991 Things Left to do Before I Die.

4 years ago my daughter gave me a special book for Christmas. It was titled 1000 Things to Do Before You Die. The book was relegated to the reading room (you may know it as the loo) where I would pore over it daily, dreaming of seeing the world for real rather than from my armchair.

To kickoff my 1000 special places my husband and I went to a convention in Tuscon Arizona the year he retired. We added another week onto the trip and drove north, visiting various National Monument sites and the majestic Grand Canyon.
That was #1 on my list and I was in no way disappointed. I thought to myself, Now I can die happy!



However, the need for another trip started niggling at me.
Born and raised in land-locked Saskatchewan the Mediterranean Sea was the stuff my fairytales were made of; Azure seas, Canals in Venice, White cottages dotting the isles of Greece, walled cities in Croatia, the ruins of Ephesus, the Strait of Messina, the Acropolis in Athens and Trevi Fountain in Rome and on and on.

Thanks to a Princess Cruise dream # 2 was fulfilled in May 2007.





Which takes me to #3, Pompeii, the ruins of a once-great Roman city buried by the ash of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Dreamed about since I first saw articles on it in an old National Geographic issue my parents bought at an estate sale when I was a young child. So, at the end of our cruise we visited the port of Naples and took a guided bus tour to Pompeii. We walked over streets that were built 1000 years before Christ, touched brick walls that housed families like our own, walked through their courtyard gardens, saw outdoor bread ovens and indoor plumbing of designs still used by some cultures today. Now, I thought, I can die happy!

After spending 12 days touring the Mediterranean, it was easy to add #4, a 5 night stay in beautiful Barcelona and not to miss the Louvre, Eifel Tower and Notre Dame in spot #5, 5 nights in Paris I've blogged about our experiences there already so I won't bore you with more gushy descriptions.

We headed back to Glasgow in May. Again thoughts of just 1 more place to see kept coming to mind, Edinburgh Castle, a REAL castle, smacking of Lords and Ladies, Kings and Queens, Turrets and Towers, Granite Walls and Dungeons, Moats and Iron Gates. The stuff a kids dreams are made of! When I was 8 or 9 I spent every Art class drawing princesses with crowns living in high castles, never dreaming I would one day be close enough to actually see one! Surely this trip would satisfy my destiny and I could rest knowing I'd done it all. Off to Edinburgh we went. The castle did not disappoint, it is a foreboding gloomy rock that lords it over the city of Edinburgh, a show of strength and past glory. Now, I thought, with #6 completed I can die happy!


In the fall of 2007 the thought popped into my mind "Wouldn't it be great to take a cruise with my sister this winter"? A few weeks into the New year and off to Florida I flew, cruise ticket in hand. My younger sister and I sailed off into the sunset, actually we went east so should it be "sailed off into the sunrise"? and 8 glorious days with no cooking, no cleaning, no telephones, no kids or grandkids, (dare I say No Husbands) just pure luxury and I could cross #7 off my list. Now I can surely die happy!

Soon summer was here and once again my feet began to itch. Mount Rushmore! Great leaders of our neighbours to the south, etched forever in Granite Mountainside, can't you see it! The image wouldn't leave me. It was meant to be, this must be #8. Some long passionate discussions with my designated driver convinced him that I could never truly die happy unless I could visit Mount Rushmore. We packed our car in June and hit the road, not quite Thelma and Louise but with as much enthusiasm. We were not disappointed, it is breathtaking. There is an evening program that culminates with the mountainside being illuminated and all vetrans in the audience being invited to the stage to be thanked for their service to their country. I cannot tell a lie, my heart burst with pride and I'm not even an American. Now I can die happy!

On Dec. 16, 2008 we again find ourselves in Glasgow visiting our best friend and only child, thinking "This year we can just visit", when I came across a webpage for Holyrood Palace...We didn't get to it last year, we have the time this year, why not just do it, after all, I've always wanted to see a real palace, maybe Prince Charlie will be home and invite us in for tea? So, next week we're heading off to Edinburgh again with Holyrood Palace in our sights, soon to be #9.

Only 991 left to go, then I can die Happy!!