I grew up near the beach in Southern California. Honestly, I didn’t go all that often once I grew up. But the moment we moved away, I missed it. I missed knowing I could. This pandemic has made me feel that way about the whole world. I miss places I’ve never been. Here are a few locales that cry out to me, some spectacular, some quaint and inviting. I may never visit them. But I want to know that I can!
Click on any image to enlarge it, or to start begin show.
Zion National Park, Utah (been there – must go back!)
Annecy, France
Arches National Park (photo by Clayhaus)
Ascher Haus, Appenzellerland, Switzerland
Bibury, England (my ancestral homeland)
“Moving lights” of the Banni Grasslands, India
Chittorgarh, India
Ang Kor Wat, Cambodia
Fairy Pools, Isle of Skye, Scotland (also part of my ancestral homeland)
Colmar, France
Garden of Gethsemane – where Jesus walked and prayed
Hordaland, Norway
Gásadalur, Faroe Islands
Geting my ducks in a row in Tuscany, Italy (I think)
Hallstatt, Austria
Hamilton Pool, Texas
I want to attend church here
Kirkjufell Mountain, Iceland
Knoydart Peninsula, Highlands, Scotland
Lake Como, Italy
Lake Constance, Germany
Li River, Guangxi, China
Machu Picchu, Peru (Gotta visit once in your lifetime, right?)
Meteora Monastery, Greece
Multnomah Falls, Oregon (North America’s most visited recreation site)
Najac, France
Nuuk, Greenland
Pamukkale (Cotton Castle) hot springs, Turkey
Port Sunlight, England
Portofino, Italy
Rye, East Sussex, England
The Kelpies, Scotland (sulpted by Andy Scott)
Somewhere in Germany, I presume (must stop for a stein here!)
South Otago, New Zealand
The Cave of Giant Crystals, Naica, Mexico
The Old Bridge, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Underwater “waterfall,” Mauritius
Meteora Monastery, Greece
Waitama Glow Worm Caves, New Zealand
Zhangye Danxia (Rainbow Mountains) Gansu, China
Yosemite Valley, California (visited many times as a kid – must go back!)
McWay Falls, Big Sur, California (We got engaged near here!)
Not sure what planet this is on, but I definitely plan to visit it someday)
When You go to church there let me know. I’ll come with
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Will do.
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🙂
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Beautiful photos
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Like long lost relatives. Forgotten friends. Overlooked relationships. We are now in a love affair with what was.. and what could have been. Another though provoking post Mitch. Profound in both its imagery and simplicity. thank you for the trip down (earth) lovers lane! 💖💖
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Thank you, Andrea.
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Thanks for the wonderful virtual tour today Mitch. What amazing places you have curated for us to visit through these photos. And I agree, I also miss knowing we could visit them if we wanted to. Our last trip was to Croatia last September. So glad we have those memories!
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Jealous!
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This only goes to show how beautiful our planet is. Your destinations are so beautiful and if we keep up improving our ways you can start deciding where to start.
We don’t know but by staying alert and protect ourselves and our fellow man we have a chance to
experience much. Maybe on an even deeper level.
Miriam
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And if this is how beautiful Earth is, imagine Heaven! (“In six days You created the world, but You’ve been working on Heaven two thousand years!” – Keith Green)
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Pingback: I Miss the World – Inspirations By Katheryn
I shared your blog but w/o the pictures. It is something we all know is true, but worded especially well by you.
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Thank you, Katheryn. Have a great 4th of July weekend!
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I’ve often felt homesick for places I’ve never been to and cultures I’ve never experienced. I feel like I belong there AND here. My hope for heaven is that I’ll be able to visit anywhere! I feel like we were made for the whole world, not just one place. When we’re freed from these restrictive earthly bodies, we’ll be free to experience everything God made for us – a new heaven and a new earth! 🙂
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Exactly!
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Good point, Sara. When we’ve been able to visit other locales with different scenery, I often find myself thinking, “I could live here–it would be fun!” Perhaps you’ve hit on the reason for such a reaction: we were made for the whole world, not just one place. With you I look forward to living free from our restrictive earthly bodies!
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What a wonderful thought.
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Amen! 🙂
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Well, I could not agree with you more! And I’ve been to a couple of places in your photos, but would like to see more. I have been blessed with a lot of travels over the past years, so I’ve reminisced during this time at home. And I’m planning a vacation in the fall, being optimistic. Love the photos above!
