Travel

Places I’d Love to Visit

Costa Rica. Why? My best friend, Nate, and his wife spent time here before they got married and loved it. Nate was diagnosed with cancer, and when he was declared cancer free, his family (now with two kids!) celebrated with a vacation in the same place. Sadly, Nate’s cancer returned, and it took his life when he was 43. I want to experience what Nate loved so much – the biodiversity, people, and weather. I am confident I’ll share his love for CR, and it will be another thing we have in common.
Brazil. Why? While in the Navy during WWII, my poppy spent part of his tour in Brazil. One day, my poppy noticed a Brazilian woman wearing underpants with his name across the waistband (everything was labeled). He assumed she picked up his undies randomly from the shared washing spaces. However, my family likes to tell a different story of how this woman ended up with this clothing, and as such, we have always joked that we have family living some where in Brazil. Oh, and there’s the Amazon, Rio, beaches, waterfalls, and all that other stuff.

Florence, Italy. Why? It’s everything I love about Italy and city-living. Art, great food, walkability, public transportation, friendly people, and plenty to do. I specifically love Florence for the closeness of the streets, the Renaissance work, the architecture, a little gelateria called Cavini, and an Italian boy I met when I was 21 and studied abroad. A quick bus or train takes you to the spreads of Tuscany, and anywhere throughout the country.
Nashville, TN. Why? Live music. It’s everywhere and its wonderful. The sports scene isn’t bad, there are good eats, and Vanderbilt University is a fun place to visit (I have a thing for college campuses – they are beautiful to walk around). I’m a huge Tennessee Vols fan, and they’re based out of Knoxville, another city I love which is close by. Sign me up for Vols football, basketball, and baseball.
Wherever my sister, brother-in-law, and nieces and nephews are. Right now, it’s in Rochester, NY, where I grew up. Although I’m not particularly fond of cold weather, I do enjoy the seasons for the most part. Rochester is also home to amazing food (the Italian is the best) and bakeries. So during the cold weather that I don’t enjoy, I shove baked goods in my face and problem solved.

Budapest. Why? While studying abroad in 2001, two wonderful girls from Santa Clara University and I took advantage of Europe’s amazing train system which included a trip to Budapest. Budapest was beautiful, but one experience spoiled it for us. We hiked a popular path and at the summit, a man thought it would be appropriate to pull down his pants and yank off. Ugh. Unwanted penises. I hate unwanted penises.
Almost everywhere in NJ. Why? Other than Cape May, a beautiful little town that’s great for a vacation, Jersey drives me bananas. The gas stations seem to close earlier every day, it takes 20 minutes to get across the street because of it’s one-ways and abundance of left turns, and it seems dirty. While driving on 95, my windshield got hit with a dirty diaper. How does that happen? Easily. Just drive in NJ.