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[starlagurl]

I spent awe day this month (the 9th remember?) with the CREATOR of the day and coincidentally, it was also the first time in my life I saw the Northern Lights.

They danced and turned vibrant shades of green, yellow, even pink and white. It really was something you have to see for yourself. I laid completely awestruck and captivated on a cool rock beside a campfire the entire time.

Just amazing.

Anyone else? Amazing awesome, sights/sounds/experiences?

That's awesome Starla. I felt awe struck overlooking the ancient city of Perge in Turkey. It was a 20 minute hike up to the Acropolis and the panoramic view from the top was amazing. Even though most of the city is still underground, you could see enough to imagine the size and beauty of the city in it's original form.

[findingnine]

You had me at Panoramic View. Absolutely one of the top perks of a hike. Just went to Montreal for the first time last weekend (on the back of a motorcycle aka the ass punisher) and had the second best poutine in town at Patati Patata. A full belly of happiness was the perfect appetizer for a trail be damned approach to going up Mont Royal. (sp?) Looking over the city was a treat for sure.
Plus I did spend some time in the Mountains closer to home again, and the sights and solitude, well worth hours of hiking.

[raniroo]

There has been a few places that have had this effect on me. those being:

Angkor Wat - Cambodia
Falling asleep in Kenya to the sounds of wild elephants roaming around the camp.
Sitting on the edge of Vic Falls in the Angels Armchair - Zambia

[polydemic]

When I was seven years old, my family was in Japan. In Kyoto, we visited the temple of the Dai Butsu (Great Buddha). The gigantic bronze image towered high over me. I remember my father reading off some of the facts from a brochure: "The mouth is one meter wide. Each eye is two meters wide. The nose is three meters long. Each ear is four meters tall. ...." I just stood mesmerized by this massive figure. To this day the scent of a musky incense invokes memories of the temples of Japan.

Also as a child, standing in some of Germany's massive cathedrals left impressive memories with me.

Ten years ago in Fairbanks, Alaska, I went to the Angel Rocks Park. The "Angel Rocks" are granite columns, remaining from eroded volcanos. I climbed one of these columns & looking off to the north and west, saw countless greens hills rolling off into eternity. I was smitten with Alaska & want to live there the rest of my life.

[end_of_history]

When I was in Ireland with my mom and sister, we climbed Croagh Patrick, a 2,510 ft mountain in Westport. We're no mountain climbers, carrying our purses and wearing jeans and knit sweaters. The climb was so steep, rocky, and sometimes dangerously slippery. At one point, as we ascended the steepest section of the mountain, where it was all loose, sharp rocks, I got into a tense argument with my mom, because I couldn't see us making it to the top. Storm clouds were rolling in and the wind was threating to knock us all off our feet and down the jagged side. We sat for a few minutes, deciding whether or not we should keep going and as we did, an elderly Irish couple came quickly down the mountain and paused at our side.

They told us they'd climbed Croagh Patrick every year and encouraged us to keep it up. They were so kind and so encouraging, I felt a little ashamed for being so angry with my mom.

So, we kept going, helping each other's footing, until we finally reached the top. At first, we were entirely enveloped in a giant cloud (we were up really high, after all), but when the clouds parted, I couldn't believe my eyes. The view of Ireland below me, with sunlight peaking through the gray clouds onto the green fields, was more amazing than anything I'd ever seen before. I didn't feel like I was on top of the world. I felt like I was having an out of body experience, that what I could see was more than what my human eyes could contain!

And I think this awe was only increased by how proud I was of my family for making it to the top. That day really changed the way I see my mom and my sister. They dazzled me all the same as the view from Croagh Patrick.