Similar to a bucket list, my Life List is a compilation of all the things I want to get done in life, from the small to the large, and from the definitely doable to the ohmygod how will I ever do that!?
I believe its important to write these goals down intentionally, track them and then of course, document how they went! I’ll be using this blog to do this and I hope I can look back at this in a few decades and be incredibly proud of everything that I have achieved.
The Life List
Because I love a bit of organisation, I’ve split the list up into specific categories, to make it easier to parse. Completed items are bolded, and I will add links to each completed item documenting its completion story over time.
Travel
- ✅ Visit 25 different countries
- Visit 50 different countries
- Visit 75 different countries
- Visit 100 different countries
Africa
- Visit 10 different African countries
- ✅ Morocco [2013]
- ✅ Mauritius [2019]
- ✅ South Africa [2023]
- Egypt
- Kenya
- Botswana
- Cape Verde
- Seychelles
- Madagascar
- Mozambique
- ✅ Go on safari in Africa [2023]
- ✅ Drive the garden route in South Africa [2023]
- See the Great Migration in the Masai Mara, Kenya
- ✅ Visit the souks of Marrakesh [2013]
Asia
- Visit 15 different Asian Countries
- Bhutan
- Cambodia
- China
- Hong Kong
- India
- ✅ Israel
- Japan (planned 2025)
- ✅ Jordan [2005]
- ✅ Maldives [2022]
- Mongolia
- Nepal
- ✅ Singapore [2018]
- South Korea
- Thailand
- Vietnam
- See the pyramids in Egypt
- Visit Tibet
- Visit the Great Wall of China
- Visit a Chinese city where the trains go through buildings
- See the Taj Mahal, India
- Visit the amazing Wisteria Tunnel, Kawachi Fuji Garden, Japan
- Go on a bullet train in Japan (planned 2025)
- See Mount Fuji in Japan (planned 2025)
- Go to the Festival of Lights, Thailand
- ✅ Stay in an overwater villa in the Maldives [2022]
Europe
- Visit 30 different European countries
- Albania
- Austria
- ✅ Belgium [2015]
- Bulgaria
- ✅ Croatia [2014]
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- ✅ Denmark
- Finland
- ✅ France [2013]
- ✅ Germany
- ✅ Greece [2017]
- ✅ Hungary [2004]
- ✅ Iceland [2022]
- ✅ Ireland [2019]
- ✅ Italy
- ✅ Luxembourg [2010]
- ✅ Malta [2023]
- ✅ Monaco [2010]
- ✅ Netherlands
- ✅ Norway [2022]
- ✅ Poland
- ✅ Portugal [2016]
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- ✅ Spain
- Sweden
- ✅ Switzerland [2010]
- Turkey
- ✅ United Kingdom [1986]
- ✅ Drive across Europe [2010]
- ✅ Chill out in Amsterdam [2011]
- ✅ Island Hop in Greece
- ✅ Visit the Vatican [2010]
- Visit the Giant’s Causeway
- ✅ Visit Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen [2015]
- ✅ Visit the fjords in Norway [2022]
- ✅ Stay in a villa in Majorca [2018]
- ✅ Go on a gondola in Venice [2023]
- Visit Preachers Rock, Preikestolen, Norway
- Visit Skaftafeli, Iceland
- ✅ Visit Bruges [2010]
- ✅ Visit the Eiffel Tower [2011]
- Stay in Hotel Kakslauttanen in Finland – Glass igloo hotel to watch Northern Lights from!
