Travel Plans Abroad

Since I have less than a month left before the official move to Spain (yikess!) I've been obsessing considering which places I would like to travel to in this coming year abroad.  I have a list already a mile long but have been narrowing it down based on average flight costs and travel expenses, plus taking into consideration my top travel dream destinations.

There are just so many places I want to see that it's hard to be realistic about how much time and money I can afford to spend on everything!  Right  now I've narrowed my travel plans to six countries that I really would like to travel to/around.  At least with the Auxiliares program I know there's a potential second year, so for the places I miss I keep telling myself, "next year, next year."

Spain

Sevilla

Even though I've been to Spain three times I haven't seen all that my future home has to offer.  Most of my travels have centered around the northern coast of Spain or right in the center near Madrid.  There are still plenty of places I want to visit while I'm living in Madrid especially along the Mediterranean coast and the south of Spain.

Luckily I'll be right in the center of everything in Madrid, making it very easy to travel around Spain (as well as the rest of Europe).  A few of the Spanish cities I would like to try to explore this year are: Burgos, Granada, Sevilla, Salamanca, and Santiago de Compostela (not to mention my future home of Madrid!).

Burgos

Granada

British Isles

London, source

I say the British Isles because I can't decide where I want to go!  My family comes from Scotland, England, Ireland, and Wales so it's always been a dream of mine to visit (especially since my great-grandfather came over as a boy and we potentially may have relatives still there!).  My aunt has been researching our family history and ideally one day I would rent a car and drive all around the Isles visiting the towns where my family is from.

As that's probably not feasible for this year, I've narrowed it down to the three cities of Dublin, London, and Edinburgh.  This is probably the area I'm most excited to visit because it's the area I've studied the history of the most, and it's where the majority of my family came from.  I'm trying not to get my expectations up too high though, I don't want a repeat of my visit to Rome...

Dublin, source

Edinburgh, source

Portugal

Lisbon, source

Portugal is one of Spain's neighboring countries and was even at one point part of the Spanish kingdoms.  I've yet to visit Portugal but the more I hear about it the more interested I am in visiting!  Right now I'm stuck between two cities in Portugal that I would like to both visit at some point, Porto and Lisbon.

Both are very old cities with extensive histories, and at least from the photographs I've seen, are very beautiful.  Not to mention I have only seemed to hear good things about both destinations (seems like a win-win to me!).  Seems to me that which ever city I choose I'll enjoy my time in Portugal.

Porto, source

Morocco

Marrakesh, source

Morocco is a country my boyfriend and I have been discussing a visit to for the past couple of months.  He's been before when he was younger and would like to visit again, though like with Portugal it's coming down to which city.  Flights to Casablanca (at least from what I've seen) are a bit pricey so we've been looking into Rabat or Marrakesh.

I sheepishly admit that I know very little about Morocco, or Africa other than Egypt, for that matter.  The fact that it's a country out of my knowledge area and comfort zone has just been increasing my appeal to visit, the stunning pictures every where I look aren't hurting either.  What's not to love about a beautiful, new country to explore?

Rabat, source

Norway

Scandinavia, like the British Isles, has also been a place on my list because my family has come from the area.  While my family is from Sweden, I'm looking into Oslo, Norway for a couple of reasons: A) Flights seem to be cheaper than to Stockholm B) It's diverse architecture and C) Oslo's parks and museums.  Oslo has such an interesting history and has gone through a lot (plague, fires, war) since it's founding in the 11th century.  It's definitely one city I would love to know more about, even if it is one of the world's most expensive cities!

Oslo, source

Hungary

Budapest, source

I've been dying to see eastern Europe for a long, long time!  One of my friends and I even brought up the potential to have a euro-rail trip next summer through parts of eastern Europe, he's particularly dying to see Croatia.  Ever since I first saw Budapest, the capital of Hungary, in one of my world history books back in high school I've fallen in love.

This city has had a long and turbulent history: from the Romans, to the Ottomans, to the Hapsburg Empire, to World War II air raids, and its communist regime.  As a history nerd Budapest has been on my 'list' for a very long time and I'm really hoping I can make it over for a visit this year.

Budapest, source

Next Year's Obsessions Hopefuls

*Czech Republic
*Germany
*Netherlands
*Brussels
*Croatia
*Romania
*Switzerland
*Sweden
*Denmark

Have you been to any of these cities or countries before?  What do you recommend for my travels?