Ever fallen in love with a place? (1 Viewer)

I am asking 'cause sometimes I think my love for NYC is irrational...

I am curious to see of anyone one else was nuts about a location other than their place of birth or origin. A place, town, or city that just feels... right.

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H

I've barely spent any time in the Pacific Northwest, but it's exerting a very strong pull on this Metro Detroit homebody.

Then, there are my brief but exciting flings with Las Vegas.

My kids and I love Disneyworld.


And I agree with Jim...While Disneyworld is my love...Vegas is my mistress.

Jim,

You and me both. I'm moving.

Alaska, Ireland and London.

Amboise, France...


Leonardo da Vinci spent his final days here, and it seems a very fitting place for quiet contemplation.

I like my Milwaukee...

It's big enough to have all the big-city-amenities... beaches, nice restaurants, great theater, professional sports.

Yet, small enough where you can run into people you know.

The winters are getting on my nerves, though.
Oh.. and I wish we had prettier women.

South Africa

I was standing at the edge of the Highveld, the demarcation between the interior plateau of SA and the lower level perimeter of the country. The drop is thousands of feet, and at night, there is a massive (and I mean massive) pouring of cold dense air from the highlands into the lowveld. It was night, and the only light came from millions of stars which were visible. Standing there, feeling the air pour off the higher elevations, watching the stars, and just feeling the emptiness of the vast land, was possibly the most perfect moment of my life.

So yea, I have a soft spot for South Africa.

Yellowstone National Park. If I had the time, I would visit every year.

I have a very skewed perception of Washington, D.C. I got to spend the holidays there during one of the loneliest periods of my life and my friends lived five blocks behind the Capitol. Subsequent visits have adjusted my perceptions a little, but my time there is still one of my best/favorite memories.

I love my little city, Baltimore.

It's perfectly placed, right between DC and NYC (alas, my old love). It's close to the beach without being beach-y, it's maritime without being port-y, it's close to the country without being country-y. It's big enough that it has good ethnic food, lots of little pubs with good food and beer, and it's small enough that you see people you know all the time. (It's "Smalltimore"!)

Plus, there's Mencken and Poe, and a long, deep vein of American history here.

It does have its downsides. Baltimore is having an ugly contest and everyone's winning. Baltimore is one of the murder capitals of the country, and the Baltimore inner city is worse than it's ever been with poverty and violence. Baltimore is a rabid, mindless sports town, which sort of keeps the collective IQ down. And the property-values-vs-prices thing is all out of whack here, can you say, "housing bubble"?

Yeh, Baltimore!

MC

Me too. I spent one week in Seattle and loved it.

As for NYC, been there several times. Hoping I never have to go again.

I loved my time spent in Carmel, CA. No way could I afford to live there but I would if I could.

Charleston, South Carolina

Thanks to the Navy, I "grew up" in the city from the ages of 3-10. It's literally my childhood. And Charleston is a pretty unique place on it's own. Welcoming, warm, small town, but not small time.

To second (sort of) mark, my own time in the Navy allowed me to spend some quality time at three in the morning out on the open ocean on the bridge of a sub (the flying bridge - the tiny patch of metal about 20 feet off of the surface of the ocean). Before you get the lights rigged and ready to go (and the lookout ambles up), it's just you, the black starlit sky and hundreds of miles of ocean in any direction. It's truly an amazing sensation.

Lastly, Israel. I spent a week there, and I'd love to go back. I can't put my love for Israel down in words, but it truly is the cradle of humanity.

I'm taking the family there this Summer. It will be our first time there. Any suggestions?

Bryan - yeah. Have you seen that NGC documentary on the super volcano under there?

Glenn

No, but I hear it's a blast!

Its a cliche, I know, but I love Paris. I can't get enough of the place. Based on my first trip, one would never know that. Back in 1985, while living in London, I went on a 24 hour trip to Paris via the cross-Channel hovercraft and hated it. Every stereotype that an American has about the French played out. I vowed never to go back.

In 1999 I had an epiphany. I was watching Lance win his first Tour and riding the streets of Paris. I promised myself that I would be there for the 2000 Tour. I went, with my bike, and have gone there more times then I can count. I love the place. I enjoy the food, the life, and the people. My French sucks but I try. I hope to be there next Fall.

Cape Cod - specifically Cahoon Hollow Beach in Wellfleet. 40-50 ft dunes with one of the greatest beaches in the world at the bottom and an old Coast Guard livesaving station converted to a combination raw bar/outdoor cafe/nightclub at the top.