I Need A Vacation, But Where?

Been There

Been There

Senior Member
I have no responsibilities and no family. No real close friends. Never been married. Not sure where I should go. Being in the Marines for 30 years, worked for the Treasury Department for 6 years and worked at the Pentagon for 10 years, I have traveled extensively. I am 68 years old. I graduated from the Naval Academy. Tried out for the Astronaut Program, but was disqualified after my first interview.

I am not sure just what I want to do. Maybe go somewhere kind of cool and relax for a week. No sightseeing or theme parks. Money is no problem. Ideas? How about Russia? I really liked my visit over there. Even the food was great. The only other place that I can think of that I thoroughly enjoyed was the Netherlands.
 

Looks like you've had plenty of excitement in your life.
I don't care for travelling, so I'm not much help there. But, do you have a hobby?
 
win231 said:
Looks like you've had plenty of excitement in your life.
I don't care for travelling, so I'm not much help there. But, do you have a hobby?
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No hobbies, but I like to fish.
 

Been There said:
I have no responsibilities and no family. No real close friends. Never been married. Not sure where I should go. Being in the Marines for 30 years, worked for the Treasury Department for 6 years and worked at the Pentagon for 10 years, I have traveled extensively. I am 68 years old. I graduated from the Naval Academy. Tried out for the Astronaut Program, but was disqualified after my first interview.

I am not sure just what I want to do. Maybe go somewhere kind of cool and relax for a week. No sightseeing or theme parks. Money is no problem. Ideas? How about Russia? I really liked my visit over there. Even the food was great. The only other place that I can think of that I thoroughly enjoyed was the Netherlands.
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I feel if you go to Russia ..well the cities anyway, you'll not be able to help but to sightsee... ..what about fishing off the Spanish or Italian, coasts.. or Greece even ?
 
hollydolly said:
I feel if you go to Russia ..well the cities anyway, you'll not be able to help but to sightsee... ..what about fishing off the Spanish or Italian, coasts.. or Greece even ?
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Spain definitely interests me. I spent a week in Barcelona and enjoyed it immensely. Maybe a fishing cruise out of Barcelona would be nice. I flew with Spain’s Air Force. They were amazed at our F-18 Super Hornet’s ability to climb and maneuver. We put on a demonstration of our sidewinders and guided air to ground missiles. On our last night there, they showed us how they party.
 
Been There said:
Spain definitely interests me. I spent a week in Barcelona and enjoyed it immensely. Maybe a fishing cruise out of Barcelona would be nice. I flew with Spain’s Air Force. They were amazed at our F-18 Super Hornet’s ability to climb and maneuver. We put on a demonstration of our sidewinders and guided air to ground missiles. On our last night there, they showed us how they party.
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yes well I'm biased towards Spain, having a home there. and my daughter lives there, but further South than Barcelona... :D absolutely beautiful at this time of the year
 
Been There said:
I have no responsibilities and no family. No real close friends. Never been married. Not sure where I should go. Being in the Marines for 30 years, worked for the Treasury Department for 6 years and worked at the Pentagon for 10 years, I have traveled extensively. I am 68 years old. I graduated from the Naval Academy. Tried out for the Astronaut Program, but was disqualified after my first interview.

I am not sure just what I want to do. Maybe go somewhere kind of cool and relax for a week. No sightseeing or theme parks. Money is no problem. Ideas? How about Russia? I really liked my visit over there. Even the food was great. The only other place that I can think of that I thoroughly enjoyed was the Netherlands.
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I don't think that you, as a retired military officer, should go anywhere near Russia given some of the things they have done to our citizens over there and the somewhat shaky relationships we have with them. I spend 30 years in the Navy and like you, I held a clearance for many years.. You will be in their data base somewhere.

Besides, I understand that their food is not particularly good. I would go back to Spain, or Italy and the Netherlands would be high on my list as would New Zealand and Australia.
 
Pecos said:
I don't think that you, as a retired military officer, should go anywhere near Russia given some of the things they have done to our citizens over there and the somewhat shaky relationships we have with them. I spend 30 years in the Navy and like you, I held a clearance for many years.. You will be in their data base somewhere.

Besides, I understand that their food is not particularly good. I would go back to Spain, or Italy and the Netherlands would be high on my list as would New Zealand and Australia.
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Hey Pecos, I have been declassified, so they can’t get anything out of me that they probably don’t already know. That may not have been true 15 years ago. My passport is non-military now. I’m just a plain old civilian.
 
I would recommend South America, if it wasn't for the Covid outbreaks there.

