I’ve gotten to that point in my life where I’m starting to reminisce about places I’ve been before. I have fond memories that make me want to go and visit those places again but is that really a good idea? I’m not the same person I was when I went to these places, some of which I last visited as a child or teenager. I know I have a different perspective now than I did back then.
I’ve recently gone back to several places that I visited when I was younger. While they weren’t the same as back then (everything looked much smaller than I remember), I did enjoy my time there.
When we visited South of the Border, I’m sure it was more a sense of nostalgia that made my visit so much fun. That along with finally getting to ride the elevator in the sombrero.
We finally managed to visit Washington D.C. for the first time in forever. Please forgive the 70s striped crew socks I was wearing. I wasn’t picking out my own clothes yet and everyone was dressing like that. We also couldn’t take selfies back then, either.
Last year we visited Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, TN, another place I remember visiting when I was younger. While the area had changed quite a bit from my last visit over 30 years ago, it was still fun driving around and seeing what I remembered (I even got to play mini-golf on the same course I visited when I was a kid).
This year I finally made it back to New Orleans (it was Sharon’s first trip) and we tried to visit all the bars and restaurants we could, and we even had our own parade.
So, that leads me to ask if I should try to revisit some of the other places I have fond memories of from my childhood. I’m really torn about this. There are so many places that I haven’t visited and limited time to see them all.
Here’s a small list of the places I’d like to get back to visit.
Newport, RI
When I visited Newport, I know I didn’t appreciate it. I was too young and they were just a bunch of rich people’s houses. I think I’d appreciate it much more now.
Memphis, TN
The ducks at the Peabody Hotel and Graceland. That’s all I remember of Memphis. That and going to Mud Island. I know there’s so much more to Memphis that I want to discover.
Martha’s Vineyard, MA
My family visited Martha’s Vineyard several times. We’d stay in a vacation house of my father’s boss – he’d let us use it for a few days after the vacation season was over. One other thing I remember about staying here was that the house had cable and it was the first time I ever watched Mystery Science Theater 3000 and my life has never been the same.
I still have fond memories of visiting here and I’d like to go back.
Niagara Falls
It’s been just over 20 years since Sharon and I have been to Niagara Falls. I managed to dig up one picture from the trip. While the town is touristy and you can only look at the falls for so long before getting bored, it’s been long enough that I want to go again.
I was reading about how they would need to divert the water from the falls to repair a pair of bridges, similar to when they did the last repairs in 1969. I’ve seen the falls several times but I think I’d have to make a trip to see them like this.
Image from Travel + Leisure
Final Thoughts
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Williamsburg VA, Savannah, Toronto, Nashville and Sandusky, OH are all places that I’d like to revisit. There’s just no time for all of them and the list of places we’ve never been to yet like Montreal (Note from Sharon: Ahem! I went to Montreal when I was “this many” [holds up 3 fingers]) and Charleston, just to name a few and that’s only in North America.
So what do you think? Have you gone back to places that you had fond memories of prior trips? Did the locations live up to your expectations or was it a bit of a letdown?
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
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