I saw the one in northern France in 99. What a show! You suddenly become physically aware of that prodigious machinery ruling our lives.
There was also that strange atmosphere during the occultation, as if you were in a science fiction film - a strange light and an impressive silence. All the animals seemed to have "gone to bed" . You couldn't hear nor see any birds. Fascinating!
I agree. Those moments are great when you're pulled out of the day-to-day to have to really look at the mechanics of the universe, things that bewildered early man, leading to the creation of religious ideas and rituals in an overarching attempt to try to understand.