- Stay (at least) overnight in every Scandinavian country
- Drive across the Atlantic road in Norway
- ✅ Visit whats left of the Berlin Wall [2012]
- Do the Trans-Siberian Express
- ✅ Visit Dubrovnik, Croatia (aka Kings Landing) [2014]
- ✅ Swim in the Blue Lagoon, Iceland [2022]
- See that hot air balloon festival IRL, in Cappadocia, Turkey
- ✅ See the Northern Lights in Iceland [2022]
- ✅ Visit Meteora in Greece [2024]
- Stay overnight in all parts of the United Kingdom
- N. Ireland
- Scotland
- Wales
North America
- Visit Canada
- Toronto
- Vancouver
- Visit all 50 States of America
- Alabama
- Alaska
- ✅ Arizona [2011] (not overnight), (planned 2025)
- Arkansas
- ✅ California [2011]
- Colorado
- ✅ Connecticut (not overnight)
- Delaware
- Florida (planned 2024)
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- ✅ Maine (not overnight)
- ✅ Maryland (not overnight)
- ✅ Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- ✅ Nevada [2011]
- New Hampshire
- ✅ New Jersey [2010]
- New Mexico
- ✅ New York [2015]
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- ✅ Pennsylvania (not overnight)
- ✅ Rhode Island (not overnight)
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas (planned 2025)
- Utah (planned 2025)
- Vermont
- Virginia
- ✅ Washington [2023]
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- ✅ Washington DC (not overnight)
- Visit 4 different countries in Central America
- Belize
- ✅ Costa Rica [2014]
- Guatemala
- Panama
- ✅ Go to Mexico [2019]
- Visit all the Caribbean islands
- Anguilla
- Antigua and Barbuda (planned 2024)
- Aruba (planned 2024)
- Bahamas
- Barbados (planned 2024)
- Bermuda
- British Virgin Islands
- Cayman Islands
- Cuba
- Curacao
- Dominica
- ✅ Dominican Republic [2024]
- Grenada
- Guadeloupe (planned 2024)
- Haiti
- ✅ Jamaica [2012]
- Martinique
- Montserrat
- Netherlands Antilles (planned 2024)
- Puerto Rico
- St Barts
- St Kitts and Nevis (planned 2024)
- St Lucia (planned 2024)
- St Martin
- St Vincent and Grenadines (planned 2024)
- Trinidad and Tobago (planned 2024)
- Turks and Caicos
- US Virgin Islands (planned 2024)
- ✅ Visit the Grand Canyon [2011]
- Watch and photograph the Iditarod
- ✅ Win/Lose money in Vegas [2011]
- Go to the Kennedy Space Center
- Walk over the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver, British Columbia
- ✅ Visit and photograph a real, genuine ghost town [2024]
- Road trip in the US for 2 weeks +
- Go see the Lantern Festival, Honolulu, Hawaii
- Devil’s Garden, Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument, Utah
- Visit the glacial caves in Juneau, Alaska
- ✅ Go on a switch-off holiday to a Caribbean island [2012]
- ✅ Visit Chichen Itza [2019]
South America
- Visit every country in South America
- Argentina
- Bolivia
- ✅ Brazil
- Chile
- Colombia
- Ecuador
- Guyana
- ✅ Paraguay
- Peru
- Suriname
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
- Visit different places in Brasil:
- ✅ Rio de Janeiro
- ✅ Sao Paulo [2019]
- Curitiba
- Paranagua
- The Amazon
- Have a real Argentinean steak in Argentina
- Visit the End of The World in Argentina
- Visit the salt flats in Bolivia
- Visit Machu Picchu
Oceania
- Visit 10 different Oceanic countries/territories
- Australia
- Easter Island
- Fiji
- French Polynesia
- Galapagos
- Nauru
- New Zealand
- Papua New Guinea
- Samoa
- Vanuatu
- Visit Bora Bora, French Polynesia
- Do the LOTR trail in New Zealand
Skills
- ✅ Learn HTML and CSS [2013]
- ✅ Make something in a pottery class [2021]
- Make a lemon pavlova from scratch
- Take a creative writing workshop
- ✅ Go to a drumming class [2012]
- ✅ Go to a chocolate making class [2015]
- ✅ Go to a cocktail making class [2015]
- Learn Portuguese
- ✅ Take a life drawing class
- ✅ Have regular Hebrew lessons [2016]
- ✅ Do a sketching workshop [2016]
- ✅ Do a printmaking class [2017]
- ✅ Learn how to make a Xmas wreath [2019]
Experiences
- ✅ Go to a drive-thru cinema screening [2014]
- Donate money & put my name to something
- ✅ Sell stuff at a car boot sale [2010]
- ✅ Send a handwritten letter to a friend [2010]
- ✅ Celebrate Blue Monday [2020]
- Volunteer at a homeless shelter
- ✅ Have a professional massage [2013]
- ✅ Dye my hair an awesome colour [2013]
- ✅ Visit the Houses of Parliament [2017]
- ✅ Go to a silent disco [2014]
- ✅ Finish a Panini football sticker album [2014]
- ✅ Do a secret cinema event [2019]
- Buy a luxury car
- ✅ Do a hospitality experience at the football [2016]
- ✅ Watch a real live rodeo [2023]
