Event surprises or disappointments?

Favorite surprise was going to Bologna and it happened to be in the middle of a chocolate festival. I love chocolate! I made myself sick :)

I once arrived in Bratislava during an exhibition of art from children’s books. I had no idea that I would like it but found the works utterly magical. I think it’s a festival they do every couple of years.

I knew about the August Palio in Siena but didn’t realize there was another in late June. We arrived in the middle of parades and a very decorated city with citizens in medieval dress. So much fun!

Got to Amsterdam a day too late to see the tulips at Keukenhof!

Had spent the day 'wandering' and by late afternoon ended up at St John Lateran and saw TV cameras set up outside. Thought that was odd, but then discovered why.
Had the happy ( accidental) good fortune to arrive at the right time to attend Mass on the lawn in front of the Basilica.
Pope Francis was the celebrant.

A community alpenhorn and yodeling choir concert in Engelberg.

We were in Bratislava during Bastile Day. Didn’t know they celebrated the day. Joe, that was a really great surprise.

Some of the surprises are the best experiences of travel. We’ve had several. One year, we were in Taormina on Jan. 6. We saw notices posted that an amateur choir would be presenting a performance at the cathedral that evening. They were delightful. My favorite piece was their rendition of a Negro spiritual sung with their Sicilian accents.
Another time, also an amateur choir event we were staying in one of the Alsatian wine villages. We saw signs advertising an amateur choir competition. Unfortunately it was to occur after our departure. The choirs, however, were already in town. They were performing in any open space large enough for them. Just wonderful.

My best surprises have been in Budapest--arrived on a Sunday in May 2016 and found a wonderful festival of museums going on at the Hungarian National Museum--drawn in by the smell of roasted meat, hoping for a free bathroom, I was immediately delighted by this fun, free festival under the big trees of the grounds. A book sale, excellent hand-crafted items, cheap food & beer, music and dancing, and exhibits from museums all over Hungary. I spent several hours amongst the locals and it remains a favorite memory. I have tried in vain several times to plan a trip that coincides with it again, hard when the date wasn't released when I was planning my trip. But, one year I thought I nailed it...only to discover it was postponed due to Whitsunday. And that led to another happy discovery! Lots of events going on all over Budapest for Whitsunday, and I spent several hours up on Castle Hill watching folk dancing, eating yummy things and browsing wonderful handcrafts and people-watching.

On a trip to Victoria BC I happened to find a glorious fiber festival called Fibrations, occurs the 3rd weekend in August. I knit so when I saw the white tents I edged closer, then saw colorful displays of yarn and practically ran down a hill to get to it. Hoping to return some year.

Some little disappointments on my recent trip to London--the Royal School of Needlework at Hampton Court is supposedly open on the day I was visiting, except that it wasn't. It's not why I went there, but I was so excited that I might be able to visit it. An antique shop in Canterbury that looked wonderful, but was only open Saturdays. Of course, I was there on a Sunday. Some stalls I like to visit in Portobello Road were either closed or completely gone.

St George's Day Parade around the Minster in York. Large groups of happy schoolkids marching in colorful dress. Something we dont see much anymore in big city US.

My first trip to Florence, we arrived on St. John’s Day. I did know about it but had no real idea what to expect and had certainly not scheduled to be there because of it. The pageantry of the afternoon parade and the fireworks at night over the Arno are a special memory.

I also like how most of us have led off with our serendipities. :) I like that our happy memories are what rise to the surface first.

• Arrived in Zagreb and saw posters about a special Rodin exhibition that was so large I wondered whether there was anything remaining in the Rodin Museum in Paris.

• Was told by a staffer of a glass gallery in London about a glass exhibition at the cathedral in Canterbury, a town I had never visited up to that point.

• Found an exhibition of contemporary African sculpture scattered throughout the otherwise mostly empty Palais des Papes in Avignon.

