A little local flavor, a lot of sore muscles
— -- Best experience
Glossy travel magazines promise to reveal the secret of experiencing a place like a local. Here's the reality: If you want a truly local experience, you need to know a local.
Which was my good fortune in September when I visited Turin, Italy, my friend Paolo's hometown. We stopped to smell the truffles in nearby Alba, where an annual festival dedicated to the rare fungi unleashes a Fellini-esque torrent of medieval-style parades and donkey racing. We drove through the Italian Alps, where the air smelled of early snow and wood smoke, and had tea in a warm and wonderful centuries-old farmhouse.
But mostly, we eased into the comfortable rhythms of everyday life, lingering over delicious multi-course meals cooked by his mother, Teresita, strolling though Turin's sprawling plazas and eating gallons of creamy gelato. La dolce vita, indeed.
Worst experience
Sometimes I don't read the fine print. Heck, sometimes I don't even read the big print. And so imagine my surprise when a week before embarking on a guided five-day bicycle tour, I glanced at the itinerary and discovered the daily rides ranged from 30 to 60 miles.
I'd chosen this particular tour because A) it was relatively inexpensive, and B) it was in Vermont, where August temperatures were bound to be pleasant. But the farthest my infrequent cycling forays had ever propelled me was 20-odd miles on groomed, flat trails. Plus, I'd neglected to fully consider Vermont's topography. It is, after all, called the Green Mountain State.
As anticipated, the scenery was postcard-perfect. Fellow cyclists were a congenial bunch. And days of vigorous activity ended with pat-yourself-on-the-back-and-have-a-second-dessert evenings. Regardless, I have yet to get back on that bike.
Most unexpected experience
I'd heard the warnings long before stepping foot inside the dizzying labyrinth that is Istanbul's Tourist Central. "You'll never get the best of a merchant in the Grand Bazaar," a longtime American resident and expert shopper had told me.
