A fellow blogger, Wandering Earl, posted a wonderful blog recently about his top 50 memorable experiences.  Now whilst I don’t pretend to have visited half of the places Earl lists, I thought it would be a nice retrospective to look at everywhere I’ve been so far – sort of a reverse bucket list.  I initially thought I might be only able to think of 10, maybe 25 at a push.  But I’ve kept on adding and adding to the list, and even now I’m sure there are some major ones that I’ve missed (there may be a Part 2 to this post at some point!). But for now, these are some of the memorable experiences – some bad, mostly good – which have inspired me to continue travelling and creating more experiences.

1. A blind date to Disneyland Paris (pre-hubby. Never made it to a second date after I faked a migraine all the way home so I didn’t have to talk…)
2. Watching the sunset/sunrise at the Grand Canyon
3. Getting engaged on a tiny hotel balcony in Crete after I refused a late night walk on the beach
4. Driving down Route 1 from San Francisco to Los Angeles
5. Hiking the 4km between Monterosso and Vernazza in Cinque Terre because of a train strike
6. Dancing to Faithless’ Insomnia at V Festival 2005 when the sun finally came out after rain of monsoon proportions
7. Winning $40 on the slot machines in Las Vegas
8. Refusing to believe my friend had broken her foot by falling off a flip flop in Magaluf. She had.
9. Sharing a bed with a Masai warrior in Kenya
10. Looking after my drunk parents after they imbibed too much sangria on a medieval night in Spain. I was 11. They were old enough to know better.
11. Our freezing cold but lovely minimoon cottage in Mousehole, Cornwall
12. Seeing “David” in Florence. That’s the sculpture. Not some bloke called David (hi to all the David’s out there…).
13. Ziplining in Mexico.  Swimming in cenotes in Mexico.  Snorkelling with turtles in Mexico
14. Having breakfast with all of my closest family the morning after our wedding
15. Being pleasantly surprised by Milan
16. Being pleasantly surprised by Brussels
17. Watching the Bellagio fountains
18. Being hunted down by a pack of baboons in Tsavo National Park, Kenya
19. Watching people waltzing around the dancing fountains in Barcelona
20. Surviving the 126 degree heat of Death Valley – even if my baseball cap and camera battery didn’t
21. Drinking Prosecco and watching the duelling orchestras in St Mark’s Square, Venice
22. The hot tub in our Maldives Beach Villa – even if it did take hours to fill
23. Waking up to knee high snow in Prague
24. Waking up to knee high snow in Edinburgh
25. Losing my engagement ring in the sea in the Dominican Republic.
26. Finding my engagement ring in the sea in the Dominican Republic.
27. Being stopped by cops in Vermont for speeding
28. Being stopped by cops for driving without a helmet on a quad bike in Crete
29. Pancakes and bacon for my birthday breakfast in Williams, Arizona
30. Walking along the Thames in the pouring rain under a big umbrella to celebrate our first wedding anniversary
31. A night tour of Alcatraz
32. Seeing my mom’s face in Salzburg, her dream vacation
33. Snuggling up in a big furry throw, on a lawn chair, reading Game of Thrones outside our motel in Stowe, Vermont
34. Visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam
35. Holding a baby crocodile in Dominican Republic
36. Paying our respects at Auschwitz-Birkenau
37. Walking the Brooklyn Bridge
38. Buying Madonna’s “like a prayer” album at El Corte Ingles in Barcelona…and worrying it would all be in Spanish (I was 11)
39. Riding a bike for the first time in years at the base of Mount Washington in New Hampshire
40. Being invited to stay with a family member in Tenerife. Said family member flying home two days later for “personal reasons”
41. Eating on the patio of Mon Ami Gabi in Las Vegas
42. Outdoor shower in the Maldives. Shared with the lizards and giant ants
43. Eating Ben and Jerry’s ice cream in Vermont – home of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream
44. Sampling as many beers as possible in Belgium
45. Watching Mr Bean playing on a big screen in Kenya whilst waiting for the ferry
46. That first glimpse of the Manhattan skyline when coming from JFK in a cab
47. Chatting into the wee small hours with Bernard, Elvince and our fellow guests at the Diani Sea Lodge in Kenya
48. Sunset at Moonstone Beach, Cambria
49. Being followed by a suspicious man on Moonstone Beach, Cambria
50. Being stuck in a cafe toilet on a school trip to France, and my friend having to convey the problem to the (non-English speaking) owner.  The rescue involved a handy screwdriver and removing a hinge or two.

Go on, have a go…create a list and share it with me!