The Best of Europe according to Ben and Kristin

We have been very fortunate to have the opportunity to travel throughout Europe. Looking back, here are our favorites from our travels:

Best Dinning Experience:
Ben: Fermani in Florence
Kristin: Cinque Queso pasta in Barcelona, Diavola pizza in Krakow, Pesto in Cinque Terre

Worst Drink:
Ben: I like it all!
Kristin: uzzo in Greece and Limoncello

Best Market: 
Ben: Mercado Maravilla in Madrid
Kristin: outdoor Provincial market in Nice, France and the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul

Best Small Town:
Ben: Arles, France and Locanda dell'Amorosa, Tuscany, Italy
Kristin: Ribota, Spain

Best Bang for Your Buck:
Ben: Krakow, Poland
Kristin: Lisbon, Portugal

Best Experience:
Ben: Running with the bulls in Pozuelo, Spain and taking the waters (thermal baths) in Budapest, Hungary
Kristin: The night train in Eastern Europe and La Alhambra in Granada

Worst Experience: 
Ben: Getting from the Charles de Gaulle airport to downtown Paris during a transportation strike. We finally arrived at our hotel at 1 AM.
Kristin: The bus home from Sevilla, Spain. It was raining and the window and roof had a leak.

Best Castle:
Ben: Carcassonne in France.
Kristin: El alcazar in Segovia, Spain and the Linderhof in Germany.

Best Off the Beaten Path Experience:
Ben: Los Picos de Europa
Kristin: Hydra and Los Picos de Europa

Funniest Language Experience:
Ben: Trying to buy golden delicious apples at Mercado Maravilla and asking for "las manzanas azules". The lady is looking at him holding up cabbage and other various items. Ben is thinking "come on lady! I'm speaking your language! Figure it out!" She finally figures out what he means, holds up the apple and says "amarilla"!
Kristin: making a dinner reservation, it took 5 languages to get it done: Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese and English.

Best City Park:
Ben: Madrid Rio
Kristin: Retiro in Madrid

Most Overrated City:
Ben: Barcelona, Spain
Kristin: Budapest and Monaco

Lives Up to Its Hype:
Ben: Amsterdam, Paris and Venice
Kristin: Paris, Istanbul and Rome

Most Livable City:
Ben: Krakow, Poland
Kristin: Amsterdam

Best Drink: 
Ben: homemade limoncello in Cinque Terre and Barolo wine
Kristin: tinto de verano

Best Tapas:
Ben: fried calamaris and sardines from Cafe Raypi at Mercado Maravilla and jamón iberico 
Kristin: patas bravas and croquetas

Best Plaza: 
Ben: Siena, Italy during the ceremony of horses
Kristin: Plaza España in Sevilla

Best Street Food
Ben: pickled herring sandwich in Amsterdam and kebaps
Kristin: slouvaki in Greece and kielbasa in Krakow

Best Pastries:
Ben: It's a close race but Lisbon beats Paris.
Kristin: The pasties de Belem in Portugal and the homemade cookies in Hydra, Greece.

Best Cathedral Outside of Italy:
Ben: The Sainte-Chapelle in Paris and the mezquita in Córdoba
Kristin: La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona

Best Museum:
Ben: National Archaeological Museum in Greece and the Louvre
Kristin: Auschwitz and the Prado in Madrid

Favorite Christmas Experience:
Ben: Cortylandia
Kristin: The life size nativity scene in El Escorial.

Best Beach:
Ben: Any beach in la comunidad de Asturias, Spain
Kristin: Sitges, Spain and Nice, France

Best City in Spain:
Ben: Valencia
Kristin: Sevilla

Best Religious Site:
Ben: the marble steps in Rome that Jesus walked up when he went on trial with Pontius Pilate
Kristin: Pillar of the flogging and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and the Blue Mosque in Istanbul

Wow Moment:
Ben: Postojna Caves in Slovenia
Kristin: the Statue of David in Florence

Our Best Weeks in Europe:
1.Rome, Florence and Tuscany
2. Paris, Versailles and Normandy
3. Athens and some Greek Islands

Places We Still Want to Go: 
1. Cadíz, Spain
2. Berlin, Germany
3. The United Kingdom
4. Cappadocia
5. El Camino de Santiago and Santiago de Compostela
6. The Dalmatian Islands in Croatia
7. Rhine River cruise
8. Norway
9. Iceland