I’ve been lucky. I’ve had lots of opportunities to travel and explore and see different things. However, when I was asked to write about the most exciting vacation I’ve ever taken, I drew a blank. I just couldn’t. Because they’ve all been exciting in their own way.
Instead, I decided to write a list of my top 10 exciting vacation moments (in no particular order except the way they popped into my head). For your entertainment, I’ve also decided to include the year, the location, and my age at the time of said moment.
Let’s get started. Jana’s Top 10 Vacation Moments in No Particular Order:
- Walking the plank of a pirate ship (age 10, 1988, Aruba)
- Participating in a toilet paper/rotten egg/tomato fight with the Coast Guard, honoring Key West’s brief cessation from the U.S. (age 28, 2006, Key West, FL)
- Standing on a glacier (age 16, 1993, somewhere in Canada)
- Sleeping on a Native American reservation and all that goes with it, excluding the trauma of the porta-potty but including sitting on rocks watching wild horses frolic (age 16, 1993, Wyoming)
- Visiting Carcassonne, an ancient town built into a fort (age 17, 1994, France)
- Achieving second place in a beer chugging contest (age 22, 2000, Cancun). Note: I am particularly proud of this one. It was beer in a yard glass.
- Accidentally attending a funeral at the Notre Dame (age 17, 1994, France)
- Watching my daughter’s face the whole time (age 34, 2012, Disney World)
- Winning money in the casino on our honeymoon despite my husband’s poor advice (age 26, 2004, Bahamas) Note: I almost never gamble so this was a big deal. I don’t even participate in football or basketball pools.
- Staying an a house with an elevator and a wrap around porch on the top of the house (age 31, 2009, Outer Banks, NC)
So that’s just the top 10. I could have included seeing the Grand Canyon or Niagara Falls or whitewater rafting or almost drowning in a kayak (don’t judge me) or seeing a woman pee in the middle of the street in Santa Barbara or a whole host of other moments that remind me why going on vacation is so amazing (well, the peeing thing was kind of gross but 20 years later, I still remember it). I’d love to hear about your favorite or most exciting vacation moment so please let me know in the comments below (this is also important to what’s coming up next).
And now, something exciting–a giveaway. Of money. All you have to do it fill in the entry form below and you’re entered. Simple, right? Oh, and did I mention first prize is $500? That’s a lot of money to put towards a vacation (or anything else you want).
A few quick notes: 1) the money will be paid via PayPal so make sure you have a valid PayPal address; 2) this contest is open to anyone, not just US residents; 3) all terms and conditions are included in the RaffleCopter widget, should you want to read them; and 4) all entries are optional. You can use all the methods or just a selected few. Entirely up to you.
So what are you waiting for? Enter now!
MFD is dying to get to Carcasonne. He’s been talking about it for years. We’re trying to do a France/Italy thing in 2015 with that being part of it.
I adore waking up with the sun on cruise ships.
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I highly recommend that you make that happen. I’ve never been to Italy (well, we ate lunch in Italy while traveling from France to Switzerland but I don’t think that counts) but I want to.
Carcassonne is AMAZING.
Love the list! The beer one is an accomplishment. I’d have to say my most favorite vacation memory was back in 2006. I worked at Yellowstone National Park that summer as a waitress at Canyon Village and three friends and I got 4 days off in a row and we drove to Canada! We saw part of the Lethbridge, AB boat drag racing and then made it to Calgary, unbeknownst to us, when Stampede was happening! The hotel was pricey but we had SOO much fun. The highlight of one night was walking into a Japanese restaurant around closing time and a regular customer inviting us at his table where he bought us and the waitstaff multiple rounds of sake bombs. After Calgary, we continued into Banff which is by far my favorite national park of US and Canada. We topped off the trip by camping in the park and drinking disgusting root beer schnapps. Oh to be in my early 20’s again…
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These are some awesome travel experiences! I would be really interested to hear the story behind #7, I mean, how do you end up in a funeral accidentally 🙂
My most memorable: has to be one time I got stranded at a border crossing point in Uganda! Of all places…we were travelling by road (sight-seeing), my visa had a problem and I had to be left by the group for the night as I got it sorted!
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My best vacation moments were always with people! I remember asking a Post man in England for directions and he said we would need a whirlybird to get there. Our B & B host in Scotland apologized for providing a store bought sack lunch. It is all about the experiences!
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