Places that left you amazed

General Discussion FSM Ready Room
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Since we can’t travel these days, lets at least talk travel. List pleaces that left you amazed. Here are mine that I can think of without thinking too much. In no particular order:

Santorini island
First time sailing across the Atlantic, I went out on the top deck at night and looked up. I thought I could see the end of the universe. Unbelievable sight of the stars.
Egyptian pyramids
The destroyed bridge on the river Neretva, here is the story https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Case_White
Monastery Ostrog https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostrog_Monastery
Suez canal
USS John F Kennedy

Eifel tower

Canadian arctic and Greenland from 30000 feet on a beautiful clear day

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The National Science Museum in Ueno, Tokyo. That was the first time I saw reconstructed dinosaur skeletons. I gasped in awe just standing next to them, thinking it amazing how such large creatures once existed. For a moment, I actually felt like a 5 year old again. The model displays of various ecosystems were mesmerizing.

The Tempozan Aquarium in Osaka. There was a very large whale shark in the main tank, along with somersaulting manta rays. And the Crabs from Mars on the bottom floor were pretty cool too.

The Tokyo Maritime Museum. It is shaped like an ocean liner, with row upon row of model ships of all descriptions inside, with a 1/50 Yamato battleship as a centerpiece. RC ship jousting can be had on the roof, and there used to be a real Kawanishi Emily flying boat outside. There was a Jim diving suit at the museum entrance, and I was able to buy a 1/20 resin kit of it in Osaka during the same trip.

A rice paddy near my relative’s house. One morning my sister and I walked our cousin to school, and decided to go through the rice paddy on the way back to the house. It was early morning and there was a low fog shrouding the water. It was so eerily quiet and serene, almost magical.

Camping out on the North Shore of Oahu. I had never seen the night sky without light pollution. When I looked up, I said “WOW - it looks just like Star Wars!”

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For me,Machu Picchu,one of the very few places that exceeded expectations.

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Taj Mahal

Yosemite Valley

Kalalau Valley

dubrovnic

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U.S. National Parks:

Yellowstone

Arches

Black Canyon

Grand Canyon

Smokey Mountains

Rocky Mountains

and

Colorado National Monument

Garden of the Gods (Colorado)

Royal Gorge (Colorado)

Tallgrass Prairie (Oklahoma)

and

The Alamo

Battleship Texas

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Bryce Canyon in Utah

Crater Lake in Oregon

Guam, only because I was suprised it didn’t sink with all the hardware parked on it when I passed through in '73.

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Hmmm; Let’s see;

The Big Hole in the Ground ! I think they call it the Grand Canyon.

The Eiffel Tower;

The Pyramids at Giza;

Chichen Itsa;

The Great Barrier Reef;

The Arizona( Still Bleeding ):

The Sunrise and Sunset in the Pacific while the Bow Wave slices effortlessly it seems, through the Reflective Blue of the Water, and the Phosphoresence within etching a trail behind the Ship;

My First Wife’s Emerald Green eyes, and My second Wife’s Ice Blue ones;

The First time My Newborn Son looked at me;

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Never been outside the country except for getting married in 1991 on the beach in Kawaii.

Six years ago we did rent a 28’ RV for 6 weeks and drove across the top of the U.S. stopping to see friends, relatives and great sites(parks and monuments). Came down through Oregon and California stopping at a few places including NAS Leemoore to see my brother who was the PAO of the base. GREAT up close tour of the base. Got to meet and shake hands with a few of the flight crew of the Enterprise who were coming in, refueling and going back up. Came back through the south basicly doing the friends, relatives, parks and monuments. Stopped to see an old, old friend in Colorado Springs that I hadn’t seen in about 30 years. He was an egress specialist on F-4s in Nam. He’s sent me a lot of pics and info on MB Mk 7 Ejection seats for the F-4 I was working on. He took us to a few monuments and air bases.

Had a fantastic time on and off the road. We are now talking about doing it again. I’m making a list of all the guys that I have their adresses and planning to stop for a meet and greet if they are available at that time (and I can find them[;)]).

This is one beautiful country and I hope to see much more of it before I go to the great workbench in the sky.

Jim [cptn]

Stay Safe.

PS - When we returned the Rv, they said that we drove it further than anyone else that ever rented one from them. Plus, there wasn’t a mark on it and hadn’t had a bit of trouble with it the whole trip. They also said that if we wanted to but it let them know and they would give us a great deal.

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Chichen Itza in Mexico. These buildings were built without using the ‘wheel’. Just a lot of human labor. Some of the joints in the stones are thinner than a piece of paper. When I was there about 20 years ago we were allowed to climb the great pyramid. It was very impressive to experience the size of the pyramid by standing on the top. Climbing the buildings is no longer allowed.