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Amazing images, as always when you gather a slideshow. I was so surprised by the giant crystals–I never knew they could grow so large–that I had to read more about them… They formed because of being submerged (except during a period of mining that exposed them). Soaking at high temperatures in that mineral-laced water, is the reason they have grown so large.
Things like this cause me to be even more in awe of God’s creativity and wonder. There, far beneath the earth, he took the centuries necessary to create this spectacle. And only incidentally (essentially, by accident) does it even come to the notice of humanity. As with many other images here portraying the majesty of nature, it moves me to praise our Creator.
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Me too, Rob.
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I feel the same – I miss the world too! This lets me know I’ve got a lot of places to visit…
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I think I should like to go to the Scottish Highlands. (I have ancestry there, too.)
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Aye, see ya there sometime then!
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🙂
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Gorgeous photos!
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Thanks, Mitch. It’s been a long week, I needed that virtual vacation.
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Me too, Bill!
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This pandemic has brought back memories of where I’ve been and a longing for the places I have yet to visit. I’ve wondered if things would ever get to a point wherein I will be able to travel more.
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I’ve only been to one place among all those enticing scenes: the Garden of Gethsemane. Ah, for an unlimited travel budget–and the absence of COVID-19–I could be packing right now. Then again, I could put together my own slideshow of the lovely places I have been privileged to see.
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Gorgeous pictures!
Where in So Cal did you grow up? I am originally from Pasadena and any beach from Seal Beach down to Laguna was my playground. I was the true quintessential California beach bum. 🙂
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Downey till age 7, then La Mirada till age 18. After that (as an adult) Long Beach, Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, and finally Burbank before moving to Ohio. Looks like we overlapped a lot.
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Yes Sir. We we neighbors and didn’t even know it. 🙂 I used to work in La Habra, I went to College at UCI, and lived at Newport. The first culinary school I went to was at the Burbank Equestrian Center, The Los Angeles Culinary Institute. Small world, isn’t it?! 🙂
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Small indeed. I went to UCI too, btw.
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Very beautiful pictures!
I’ve always wanted to see the underground crystals in Mexico.
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This was the first I’d heard about them.
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Angor Wat was amazing! You might drop in at the Rock of Cashel, in Cork Ireland as well. St. Patrick did, a while ago. It’s kind of in ruins now, but incredible nonetheless.
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Another ancestral homeland. I’d love to!
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I’ll try to find some pictures. After the pain meds, of course.
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lol exactly! It’s like going on a diet. All of a sudden you want all the things, even the things you’ve never eaten.
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Exactly!
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Glimpses of true beauty on earth! Only think what heaven must be like!!!
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Wow what beautiful images, and yes it is funny we don’t always go somewhere but it’s nice knowing we can 😊
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Today, I suddenly missed going to a movie theater.
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Yeah, I’ve missed movie theaters a lot.
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Beautiful places….
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Chitorgarh fort awesome
sir all r awsm picks
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When you come to Texas, let me know. I’ll leave the light on!
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;>)
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Amazing captures.
I too miss travelling.
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a wonderful collection, thank you..
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Beautiful pictures! I love the one in Arches National Park!
I miss these and the little things, too, like going to shopping , hugging a friend, going out to dinner, going to church, visiting family, taking a road trip, and many more ordinary things!
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Relatable post ❤️❤️
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We’re in a heck of a mess. Where’s the vaccine? We need it!
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My goodness! Thank you for this post, Mitch.
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These pictures are gorgeous. I miss the world too. With my husband going into kidney failure during this pandemic we can’t afford any risks or pretending there’s danger. Praying hard for a vaccine soon.
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So sorry to hear about your husband’s condition, E. Praying.
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Thanks Mitch. ❤️🙏🏼
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It’s such a great planet! What helps me is to know that we’ll have eternity to visit these places!
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What a thought!
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I can identify… Sometimes I want to walk the North Rim of the Grand Canyon… and other times the trials and tribulations of life send me craving the Pacific Northwest coast off Neahkahnie…Sometimes all in the same day!
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Quite a bucket list! I would add Edinburgh, Bath, and York. Been there and would love to go back.
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Definitely! There’s so much of th UK and Ireland I’ve yet to see.
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I’m with you. I just want the opportunity to travel. Stay well. Allan
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You too, Allan.
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Beautiful photos of our beautiful world.
I hope we all get back the option to travel to beautiful places again in the very near future. Stay safe.
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Amen to that, Sal.
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What a delicious invitation to the senses! I just found your blog and it has reached my unmasked smile. Thank you for writing light into a sometimes dark world!
With support,
Christina M. Eder
Oak Ridge, TN
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My pleasure (and my calling), Christina.
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