To-Do List

Leah Travels on Ile Saint Louis

I’m a big list person. I have scraps of paper scattered about, multiple half-full notebooks, and cryptic text messages sent to myself. I find that lists help me achieve goals, so it’s no wonder that I created a travel-oriented list. So without further ado, my to-do list:

1. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.

2. Try to sink myself in the Dead Sea.

3. Brave a sand storm in Dubai.

4. See Christ the Redeemer in Rio.

5. Bungy jump in New Zealand. (Chickened out in November 2011)

6. See the NYC skyline from the Empire State Building.

7. Take a ride through the Grand Canal in Venice.

8. Take in the beauty of the Taj Mahal.

9. Vineyard-hop my way around Napa/Sonoma.

10. Drink mojitos in Miami.

11. Eat key lime pie in the Florida Keys.

12. Spend the 4th of July in Washington DC.

13. Eat fried vendace in Finland.

14. Watch a performance in the Sydney Opera House.

15. Lay on the beach in Bali.

16. Eat my way through Singapore, ride the Flyer, and drink a Sling at Raffle’s Long Bar.

17. Explore Cape Town.

18. Eat BBQ in Korea.

19. Go to the summer Olympics…anywhere!

20. Eat sushi and see the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo.

21. Gaze at the night skyline of Hong Kong from a boat in Victoria Harbor.

22. Walk along the Great Wall.

23. Attend the White Turf horse races in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

24. Shop the magical bazaars in Marrakech and Casablanca, Morocco.

25. Go from Europe to Asia in a matter of minutes…in Istanbul.

26. Eat a steak in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

27. Travel through the Panama Canal.

28. Go to the Globe Theater and watch a Shakespearean play.

29. Press my luck on the edge of the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland.

30. Listen to Mozart in Vienna, Austria.

31. Eat chocolate and waffles in Brussels, Belgium…better yet, chocolate waffles!

32. Pick out diamond earrings in Antwerp, Belgium.

33. Lay on a Croatian beach along the Adriatic Sea.

34. Explore Prague. 

35. Attend a World’s Fair.

36. Eat croissants while drinking wine and smoking a cigarette at a sidewalk café in Paris.

37. Explore the Louvre, see the Eiffel Tower, & have a portrait painted by a Parisian artist.

38. Antique shop the flea markets in Paris.

39. Drive a ’57 Chevy in Havana.

40. Eat tapas and drink Spanish wine in Barcelona.

41. Drink a beer in Munich, Germany.

42. See Gibraltar…what the ancient Greeks and Romans was the edge of the known world.

43. Visit the Acropolis, Parthenon, etc from Greek history and mythology.

44. Find myself in Mauritius.

45. Visit Vatican City, attend an audience with the Pope, and take the Scavi tour.

46. Stroll along the Danube River in Budapest.

47. Wake up with an Irish coffee, a Guinness with lunch, and an Irish whiskey at dinner…all while exploring Dublin.

48. See all things ancient Roman…Coliseum…Forum.

49. Visit Petra in Jordan.

50. Check out David in Florence.

51. See the Duomo and shop the Versace store in Milan.

52. Cruise the Greek islands.

53. Eat pizza in Naples.

54. Throw a coin in the fontana dei Fiumi in Rome.

55. Walk the Spanish Steps in Rome.

56. See Mont Saint-Michel in France.

57. Watch the Palio in Siena.

58. Explore Malta, where Calypso, the beautiful temptress, kept Odysseus for four years.

59. Play blackjack IN Monte Carlo, Monaco.

60. See Auschwitz in Poland.

61. Visit Anne Frank’s house, the Red Light District, and a hash bar in Amsterdam.

62. Catch a photo of my reflection in Cloud Gate in Chicago.

63. See a genuine Viking ship in Oslo.

64. Explore Iceland.

65. Sit at a wine bar drinking port while trying to understand Portuguese in Lisbon.

66. See Dracula’s castle in Romania.

67. Discover the bays of the Philippines.

68. Experience Oktoberfest in Germany.

69. Play golf in St. Andrews, Scotland, the birthplace of golf.

70. Tour the Edinburgh Castle.

71. Spend Christmas in NYC.

