Thursday, October 31, 2013

Life Is Too Short Not To Go On Your Bucket List Vacations

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By Kelly Wood


When the time comes to plan your next vacation, it's easy to fall into the trap of going to the same places and doing the same things that you've done last year and the year before. Maybe it's time for a change. If you don't start going on your bucket list vacations, you may never get the opportunity to do those things you've always wanted to do.

For some people, the item on their list is a particular destination more than it is a particular thing to do. This makes it easier to achieve the dream because they simply need to save up for the cost of the flight and accommodation. Once they've identified the city or country they'd like to visit, they can then start thinking about what they'd like to experience once they're there.

An epic trek is a bucket list item for many people. For instance, walking Peru's Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is a popular and achievable choice. If your dream is to walk all of the Appalachian Trail but you can't take several months off work in one go, it's entirely possible to break it up in smaller sections and do one of these every time you do have the opportunity.

One type of journey that can really change your life and strengthen your faith is to go on a religious pilgrimage. For Muslims the ultimate destination is Mecca; for Sikhs, it's the Golden Temple of Amritsar; for Jews, the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The most famous pilgrimage for Christians is the Camino de Santiago, which can start from anywhere and ends at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

A different type of pilgrimage can be to visit the places where your ancestors came from. In a country like the United States, for instance, most people are descended from immigrants. Visiting the town or village where your great-great-great-grandfather grew up provides a link with your past and will help you to understand where you came from and why you are who you are.

It's a good idea to combine some of the things you dream of doing with a destination you dream of going to. For instance, if you've always wanted to bungee jump but are dreaming of an African safari too, you may want to visit Zambia or Zimbabwe. The Victoria Falls Bridge between these two countries is the site of spectacular bungee jumps with the world's largest waterfall thundering in the background.

Another way to have an unforgettable experience is to volunteer while you go on vacation. Simply look for a project at the destination you'd like to visit or decide on the type of volunteer work you'd like to do and then choose your destination accordingly. For instance, if you'd like to work with sea turtles, you may want to consider a trip to Costa Rica or Cape Verde.

It's not that difficult to go on bucket list vacations if you really want to. All you need is some planning and then the determination to see it through. Once you have an idea of what you'd like to do and where you'd like to go, you only need to break up that goal into smaller goals and start working on achieving them, one by one. Every great journey, after all, begins with the simple step of putting one foot in front of the other.




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