100 Essential Travel Experiences, Part IV

As a tribute to carefree traveling, I’m listing my most memorable travel experiences so far. You can read part 1, part 2 and part 3 in the previous posts.

Without further ado, here are the next 15 travel experiences in no particular order:

 

45. Wild camping in Liechtenstein’s Alps

LIECHTENSTEIN
Unlike in most European countries, wild camping is legal in Lichtenstein. You can walk into the Alps and pitch your tent wherever you want to, away from campsites. Perfect for experiencing the whole “man vs nature” thing…

 

44. Visiting the cotton castle in Pamukale, Turkey

PAMUKALE
The cotton castle is  just stunning at dawn. Besides, getting there before the crowds is key to this experience! Note that swimming in the main pools is no longer permitted.
PAMU
You can see why this rock formation is nicknamed cotton castle. In Pamukkale, Turkey.

 

 

43. Celebrating Hogmanay in Edinburgh

fireworks and camera's
New Year’s Eve in Edinburgh is a basically a crazy street party with concerts, fireworks, dj’s and dancing in the centre of the city. A fun and casual way to celebrate the new year. Click on the title to read about celebrating Hogmanay in Edinburgh.

 

42. Climbing an active volcano with streaming lava

GUATEMALA
The sole’s of my shoes melted off as I carefully stepped on the barely solid lava rocks. I could see and hear the boiling lava streaming right under my feet. I can’t say I felt comfortable on volcano Pacaya in Guatemala.

 

41. Floating on the Mekong and sipping on white coffee in Vietnam

MEKONG delta

 

40. Being spiritually overwhelmed in Jerusalem

Israel084
Religious or not, witnessing thousands of pilgrims and locals alike sing hand in hand, burst into tears and pray rigorously at the religious sites of Jerusalem, is touching on a deep spiritual level. I too ended up saying a prayer for peace by the Wailing Wall.

 

39. Bathing in the natural hot springs and waterfalls of Dominica

DOMINICA
The tiny island of Dominica has so many exciting nooks with waterfalls, hot springs and swimming holes. Nature on this Caribbean island is so lush and untamed, you feel like a pathfinder. WOW!
DOM
I went in for a dip every occasion I got!

 

38. Connecting with kids in Africa

KIDS
Kids in Africa LOVE to see visitors passing through their village. Their curiosity leads them to surround you, laugh, sing, dance and call you names (mostly the local slang for ‘white person’ even if, like me, you’re not really white). Connecting with these kids is something you should experience for yourself to know how heartwarming it can be. Picture taken in Rwanda.

 

37. Learning to cook (and eat) traditional Greek food from a local

GREEK
When I was in Athens I learned to cook some Greek comfort food. A new world opened up! Click on the title to read about my cooking class in Athens.

 

36. Standing face to face with wild Orangutans in Sabah

ORANGutan, borneo
Ok, I cheated a bit; there was a viewing platform… But that doesn’t take away from the wonder of seeing our wild “cousins” swinging from branch to branch. I’m not a particularly big fan of animals yet I stared at the baby orangutans in the rehabilitation centre for at least an hour. Click on the title to read about my visit to Sabah.

 

35. Shamelessly doing every tourist cliché in Paris

I've been to Paris several times and the French culture is quite close to mine (Belgian) but I just had to do it once: act like a cliché tourist in Paris! Barret, Eiffel tower, baguette, cheese, wine, maccarons and a long stroll along the Seine. Cliché or not, I loved it!
I’ve been to Paris several times and the French culture is quite close to mine (Belgian) but I just had to do it once: act like a cliché tourist in Paris! Barret, Eiffel tower, baguette, cheese, wine, macaroons and a long stroll along the Seine. Cliché or not, I loved it!

 

34. Swimming in Oman’s sinkhole and climbing around its wadi’s

WADI
There are so many reasons to love Oman but what I enjoyed most were the natural pools and wadi’s. I felt so small climbing over rocks and wading in the desert valley pools. Click on the title to read about my road trip through Oman.

 

33. Visiting the golden temples in Myanmar

MYANMAR
When I think of Myanmar, I think of gold. Not even in Dubai or Saudi Arabia did I see as much gold as I did in Myanmar. The Shwedagon Pagoda, pictured here, took the cake. Click on the title to read about the other thing there is in abundance in Myanmar: Buddha depictions.

 

32. Roadtripping throuh South Morocco

SOUTH morocco
South Morocco is another fantastic place to take a road trip. Fields of roses, ancient towns, traditional villages, interesting desert landscapes and warm welcoming inhabitants, are just a few things you find on the way.

M

 

31. Eating strange foods along the way

Little shacks like this, don't scare me off. In my experience, they often serve something interesting to taste. Besides, when hunger strikes...
Little shacks like this, don’t scare me. In my experience, they often serve something interesting to taste. Besides, when hunger strikes…
I love trying all kinds of local foods. The weird and the ugly included. Usually, that translates into unusual meats. So far I've tried rat, dog, turtle, camel, grasshoppers, duck embryo, crocodile, toad, hippopotamus, smoked monkey, guinea pig... I think this subject may need its own post.
I love trying all kinds of local foods. The weird and the ugly included. Usually, that translates into unusual meats. So far I’ve tried rat, dog, turtle, camel, grasshoppers, duck embryo, crocodile, toad, hippopotamus, smoked monkey, guinea pig… I think this subject may need a post of its own.

 

Continue reading part 5 and part 6! Curious about Part 1, Part 2 or Part 3 of this list? 

 

The post “100 Essential Travel Experiences, part IV” first appeared on Travel Cake

 

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