The List: Year 6 Progress
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| My lemur dreams came true this year! |
It's my 36th birthday! So far, I've completed 33 of the original 40 items plus an additional 16 bonus items. I'm 60% through the timeline, and I've already accomplished 87%! This year's three achieved items - as well as relevant progress updates - are highlighted in green for easy finding.
Eat well and travel often was the theme of the year, both at home and abroad. In DC, we decided to eat our way through the list of Michelin restaurants. In addition to our two star anniversary at Pineapple and Pearls (Bonus 55), we visited Metier, Xiquet, Rooster & Owl, Rania, Maydan, Imperfecto, and El Cielo for my birthday dinner tonight. We also grabbed a weekday lunch at Belcanto, the 25th best restaurant in the world, in Lisbon, Portugal (Bonus 56). At home, this past January was the 8th annual Raclette Fete at our apartment, and I bought an entire wheel of cheese (and we are still working through frozen leftovers in August)!
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| The Belle Epoque train in Switzerland with a goat cookie |
For travel, work sent me to Paris, Geneva x2, London, Brussels, Chicago, and New York, and I always made the most of it with fabulous dinners, theater, and museums. PA and I revisited Japan last November for two amazing weeks in Kanazawa, Takayama, Koyasan, Osaka, Kyoto, and Kinosaki Onsen, soaking in the historical vibes AND the hot springs along the way. In January, I went to Fort Lauderdale to dance the night away in Mahi's wedding party. After long winter weekends in Disney World and London, we booked a spur of the moment week in Portugal for some sun and seafood. I then enjoyed a bachelorette weekend in Charleston and a week in Knoxville for my sister-in-law's baby shower and good old fashioned East Tennessee fun. In July, we spent an epic nine days in Madagascar to see lemurs and humpback whales to celebrate our 10th Disney wedding anniversary.
The 7 original items left to complete - not many more to go! - are highlighted in blue to help me plan next year's adventures. I've also plugged in a few more bonus ideas...
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| Views over Kobe, Japan |
Books
1. Read 5 books in French: Completed 8/29/22
2. Read Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl: Completed 12/24/19
Bonus Books Ideas:
- Read The Count of Monte Cristo in French
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| The 8th Annual Raclette Fete was a huge success! |
DC Area
3. Union Market: Completed 9/14/19
4. Smithsonian Postal Museum: Completed 9/8/18
5. Washington National Cathedral: Completed 6/22/19
6. Drag Brunch: Completed 12/22/19
7. Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture: Completed 6/15/19
8. Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens: Completed 7/5/19
9. Rock Creek Capitol Stones: Completed 7/11/20
10. Smokey Bear on the National Mall: Completed 8/9/19
11. National Park Service Obscure Memorials Tour: Completed 9/15/18
12. Belmont-Paul Women's Equality National Monument House and Museum: Completed 2/8/20
13. Lincoln's Cottage: Completed 7/11/21
14. Thomas Jefferson's Monticello: Completed 3/9/19
BONUS 46. Washington Monument: Completed 9/15/19
BONUS 49. ARTECHOUSE: Completed 11/11/20
BONUS 52. Heurich House Museum: Completed 7/15/22
BONUS 53. Glenstone Museum: Completed 10/15/22
BONUS 54. Kayaking among WWI shipwrecks in Mallows Bay, MD: Completed 6/19/23
Bonus DC Area Ideas:
- Anacostia Community Museum
- National Museum of Women in the Arts
- Tudor Place
- President Woodrow Wilson House
- Oak Hill Cemetery
- Congressional Cemetery (planning this fall!)
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| Jeronimos Monastery in Lisbon, Portugal |
Travel
In total, I've been to 54 countries as of August 2024. New countries this year were Portugal and Madagascar. Repeat countries were France, Switzerland x2, Japan, UK, and Belgium.
17. NYC with Pierre-Antoine: Completed July 13-16, 2019
18. Quebec: Completed June 17-20, 2022
19. Galapagos
20. Marrakech: Completed November 9-19, 2018
21. Alaska
22. Japan: Completed November 6-19, 2019
23. Scotland/Ireland: Completed 8/17-21/23
24.Cambodia/Thailand (planning this year!)
BONUS 51. Bonaire: Completed September 4-11, 2021
Bonus Travel Ideas:
- New Zealand for lupine flowers and glow worms
- Arizona/New Mexico for desert landscapes and spas
- Egypt for the pyramids and Nile cruise (planning this fall!)
- Turkey for Hagia Sofia, food, and cats
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| Canoeing around Lemur Island in Antisibe, Madagascar |
Animals
25. Swim with a whale shark: Completed 7/9/23
26. Gorilla trek: Completed 1/21/23
27. See wild lemurs: For our 10th Disney wedding anniversary, we had an epic vacation to Madagascar to see wild lemurs (14 species!) and humpback whales! Completed 7/23/2024 - read all about it!
28. Meet a sloth: Completed 4/7/22
Bonus Animal Ideas:
- Kayak or swim with manatees
- Hang with capybaras
- Dive with sharks
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| The golden egg dish from Belcanto, 25th best restaurant in the world |
Experiences
29. See the Northern Lights: Completed 10/31/21
30. Safari with PA: Completed January 14-23, 2023
31. Stay in an overwater bungalow (planning for Fiji or French Polynesia this year!)
32. Meet Irish and/or Swiss relatives
33. Plant a tree: Completed 10/20/18
34. Tasting menu at a fancy (Michelin starred?) restaurant: Completed 1/13/19 and 2/8/19
35. See the redwoods
36. See a glacier: Completed 11/2/21
37. Make galettes from scratch: Completed 2/2/19
38. Make bread: Completed 3/29/20
39. Straighten my teeth (again): Completed on 5/15/20
40. Write a letter to my 40 year old self, then respond to it when I'm 40: Completed first stage 10/15/18.
BONUS 41. Perform a solo at a hafla: Completed 10/20/18
BONUS 42. Change jobs: Completed 11/26/18
BONUS 43. Adopt climate-smart behaviors: On-going process
BONUS 44. Do goat yoga: Completed 8/7/19
BONUS 45. Earn Project Management Professional (PMP) certification: Completed 9/4/19
BONUS 47. Get scuba certified: Completed 1/19/20
BONUS 48. Join a non-profit board: Completed 1/18/20
BONUS 50. Cook/bake "hard things" - Beef Wellington, Sausage Rolls, Pork Pies, Profiteroles, Eclairs, and Danishes: Completed 12/28/20
BONUS 55. Eat at a 2 Star Michelin Restaurant: How funny that when writing this list I wanted to try a Michelin meal once - now I’ve been to a dozen or more around the world! For our 10th wedding anniversary we had our first 2 Star Michelin experience at Pineapple and Pearls in DC. Completed 1/13/24 - read all about it!
BONUS 56. Eat at Belcanto, 25th best restaurant in the world: Another two star Michelin, haha! . Completed 4/10/24 - read all about it!
Bonus Experiences Ideas:
- Take an improv class
- Visit the geode of Pulpí in Spain
- Ride on a superyacht
- Live abroad again
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