My Love Of Travel – It Started In Lovely London
Life is constantly evolving, and you never know from day to day what the next day will have in store for you. I made a post not too long ago, and just modified it now – Social Media and My Whirlwind Life, I also modified the page about me – About Luchanik Travel & Cruises. Why? Well, just two days ago, I finally made a decision – I no longer want to be a travel agent!
I’d now like to deviate, and focus on the place where it all started – England, and specifically lovely London! My love of travel started right here, I have to say that one of the best places in the world is London. I can go back to London time and time again, and never be bored of seeing the same places….each time is like the first time. I absolutely love it, and miss London a lot.
I really like going to this area of London – the Tower Bridge in the St. Katharine’s Dock area.
Tower Bridge, London, England
Tower Bridge, London, England
Tower Bridge, London, England
Tower Of London
I also love seeing Buckingham Palace time and time again – let’s say I have a fascination with Royalty.
Buckingham Palace, London
Buckingham Palace, London, England
I believe this picture was taken close to Buckingham Palace.
London, England
Here I am standing right in front of the spectacular monument near Buckingham Palace
London, England
London has some beautiful museums, check out the Victoria and Albert Museum in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England
You can’t go to London without checking the place Princess Diana called home – Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace, London
Kensington Palace, London
Don’t miss seeing London’s fantastic parks, complete with ponds, lakes, and ducks.
Hyde Park, London
London, England
I just loved going in the Houses of Parliament and listening to how they argue.
Houses of Parliament, London
Westminster Abbey, London, England
This picture was taken close to the Houses of Parliament
Dean’s Yard, London
I love Harrods of Knightsbridge, London – you just have to go in this amazing, but very expensive store.
Harrods of London, Knightsbridge, England
This is close by to Harrods – stunning architecture in London, quite fabulous!
near to Harrods of London, England
Now, one of the best photographs that I treasure is that of Princess Diana, and Dodi who were tragically killed in an accident when Diana was at her happiest. I cried so much when Diana died, she was a childhood hero of mine, and I had even wanted to attend her wedding to Prince Charles – of course, I was not invited – so sad! I was so happy to see a shrine dedicated to them in Harrods which at that time was owned by Dodi’s father – I’m not sure if he is still the current owner or not.
Princess Diana and Dodi at Harrods, London
Harrods candy shop time and cappuccino time! Of course, I also like to get a pot of tea when I go into Harrods, with a scone with clotted cream and jam, doesn’t that sound nice? Oh, I crave for my English things!
Finally, a London street scene.
Central London, England
I love London, it surely is one of the best places to visit, and I highly recommend it.
Treats From Around The World
I don’t like tricks much at all, but I certainly like treats! Today, I will share some virtual treats with you, and I hope you will enjoy them.
Treats from USA: I love chocolate, so here is a picture of a great chocolate factory that produces terrific chocolate. Enjoy!
Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory, San Francisco, CA
Treats from Italy: I love tea, but can’t produce any great pictures of tea, and since I also love cappuccino, here is one for you (let’s pretend this picture was taken in Italy, but it really was taken in England). Enjoy!
Cappuccino – Harrod’s, London
Treats from England: This is a picture that was taken by my son Luca, and he won a prize for it at his school in a photography competition. I am so proud of him! I know that a lot of kids the world over will be eating this type of candy on Halloween. Enjoy!
Harrods of London Candy Shop
Treats from India: Okay, so this next one….I didn’t go to India to take the picture, I took it closer to home in Artesia, CA (close to Los Angeles), but still….these are sweets of India, and they’re delicious! Enjoy!
Sweets of India
I can’t share any more treats with you, as I think that’s enough treats for one day. Also, as I looked through my pictures, I couldn’t help but think that I should have taken more pictures of food from my travels around the world, why didn’t I take pictures of fish and chips when I lived in England, or pasta when I was in Italy, or Indian food when I was in India a long time ago, or even a picture of any type of food in Jamaica? That could be a reminder for us all – you never know when you might need those pictures or the virtual treats. Enjoy your treats everyone!
Sizzling Summer, 2012!
Summer, 2012 was sizzling; I have not had a better summer in years than I did this summer. I have learnt to truly relax and get away from it all, including getting away from social media and technology – except for my camera and camcorder (could not be without those). And best of all, I spent my time with my family.
Well, I visited various places this summer, other than San Diego, where I currently live (yes, I am always the eternal tourist here). Here is a picture of my little girl, Chandi, enjoying the beach in Coronado – just near the Hotel Del.
Hotel Del – Coronado
In addition, I have visited a new place – South Lake Tahoe, which is in California, and on the border with Nevada.
South Lake Tahoe, CA
I visited San Francisco again for the second time (the last time I went there was at least 15 years ago):
San Francisco, CA
I also went back to my old home, Washington, DC, which is where I first lived when I moved to the USA from England quite a number of years ago. I loved being back in Washington, DC.
White House, Washington, DC
Another place that was revisited this summer was Baltimore, Maryland – this place has changed quite a bit, and is becoming a very popular place:
Baltimore Harbor
I went to Baltimore to catch a cruise – The Enchantment Of The Seas – to Bermuda – and this time I cruised with my kids, which is my favorite way to cruise!
Enchantment Of The Seas, Baltimore to Bermuda
Bermuda is a brand new place that I visited, and this place is gorgeous, pink sands, and turquoise water – absolutely heavenly!
Warwick Long Bay/Jobson’s Cove Beach, Bermuda
However, my one biggest regret this summer is that I did not go back home to England (where I was born) and be in London to see the Olympics. Alas, I had to watch it on television, and I tuned in this year, unlike other years, perhaps because it had something to do with my beloved city of London. Even though I was born in northern England, I did live in London for over a year, and have been back several times for visits. London is just one of those places that I can visit again and again – I never get bored with it – it is a terrific city (in fact my favorite city). I was filled with such pride for how London did an outstanding job in how it hosted the Olympics. The opening and closing ceremonies were absolutely terrific, and the best of British was definitely on display. If I hadn’t booked my cruise which ended just days before the Olympics ended, I would definitely have been in London. Oh, well…. London, you know I will visit you again very soon.
Even though I didn’t get to visit England this year, I had a lot of fun visiting places in the USA and seeing another country (Bermuda) that can now be added to my list of about thirty plus countries that I have visited. I will be putting all these new places I visited into separate posts, with some pictures, and I hope you will take a look. As I look at this post, and I’m sure you may see it too…..I count many places as my home, not just San Diego, or Washington, DC and London. Home is where the heart is, and my heart has definitely been in all these three places.
Summer, 2012, was wonderful for me, and I treasured my time spent with my children – we had a summer we will never forget.
luchanik 