• Discovered a temporary linocut exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery in London--maybe my favorite museum exhibition ever.

Ours was landing into our stay in Bruges on Ascension Day. I've no idea HOW the day of their biggest annual event - the "Procession of the Holy Blood": a tradition dating to 1303, and on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity - escaped me but it sure did. The thing draws many thousands of people, and we somehow lucked into a PERFECT above-the-sidewalk viewing spot in a bar along the procession route. Sadly, the thing never happened. We were about 3 (very good) pints into the waiting game when they called it off due to incoming showers. So, we put the hustle on over to the Basilica of the Holy Blood to at least get a look at the relic that caused all the fuss.

Fun thread and yes, TexasTravelmom, so glad to read happy surprises for the most part!

Was in Colmar just a month ago...as the taxi from the station stopped to let me out I realized the street to my hotel was closed with barricades. Yep, very cute Easter/Spring Market in progress. All the little Alpine huts no doubt used for the Christmas Market were decked out in chicks, bunnies and eggs. So festive!

I love paintings by Vermeer so when I travel if a museum in the city I’m visiting has one I make sure to see it. (There are only around 35 known to exist.) I was in Dublin a few years ago and since they own one I stopped by their museum only to find out it was on it’s was to Washington DC for a special exhibit. No problem, after I got home (Cleveland) I used airline miles to fly down to DC in the morning, metro to museum, wonderful free exhibit, took a nice walk on the National Mall, stopped in to see the Declaration of Independence (so sad to see it so faint, I remember seeing it as a child and reading the names…), metro back to airport and home the same evening. I think the day cost me around $10. And how strange to get on a plane with only a purse.

1998, a business trip to San Antonio. Turned out it was the same time as the Final Four basketball championship being held there. I had known the championship was then, but hadn't focused on where it was so it was a surprise to get there and find the city heaving with fans. As the meeting organizer said, "so that's why I had such trouble getting us hotel rooms!" But she had got them. So after the Monday meetings, a colleague and I walked over to the arena and bought some scalped tickets outside for a decent price and saw the championship game (turns out it's easier to do that for the final than the semis, since a lot of the fans who travel to this buy a ticket package and are there to support their favorite team, but half those fans are disappointed when their team loses its semi and many would rather make a bit of money back than watch the team that beat theirs play for the title).

@sboh.....pulling this slightly off topic....but did you realize Rijksmusuem is having a huge Vermeer exhibition Feb 10- June 4. Yes, I'm going.

https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/whats-on/exhibitions/johannes-vermeer

OK...back to serendipity!

Arrived in Paris for the first time during the Fete du Pain in front of Notre Dame. Loved it and it just added to my love of Paris.

Dec 2021, was in Paris with my mother and taking her to see the Military Museum and Napoleon's Tomb. A protest was happening out front of Le Invalides that blocked all access. Was not able to make it in for our scheduled visit. However, I did take her to Rue Cler instead and she thoroughly enjoyed all the shops and eating there.

I arrived in Avignon one year on the eve of the Festival d' Avignon theater festival. I had heard of it but when I planned my one night stay in Avignon I had no idea it was starting the next day. What I discovered was that on the night before the official festival starts there is a parade of the 'off' festival - the alternative to the official 'in' festival - kind of like the fringe festival in Edinburgh. The parade was to publicize the alternative theater productions and the characters in their costumes were absolutely crazy, wacky, unconventional, and a joy to watch. It was family friendly but just barely and totally far out. It was very, very enjoyable, although it kept me up later that evening than I had planned because I was enjoying the festive atmosphere. I left wishing I had planned a couple of more days there to attend some of those totally avant garde productions.

Learning about Bonfire Night and impromptu going out and seeing the fireworks on Primrose Hill. Very family friendly and fun and people seemed to be happy that some Americans were interested in it.

Visiting the Prado and learning that there was a special exhibit from the Hermitage. As an American who's knowledge of Russia was based on the Cold War, the ancient Roman and medieval artifacts blew me away.

