Favorite Places I traveled to in 2012!

 

                                                               Hi Everyone!

 I wanted to share with you some of my favorite places I had the opportunity to travel to and visit in 2012! As some of you may know,  I have an amazing job which allows me to travel all over the United States every week giving me the chance to see places that I never thought I would get to visit...EVER!

In March, St Louis Missouri was on my itinerary. To tell you the truth, I really never thought of St Louis as a place that I would ever find interesting. I was very surprised when I began my drive from STL Airport to my hotel that I found the scenery very exciting. Rows of old brick buildings lined the highway, aged from years of weather. I had never seen so many brick buildings in one place! They looked like they were built in the 1920's or so. I love old buildings and it seems like they have them everywhere but California! As I drove further down the freeway,the skyline of downtown St Louis appeared. The star of the skyline, The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, in other words, The St Louis Gateway Arch.
I took some time to visit the arch located on the Mississippi River and take the tram ride up inside the Arch. If you are claustrophobic at all, you may not like the tram ride. Its a very small and tight capsule. I'm not claustrophobic and it was a little scary for me. It was definitely worth the nervousness once I got to the top because the view was amazing!

On the same trip, I visited DeSoto, Missouri, a very small town about an hour south of St Louis. The quaint town was a major railroad depot and the train tracks go right down the middle of town as they would have back in the 1800's when the city was founded. Lots of cool old buildings that line the railroad tracks and one in particular stood out to me. The Arlington, a remnant of the golden years of  DeSoto, stands feet from the railroad tracks making it convenient for weary train travelers. Today it houses a restaurant and antique shop. I was just so happy to see this rare gem still standing after a hundred or more years.

In May, my assignment took me to Treasure Island, Florida. Its a small beachfront community near St Petersburg. When booking my hotel for this stay, the only criteria I had was to be able to walk right out of my room on to the beach. The Bilmar Beach Resort was the perfect fit. This 1960's vintage beach front resort has been updated to fit today's modern amenities yet it still has that vintage feel. I can imagine that this hotel was the place "to be" for a beach vacation back then. The retro feel gives it a charm that you can't replicate. The hotel stands directly on the beachfront allowing easy access to the ocean and walking path. I really enjoyed my stay here and was really sad to leave :)

At the end of July, I went on vacation with my family to Orlando, Florida. Yes, even though I travel every week for work ...I traveled on my vacation too! We spent a week in Orlando and also traveled one of the days to St Augustine and Daytona Beach. In Orlando, we stayed at the Swan Resort right on the boat stop which takes you to Epcot. This being our first time to Orlando and Disney World , I really had no idea how amazing and magical it all would be. Epcot was by far my favorite out of all the parks.  It is definitely aimed more for young adults as there is only a few kiddie things to do. We also visited the Magic Kingdom, Disney Hollywood, and Blizzard Beach Water Park.

 

The day we visited St Augustine, we took a city tour tram so that we could see all the historic sites. One of the stops was the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park. This legendary place is where it is said that the explorer Ponce De Leon landed in the 16th century. It is also said that the spring water has restorative properties if you drink it! Once inside the park, we had the chance to drink some of this famous water and........it sure didn't taste very good! LOL

 

One of the last trips I took was in October to Mystic, Connecticut. This was my first time to any of New England area states so naturally I was really excited about going. Mystic looked exactly as I had imagined it. Cute, old, quaint, and historic. I visited the historic seaport were the famous Mystic Pizza restaurant is located. This pizza parlor was made famous by the 80's movie by the same name starring  Julia Roberts. They have memorabilia and souvenirs for the die hard fans. This was especially exciting for me since I had always loved this movie. The pizza was pretty good too! Also, I had the chance to visit a historic apple cider mill which still uses an original cider press to create their delicious apple cider. They even had a small gift shop where you can get a steaming hot cup of caramel cider to end your tour of the mill. It was just amazing!

 The experience of travel changes you forever. It makes you think differently and educates you a way that nothing else can. The places I have gone and the friendships that I have made are simply unforgettable. 2012 was an amazing year!!!

                   
                  I would love to hear about your travels this year. Let me know some of the favorite 
                                                          places you visited in 2012! 

                                                                 Annie xo

* I am not sponsored or affiliated with any of the compnies or businesses mentioned.