Wish I Was There Tuesday

I have a serious travel bug at the moment...itching to go somewhere exotic and unknown. Some very exciting plans are afoot.... more on them soon! But for today, I'm going to revamp an old feature I used to run way back when... well, when I was also hard pressed for new and exciting material to post on here.

Today, we're in one of my favourite European destinations....Italy!

Back in 2008, on a walking holiday in Tuscany that I wrote about here, we did a day trip to the Liguria region. A bit of a long haul on two separate and very infrequent trains (we made the second one by a whisker!) but we were finally on the rugged coastline called the Cinque Terre ("The Five Lands" composed of five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore). The hills above the villages are criss-crossed by a network of footpaths linking the villages and little dry-stone-walled vineyards.

Map found here

It was an incredibly hot day... the Italian Riveria in July is scorchio! The paths range from fairly easy going and smooth, to steep steps and rock-strewn. I found it a challenge to hike in parts and was grateful of my comfy, sturdy boots to negotiate some of the rougher paths. I was astounded to be overtaken in places by... ahem!...mature Italian ladies, tripping along in their flimsy high heeled, strappy sandals, not even breaking a sweat!

Superb views all the way....

Foccacia!

Feel free to join in with your very own WIWTT....

Wish I Was There Tuesday

Today, I have a great longing to go for a long, long walk along a beautiful deserted beach.

My favourite place in the UK is the sandy beach at Embleton Bay in Northumberland, in the north east. With the backdrop of the ruined Dunstanburgh Castle, this expansive beach provides stunning views at any time of day and in all weather.

I've already shared some of my photos from my two trips to Northumberland last year, on Sun, Sand and Soul and Britain's Best Kept Secret, but here are some additional ones taken on the beach, almost exactly a year ago....



So...where do you wish you were today?

Wish I Was There Tuesday

The Maldives - photo found here

Maldives beach - photo found here

Maldives restaurant - photo found here

You can see my own photos of Paradise here. It feels like decades ago and not just three years since I was there and I really want to go again someday...there are just so many other places in the world to see in one lifetime.

Where do you wish you were today?

Wish I Was There Tuesday

A friend of mine has just jetted off to a Greek island for a fortnight's holiday - I am very jealous! I really want to visit Greece someday, and that's where I wish I was today....

Photo found here

Photo found here

Photo found here

Photo found here

Where do you wish you were today?

Wish I Was There Tuesday

The weather in the UK at the moment can be summed up in one word:

SOGGY!

So, today I'm dreaming of being somewhere dry and sunny....and it doesn't get much drier than the Sahara Desert! In one of my earliest blog posts, I wrote about my adventures in Egypt....if you're interested, you can read more over here. Today I'm going to share some more of my photos from this trip with you.....

The pyramids at Giza

The Sphinx

Ship of the desert

Felucas on the Nile

Temple of Hatshepsut

Temple of Hatshepsut

Temple of Karnak, Luxor

So where do you wish you were today?

Wish I Was There Tuesday

There's a definite chill in the air this morning....summer is fast approaching an untimely end! Today I'm dreaming of the hot, hazy days I spent in Tuscany back in July 2008.

We were based in the Garfagnana region, in this lovely old converted farmhouse with a pool and views of the Apuan Aps, just perfect to come back to after a hard day's touring...

La Pozza

We were well-placed for exploring the walled cities of Lucca and Barga.....

Panorama of Lucca from Torre Guinigi

Barga

Barga

Barga

And for day-trips to the magnificent cities of Florence and Pisa...

The River Arno, Florence

Bartolomeo Ammanati's Fountain of Neptune (1563–1565), Piazza della Signoria, Florence

Leaning Tower of Pisa, Piazza del Duomo

Duomo, Pisa

Looking onto the Duomo from the top of the Leaning Tower

Where do you wish you were today?

Wish I Was There Tuesday

This is the latest addition to my ever-growing pile of travel guidebooks....it's what I'm currently reading in anticipation of my trip to Andalusia in mid October, and that's where I'm dreaming of being today!

Andalusia (Andalucía) is Spain's largest and southernmost province, just a few miles across the sea from Morocco...

Map found here

Southern Spain was a Muslim territory for about 700 years....after the Muslim dynasties were forced out in 1492 by Ferdinand and Isabella (the "Catholic Kings"), the new Spaniards incorporated the Moorish legacy rather than stamping it out. A new architectural style was forged - mudéjar - which combined Muslim and Christian decorative traditions.

'Alcazar' - a complex of palaces dating from Roman times and later used by both Moorish and Christian rulers. Photo found here

'Alcazar' - photo found here

 

'Giralda' - dating from the 12th century and originally built as a minaret for the central mosque, now the bell-tower for the Seville Cathedral. Photo found here

Andalusia is sprinkled liberally with pretty 'pueblos blancos', or white towns and villages....

Photo found here

The province also offers varied scenery, from the snowy mountains of the Sierra Nevada to the rolling olive groves, and the Andalusian steppes of the southeast.

El Chorro Gorge. Photo found here

Spain's legendery tapas (a small plate of appetizers that are served either as a lunch or evening snack) originated in 19th century Andalusia to accompany sherry....

Photo found here

The region is also famous for the flamenco...more than just a dance, this uniquely Andalusian art form is an expression of the joys and sorrows of life...

Flamenco - the soul of Andalusia. Photo found here

So, where do you wish you were this Tuesday?

Wish I Was There Tuesday

Drum roll and fanfare.......

It's the first post of my all new, "original" and exciting 'Wish I Was There Tuesday' feature....and I hope that lots of you will take part. The idea is to post on somewhere wonderful in the world you’ve been, will be going or even just dream of going to one day. It could be somewhere really close to home, or on the other side of the planet or even galaxy, and could be a real or imaginary place. If you are taking part, then please leave me a comment so I can see where you're dreaming of being today...

The past couple of weeks, I've been suffering from serious cabin fever. I'm hating being trapped indoors at work on the PC, when I could be out walking in the fresh mountain air of the French Alps....and this is where I wish I was today. Anyone who knows me will be wondering why I'm dreaming of being in a place where I've twice almost met my demise...the first time when I tried to ski with distastrous consequences, that I wrote about here.... and the second being the time I almost fell off a mountain in an aborted attempt to go paragliding, that I wrote about here. Luckily, I survived the concussion of the skiing accident, and discovered the wonderful world of snowshoeing instead... and the second attempt at paragliding was a success!

Alpine chalets

Alpine cows

Sheds in a row

A good spot to put your feet up!

"The End of The World"