the delphic expanse

Maybe it's because my kid is moving tomorrow. (We'll see how permanent it is, but we can hope.)

Maybe it's because I recently turned 48.

Maybe it's because I'm a little crazy. Okay, a lot crazy. But I digress.

This is what I want to do in 2013. El Camino de Santiago (the Way of St. James)

I'm not entirely sure why I'm drawn to it -- I don't know Spanish, in fact it's the one language I could do without learning. Ever. I have no desire to go to Mexico (well, the Mayan Ruins would be the exception... that can go on my list). But Spain is okay; I think it's because of the history.

Anyway, if this interest doesn't subside, I shall do it.

What's on your Bucket List?

Cool! I know a woman who wrote a book about El Camino. She was a friend of a friend, but she obviously thought it was a wonderful experience.

Last year I took a train through the Chunnel, which was definitely on my list even though it wasn't that exciting.

This year I'm going to the Museum of Beaux Arts in Brussels specifically to see The Death of Marat. I'm going to Brussels on business, but that's one painting I've always wanted to see. I've also wanted to see the last supper.

I also want to see the Pyramids.

I also want to go to see the Tatar Muslim villages in Northern Poland. Thanks to one of those ancestry DNA tests, I found out I have ancestors from there, so I want to see the little villages that look just like a regular village but instead of a Catholic church in the center there's a mosque, and the mosques have been there for hundreds of years. There's two villages like this, and I would like to see if I could find out if my ancestors are from one of them or from the Tatar neighborhood in Warsaw.

Kayjay, my PBS station just ran Burt Wolf's programs on Santiago this weekend!

See video clips here: Burt Wolf Video Archives. Just look for Spain.

Here's a PDF file of the script for one of the programs: Burt Wolf: Santiago.

Enjoy!

The Camino de Santiago sounds like something I'd do. I guess I'll have to add it to my bucket list, right after visiting Ireland.

I did climb to the top of the Pyramid of the Moon in Mexico. It's smaller than the Pyramid of the Sun, and no one in my group wanted to climb either of them. Party-poopers! So I picked the smaller of the two so they wouldn't have to wait so long on me.

I'd also like to visit the ruins of Pompeii. I've always been fascinated by that.

I took a little bus day trip to Pompeii, and it was utterly fantastic! On my bucket list would be to return and see more of the ruins, since we only got to see the "big stuff." Years later, watching the HBO series Rome - I recognized one of the main sets as based on the villa. I forget which one it was - but wow, it was cool!

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Eu ... -BR-1.html

Neat pictures, Honeybee!

I wonder -- do they let you wander around in the ruins at all?

And lead plumbing? I knew the Romans used led in their pottery (cups, etc.) which meant they were unknowingly poisoning themselves, but for the actual plumbing? Wow!

Yes, they do let you wander around certain ruins. It's like a big park. Obviously, there are many digs and displays that are heavily roped off so you can't touch anything. But I remember having a picnic lunch in an amphitheater.

I heard of people who walked to Santiago from my country (through Belgium and France) and that also has been on my bucket list. Not sure I will ever do it.

The Museum of Beaux Arts in Brussels is my favorite museum. Hubs studied near Brussels and we spent some time there. If you go, please go to the Grand Place as well.

As for Rome... I have been there once, but I love to return.

Okay, my bucket list - with lots of places I want to go:
- New York - never been there.
- Return to Hawaii and San Francisco (spent my honeymoon there).
- Make a roundtrip from the South of Japan to the North with a car or train.
- Watch an American Football game in a stadion.
- Taking the ferry from Scotland to Ireland.
- Write a novel.

You've got to go to NYC, panyasan! And while you are there, you can head out to New Jersey to see the Jets or the Giants! Two birds, one stone and all that.

The thought of tourists in NYC always makes me think of this wistful story. My dad used to come visit me when I was in my 20s in NYC, and he always wanted to go some place nice for dinner. NYC is a foodie paradise, after all. I was a food snob at the time (still am, a bit) and was dating a food snob. I always wanted to go to Jean Georges or Nobu (still my favorite) and Dad would oblige. But now and again, he would insist on Windows on the World. Dad didn't care a whit about fine food, he liked nice views. I had to go under protest, rolling my eyes since I thought it was a tourist trap. Windows on the World had decent food, but it was expensive and all about the view. The last time we ate there, the Yankees had won the world series, and we ate our dinner (with a business associate of my Dad's) and we watched fireworks over the 59th Street Bridge - from above.

*sigh* It's not there anymore, and there's a good chance some of the people who served us are no longer with us. But still, I am always grateful that Dad loved the view there.

So, go to NYC! And make sure you get to the top of the Empire State! It's a great town.

The only one I can think of at the moment is a long, leisurely trip on the trans-Siberian railway across Russia to the Sea of Japan, then from there either back again or a ferry to Japan. I would also love to travel on all the famous railway lines of the world, particularly the luxury transcontinental lines of Europe. I'm an ardent fan of trains and train travel.

In the past, the Concorde flight would have made the list, but they sadly retired those beautiful planes after the tragic crash.