Wish You Were Here
FRANCE: Sunnyvale parents Mike and Deedee Wong and grandparents Calvin and Gerrye Wong were at the finish line to congratulate Paris Marathon runner Garrett Wong in April. “Celebrating birthdays on a Seine River night cruise, surrounded by the beautiful lights of historic Paris buildings and bridges” was a trip highlight, Gerrye says. “We were fortunate to visit inside Notre Dame Cathedral the day of the fire, and saw the big black cloud of the fire that evening while walking.”
TRAVEL TIPS: “A family trip is a fabulous way for everyone to discover another part of the world. Long lines everywhere, so get your Louvre, Musee D’orsay, Versailles, Eiffel Tower timed tickets online beforehand. For a threegeneration family trip, renting the golf cart at Versailles was a saving grace for energy levels, so one can see all the beautiful gardens, as well as visit Marie Antoinette’s Petit Trianon on the outskirts. C’est la vie!”
MOROCCO: This spring, San Jose resident Marie Spang took an 18-day Holland America trans-atlantic cruise from Florida to Lisbon, Portugal. “One of the stops along the way was Casablanca,” she says, where she visited the Hassan II Mosque. One of the largest mosques in the world, the structure is built on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.
TRAVEL TIPS: “The weather in early April is perfect. Make yourself aware of the customs and acceptable dress in Morocco before venturing on your tour. Try Moroccan cuisine — it is delicious. Alcohol is not served in restaurants as a rule.”
SCOTLAND: Castro Valley residents Duane and Virginia Degner traveled to Scotland to celebrate their 59th wedding anniversary with “a month of pampered treatment,” Virginia says. “We especially enjoyed Mansfield Castle in Tain as we explored the countryside and visited the town of Dornoch.” Two of Virginia’s novels were set in Dornoch and, she says, “I was happy to see that I had gotten the details and locations very accurately.”
TRAVEL TIPS: “Book your first accommodation before you leave on your trip so you have an immediate accommodation when you arrive in Scotland. Then the day before you move on to your next accommodation, book (that one). This enables you to take your time and be flexible.”
Share your travels with us! Send your vacation selfies to jburrell@bayareanewsgroup.com. Be sure to tell us who’s who, where they’re from and where you are — and include a couple of travel tips to help fellow readers globe-trot, too. Find more Wish You Were Here features at www.mercurynews.com/tag/wish-youwere-here.