Taking the tube to Regent Street and finding ourselves at the end of a Stop the War rally(some really cool signs).

We arrived at the Stedelijk museum in Amsterdam to find a special exhibit of kinetic art by Jean Tinguely. It was fantastic viewing art full of moving parts!
We also had a special exhibit at the Prinsenhof in Delft. After entering, a guard asked if we would like to see "the beast". Intrigued, we went where he pointed and inside found one of Theo Jansen's Strandbeests walking back and forth across the large room!

On a visit to the Richmond neighborhood of London while waiting for a friend to leave a meeting I strolled into Richmond Park. It was drizzling a bit so stood beneath a tree. All of a sudden some one yelled “here they come!” Broke out in a huge grin as hundreds of runners in Santa Suits jogged by.

My first ever viewing of a Santa Run!

As far as surprises:
1.) Besides the security woman being the only person in the room with the Last Supper
2.) In the early 90’s with 2 friends visiting Stonehenge. We were the only people there until
we saw 3 people in white suits ( hazmat looking suits) step over the rope and head towards the rocks. From out of no where uniformed and armed guards ( 5 ) encircled the trio and moved them away.
Seems the 3 in white were heading into the henge to be transported. Cue Twilight Zone theme.
3.) Seeing Helen Mirren on stage and sitting in the seat in front of her Director husband, Taylor Hackford.
4.) In Amsterdam ( 90’s ) being able to walk right up to Rembrandt’s Night Watch. Was stunned as I obviously hadn’t paid attention in art class regarding the size of the painting.
5.) On my first European visit in 1972 enjoyed hearing a German school group signing the Coca Cola advertisement song “ I’d like to hear the world sing in perfect harmony,” while waiting for a train
in Munich.
6.) Watching a rugby scrum in the Hampstead Heath and going invited to join the team and their family and friends at the pub afterwards.
7.) Standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial watching the video screen at President Obama’s first inauguration.
8.) huge disappointment was being invited to see a space shuttle launch that was scrubbed and I couldn’t stay as I had to fly back to CA for work. Serendipitously, I did get to see that very same Shuttle land in Lancaster, CA.
9.) getting to see and walk beside the Space Shuttle Endeavour as it was moved to the California Science Center in LA.
10.) Walking in Venice Italy at dawn and seeing the fish market come alive.
11.) Christmas Eve in Florence at an Irish bar watching Its a Wonderful Life ( dubbed in Italian ) with two young bar maids who had never seen the movie. Loved watching their reactions to the film.
12.) In Havana enjoying the looks of two young boys who I gave baseball cards to. Then watching them in the dugout share with their team members.
13.) Not knowing the EiffelTower lit up but being in the park when it did. Memorable.
14.) Getting to work on the AAA Rose Parade float
15.) walking into the Aero Space Museum in DC and seeing the Spirit of St Louis and John Glenn’s space capsule hanging from the ceiling.
16.) sitting in Right Field at Candlestick Park
( Section 43, Row 21, Seat 14 ) when the 1989 Earthquake struck. Remember the stillness while all you could hear were the joints creaking. In my mind wondering what falling backwards onto the asphalt would feel like. Thankfully never found out.

17.) standing on the rooftop of the Student Center of Lower Columbia College on a Sunday morning watching Mt St Helen’s erupt.

Honestly, in all my travels never been disappointed.

Pam-thanks for the head’s up! I’m actually taking a trip to The Netherlands and Belgium next April so I will get to see the exhibit also. I had planned to go this year but pushed it back a year for other reasons so talk about serendipity! I’m thrilled the Dresden painting will be there because I’m not sure if/when I’d get to see that one.

About ten years ago in Venice we saw that seating for an outdoor concert was being set up in St. Mark's Square. Turns out it was for a Sting concert. Sting came out on the stage for a sound check and concert rehearsal. We got to hear him sing multiple songs!

