Where does Santa and the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy and, and…well, you ol’ bubble-burster you!
Band-i-amir, Afghanistan.
As a nine-year-old I went with my father for a month-long trip. To this day it is the most memorable travel experience I have ever had. Band-i-amir is a valley with crystal clear mineral springs of turquoise waters. I still recall its exquisite beauty with uncommonly clear memory.
On the same trip I was able to climb the large Buddah statue in Bamiyan. Sadly, western notions of cultural heritage and the Taliban’s perverse sense of justice have put paid to that site.
More easily accessable these days is San Gimignano near Sienna, Italy. The medieval towers and Tuscan countyside are intoxicating on a late spring evening.
You know, Collounsbury, I’ve thought about that very thing many times over the years since–whether it was all an act or not. And while I think you’re right about it being an act, I’d still like to reserve a little bit of doubt.
At any rate, I think the fact that rastahomie and I both remember such an event proves that the incident was a long way from the usual “And on your left, you will see…” kind of tourist thing. Real or not, it sure was memorable, and helped reinforce Morocco in my mind as a lot more exotic than most places I’d been up until then.
Put it to you this way, I speak Arabic, I’ve hung around with the very folks who fuck with you (the tourist). I also know how real Arabic society works, in re marriage etc. It ain’t real. Take it from me, they’re fucking with you. They know full well what Westerner’s imagery of Arabs is, and its played to the hilt. Now, if on the off chance some chickie is actually taken in by this and they get to screw her, all the better. Happens. I’ve seen it.
Exactely, that’s why they do it. Tourists eat that shit up. I’ve even been pulled into the game as an excessory. It’s kinda fun to fuck with the tourists who are both excited and afraid. A game which both sides enjoy to an extent, although the tourists don’t usually know its a game.
Eh, lovely country, might retire there one day, but no place is really exotic when you live there. When pollution isn’t so bad I can see the big pointy piles of stone in Giza. Maybe I’m too jaded, but I no longer find things exotic. Of course that might be the Bacardi.
Did a driving tour around Newfoundland in the early summer. Cornerbrook to St. Anthony (where it snowed on June 30.) Whale watched (again, in the snow). L’Anse Aux Meadows to see the Viking landing. Grose Morne National Park (Beautiful) and St. John’s - the big city. The Grand Banks. And ferried back to Nova Scotia. All in all a scenic but chilly vacation.
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Two lovely islands off the coast of Malaysia: Langkawi and Pulau Pangkor Laut. The latter is rated one of the hundred best beaches in the world. Idyllic snorkeling there. Langkawi is up next to Thailand and has several local legends. The lake of the Pregnant Maiden where a fairy princess married an earthling. Barren women come there to drink the water and conceive. The beautiful Mahsuri lived on Langkawi over two hundred years ago. She was wrongfully accused of adultery. When they put her to death, with her dying breath she cursed the community to have evil fortune unto the seventh generation. White blood gushed from her, showing her innocence. The seventh generation of her descendants has now been born coinciding with the rapid rise in the prosperity of Langkawi (developed for tourism). On the beach in Langkawi there was a booth where you could buy exotic shells. Pointing to the salesgirl, I exclaimed, “See? She really does sell seashells by the seashore! This is the place!”
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The hill fortress of Golconda, outside of Hyderabad in the state of Andhra Pradesh, South India. Most of the 16th-century buildings remain in good condition. Including the gates specially designed to repel elephant attacks. And the acoustic spot just inside the main gate from where they can hear you on top of the hill, over a kilometer up. Golconda is where the Koh-i Noor (Mountain of Light) diamond came from.
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The little village of Kahak in the hinterland of Qom, Iran. You drive over a salt desert to get there from Tehran. They have an unusual little five-sided mosque from Safavid times. This is where the great mystical philosopher Sadr al-Dîn Shîrâzî lived for ten years in seclusion from the world, writing his magnum opus The Four Journeys. Nowadays Kahak is a showplace village which is all paved and has street lighting and a public library, but still retains its old-fashioned charm and the villagers are very friendly. The philosopher’s little hexagonal house can still be seen there.
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A national park in the mountains of Modoc County above Alturas, California. In the northeast corner of the state where no one ever goes! I drove past Golconda, Nevada to get there. That was the site of the 1984 Rainbow Family Gathering of the Tribes. Hippie heaven. Thousands of stoned tripping happy folks dancing nude. Everyone arriving is greeted with a hug and “Welcome Home!”
I’d have to say it was that strip club in Tijuana. Well, maybe it’s not that exotic but what the hell, I was 18 at the time and they thought my high school ID card was proof of age.
Prague, in the Czech Republic. I just find it weird that there’s a city with all these buildings over 1000 years old, and everywhere you go, it reeks of pot. The central district is now set up completly for American tourists, but the Old Jewish Ghetto has avoided that fate so far.
Exotic? Hmm, depends on what you mean by exotic.
Petra, Jordan - my first visit outside of North America back in 1988. While the ruins and rock carvings were fascinating, I wouldn’t necessarily consider them exotic.
Cairo, Egypt - my second visit outside of North America and first extended exposure to a different culture. I’d have to say that the culture/way of life was fascinating and a little exotic (especially the women - so many beautiful and beguiling Egyptian women!!). But once I interacted with a handful of people, my exotic notions lessened a bit. Still, I have some fond, wistful memories of the place.
Hawaii, Hawaii - I never thought I would ever enjoy a tropical environment, but I have to say that the big island of Hawaii has a certain exotic charm to it. Enjoyed exploring/hiking near Kilauea Crater.