The Gothic cathedrals of Europe.

The creativity and ingenuity of humans never fails to impress me.

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The Canadian praire in Alberta. No ambiant light means you can see the stars from horizon to horizon and the Northern Lights were just a wounder. The Canadian Rockies were pretty special to.

The Falklands. So rugged and isolated with large areas with no sign of human life. And stunning wildlife. Seeing wild penguins was somthing special.

Rome. Nuff said.

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My cutter got caught in a storm in the Berring during a winter patrol, so the captian decided to break into the ice to weather the storm (our cutter could break 11 ft of ice)

During the night, after the storm passed, I walked out on deck to see the most beautiful ice field surounding us, illuminated by the ships lights. No wind, no sound, just cold clean air. It was 65 below so I couldn’t stay long but it was beautiful.

I was a truck driver for 5 years and between that and my Coast Guard service, have seen all 50 states, Canada and most of Europe. Too many beautiful things to list. It’s a big world and there’s far more to see.

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The Alhambra

Marine Museum in Duluth Canal Park

Marine Museum at Mystic Seaport.

Turing USS Constitution.

Liftoff of an Apollo Mission

Flight over a thunderstorm in Indiana and Illinois

Henry Ford Museum/Greenfield Village, Dearborn Mi.

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The Jewel Room in the Tower of London - a staggering display of exquisite craftmanship and breathtaking beauty.

The Yorkshire Moors - a wild and beautiful place, a complete antidote to city living. One fine and sunny day, walking on Danby Tor, we were treated to our own air display, as a RAF Tucano performed aerobatics directly over our heads, for about ten minutes. We were the only two people there, no one else was within miles of us. The gleaming black aircraft flew low and circled us at the end, waggling its wings as we waved like excited children. The panoramic setting made it perfect.

Lake Garda in Italy - a soft breeze as we sailed across calm, clear blue water, a grey heron flying effortlessly past us, with the majestic Dolomite mountains as a backdrop.

The stunning mountain views from the Eagle’s Nest in Bavaria (we were very fortunate with the weather!) It pleases me to think of that place being enjoyed by free and happy people from many countries, a firm and definite rejection of the vile individual for whom it was built.

The Isle of Capri, towering cliffs with blue and green-coloured sea caves, amazing views across to Vesuvius and Naples.

The rim of the crater of Mt Vesuvius itself, and the buried towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

The British Museum, amazing architecture with a geodetic roof, home to fabulous artefacts showing the works of Mankind through the ages.

Hadrian’s Wall and the Roman forts along its length, set in wild and rugged countryside.

All of these are treasures, and some of you have added to my list of others to discover for myself.

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Yosemite

Kern River

Mysore Palace in India

WWII Museum in New Orleans

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The Island of Santorini.

Anyplace there is a total solar eclipse.

Men landing on the moon.

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Okay, I need to change my vote regarding the most amazing place that I have been. The Muir Woods in California is almost beyond description. The further that you walk into the forest the quieter and quieter the environment becomes. It is so quiet that you experience a sense of overwhelming calm. I have never felt that sense of calm in my life. It’s almost as if you expect to see God walking around and smiling as she looks at her creation. I am not a religious person, but that was how I felt.

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Stonehenge. Chartres Cathedral. John Hancock Building.

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All 48 states and Canada.32 years of driving I have seen a lot but the best was driving some of the back roads to get to an interstate.Just can’t pick out one place or another.I can say this,big cities really do suck.I guess there some beauty in them but not like the small town in this country.The woods,swamps,mountains and desserts are something to behold.This country has been so blessed when it comes to beauty.Now that I am off the road,me and the misses can actuial go out and enjoy these spots.Nothing like seeing a sunrise or a sunset like going thur Gallup,NM on the red rocks or cliffs.Nor seeing the wildlife on hwy 212 in Montana.Me and the misses got to see a herd of antilope give brith to there young one spring…fantastic to see.Or the time going thur Kansas during a torado only to get pleited with fish across a lake.Alot of nice people out there.We as Americans need get out there and meet each other know that we are who we are as a country.Just fantastic out there beyound the place you live and call home.Way to much beauty and never time to see it all…

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I’ve been privileged enough to have been able to travel around the Pacific, courtesy of the U.S. Government, and around the U.S, visiting a good number of states. Natural scenes like the Rocky Mountains, the Grand Canyon, seemingly endless hardwood forests of the American East all inspire. But the most wonderous, not that I’m a particularly religious individual, are the God-given scenes like this, seen from my front door.

Now that’s the way to enjoy your morning coffee!!

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Touring the HMS Victory when docking at Portsmouth when in the U.S.Navy.