What is the most intellectually stimulating/interesting city in the world to visit as a tourist? (hotel, hotel)
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Most of my friends like to go on vacation to a place like Cancun where they spend their entire vacation at the beach or the pool baking in the sun. I want something more.
I want to visit the most interesting and intellectually stimulating city in the world. The city that has the best attractions that make you think. The best historic and cultural attractions. The finest museums. The most interesting places to visit that make you think and possibly even change you. Where your mind gets a work out by all the things you learn while visiting.
Where is that city and why did you chose it?
It's so hard to chose one.
Athens, greece. They invented the democracy as we know it. Lots of museums, artifacts, gorgeous food.
Istanbul Turkey, is like a trip on another planet. Thousands of years of history. You can get lost in the bazaar. Lots of mueums, churches, palces. Food out of this world. World class entertainment.
Rome, Italy for obvious reasons. Italy is an open air museum. awesome food.
Buenos Aires, Argentina, the Paris of the south, gorgeous architecture, lots of museums, opera house bigger that scala in Millano, birthplace of tango. Beautiful, cultured people.
Barcelona, SPain: interesting architecture, lots of museum, gorgeous food
paris. for obvious reasons: museums, food and wine.
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It's interesting that people are focusing on human culture for their intellectual stimulation. One reason I made my earlier point about there being no one answer is because some people find plants/animals/ecology being ecologically stimulating so a rainforest very well may be more stimulating than a museum.
In what regards? Germany has endless WW2/GDR/Cold War museums, memorials, related sights and stuff like that. Southeastern Europe has got to be great for looking in to ex-Yugoslavia. There's real cool stuff like the Museum of Terror in Budapest and the Museum of Broken Relationships in Zagreb. I guess Europe is good for just being able to quietly learn and think about some major part of history in a comfortable way.
Or you could go to somewhere in Asia where you will sweat and be stimulated at all times while trying to comprehend really far-flung cultures in real time - India, China, Vietnam....
Somebody mentioned Turkey and that seems like a great compromise of the two categories I made. I am fascinated by Turkey myself and would love to visit.
Well if you're looking for somewhere unique, Dhaka would fit the bill. There are numerous historical sites in the city and outside but you must be able to stomach the extreme poverty, traffic, electrical problems, mosquitoes and filth. There are some beautiful tea gardens in the North and some areas with elephants.
Instead of trying to be more worldly and mentally stimulated than your friends, just go somewhere that interests you..
Never understood why people try so hard
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