On the River Road in Louisiana there is a "plantation" called Oak Alley. There are two "slave overseer" cabins to rent. My late wife and I stayed in one for two days, travelled the river road to find steaks to cook and wine to drink. Sat on the porch overlooking a cotton field. No phone, no t.v.. PEACEFUL. And ROMANTIC.

The moment I reached the summit of the Mont Blanc many years ago .I felt part of mountain , small and immortal at the same time .

My girl and I were headed to the hospital to visit SIL who had just given birth. There had been a storm, the east where we were headed was as black as a sky could be save for one spot of light that was a PINK rainbow. I only had my crappy cell on me and was driving so couldn't even try to take a photo so it remains in memory only.

About 17 years ago, my kids and I were surfing off a rocky headland in my area. Great day, big smooth surf, we were a long way out, the water was very crowded, lots of surfers. My kids were mid teens at the time.
This monster wave came through and we were far enough out to try and catch it. 3 of us took off, flying past others who were trying to duck under it. Arms, legs, boards everywhere.
As the wave rose up higher we split up, each tracking a different line of the break, it broke in sections which reformed numerous time, ocassionally I would see one or the other of them still surfing. We zig zagged across the beach and back, just managing to hold it in slow patches, then racing off again as it peaked.
At the very end we came screaming onto the sand, from 3 different directions not seeing each other until the last moment. Wave left us high and dry on the sand.It was a relief as I was concerned about the kids. We were the only ones to catch the wave. Broken boards, people making their way in to get their breath. We were euphoric. Ocassionally someone who was at the beach that day will mention it, and my daughter who rarely surfs now lifts her head up and says, "That was us!" Kids are still so proud of that day. Best wave I have ever seen on this part of the coast in 50 years. Though have seen better about 40 klms south a few times.

On a full-moon African night, I stood at a waterhole in Namibia, watching rhinos come to drink. There were several males and then, they parted as a female with her calf moved silently up to the water. They were so close, I could actually smell them. It was so magical that my friend/guide and I stood hugging each other..joyful, just to see them and know that, for awhile, anyway...they were all safe..

This was 30 years ago and I still remember it. I was with a former partner and we traveled to Trier Germany. Trier is like Hadrians wall in that it marks the line between the "civilized" Roman district and the "Barbarians". Trier is a former Roman town with a lot of Roman history which is why we went. It is famous for it's Porto Negra. [en.wikipedia.org]

It was a warm sunny day and we saw an amphitheater on the map so we packed a lunch and headed out. As we got closer we could hear music. The theater was outlined with a grassy area so we sat down with our lunch and listened as the Trier symphony practiced Beethoven’s 9th. There were some dozen or so other people around. At one point the conductor said let’s do the whole thing. When they got the choral part we heard people singing and some 40+ singers filed out of a side room of the theater and onto a platform. It was such an amazing performance and entirely accidental that I can never forget it. And it was free.

I've had several! One with the ex, canoeing in the Okefenokee Swamp. It was early January, so most animals were still hibernating. The amazing part was that it was literally totally silent. Stopped the canoe to listen to the sounds of silence. I go there often in my mind. It marks the time I started really craving silence, even moreso than when I was learning meditation from my Buddhist teacher. I must also mention one other time: We had just crested Dead Woman's Pass on the Inka Trail in Peru. Here is another time it was quiet, and even though we were with a large group of hikers, everyone stopped and soaked in the mountain view, felt the wind, and went quiet, and shared the moment naturally. On that same trip, we were so high (14,000 ft) that on the clear night, I felt I could touch the Milky Way. Magic.