Several years ago we arrived in Naples for our 2-week fall visit and found that the city and university were sponsoring a music festival. Churches and historic venues that were normally not open to the public became concert halls for a variety of programs each day. During the same trip the Amerigo Vespucci was in port and the public was allowed to board. The ship is a 3-masted 18th century vessel that is used for officer training by the Italian navy. Unfortunately the music festival didn't happen the next year during our visit.

Forgot one: happening into in Florence at the same time as Gelato Festival: a gathering/tasting/competition of world's best artisanal gelato makers. Yum!

Yes, several have actually been around World or Euro Cup games. One, an entire small Italian town shutting down to crowd around a very small TV to watch the match in a bar. Another being packed into a pub in Bath watching a rare British showing in the Euro Cup quarterfinals (they lost), yet another watching the US beat Italy in a very packed square in front of the duomo in Milan on the jumbotron...that one we just slinked away, muttering the little German we knew.

But our favorite was on Mykonos, saw posters for the Harvest Festival at the local folk museum, we extended our stay a day, went up and had a wonderful time with mostly locals, free food and wine, dancing, and the bonus of seeing Samantha Brown filming a segment for her show, we happen to be in a few shots. Nearly missed our ferry out of town, but would have still been worth it.

Mine is a weird one.

Took two back-to-back RS tours for the first time just before Covid hit. The second was the Best of Paris Tour. I had caught a cold flying up to Paris for the Tour and sat out the day they went to Notre Dame. I stayed in Paris a few days after the tour and one of them I went over to take a look at Notre Dame.

Took one look at the line to get in (looked like a couple hours of waiting) and decided to come back another time. Went back to the Hotel and heard Sirens going off in the distance but just thought it was the "Yellow Vest" protests that were going on at the time. Got to the Hotel and found out Notre Dame was burning. :(

@RobertH, how did you feel when you heard the news about Notre Dame? Frustrated that you had missed the opportunity, or relieved that you weren’t caught inside when the fire broke out?

Wow, Robert. That is an experience not to be forgotten. Kind of chilling.

@Barbara: Just felt very very weird to "brush up" against this big of an event. Didn't really worry about the danger and wasn't "frustrated that I missed the chance". Just completely discombobulated at the sequence of events.

@TexasTravelMom: Yes. A comment from my peeps at home: "Your picture of the outside and the people standing in line might be the last pic of Notre Dame there is" made me feel very weird. Then I realized all those people standing in line and going in and...

Well, probably lots more pics out there.

I happened to arrive in Riga for the beginning of Latvia's every 5 year National Song and Dance Festival, including an all-day parade of Latvians in traditional dress parading through the streets while singing and dancing. Super cool.

It’s Champions League Final in Paris today. I wonder how many tourists arrived in town last night wondering why all the Brits in red shirts?

This was a somewhat local experience but it certainly was a "surprise".

Traveling around in local Portland City in the southeast inner city part. It's all small streets and tight spaces. Turned the corner in my car and was suddenly surrounded by:

https://www.oregonlive.com/entertainment/2022/04/portlands-world-naked-bike-ride-is-back-this-summer.html

(snip)

Every year, excluding the last two, bike riders gather in Portland and around the world and remove as many of their clothes as they want and ride through town to draw awareness to bicycle safety, fossil fuel dependency and really whatever cause they want.

I'd forgotten that it was happening then. A very Surreal Experience. :)

Several years ago we arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia during the International Buskers’ Festival. We had such a good time that a few years later, we made sure that our trip to Nova Scotia included a few days at the festival.

I just showed up in Mérida and it’s their annual Emérita Lvdica festival. Everyone is dressed in togas and Roman dresses. The city center is packed. I’m guessing this is what Venice is like during Carnivale. I think I should be able to see most of the sights, but finding dinner might be a chore!!