72. Admire the beautiful people in Stockholm.

73. Buy a watch in Geneva, Switzerland.

74. See the world’s most dangerous road in Bolivia.

75. Take a train and ski the Swiss Alps.

76. Scuba dive in Fiji.

77. See the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.

78. Experience a proper tea in London.

79. See the Big 5 on safari in the Serengeti.

80. Get adventurous in Cabo San Lucas.

81. Visit the Mayan Pyramids in Mexico.

82. Explore the Hawaiian Islands by helicopter (Canceled due to weather–5/13).

83. Drive the Pacific Coast Highway from San Diego up to San Francisco in a ’66 Mustang.

84. Go to the Kentucky Derby, wear a big hat, and drink a mint julep.

85. Walk across the Golden Gate Bridge.

86. Attend Carnival in Rio. 

87. Hike a glacier in New Zealand.

88. Make the Forbidden City no longer forbidden to me in Beijing.

89. Zipline the rainforests of Costa Rica.

90. Walk across the Petronas Towers Skybridge in Kuala Lumpur.

91. Tour the Tower of London and ride the London Eye.

92. Drink limoncello on the Amalfi Coast. 

93. Fight the madness that is Bangkok.

94. Stare at the turquoise waters of the Seychelles.

95. Hike to Machu Picchu in Peru.

96. See the Northern Lights in Canada.

97. Explore the western Thai islands.

98. Walk the Freedom Trail in Boston.

99. Hike the Patagonian Mountains.

100. Actually win money in Las Vegas.

101. Soak in the history of Red Square in Moscow.

102. See Mount Kilimanjaro.

103. Eat curries in Bombay

104. Talk to the statues on Easter Island.

105. Explore the wineries in Chile.

106. Harvest grapes in France and olives in Italy.

107. Get drenched at Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Iguazu Falls in Brazil, Angel Falls in Venezuela, Niagara Falls in Canada, and Sutherland Falls in New Zealand.

108. Sing from the Austrian mountaintops ala The Sound of Music.

109. Get one with nature in Alaska.

110. Fly over the Great Barrier Reef.

111. Shoe shop in Milan.

112. Hike Germany’s Black Forest.

113. See the pyramids in Egypt while riding a camel. {Maybe not a camel. Those things suck!}

Obviously there is a lot to see and do around the world, and I can only begin to touch on all the wonderful places. As I see and experience more, this list grows. I find myself adding items as quickly as I’m crossing them off. It’s ever-evolving, and I’m just fine with that fact.

9 Comments
  • Scott Kennedy via Facebook
    January 28, 2012

    Awesome list!

  • Leah Travels via Facebook
    January 28, 2012

    Thanks, Scott. It’s ambitious for sure. You’ve probably already seen and done most things there. Hope all is well on the other side of the world.

  • Scott Kennedy via Facebook
    January 28, 2012

    Every great adventure starts with an idea and ideas grow into reality if you let them! Yep, been to quite a few of those, but so many still to go – the list never gets smaller, more just gets added to it!

  • Leah Travels via Facebook
    January 28, 2012

    I like that. What a great mantra to live by.

  • Leah Travels via Facebook
    January 28, 2012

    Whoo-hoo! In fact, seeing Enrique is number 101.

  • Frank DiCesare via Facebook
    January 28, 2012

    This is a great list, Leah. I’d like to add having dinner at Toronto’s CN Tower’s revolving restaurant. You’ll never forget it. Also, how about more U.S.A.-inspired destinations. There’s so much to see right here on the homefront.

  • Leah Travels via Facebook
    January 29, 2012

    I’ve never been to Canada, but plan on going in the near future. I’ve done a whole lot in the USA before I made this list, so that stuff isn’t on there. I’ve been to 29/50 states, but would love to get them all eventually. You’re right, though, there are heaps of great things in the United States!

  • Sarah Bond via Facebook
    January 29, 2012

    Love it Leah, keep inspiring the world to travel! SB

  • Leah Travels via Facebook
    January 29, 2012

    Thanks so much, Sarah. 🙂

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