London – GringoPotpourri

Europe has been on my mind lately. I haven’t visited the continent since 2012, so it could be that I simply miss the place. Or it could be that recent late night TV airings of “Skyfall” and “Midnight in Paris” have left me nostalgic for my wandering days.

I immediately started thinking of some favorite places in Europe. A few, like the Bernese Oberland of alpine Switzerland, are pleasantly rural. Most, however, are either specific sights in specific cities…or the cities themselves.

Europe is blessed with dozens of cities and towns worth visiting. I have decided to share my favorites with you in a series of top ten lists. I am dividing my rankings into three separate lists. First, large cities – cities with over 1,000,000 residents. Next, mid-sized cities – let’s say 50,000 – 1,000,000. Finally, small cities and towns – any community with fewer than 50,000 people.

Here are my Top Ten Large European Cities:

Continue reading “Top Ten Large European Cities”

Christmas is just around the corner, and this year I’ll be spending the holiday in Eastern Tennessee. I doubt that it will be the “White Christmas” of song – temperatures have been just a bit too warm for snow – but it’ll be spent with my dad. The family as a whole – mom, dad, sis, niece, dog, and me – is celebrating Christmas a few days early, with my mom traveling back to Memphis to spend several days (including December 25^th) with her daughter and granddaughter. When family members live in other parts of the country or state, it’s challenging to coordinate the logistics of getting everyone together. And I say this having a small family! Anyway, I’m sure many of you can relate.

I am a sucker for nostalgia, and I often spend time that should be dedicated towards, say, finding a job, gathering proverbial wool or thinking happily of days gone by. As such, I thought I’d continue my series of “Holiday Travels” entries with another bit of fond musing. If you’re curious, my previous post in this series was last December’s Québec City and Montréal entry. I hope you’ll give it a read; the “Related” section at the bottom of that post should then direct you to older entries in this series.

From Memphis to Londontown (2006)

2006 was an epic year for yours truly. I had the best financial year of my life and a generous vacation allotment, resulting in several terrific trips. Mexico, Turkey/Denmark, Singapore/Malaysia…it was grand. As the end of the year rolled around, I hankered to experience my first New Year’s Eve in Europe, but also remembered that I hadn’t visited my parents at all that year. My vacation time was wearing thin, so I finagled something brilliant: four days in Memphis, three days of work back in LA where I lived at the time, and then six days in London. Exhausting? Sí, señor.

Continue reading “Holiday Travels – Part Five”