Just about everyone I know has a Bucketlist of one sort or another (this one being inspired by the adventurous and life-loving Lesley Carter). I didn’t. Well, not a defined list, that is. I’ve never sat down to make one until now – and then it dawned on me that a lot of the things I would put on the list, I’ve had the good fortune to actually do already! I guess the “list” was be in my head somewhere all along despite my previous apathy towards giving it any real thought.
So what would make the list, and what can I check off? Here’s the first 20 ideas that came to me (in no particular order). I’m sure there will be many more – so I will probably post them as I come up with them! It’s also a great way to remind myself of some posts I need to blog about…
1. Climb up an active volcano and gaze into the lava-burping belly of the depths of the earth. – Check. Mount Villarrica, Chile - April, 2001
2. Take a helicopter ride over the Victoria Falls and through the Zambezi River Gorge. – Check. July, 2004
3. Raft the White Water Rapids on previously mentioned Zambezi River – Check and Check. September, 1997 & July, 2004
4. Visit Iceland and bathe in geothermal pools whilst being snowed upon.
5. Swim with Dolphins. Check (if you count paddling with them 
) Check. August, 2011
6. Ride on the back of an elephant. Check. July, 2004
7. Go camel riding in the Sahara Desert. Check. February, 2006
8. Visit Timbuktu – THE middle of nowhere. Check. February, 2006
9. Perfect my Afrikaans & French linguistic skills – In Progress (and shall be for a long time yet!)
10. (Re-) Visit Rome & Pompeii, now that I’m old enough to appreciate them.. and perhaps put back that tiny piece of mosaic that I picked up as a naughty teenager!
11. Learn how to make cheese. Oh yeah baby! I love cheese
12. Try out archery
13. See the Aurora Borealis. Check & Check. Finland, 1996 & 1997 (AMAZING by the way)
14. Cruise the fjords of Norway
15. Hike up to Machu Pichu
16. Explore the Galapagos Islands
17. Walk the West Highland Way
18. Attend Oktoberfest IN Germany
19. Perfect the making of Biltong – in Scottish climatic conditions
20. Go to Yellowstone National Park (before it blows – an perhaps be there when it does. What a way to go – I am a Geologist, after all!).
Been there? Done that? – Let me know if you’ve done anything on this list – point me to your posts if you’ve blogged about them
Great photos Lu!
Wow! so cool,that´s a checklist on my list,great stuff, keep it comin´n! is that you in the middle o f the picture on a camel ?
Yes, indeed – that is me in the middle on the camel
I just have to add that the saddle (wooden) was NOT comfortable, at all!
This is where I wanna spend my next summer!
Where’s that, exactly?
I don’t have a formal bucket list, just a random assortment of things I’d love to do that vary according to my mood. Haven’t done much on this list, although I ave tried archery – lots of fun!
I totally agree with the mood thing! GOT to be in the right frame of mind for some things – although I don’t think I’ll ever be in the mood for jumping off or out of things… those adrenalin-inducing pursuits are not my cup of tea, at all
Great List! I so much wanted to do the Sahara desert when I was in Morocco. For another day! I did Machu Picchu elevan years ago (see posts) and loved it. I would also highly recommend Nepal Annapurna Trek if you haven’t done that. It was one of the best travel experiences of my life!
Thank you Nicole – I consider that to be quite the endorsement! – I’d actually be more than interested to know what you would put on you Bucket List (besides the Sahara Desert).. Perhaps we could rename it “The Ultimate Destination List”!!?
I guess I should create one. Thanks for the inspiration
It’s always interesting to see what other people come up with. There’s a few things on my list I feel I ought to have done a long time ago, but due to geographically being mis-placed – I haven’t gotten around to them! Things like “Walk the West Highland Way” should have been done as a “right of passage” in my late teens, alas – it never turned out to be
Interesting list. You’re going to have to blog about those “checked” items, you haven’t written about yet! I want to “travel” there with you.
I know, I’ve got a fair amount of post topics to catch up on. Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos of my Aurora Borealis experiences… Too busy watching them in awe to even think about trying to capture them on film
You’ve made me want to add more things to my ‘bucket list’. I just recently posted about my to-do list of life http://repurposedredhead.com/lifes-to-do-list/ and we share quite a few items. One thing that I have done on your list (but have not blogged about) is make cheese. But, it was only ricotta which is super easy, so it doesn’t really count. Good luck on the rest of your bucket list – looks like you have some grand adventures in your future. -Rene
Hi Rene,
(I do think it counts, by the way!)
Ah, ricotta is nice and easy, but I enjoy making it very much
I’m currently attempting the bathing in geothermal pools in Iceland, but suspect my luck might not be with me for the snow part of my absolute ideal setting. Never mind – it’s going to be pretty close!
Thanks for the visit.