When we go to Paris we always check out the Luxenbourg Museum and each time we find wonderful exhibits. The small museum is rarely crowded, the park provides a great place to picnic before or after the visit and they always do an excellent job curating the exhibit.
We try to find a local/low key musical performance when we travel. We attended a Baroque music concert in Rome in a church off of the Piazza Novana and it was amazing not to mention there were only about 15 people in attendance. The performers were singers and musicians from the Rome opera. I found it by way of a small poster on the church door when we were walking through the piazza that morning. We attended a classical guitar concert in Barcelona in a small church, again few people in attendance, and the two performers were world class. About two weeks ago we went to St Sulpice in Paris to listen to the short organ concert that occurs before or after mass. The mass was still in progress and it was a first communion mass. There was a solo singer for some of the hymns and she was amazing - she made the organ concert seem pretty ordinary. Finally we were in a small town in Umbria on a Road Scholar hiking trip when they had a festival. The evening parade included horses, people dressed in costume and wonderful music.
My biggest regret was skipping mass at Notre Dame in Paris. We were at the end of a longish tour to Amsterdam, Sicily and Paris and I decided to take Sunday morning off. The next day we were at the airport in Paris waiting for our flight back to the US when we heard the news reports that the cathedral was burning.
Stay open to trying new things and you'll run into something wonderful every time!!

Showed up one time in a town in Umbria Italy with a crossbow festival going on absolutely amazing. And several times in Spain and Italy I’ve just come across random festivals/parades . Always a lot of fun.

We have one that started out very disappointing and turned out to be amazing. We were in Lisbon and we were trying to get on one of those hop on hop off buses that takes you over to Belen after two hours with no bus and the guys telling us lies I pitched a fit and got our money back we were like OK we just won’t go where we were planning to go. So we’re sitting at a café having a beer, trying to figure out what’s going on because we hear a church service being broadcast all over the church the city. And all of a sudden here comes the statue of Fatima, people were crying, people were waving their handkerchiefs. My mother took off to see and I was trying desperately to find waiter/owner so we can pay the bill and he just came out and yelled at me to “go go go you’ll come back” which of course we did. seeing that whole procession just gave me chills.

There been a couple of modern art exhibits thrown into Gothic churches in France that have been very disappointing. But overall the surprises far outweigh the disappointments

We encountered a wonderful surprise in Venice in May of 2016. We were having breakfast on the terrace of Hotel Bauer overlooking the Grand Canal when hundreds of boats and rowing teams were gathering on the Grand Canal by St Mark's. It was the Vogalonga which is held annually on Pentecost day. At 9 am there was gun salute and hymns were sung and hundreds of rowboats began their journey from St Mark's to the island of Burano and back by 3:00 pm. You could see them from the Accademia Bridge as they returned. It was a festive happy atmosphere to see the beautiful long row boats and rowing teams on a motorless canal that day! So beautiful!

Best surprise may have been Zaragosa on Holy Thursday. I believe there were 26 procession groups from Thursday afternoon until at least 3 am. Some of the groups had hundreds (maybe even a thousand) participants. They dressed in traditional penitent garb of various color schemes and either carried a float, specific rite gear or banged on different size drums (roughly the shape of Tympani drums but sizes, and sounds, ranged from snare to bass drums). The last float is a mourning Mary, followed by dozens to hundreds of women in traditional Spanish black dresses and veils/combs.

I arrived in town, went to the TI and asked if there would be processions that evening. The lady seemed surprised at my dumb question but said, "Yes. Lots. They'll go all night."

Disappointments? Spending half of Holy Week (Semana Santa) in Barcelona. The only special recognition was additional masses in the churches. Apparently they have one procession organized by Seville expats and not related to the church (I believe on Good Friday). Barcelona is a great city but not the best place in Spain during Holy Week.

Arrived to Rothernburg ob der Tauber during the Meistertrunk Festival. Costumes, heraldry, markets, food stalls...great fun.