Wednesday Wish List: Places to Go

I've been in a traveling mood lately. Wait - let me rephrase that. More accurately, I've been in a "I need a mental health week from work" mood, which has led to a "If I had a mental health week from work, what would I do?" mood, which led to a "where do I want to travel?" mood. ahem. :)

So... here we are. My top 10 list of places to go (at this second) in no particular order:

10. Grand Canyon. Ryan's never been there (which automatically shoots it to the top 10 list) and although I've been there a few times, it's been a while. I'd love to take the hike down to the bottom of the canyon... see the waterfalls and the river. If I wimp out on that, then a nice alternative would be riding the mules down. We'll see :)

9. Portland, OR. Again, Ryan's never been... and I've only been once. There are so many more things I've heard about and seen pictures of since that time... and I'm really wanting to explore it a bit more.



8. London. I've been once, Ryan's been once (or is that twice?). I loved it, all two days that I was there. I'd love to go back and explore the city more, as well as explore the surrounding countryside. Stories of rolling hills (like here) and cute cottages (anyone seen The Holiday?) intrigue me, as do all of the famous sight-seeing expeditions through the city streets. (besides... I miss hearing the mysterious voice saying "mind the gap")



7. Vancouver, BC, Canada. Another one of those "I've been there, Ryan hasn't" places... but it's just so amazing from what I remember of it! I remember taking the ferry over to Victoria Island and the gorgeous gardens... it's a must-see in spring.

6. Boston. I'm intrigued by my sister's love for the city... she's not a city person and usually doesn't like the hustle & bustle... but both she & her husband enjoyed it. Besides, fall in the northeast? It can't get better than that :)

5. Colorado. Ryan's family has a gorgeous piece of property in the middle of the mountains... and we're both dying to see it one of these days. (correction: i'm dying to see it... ryan's dying to go back!).



4. Hawaii. We went for our honeymoon, but didn't see nearly enough in my opinion (although my opinion was quite different when we were there, since we didn't want to spend all of the sunny days in the car driving around the island). I want to see the waterfalls in the mini-rainforest, the volcanoes (although I might be able to do without the helicopters flying over the volcanoes - yikes!). I want to learn how to surf, and manage to bodysurf without tearing my back up against the one (ONE!) rock on the entire beach (go figure). Most of all, I want to experience the laid-back, nonchalant, relaxing spirit we felt there the first time. I could really go for some of that relaxing right now... :)

3. Alaska. I'm intrigued by it... and Ryan just wants to live there :) He did live there for three years and loved it... but then again he's always a good 15 degrees warmer than I am :)

2. Pacific Northwest by Rail. Admit it... it sounds like fun, right? Wait til you read the description from the NY Time's website:
Amtrak’s Empire Builder delivers a greatest hits of the American landscape. Beginning in Chicago, passing through the Great Plains and the other-worldly Glacier National Park and ending in Seattle or Portland, Ore., the roughly 48-hour ride is a throwback to the golden age of train travel. Old-fashioned dining cars serve freshly cooked meals (flat iron steak, roasted game hen) on tables decked out in white tablecloths. The panoramic sightseeing lounge and sleeping compartments have a certain “North by Northwest” charm. And rangers from the National Park service are periodically on board to provide narrative along the route as a part of a Trails and Rails program.
Amazing, right? :)



1. New York City. I believe I was born a city girl at heart. When I visited NYC a few years ago, I fell in love with it. A few months after, I had the privilege to go back to the city for three weeks of intense journalism classes. It was a dream come true for me. Not only was I learning about journalism and becoming a better writer, I had the ability to spend all of my free time exploring an amazing city. I loved the people, the opportunities for stories, the constant chatter and noise, the fact that no matter what time of day it was, you could find an open coffee shop to sit and relax at. oh, I miss it. And one of these days we'll be back. Odd how it became such a home to me so quickly.

So that's it... my list of 10 places I'd love to go to right now :)

And just how perfect would this carrying case be for a world traveler? You can add it to my wish list of things as well... ;-)


That's all for now... check back later for another update on the *ahem* February (yes, I know, it's March now) Craft Challenge!