Arctic Circle, Alaska - the place in and of itself was not very exotic, but the idea of being that far north in latitude was. Alaska rightly deserves the monicker “The Last Frontier”.
Here at home, I thought Las Vegas was a bit exotic (although I could have been confusing exotic with insanely gaudy). The French Quarter in New Orleans exudes a certain exotic quality, as does riding the New York subway (at least the first time, anyway).
I went to the Bahamas on a school orchestra trip… This was great fun. I won’t go into any details, because that would take me three hours, and would warrant starting a new thread all together. But I will say this about the Bahamas. If you leave your cruise ship (you’ll want to) and you are walking around the port, don’t let a local come and talk to you while you are walking towards a distinct location. I was in Nassau and my roomates and I were walking to the huge white-tower on top of the hill. On our way, a man started walking, talking in that crazy native tounge (the one that you can only pick up every other word he says) and then, when we got to the tower he requested that we all give him a couple dollars since he “showed” us to the tower, that was clearly visibl from the beach, what a loon…
Spent a month in Peru last year with my girlfriend. Camped in the rain forest for a week. Backpacked around the rest of the time sightseeing. It was a lot of fun – highly recommended.
Wow. I feel like I have led a sheltered life compared to some others (make that most of the others here).
My choices would have to be:
St. Kitts
We took a 45min taxi ride over a mountain to a beach called “Turtle Beach”. The view from the top of the mountains was absolutely stunning. The Atlantic was on one side and the Carribean on the other. The contrasts of the water color were amazing. The beach itself was something out of a postcard. White powdery sand, and virtually deserted. Only a couple other tourists from our cruise were there.
St. Maarten. The city of Philipsburg
While not exotic was sure neat. I almost felt like I was in Europe.
Tortola - BVI
Basically a small town with no real tourist infrastructre. You could walk around “main street” and almost mistake it for being in any small town in North America, other than the fact you were in the tropics. Very, very laid back and clean. That is the kind of place I would like to move to.
Thats probably about all I have right now until I go to Belize in October and possibly move there.
I guess Tahiti and the surrounding islands; Bora Bora, Raitaea, etc.
Don’t get down on the BVI… they were pretty nice when I was there a while ago. Not nearly as crowded as the USVI.
So many places I want to go though, I’m jealous of all the folks who’ve been to South America.
I guess I’m a bit of a latecomer to this thread, but what the hell…for me it’s:
- Beirut, Lebanon - back in 1996, not too long after all the hostilities finally ceased. Needless to say, it was rather bizarre wandering around what had, until recently, been an honest-to-goodness war zone for the last decade. We stayed in a ‘hotel’ right near the Green Line that was pockmarked with bullet holes, and spent the day gaping at war-torn skyscrapers; I’ve got a photo of myself in front of a bombed-out Holiday Inn.
or maybe
- Xieng Kok, Laos - winter 2000. A small village on the Mekong River far, far away from civilization, so far that electricity did not yet reach there, and the nearest paved road was a good 200 miles away. My travelling companion and I, however, were thwarted in our mission for going there…a day’s worth of coy bribes of officials and cajoling local boatman failed to get us across the river into Myanmar. (The crossing was open to locals only, a fact which we had hoped to circumvent.)
Angkor Wat, Northern Thailand and Sedona, Arizona.
heck I didn’t have to go anywhere to visit someplace exotic. I lived on the slopes of Kilauea volcano growing up, just 5km from the cladera, I could watch it erupt from my bedroom window. And in the winter time when Mauna Kea was coated with snow we’d play in snow all morning and then play in the sea all afternoon. natural saunas and hot tubs all over the place, fruit fresh off the tree and those wahines, yeouch! oh man and pakalolo plants as tall as I am now (6’5")
sigh, now I live in a big city surrounded by tourists and traffic and jack in the boxes.
Madiera
Not remote, but very interesting. GREAT food. Good wine.Beautiful scenery. I’d go back this morning:D
Try rafting through the grand canyon,it’s not only a whitewater trip it is an awesome place to live for a week.
anywhere in Tibet is awesome, although I don’t recommend going in the winter, which lasts roughly from September until June depending on the elevation.
The “big” cities such as Lhasa, Shigatse, Gyantse, Xining are okay, but if you get out anywhere it just becomes simply awesome.
There is something about being on a valley floor at 10-15,000 feet, huge mountains towering way above you, empty landscape. simply overwhelming.
On top of the physical beauty, the Tibetans are without doubt one of the most wonderful race of people in the world. The face one of the harshest environments imagineable, live truly buddhist lives, have faced unknown suffering over the years, and yet are the happiest most generous people I have ever met. Forget the hippy dippy Karma bum kinda stuff – Tibetans are great people.
anywhere in Tibet is simply awesome and I am too weak a writer to express how incredible it is.
Hmm…
Guam, Hawaii, and assorted other Pacific islands…? Nice, but no.
Perth, Australia…? Nope.
Singapore…? Nah.
Hong Kong…? Mmmm… maybe.
Adak, Alaska…? Closer…
Penang, Mayalasia…? Fairly exotic, yes, but I think I can do better…
Bali…? Very nice, but too popular to be really exotic.
Bahrain…? Now we’re talking, but…
UAE (United Arab Emirates)…? YES! Now That’s exotic!
Especially the Emirate of Fujairah. Small, loosley populated, and culturally different from the other six Emirates. I’ve also been in the Emirates of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah. Nice people, very hospitable, and superior merchants.