of my childhood was also spent reading fictional stories that took place in England that caused my desire to grow. I would love to tour the city of London, for the history and for the modern culture and all the sights that it holds. I would also love to see more than just London. If there is some sort of national castle tour that allows me to visit all of England's castles, I would be all for this.

France
I do have an interest in French history too, as well as fiction set there; however, my desire is less driven by a personal history of studying the nation's history. French culture and cuisine drives me here. I want to see the Louvre, Notre Dame, and the Arc de Triomphe. I want to see the Eiffel Tower, at day and night, and go up it. Having grown up in Canada, France is definitely one of those places you start to idealise from a young age during French class. My dad went to France when I was a kid, and he came home saying that he barely tried any real food, and lived almost entirely off pastries while there. This has been a life goal of mine ever since.

Egypt
When I first started learning about Egypt, it had very little to do with recent and current realities of the nation. With the above nations on this list, I had an idea of what they are like today, and had read books and seen movies set in modern day England and France. Egypt was something I had no reference point to process a current image of. I wasn't even aware of any sort of recent history, although as an adult it is something I definitely have the desire to learn more about. I grew up with a fascination with the traditions and culture of ancient Egypt. I think it probably started with the film The Mummy. I saw it, I loved it, and I knew then that I needed to know more about ancient Egypt. Hieroglyphics were a thing of beauty, pyramids were real world magic, and real life mummies were about the coolest thing my little kid brain could think up. I would love to go just to tour the historical sights alone, although I am sure the more I learn in the meantime, the more I will be interested in seeing.

Greece
Yet another place that I have wanted to go to since childhood based purely on ancient history and mythology. I did have a sort of vague idea of what modern day Greece was like, though most of my thoughts were on images of long ago. I would love to see all of the ancient architecture that still stands, and soak in any of what it can offer me. I do feel that I need to learn more about history since ancient times before going. I am aware of some beautiful medieval castles still standing in Greece, and this will always be a draw for me.

Italy
Italy is a place I actually cared less about as a child than an adult. The reason? Roman mythology is a rip off of Greek mythology! These were my priorities growing up. I have since realised that Italy has its own amazing set of scenery, history, culture, and delicious food. I would like to eat Italian food in Italy until I bleed pasta sauce. Touring Venice is like something out of a fantasy novel. Places like Florence, Naples, and Milan seem absolutely lovely, and going would be wonderful. Rome is the real draw, and I won't pretend otherwise. Everything from ancient to medieval to renaissance architecture and art makes Rome worth a visit to any proper history nerd, even if Italian history is not your strong point.

Lithuania
This one started out as a rather silly thing, actually. I was fifteen years old and I read a fictional novel that had a character I imagined as hot who was from Lithuania. I had never heard of the country, and did some research. Vilnius is a breathtaking city, every major city has a jazz festival, and the entirety of the small nation is littered with castles. It was the last nation to convert to Christianity during the Crusades, and while it has a Catholic majority, many pagan routes still exist in the nation. At least according to what I have read. I found some pretty awesome music from Lithuania too. I don't much care one way or the other about that character anymore, but I still want to see Lithuania. It's one of those fascinations that time didn't allow to fizzle out.

Iceland
The Icelandic visit started out as a bit of a joke actually. I saw Iceland on a list of good countries to live in, and it became the thing to say when things went wrong: "That's it, I'm moving to Iceland!" Reykjavík never gets too hot by my current local standards, and actually doesn't drop too low either based on what I'm used to! I love the idea of a city settled by vikings, and the current cityscape seems like the kind of thing I will have to check out in real life. Outside Reykjavík, Iceland has mountains, volcanoes, and the Aurora Borealis. Iceland is a place of beauty and history, neither of which I can resist.

As stated before, I've kept my list to a mere seven to avoid it getting too lengthy. I'm sure seven is more than lengthy enough! I hope you've enjoyed reading this post, and the previous one. I'll be doing my best to keep this blog up, so you should see another post coming soon!