Friday's 5 - Cities of the World

A buddy of mine recently brought a giant world map over to our house for us to have. We ended up standing around it for about half an hour discussing where we had been, where we wanted to go, etc. It was a really cool conversation and it got me thinking about the places I have traveled already in my 20 years of living. My mom is in the travel business and my dad is always getting shipped off around the world for work so I have been really lucky in the extent of my travels. So today, while it's on my mind, I figured I would write about my 5 favorite cities I have ever been to. They may not all be the most recognized or the most important cities of the world, but they are definitely the five places I have been and would love to return to. Here it is, Friday's 5, my favorite cities of the world.

#5 - Venice
Venice is one of the most unique cities in the world. The way it is built around the system of canals is amazing and I loved how the canals are built into everyday life there. There are hundreds of beautiful bridges, water taxis, gondolas and islands that really make Venice a great place to visit. I also really love St. Mark's square because there is always something going down there, and at the very least there are millions of pigeons to chase. I'll be back there sometime in 2011, so I'm super pumped for that.


#4 - Hood River
My parents have some friends that run a bed and breakfast down in this really cool city in Oregon, so I've been going there for years. It is a really small city but it is great to walk around in and see the shops and eat at Andrew's Pizza and Mike's Ice Cream. Now that I live in Portland I get down there sometimes for a day and it's just a fun place to spend an afternoon. Plus, if you go when the wind is blowing, you can see dozens of really talented windsurfers doing their thing on the river which is very cool.


#3 - Paris
Paris gets a bad rap because a lot of people don't get along with the French, but it definitely one of the greatest cities in the world. The Louvre is incredible, the Van Gogh museum is even more incredible and a nighttime walk by the Eiffel Tower really caps it off nicely. Just steer clear of the escargot...


#2 - New York City
There is certainly no more exciting city than NYC. It just seems as if you're at the center of the world when you're there. Especially if you're into art of clothing, because then you are literally at the epicenter. I was there this summer and just walking around with Jay-Z in my headphones was one of the most incredible things I've ever done. New York makes you feel like you can do anything, which is somewhat dangerous but definitely exciting.


#1 - Seattle
Had to do it. It's probably not fair because I have lived here my whole life but I really have a special place in my heart for Seattle. It is so cool to look up from a boat on Lake Washington when the sun is shining and see giant mountains in the distance. I know everyone thinks it's raining all the time but they are wrong, it only rains most of the time. The city is so green and there are tons of really cool places to hang out and see. Come visit, The INC! will definitely show you a good time.