10 Most Memorable Travel Moments

I'm constantly thinking about my past travels, browsing through old photos, exchanging ridiculous stories with my sister and other traveling companions. So the opportunity to compile a list of my 10 most memorable travel moments was a source of great fun, hilarious memories, and I'll admit, hard work (it's hard to narrow it down to just ten!) for me this week. But here they are. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

 My friend Sam trying to lasso reindeer. Our Sami guide laughing at her--"I don't have to worry you three will be stealing my reindeer!"

1. Learning how to lasso reindeer in Harriniva, Finland with my sister and best friend; obviously not mastering the technique, as the reindeer farm owner watched and commented, “I don’t have to worry you three will steal my reindeer!”
2. Crashing our rental car in a pothole in the middle-of-nowhere, Costa Rica and spending the next six hours being entertained by the locals, the town drunk, and their “gallo hippie” 
3. Making leis from fresh-picked plumeria with elementary school children in Rarotonga, Cook Islands
4. Finding the only turkey in Ljubljana, Slovenia at an outdoor market to make our first Thanksgiving dinner away from home
5. Sitting down to eat a traditional Russian dinner in St. Petersburg only to realize water glasses are actually vodka glasses, to be filled and drank before each course! 
6. Being chased in the Brisbane, Australia Wild Animal Park by a prehistoric-looking emu 
7. Eating at the same restaurant in Florence three nights in a row, and the last night being joined by the entire restaurant staff, countless bottles of wine, and off-the-menu tiramisu
8. Jet-boating to the middle of Lake Taupo, New Zealand to swim to an ancient Maori rock carving that’s only accessible by boat 
9. Driving to a disco in Padova, Italy, car stereo blasting, and being asked by Italian friends, “How do you translate ‘junk in the trunk’?” 
10. Going on a Picasso museum hunt throughout Europe, seeing Guernica, finding a surprise Picasso museum in Lucerne, Switzerland, and finding a painting in Antibes, France that would inspire my tattoo

This post has been entered into the Grantourismo HomeAway Holiday-Rentals travel blogging competition. www.homeaway.co.uk