The Siberian American: My Top Five European Travel Moments

Monday, October 6, 2014

My Top Five European Travel Moments

If I had to pick my favorite continent to visit, Europe would take the cake.  I have fallen in love with the history, the architecture, and the amazing, magical moments I have experienced. Those moments when I was so in awe, so giddy, so thankful to be alive, to be traveling and experiencing what the world has to offer. It sounds cheesy, but those in love with travel know exactly what I mean. Here are my top five European travel moments so far:

Seeing the Eiffel Tower twinkle at night for the first time: 
We went to Paris for the first time over a Valentine’s Day weekend, and on Valentine’s Day, my hubby surprised me with a night cruise on the Seine River. As we approached the Eiffel Tower, it began to twinkle. I had seen it in photos, but it was nothing like experiencing it myself for the first time. At that moment, I fell in love with Paris. Although I usually prefer to travel to places that I haven’t been, I would visit Paris again and again.

Watching Wicked in London:
I had so many different travel moments in London, but seeing Wicked sticks out in my mind. We decided to go on a whim and had an amazing time. It is now one of my favorite musicals, and seeing it in London made it more special.

Hiking up to the Marseille calanques:
This moment really stood out to me because it was one that I didn’t expect. When we visited Marseille, the calanques weren’t on our list, but we saw an advertisement for them and decided to check them out. I was blown away by their beauty. After our hike, we sat down and admired the view, and I never wanted to leave.

Taking a horse-drawn carriage up to Neuschwanstein Castle with light snow falling:
Our trip to Neuschwanstein Castle went beyond my expectations (and those were fairly high to begin with!). Though the inside of the castle is nothing to write home about, the outside is picturesque. I will never forget taking a horse-drawn carriage, holding a mug of hot chocolate with snow lightly falling as the beautiful castle came into view.

Exploring Prague:
I couldn’t pick one specific moment in Prague because I quickly and completely fell in love with the city. I loved the different styles of architecture throughout the city, the Charles Bridge, St. Vitus cathedral, and so much more. The mixture of Eastern and Western styles was unique and instantly made me feel at home.

22 comments:

  1. oh my gosh I want to go to Neuschwanstein Castle so bad!! I was trying to make Munich fit in with our travel plans next year, but they just wont (sobbing) unless we pay a lot more $$ and take more time off, womp womp. Next time!! And I still haven't seen wicked (hopefully in NYC this December) but I did see Mary Poppins in 2007 in London and it's one of my fondest memories.

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  2. Those all sounds like complete dreams. Incredible! I'm so jealous that you got to see them all.

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  3. Ummmm that trip up to Neuschwanstein Castle sounds like an absolutely fairytale dream. So jealous! The only one of these I've done too is seen the Eiffel Tower sparkling...and that really is magical. Prague is at the top of my to-visit list for sure!

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  4. Isn't Europe amazing! I would move there in a heart beat! It sounds like you did some AMAZING things there!

    ~Ashley @ A Cute Angle
    acutelifestyle.blogspot.com

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  5. The horse-drawn carriage in the snow sounds a smidge like a fairytale.

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  6. Seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time in person was probably one of the top 10 moments of my life thus far!! Such an incredible sight!!

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  7. The eiffel tower looks so pretty. I'm dying to get ober to Europe to do some site-seeing. The Marseille calanques look so breathtaking!

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  8. Great places you went to Olya. I have to admit, i still haven't been to London yet...but it's on my list for sure. Btw there's a lack of Berlin on your top five european moments ;) So if you ever come around...;)
    xo,
    Luchessa @ http://luchessa.org/

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    1. I have been to Berlin! It's such a beautiful city. I was so fascinated by all of the history!

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  9. Paris is my favorite city. It just so beautiful. I would love to go to Marseille though. Your pictures are also beautiful. :-) I hope that you are having a great day!

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    1. Thanks Caroline! You're right, Paris is absolutely beautiful. I hope you make it over to Marseille someday! :)

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  10. WOW! You've traveled so much, I'm so jealous!

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  11. You've seen so much more of Europe than I have. I need to go back there.

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  12. I definitely have a bias opinion and have to say you left out Poland haha, but I still have yet to travel the rest of Europe, I've only been to a few European countries. I love that you travel, that's one of my favorite things to do, too bad it's gotten so expensive though!

    www.jerseygirltexanheart.com

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    1. You're right, traveling is so expensive! We budget other places so we can keep traveling. I do love Poland and think it's a country people should add to their itineraries more often! I used to go a lot as a kid (we lived in Kaliningrad near Poland). We were supposed to go the last time we were in Europe to meet my aunt, but the logistics didn't work out. I definitely want to go back soon! :)

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  13. So many of our top experiences match mine! Neuschwanstein Castle was truly incredible, and I would love to go back to Prague again now that I'm an adult. Next up on my list is probably Italy and Greece, though. I studied classical studies in college, so I feel like I need to go check out the history before I forget my entire education.

    Cat
    http://oddlylovely.com

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  14. Paris is seriously such a beautiful and magically city! I would love to go back!

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  15. Okay, I can't even handle these right now because they all sound SO AMAZING!! The only city I've been to that you highlighted is Prague, and I would go back in a heartbeat! Putting all those other ones on my bucket list ASAP though. They sound fabulous!

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  16. The first time we saw the Eiffel Tower twinkle we were at the top of the Arc de Triomphe and it was just so beautiful. I loved when we were right at the top of the tower looking down towards Trocadero, we could tell when the twinkling had started because the cameras down there started flashing like crazy!

    I nominated you for a Liebster today :)

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  17. There is nothing quite like the Eiffel Tower sparkling! It it truly a magical moment. I've been lucky enough to spend so much time by the Eiffel Tower that I've also seen it lit up in other colors for special occasions.

    I also saw Wicked in London! And in NYC on Broadway, with the second cast. So Idina Menzel, but not Kristin Chenowith. Oh, and I saw it last summer in Columbus, Ohio with my now-husband. It's my favorite musical.

    Prague is beautiful, and I would love to go back. But my traveling priorities are to introduce my husband to France and to revisit my family in Norway. The rest of Europe will probably wait for a decade or so.

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  18. I loved reading this post as it reminded me of so many good travel moments - especially during my study exchange year. I also did a quick trip to Paris during that year and I was in awe at the blinking lights of the Eiffel tower. So beautiful! And that was also the year when I visited Prague and had a great time with some friends who showed me around their city :)

    The Neuschwanstein castle is also high on my list but I would also go to Paris and London again and again!

    Also, nice blog - just found it via Casey's Fresh Face Friday!

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