Don't go to Venice in August, it is super stinky and crowded beyond belief, or so says my brother. Then again he also said Bangkok was extremely stinky, so maybe that is a pet peeve of his.

Come to that, much of France smells like urine, because guys really, really don't want to bother going to a pay toilet to the extent that they have made public "pissoires" which are also very stinky, but at least only in one place, and guys still don't use them...

That being said, I recommend Toulouse if you get to go to France. The south of France has that bit of Spanish influence and is just absurdly beautiful. I haven't been to Paris yet, but I had the super awesome good luck to have many roommates from many countries, so I visited 2 friends in France and one in Germany on one trip. Berlin is darn cool, and I liked it after France a lot because people came up to me all the time in France to tell me how tall I am. Wow, thanks, I did not know. And they don't sell any clothes that would fit me in France. At all. Germany felt comfier, but less exotic to me than France, less oohing and ahhing. I have not been to Paris yet though... This first solo trip made me really, really like traveling, although it gets super tiring and you never have as much time as you think you will.

I haven't been anywhere Caribbean, but I found even though I thought I liked my weather cold, L.A. is surprisingly lovely and I want to go back to Hawaii hardcore. We only stayed in the Waikiki and Honolulu area, but it was again surprisingly awesome even with the touristiness. And I did not see the giant spiders I fear in warmer climates, maybe cause I went in January?

I was told of the spiders in Australia and New Zealand, so if anyone has travel tips for the spider (and mosquito - allergic) fearing, please share.

Also, I got to go to a friend's wedding in Kobe, Japan, and it was pretty freakin cool there. Got a sweet train pass for the week and went to Osaka, Tokyo, Kyoto, and my friend's hometown, Toyama. In Tokyo, the people shoving you one trains is insane. I will be going back someday despite having to go through the insanely, insanely long flight and train travel from the NE U.S.

In north america, Montreal. Seriously, just go there. My only warning is that the francophones can sometimes be rude if you say you're american and don't make any effort to speak at least a few words in French (way more rude than France, though the store clerk in a department store in Lyon totally lectured me before letting me buy earrings because I used a non-formal word instead of the formal one). It still remains my fave city. Simply awesome and not a world away.

Otherwise, I went to England and Scotland when I was a kid (like 11) because my mom had friends there from college, but I bet it is even more fun as an adult. I wanna go to Ireland badly too. And Bulgaria, but that is another story.

Yeah, I wanna go everywhere. I wrote a tome. I guess I just can't wait to get my health to a place where I can travel again, hopefully before it becomes impossible again financially...