The statistics are in. I have tallied the details from my travels the past 12 months.Here are a few stats from August 2010 to August 2011:
20 countries
60 cities (not counting repeats)
85 cities (counting repeats)
12 currencies
38 planes
21 trains
10 boats
1 cruise ship
Itinerary and course of travel for the past year:
Leg 1 drive across the US beginning August 16th, 2010:
Los Angeles, California
Grand Canyon, Arizona
Lake Powell, Nevada
Bryce Canyon, Utah
Route 12 through Utah
Aspen, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
Des Moines, Iowa
Chicago, Illinois
Cincinnati, Ohio
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
New York, NY
Leg 2 European train tour:
Paris, France
Brussels, Belgium
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Cologne, Germany
Berlin, Germany
Prague, Czech Republic
Vienna, Austria
Budapest, Hungary
Milan, Italy
Venice, Italy
Rome, Italy
Naples, Italy
Pompeii, Italy
Assissi, Italy
Betona, Italy
Berlin, Germany
Paris, France
London, England
Back to US to repack:
Back to US to repack:
Cincinnati, Ohio
Leg 3 South East Asia:
Singapore, Singapore
Leg 3 South East Asia:
Singapore, Singapore
Seminyak, Bali, Indonesia
Ubud, Bali, Indonesia
Singapore, Singapore
Krabi, Thailand
Koh Phi Phi Islands, Thailand
Phuket, Thailand
Bangkok, Thailand
Siem Reap, Cambodia
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Singapore, Singapore
Leg 4 Middle East, The Mediterranean:
Dubai, UAE
Leg 4 Middle East, The Mediterranean:
Dubai, UAE
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Sharjah, UAE
Los Angeles, California
Rome, Italy
Betona, Italy
Perugia, Italy
Cosenza, Calabria, Italy
Leg 5 Back to the US for the holidays:
Cincinnati, Ohio
Leg 5 Back to the US for the holidays:
Cincinnati, Ohio
Miami, Florida
Boca Raton, Florida
Del Ray Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Leg 6 Spring, Middle East, N. Africa, Mediterranean:
Dubai, UAE
Leg 6 Spring, Middle East, N. Africa, Mediterranean:
Dubai, UAE
Sarasota, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Hamptons, Long Island
Cincinnati, Ohio
Marrakech, Morocco
Essaouira, Morocco
Madrid, Spain
Formentera, Spain
Ibiza, Spain
Los Angeles, California
Cincinnati, Ohio
Leg 7 Summer Mediterranean Tour:
Barcelona, Spain
Valletta, Malta
Palermo, Sicily, Italy
Naples, Italy
Pompeii, Italy
Sorrento, Italy
Positano and the Amalfi Coast, Italy
Rome, Italy
Pisa, Italy
Florence, Italy
Corsica, France
Ville Franche, France
Monaco, France
Barcelona, Spain
Sardinia, Italy
Rome, Italy
Athens, Greece
Mykonos, Greece
Delos, Greece
Mykonos, Greece
Finish:
Back to Cincinnati August 11th, 2011
Finish:
Back to Cincinnati August 11th, 2011
The Best and Worst List of the Past Year:
Favorite countries:
Italy and Greece
Favorite cities:
Prague, Czech Republic; Mykonos, Greece; Siem Reap, Cambodia; Dubai, UAE; Barcelona, Spain
Favorite foods:
Dubai (Lebanese) kibbeh nayeh, any Southern Italian cuisine, Greek horta and tyropita
Least favorite food culturally:
Cambodian; Czech Republic, Dutch
Favorite drinks:
Moroccan tea and the ouzo cocktail "Plomari Splash" at Solymar restaurant, Kalo Livadi, Mykonos, Greece
Most bizarre drink:
Luwak poop coffee in Bali, Indonesia
Most fun had:
Dubai and Mykonos
Most eye opening experience:
Reading the book 'Somaly Mam' on my way to Cambodia then visiting the kids in the Cambodian school for orphans (see Siem Reap, Cambodia and The Smiling Mom )
Most peaceful time spent:
6 days at the Hostal La Savina in Formentera, Spain; 2 days in the Riad Mimouna in Essaouira, Morocco; any day I am in Mykonos, Greece
Most touching moments:
Receiving an email from Rodrigo, the waiter in Madrid (see A Special Encounter in Madrid ) ; looking into the eyes of the poor and begging children in Cambodia; having a romantic interest tell me the song "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" is what he thinks of me and standing in front of the site where a terrorist bomb ripped through a tourist cafe a week earlier in Marrakech.
Most terrifying experience:
Being harassed in German by a vagrant in the subway late at night in Berlin
Most beautiful spots:
Formentera, Spain; Mykonos, Greece; Phi Phi Islands, Thailand; The Amalfi Coast, Italy, Route 12 through central Utah, USA
Most beautiful water to swim:
Sardinia, Italy; Formentera, Spain; Mykonos, Greece
Favorite sightseeing spots:
Phi Phi Islands boat ride, the opulence in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the Gaudi architecture in Barcelona, the Kasbah in Marrakech and strolling along the city streets of Prague
Favorite cultures:
Greek, Italian and Moroccan
Least favorite culture:
German
Best beaches:
Formentera, Spain and Mykonos, Greece
Best bargain hunting shopping:
Any open air market in South East Asia
Best bargain for a hotel:
Hostal La Savina, Formentera, Spain; Sea Side Studios, Kalo Livadi, Mykonos, Greece
Cheapest places to visit:
Bali, Indonesia; Cambodia
Most expensive places to visit:
London, Paris, Madrid and Mykonos, Greece (during the month of August)
Best spot for singles:
Mykonos, Greece and Ibiza, Spain during the summer months
Worst place to be without a hotel room:
Amsterdam, Holland (see Amsterdam, Holland )
Place I liked the least:
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Most difficult place to maneuver without knowing the language:
Sardinia, Italy (and I even know a little Italian)
Most pleasurable language to listen to:
Italian
Most unpleasant language to listen to:
German
Most difficult place to learn your way around with or without a map:
Palermo, Sicily
Best public transport system:
Barcelona
Number of countable romances this past year:
5
Number of opportunities for more romances:
Countless
Amount of money spent:
I don't want to think about it, but not as much as you may think
Value of the experiences had and people I have met:
Priceless
