Favorite Places

The question of what our favorite place to travel was brought up over at Nerdfighters, and I thought I would share my response here. I of course have more than one.

There
are lots of places I love. I can usually find a reason to love just
about any place I go to, if I’m given the chance to get to know it.

Alaska
in general. I lived there as a wee kid and have visited many a summer.
I love being able to look up at the snow capped mountains. It’s so
beautiful and always brings me peace. A large part of my love is also
the connection to my family that I don’t get to see very often living
in California.

The Grand Canyon had the same effect on me.
Perhaps it was the red craggy rocks, perhaps it was the immense size
and perspective that the place gives you. It’s just this great big hole
in the world and you can’t help but feel so small. As I was hiking
through, I remember feeling a sense of spirit about the place and I was
so awed by the beauty that I started to cry.

Uxmal, Mexico one
of many sites where pyramids have been built on the Yucatan Peninsula.
I liked Uxmal so much, because there was a greater sense of freedom and
ranging exploration than there was at Chichen Itza (which is where the
most famous pyramid in Mexico is and which is always over-crowded with
tourists). At Uxmal, my fellow classmates and I were almost totally
alone, free to wander around the pyramids and other buildings, to climb
on a few of them, or just sit and contemplate as the sun went down. I
have no idea if it’s the same, but it was one of my favorite moments
from the ten weeks I spent in Mexico.

Rhonda in Spain is a small
town situation on these twisted canyon walls. You’d walk down the
street and come to the edge of the sidewalk and peer down over the side
of the banister down these cliff faces. Different parts of the city
were connected by stone bridges that spanned the gulfs. The vistas were
spectacular and the people were really kind. I certainly wouldn’t mind
visiting there again.

I think that’s really most of the places I
consider my favorite. I’m sure I can think of more if I think about it
long enough, but I’m sure that’s plenty.

What’s your
favorite place(s) to travel in all the world? (It doesn’t have to be in
another country or state either. Maybe it’s a place that’s in your own
back yard.)