Christian's Big Picks

Alright, in conclusion of my European vacation, here's a list of my favourite places in some random categories of my own design. I'll try to give some justifications for my choices, but don't expect anything too profound.

Alright, to get things started:

Worst Experience - Barcelona. The combination of thieves, bed bugs and male prostitutes really made my visit to Barcelona pretty terrible. It's not a bad city, I just had some bad luck there.

Biggest Letdown - Venice. Although it is a pretty city, there's really not a whole lot to do there other than wonder around aimlessly. Overrated? Definitely. Worth a visit? Probably, just don't plan on spending too much time there.

Prettiest City - Florence. There's something about the lush Tuscan countryside coupled with the beautiful architecture of Florence that really set this city apart. I can't explain it, I just liked it.

Best Medieval Town - Siena. Just a really cool little town. Touristy as hell, but still cool. Brugges is a close second.

Least English - Madrid. Surprisingly, no one in this city speaks English. Still a great place to visit (one of my favourites), just don't expect to get by without any of your best Spanish, however dismal it may be.

Best City to Live In - Amsterdam. Sure the Red Light District is cool, but that's really not what this city is about. It's just a really nice place filled with canals, restaurants, shops, and as a bonus, you can bike everywhere with ease.

Best Museums - London. The combination of the Victoria & Albert, National Archeology, Science and Natural History museums, the Tate Modern, Tate Britain, National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery (and all for free) really make London unbeatable. Paris and Berlin come in at a close second.

Coolest City - Berlin. It's got everything. A really lively city that still has a lot of decrepit old Soviet-era buildings kicking around, some great museums, tons of bars and restaurants that stay open all night, there's nothing like it.

Best Place to "Get Away" - Switzerland. Granted, I was in a small hamlet in the middle of nowhere, but Switzerland really is the best place to go if you want to do some hiking AND not be surrounded by tourists the whole time. Surprisingly cheap and delicious chocolate, cheese and yogurt, too. Close second is Berchestgarden, but you still have to deal with hordes of tourists if you go there.

Best Setting - Santorini. Nothing really beats staying on the edge of a huge volcanic crater that is now filled in the sea. Great view at every turn, coupled with great food make this place a must if you're ever visiting the Greek islands.

Now for my favourites:

Favourite Small Town - Hania (or Chania), in Crete. Just a really nice little waterfront town that may not be to everyone's tastes, but I enjoyed it. The nearby Samaria Gorge makes for a nice visit, as well. Taormina, in Sicily, makes for a close second.

Favourite Country - Croatia. A fantastic country: great beaches, cool old cities and beautiful countryside. The place I most want to go back to with my own car.

Favourite City - Lisbon (and area). Trolleys, an Oceanarium, a Castle, nearby Cascais and incomparable Sintra really made Lisbon stand out for me. Tons of cool stuff to see and do. I really want to go back to Portugal (and northern Spain), more than any other place I visited. And did I mention that it's dirt cheap?

Putting the Toga Purl in Portugal

Alright, last set of pics, hope you're ready for this, it's a doozy

So let's start off where I started off, in Cascais, at Europe's western-most point. It's a really pretty spot with some epic ocean action.



But what about Lisbon? Well, as you can see, it's a really quaint old city.



There's this San Francisco-ish bridge,



Old-time trolleys,



Giant Jesus statues



The longest aqueduct in the world,



Cool new architecture,



And old architecture,



Sweet towers,



More bridge (I love this bridge),



And a killer oceanarium, with the likes of these guys:









I also spent a couple of days in beautiful Sintra. This town is basically the coolest place in the world. There's an old Moorish castle,





The most epic royal palace I've ever seen,







And the coolest estate ever!



This place had secret passages,



Hidden grottoes,



And this plain old stone door.



Wait a minute.... That's a revolving stone door!



And it leads to this Knights Templar-like passage!



Basically, Sintra rocks! And this estate in particular is the sweetest place in the world!

Stay tuned for my Picks List, and take care folks! I should be back in Alberta sometime next week, so I'll see you all soon.

Spain

Alright, let's do this Spain thing.

Barcelona was a pretty neat place, despite being the worst experience of my trip. Bedbugs suck, but don't let my experiences keep you away, Barcelona does have the coolest church I've ever seen.



Plus, it's a really hip city with some great shopping districts and the best buskers in Europe. There's a really great waterfront,



some cool Christopher Columbus stuff,



and a really cool castle perched high above the city that you can climb (or godola) up to.



But honestly, I preferred Madrid. It's a really genuine city with a great mix of modern



and classical artwork and sculptures all over the city.



There's a cool palace,



a really neat modern/ancient church,



and this guy, who you do NOT want to mess with.



Finally, during my long travels, I've finally stumbled across the meaning of irony:



Tomorrow, I'll probably get some Portugal stuff up, and then (drum roll) you'll get to see Christian's Big Picks (my favourite and least favourite places, and reasons why).

More Pics

Alright, so from Florence, I made paid a brief visit to Pisa. I went, I leant, I left.



Then it was on to the Cinque Terres, this gorgeous bit of Italian coastline that is also a national park. Some incredible scenery and cool little fishing villages make a really neat place to hike through.





Then it was back to France, for a short stay in beautiful Nice,



And a visit to the incredibly rich Monaco.



Stay tuned for some pictures of Spain and Portugal, due to arrive in the near future.

Photos! (for real)

Alright, so I made it back to the 'Fax, a little worse for wear but otherwise OK. And now the moment you've all been waiting for: Photos!

So, let's start off where I left off, in Sicily.

This is the cove where I went snorkeling



And this is Taormina, the city I stayed in.



On to Rome, where I visited (in order) the Colosseum, the Vatican, Trevi Fountain and this other really cool building (among other, not pictured things).









Next, to Florence, where we have this famous bridge, covered with goldsmith shops, the city itself and a big, bronze David.







Finally, a shot from my trip to Siena, a real cool, old medieval town.