Ecuador is incredibly scenic, economical, and safe.

You want mountains? There are the Andes. You want beaches? Good beaches. Jungles? Sure! Big cities, little towns, architecture that will knock your eyes out. Good food (though I'd stay away from the roasted guinea pigs......too much like eating your childhood pet).

Fantastic out-of-the way resorts, fancy hotels in the cities, 300-year-old haciendas-turned-hotels, hot springs resorts, jungle lodges you can only reach by boat.
 
I have been to Australia and worked with their pilots on the Super Hornet. Aussie pilots learn very quickly. At the time I was there, the Air Force was encouraging women to sign up to become pilots. They loved our F/18.

We flew hot and low over the Northern Territory. The skies aren’t as busy as they are here in the U.S. The only issue that I had at the time was that their radar and communications did not track commercial and military aircraft on the same screens or by the same controller. I think they have fixed that issue. This is why we had to fly low to allow the commercial aircraft to fly high and avoid a collision.
 
Have you been to Alaska? If you like fishing; they have HUGE salmon and halibut! I spent a year there, camping out alone and loved every moment of it! Wild, untamed free! If you boat out, they even JUMP in your boat!
 
I recommend the good old USA.

Seems like you spent your life protecting her, now get to know her. Each region is different and has its own attractions. Utah is pretty unique with its national parks. Lots of hiking trails. But all the states are a wonder. They grow sunflowers for the seeds in the Dakotas, so miles and miles and more miles of sunflowers. A wonder to behold.

Pick a state, look at the features available to see, not cities, but land features. The grand canyon, Hoover dam, etc. Make it a road trip, two weeks instead of one, so if a sign catches your eye you can go off track and see an interesting waterfall or nothing but a sign notating an historical event.

As a child we took road trips every year, as adult I did the same. I’ve saw things as a child that no longer exist today. I saw the Grand Canyon, lol, before they put in bathrooms. Walked and climbed in places that are now roped off, and can only be seen from a distance. Revisited them with my children and explained how it was back then 😂. Take time to smell the roses.

Our country is filled with wonders, go see them.

My husband was a marine for, hmm, 9 years. I was Army for 2. Thanks for your service.
 
Been There said:
I have no responsibilities and no family. No real close friends. Never been married. Not sure where I should go. Being in the Marines for 30 years, worked for the Treasury Department for 6 years and worked at the Pentagon for 10 years, I have traveled extensively. I am 68 years old. I graduated from the Naval Academy. Tried out for the Astronaut Program, but was disqualified after my first interview.

I am not sure just what I want to do. Maybe go somewhere kind of cool and relax for a week. No sightseeing or theme parks. Money is no problem. Ideas? How about Russia? I really liked my visit over there. Even the food was great. The only other place that I can think of that I thoroughly enjoyed was the Netherlands.
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Why not take a trip on the Trans-Siberian Railway? That should be very interesting.
 
Gaer said:
Have you been to Alaska? If you like fishing; they have HUGE salmon and halibut! I spent a year there, camping out alone and loved every moment of it! Wild, untamed free! If you boat out, they even JUMP in your boat!
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I LOVE halibut. But camping, not so much 😂. However, I did, in my youth, stay at a couple motel six. I think that counts. 😁
 
Gaer said:
Have you been to Alaska? If you like fishing; they have HUGE salmon and halibut! I spent a year there, camping out alone and loved every moment of it! Wild, untamed free! If you boat out, they even JUMP in your boat!
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Yes, I have been to Alaska and have flown over it while doing surveillance (over water, mostly) for NORAD. I flew out of Elmendorf and Eielson. Both USAF bases. I saw my first Raptor at Elmendorf. Quite a plane.

Sounds like some great fishing. I remember some of the men telling me their fishing stories and I do like Halibut and Cod.
 
Thanks for all of the suggestions.
I think it will be either Spain or Trans-Siberian Railway.
I take a lot of time to decide. I am one of those people that has to do an exceeding amount of investigating before I make a decision on anything that either costs a lot of money or takes a lot of time to complete. A trip to me has to fulfill certain requirements, so that when it is over, I can say that I was satisfied. Believe me, I have been on some trips that was nothing more than a waste of time and money.
Someone suggested South America. I spent a week in Buenos Aires. I was there for 6 nights. For 5 of the 6 nights that I was there, my hotel room was broken into, searched and robbed. Luckily, all they got was an $800 camera and some clothing. But, get a load of this. I changed rooms each night and my room was still robbed while I was out in the evenings. Maybe it was just me and having bad luck?
 


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