See Simi Travel

SITE: Panama Canal

VISITED: April 2007

LOCATION: Panama City, Panama

DESCRIPTION: Clearly I have a thing for canals… Designed by the same engineers as the one in Corinth (actually, don’t quote me on that…) this is a must see around noon, when you can see the large Asian freighters passing through.

SITE: Parthenon

VISITED: May 2002

LOCATION: Athens, Greece

DESCRIPTION: Another one that brings tears to your eyes… even if always in continuous renovation! Access to the site comes in a bundle package to see other ruins like the theater of Dionysus.

SITE: Pompeii

VISITED: May 2002

LOCATION: Pompey, Italy

DESCRIPTION: Still at Vesuvius’ mercy, Pompey is a well preserved site frozen in time. Glass encased corpses show the fate of the citizens in 79 A.D.’s eruption. Sister city Herculaneum, was completely destroyed.

SITE: Prambanan

VISITED: August 2008

LOCATION: (near) Yogyakarta, Indonesia

DESCRIPTION: The largest of a series of temples in this part of Java, Prabamban bears an undeniable resemblance to temples in Thailand’s ancient capital Ayuthaya. A motorbike ride around the area provides a full day of Hindu and Buddhist temple fun.

SITE: Red Rock

VISITED: March 2008

LOCATION: Denver, Colorado, USA

DESCRIPTION: Apparently this site hosted some mega concerts. But again, I have no clue why it made my list. It is fairly impressive as far as rocks go. And yes, the colour is a nice reddish terracotta. Make a stop if its en route, but don’t go out of your way.

SITE: Sagrada Familia

VISITED: October 2005

LOCATION: Barcelona, Spain

DESCRIPTION: Poor Gaudi never got to finish this impressive church. The exterior is stunning, the interior, looks unfinished. The Barcelona tourism department offers an interesting audio tour which enriched the visit.

SITE: Stonehenge

VISITED: October 2005

LOCATION: Wiltshire, England

DESCRIPTION: A two hour trip from London that led to an audio guide experience far more interesting than the site itself. For those who lack imagination, stay home. You will enjoy this far better on your television via a National Geographic documentary.

SITE: The Great Pyramids

VISITED: January 2007

LOCATION: Giza, Egypt

DESCRIPTION: Khufu, Khephren and Menkaure (look them up if you don’t know who they are) refuse to be forgotten. The pyramids were everything I had expected them to be, but surrounded by a million fellow revelers. Access to the interiors is limited.

SITE: The Sphynx

VISITED: Januay 2007

LOCATION: Giza, Egypt

DESCRIPTION: Forever faithfully guarding Khufu, Khephren and Menkaure. Think I had the Sphinx all to myself eh? So not true. I had to wait in line for 20 minutes on the ledge of another structure to take this, holding on to a post for balance.

SITE: The Vatican (and St. Peter’s Basilica)

VISITED: May 2002

LOCATION: Vatican City (Rome, Italy)

DESCRIPTION: Well worth the two hour line and the millions of tourists crammed into one room trying to see “The Creation”. The Egyptian artifacts on the lower level are also worth visiting.

SITE: Tulum Mayan Ruins

VISITED: April 2001

LOCATION: (near) Cancun,Mexico

DESCRIPTION: Please try to look past what I’m wearing. It was my first time traveling with only a carry-on bag. Also please forgive the quality of this photo. It was taken with a point-and-shoot 35mm camera (remember those) and then scanned!

SITE: Twin Towers

VISITED: July 2000

LOCATION: New York, USA

DESCRIPTION: I really didn’t know if I should put this up. I had no idea, on this family vacation eight years ago, that I would never be able to take this picture again.