MEComposing

A good friend and his soulmate are currently still enjoying their Tour of Europe, which they were able to accomplish through a lot of planning and saving. The internet has allowed them access to great deals such as affordable accommodations through sites like Cheaper than Hotels where you can easily shop for places to stay by price, location and rating and also already check which amenities are available. Their site also readily offers sights to see that are nearby and what's more, you get first dibs on the cheapest rates available.

Anyway, I'd really love to travel to Europe myself... and see with my own eyes the streets and walls and fortresses and castles where legends have risen and fallen throughout history.

Of course, a trip to Germany would require that I stay in a Berlin Hotel for the Berlin Wall. I doubt i'd sample German Beer... but I wouldn't be averse to attending Oktoberfest even if I don't drink. After all, it's also one grand carnival and I could just as easily make myself nauseous with the different rides and make myself sick with the different sausages. Bratwurst, anyone? :)

But I know i'd insist on a trip to Auschwitz. Ever since I saw a play back in college about the Auschwitz concentration camp, I have been forever moved. Plus, ok, my perpetual fascination over all things morbid is sure to make me want to view its museum and prisons and wonder about all those people who were tortured and slaughtered there just because their skin color or belief system was different.

In England, i'd make sure to find a nice, cheap place to stay in London so I can go on all the usual tours of the Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, the London Bridge and House of Parliament. But the thing i'd really travel to United Kingdom for isn't in the city...

Stonehenge is located in Wiltshire, massive stones standing in a circular setting that continue to amaze and confound experts. Yes, if I am enticed by Germany because of its dark history (and sausages), I am attracted by London because of its mystery... its haunted castles, its amazing monoliths. Oh and of course, what's a trip to England if I won't visit Liverpool and get a picture taken crossing Abbey Road!

Next country to visit would be France and i'd make sure to find a cozy accommodation in Paris so I can enjoy its art and grandeur as I channel the exploits of the Da Vinci Code. I'd decide for myself if the pyramid in front of the the Louvre adds or takes away from its grandeur.

And then i'd take a side trip to Lourdes for the incorruptible St. Benadette. I'm sure the French countryside will also occupy me as it did Monet and Renoir during their time.

(Fort in Taytay, Palawan) Another place in my list would be to stay in Barcelona and explore Spain. Here I will probably seek historians and librarians instead of the sights, tracing my husband's lineage with him and possibly finding the relatives of his great great grandfather, see where he lived before he was stationed as pulitico-military governor in Taytay, Palawan.

There are other places i'd love to see in Europe... it's just phenomenally rich in history and grandeur and promise that a year would probably be not enough to cover everything. Hopefully, I can find a way soon to at least stagger the accomplishment of the dream.