I’ve been writing content all about personal development for almost 3 months now, and I decided it was time for something a little more light-hearted. If you’ve read my life story, by now you know that I’ve lived all over the world growing up and spent 6 months of my time in graduate school living in Brazil. If it isn’t obvious, I love to travel, experience new cultures, and meet new people more than anything in the world. I also think traveling is a huge part of personal development growth.So, I wanted to share a small part of my journey with through 5 of my favorite cities in the world.
From the moment your plane starts to land, it becomes easy to see why the Brazilians call this place Cidade Maravhillosa (The marvelous city). The natural beauty of Rio is unlike anything else I’ve ever seen and has been enough to make me return at least 6 times and I will probably return several more. The beach is a way of life for the Cariocas (Rio Natives), and on any given day on Ipanema Beach you will find at least 5000 people if the sun is out. But if there is a cloud in the sky, the Caricoas scatter. The unforgettable views of this city can be seen from Corcovado De Cristo and Pao De Acucar. The nightlife in Rio is probably best described by the toast my friend gave on our first trip to Rio “To the nights we’ll never remember and the friends we’ll never forget”
Of all the cities in Western Europe I’ve visited Barcelona was my favorite. Summers in Barcelona while scorching hot are unforgettable and will keep you up drinking sangria late into the night. The Gaudi architecture scattered throughout the city seems to defy the laws of physics and will forever be etched in your mind once you see it. A stroll down Las Ramblas, a major street will either leave you in awe or swindled out of 60 Euros if you are as naive as I was when I went there.
Cinque Terre is another gem of natural beauty that seems to have qualities that will bring a sense of peace to your life. After a few days in one of the bigger cities, this is the perfect place to unwind. Beware though that you should be ready for some serious hiking. It is comprised of small 5 villages on hilltops overlooking the ocean. At one point I thought I would ask my future wife to marry me in Cinque Terre. But, the beaches and warm weather of South America may trump this place. If you get the chance you should experience a night in one of the quietest of the 5 villages and witness the moonlit sky. It’s a life experience you will forever treasure.
Florionapolis is like the better looking, but low profile sister of Rio De Janeiro. Here, not only will you see some of the most beautiful beaches in the world, you will see some of the most beautiful people in the world. Brazil is like 5 different countries in one, and Floripa tends to be Brazilians who are of German descent. Usually, you don’t think blond hair and blue eyes when you think Brazil. But, visit the state of Santa Catarina and you’ll think otherwise. Spend a week here and you will truly understand the power of your smile. Because it is relatively untouched by tourists when compared to Rio, the people here are really welcoming. With 40+ beaches surrounding the island, there’s no way you can really go wrong here. This is definitely on my list of potential retirement locations. Of course the fact that I caught my first wave here also makes it a special place in my mind.
Usually you don’t really think of American cities when you think of exotic travel destinations. At least I don’t. But if I could live anywhere, San Diego would be it. I lived there last summer for 3 months and I fell in love with the city. This is yet another town surrounded by beaches where the weather is perfect all year long. It’s not too hot in the summer, and not too cold in the weather. Some might not like the lack of seasons, but personally after 4 years in Edmonton Alberta, I really don’t care to have snow, cold or seasons. If I want to see snow, I’ll drive up to the mountains.
IF you haven’t figured out by now, I really love the ocean and the beach. If you’ve gotten more suggestions for can’t miss beach destinations leave them in the comments below.
Tags: Rio de Janeiro, Barcelona, Brazil, Florianapolis, San Diego, Cinque Terre, travel destinations
Given your passion of beaches, I'm betting you'll like Australia. While not every beach is a surf beach, they all still rock!
How many countries can say that they have everything in the one place - beaches, rainforests, forests, bush, desert, cities, outback, swamps, wet and dry, snow, big and small suburbs, rivers, lakes and all of that within 8 states? A lot of them are also quite often in the same state.
I love my home!
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