- ✅ Be an extra in a TV Show
- ✅ Do a murder mystery event [2019]
- ✅ Visit Madame Tussauds [2017]
- ✅ Eat some exotic meat! [2012]
- See dolphins in the wild
- ✅ See whales in the wild
- Make a bonfire on a beach and roast marshmellows
- Have lunch with Tim Gunn
- ✅ Experience Harry Potter Studio tour [2013]
Trips
- ✅ Do a spa weekend in the UK [2017]
- Stay at…
- ✅ The Grove [2018]
- ✅ The Beaumont [2022]
- ✅ Go back to Manchester for a weekend [ 2021]
- ✅ Ride on the British Belmond train [2022]
- ✅ Have a hot Christmas [2019]
- ✅ Go Camping under the stars [2010]
- ✅ Fly first class [2013]
- Go on the Orient Express
- Take a cruise (planned 2024)
- Fly on a private jet
Events
- ✅ Go to London Pride [2015]
- ✅ Go to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park [2015]
- ✅ Go to Silverstone for a F1 Grand Prix [2023]
- ✅ Visit Stonehenge for Summer Solstice
- ✅ Go to an England football match [2014]
- ✅ Go to the Athletics World Champs [2017]
- ✅ Watch an Olympic/Paralympic event live at London 2012 [2012]
- Witness a solar eclipse
- Attend TED
- ✅ See an NFL game [2016]
- ✅ Go see one of those live daredevil events [2013]
- Go to a film premiere
- ✅ Go to a Chelsea match with Lu [2015]
- Go to a London Fashion Week event
Adrenaline
- Take a stunt-driving course
- ✅ Do an indoor skydive [2012]
- Swim with dolphins
- ✅ Ride in a hot air balloon [2012]
- Ride a horse on a beach
- Ride a mechanical bull
- Participate in a police line-up
- Experience weightlessness
- ✅ Go quad-biking [2013]
- Race an incredible car on a race track
- ✅ Target practice at a shooting range [2021]
- ✅ Ride in a helicopter [2011]
- ✅ Ride a camel in the desert
- ✅ Go ride dune buggies in the desert [2013]
- Fly on Virgin Galactic
- ✅ Visit an active volcano [2014]
- ✅ Experience ‘Above the O2’ [2015]
- Go to the races and put on an outrageous bet
Eating out
- ✅ Eat a slice of Hummingbird Bakery rainbow cake [2014]
- ✅ Eat in the restaurant where you eat in the dark and don’t know what you’re eating! [2012]
- Eat at the best London restaurants
- ✅ Core by Clare Smyth [2019]
- ✅ Chiltern Firehouse [2019]
- ✅ Circus [2019]
- ✅ Duck + Waffle [2019]
- ✅ Coal Office [2019]
- ✅ Hide Above [2020]
- ✅ Ikoyi [2020]
- ✅ Dinner, by Heston Blumenthal [2019]
- ✅ Hakkasan [2022]
- ✅ Frog, by Adam Handling [2023]
- Afternoon Teas at…
- ✅ The Sanderson [2017]
- ✅ The Corinthia [2019]
- ✅ The Langham [2021]
- ✅ The Ritz [2022]
- ✅ The Savoy [2019]
- ✅ The Grove [2020]
- ✅ Tiffany’s Blue Box Cafe [2020]
- ✅ Fortnum + Mason [2021]
- ✅ The Berkeley [2022]
- ✅ Claridges [2024]
Concerts and shows
- ✅ See Penn and Teller Live [2024]
- ✅ Go to a Take That gig [2011]
- ✅ See a Derren Brown show [2013]
- ✅ See a ballet [2012]
- ✅ Experience Romeo + Juliet Live [2016]
- ✅ See Whose Line Is It Anyway Live [2016]
- ✅ See John Legend in concert [2015]
- ✅ See Beyonce in concert [2023]
- ✅ See Les Miserables at the West End
- ✅ Watch a Cirque Du Soleil show in Las Vegas [2017]
- ✅ See Hamilton on Broadway [2023]
- ✅ See Britney Spears in concert [2017]
- ✅ See Drake in concert [2020]
- ✅ See Usher in concert [2023]
- See Rihanna in concert
- ✅ See Craig David in concert [2022]
- ✅ See Adele in concert [2024]
Home Renovation + decor
- ✅ Own a flat [2016]
- ✅ Sell the flat [2021]
- ✅ Own a house [2021]
- ✅ Paint a feature wall [2020]
- ✅ Renovate a kitchen from scratch [2021]
- ✅ Renovate a bathroom from scratch [2021]
- ✅ Create a walk-in wardrobe [2021]
- Create a home gym
- ✅ Create a home bar [2022]
- ✅ Have a beautifully dressed Christmas tree [2019]
- ✅ Create a utility room from scratch [2022]
- ✅ Renovate a bedroom from scratch [2023]
Family + Friends
- ✅ Get engaged [2017]
- ✅ Get married [2018]
- ✅ Get a puppy [2020]
- ✅ Adopt a dog [2021]
- ✅ Take my mum away on holiday [2014]
- ✅ Celebrate Dad’s 60th [2018]
- Celebrate a birthday by…
- ✅ Staying at… The Grove [2019]
- ✅ Being in lockdown (#1) [2020]
- ✅ Having a huge party at home [2022]
- ✅ Staying at The Landmark [2023]
- ✅ Celebrate Zola’s first birthday in style [2021]
- ✅ Celebrate Zola’s second birthday in style [2022]
- ✅ Celebrate parents 40th wedding anniversary in style [2021]
- ✅ Host a Christmas [2021]
- ✅ Celebrate my brother getting married [2022]
- ✅ Become an auntie! [2023]
One reply on “Introducing the Life List”
[…] seeing the Northern Lights in person is one of the oldest items on my life list. As long as I have had a life list, I have committed to seeing them in person at some point in my […]