So that’s it for this year.
Loved Istanbul – a bit chaotic, lots of touts trying to sell things, touristy and busy even in off season. But sitting in the park between the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sofia in the sun was magical. We’ll probably go back to Turkey, take in other parts of the country.
For me, Santorini was the highlight for a number of reasons. The weather was perfect, the views stunning, the volcano and Akrotiri historically interesting, the food good, the prices reasonable and the sunset over Oia one of life’s great moments.
We’re very likely to go back, probably to another Island or cruise around them.
Eastern Europe had its highs and lows. Not much in Bucharest but I’d never been to any of Eastern Europe so wanted to see it, and it was pretty much as I expected. Brasov was a good excursion to get out of the city to see some of the country on the train and visit a castle.
Prague was full of magnificent buildings in amazing condition and there was plenty to see. It was spoilt by the sheer number of people, but I can’t really complain because we were part of it. The astronomical clock was interesting, the Charles Bridge a great sight and just wandering around the city marvelling at all the buildings was fascinating.
Krakow old town was very pleasant, the square was very nice and picturesque, and the castle good, plus the Da Vinci painting was worth seeing.
Didn’t really see much of Warsaw, the old town square was probably the main attraction.
Riga and Tallinn were a pleasant surprise – both very pretty and interesting (but cold!). Also surprisingly busy with tourists. The buildings in Riga, although for the most part rebuilt after the war, were beautiful, especially (for me), the Art Nouveau area.
The old walls and red tiled roofs of Tallinn were interesting, and just walking around the old town was very pleasant.
Only spent a half day in Helsinki, not a lot to see there.
St Petersburg was much as I expected, but I may have been more impressed had I not been to Prague and Riga first. St Petersburg was a different scale to these 2, but a lot of the buildings were looking a bit neglected. Even part of the Hermitage museum had crumbling masonry outside. We passed a Palace just around the corner from the main square that was boarded up and covered in graffiti.
But there are so many incredible buildings and sights there, including the hermitage museum where every room was spectacular, plus the artwork impressive, a good collection.
Moscow was mainly a transport stop for us to fly from, so we didn’t see much. Red Square was smaller than I expected, St Basil’s Cathedral remarkable, GUM different to what I thought and the metro stations all elaborately designed.
Dubai was a rest stop for us to recover, disappointed the Burj Khalifa was so expensive – I just didn’t think it was worth it.
Next year I have my long service leave – 3 months holiday.
However, we’ve decided that doing so many places and taking 4-5 weeks is too draining. Both of us have got ill at the end, and it happened to me the last 2 times as well, so we think we’ll cut it back a bit next year.
We have been thinking of a couple of weeks in New Zealand, then back home for a spell, then some time in France, mainly Paris, over to England, Ireland, Scotland and perhaps Iceland, but staying longer in each place so we’re not as rushed.
