Bucket list?

After nearly SEVEN years living here in Italy, I have come to realise that I have been doing just that.  

Living in Italy.

While I have made the most of my life here, I suddenly get this strangely proud feeling in my stomach when I think about the things I have done while I have been living here - some AMAZING things honestly.  

But that strange feeling quickly turns to knots when I think about the things that I HAVEN'T done while I have been living here.  

It's funny how a life that is beautiful and comfortable can suck you in no matter where you are at.  I was the same in Indiana to be honest.  I had no desire to really get out there, to see what there was outside my fun little bubble in Indianapolis...until I met Henry and that all changed.  

So I made the big jump...I came here seven years ago full of adventure and full of the desire to learn, to see and to experience.  And I have.  

Don't get me wrong here ladies and gents, I have certainly taken this life and grabbed it by the proverbial 'palle'.  I became quasi-fluent in a language I had ZERO words in (unless you count, pizza, spaghetti and 'non parlo italiano') and that took me about 2 years.  After that, I organised not one but TWO of my own weddings using said language - and subsequently threw the two best damn wedding parties I have ever attended (third best being round three in Indiana...).  

I gestated and pushed out a perfect baby girl hopped up on nothing but meditation and a few curse words...all through social healthcare believe it or not!  

I have seen many places - London, Austria, a bit of Germany, Slovenia, Monaco and the south of France.  But still I feel this knot rising up in my belly...

Why, I wonder.  The simple answer is this.  I am a mamma and wifey extraordinaire.  Last weekend I took my girly to a 'paperine' (little ducks) swimming lesson, worked, and then spent the days chasing her and the chickens around the garden and watching dvds.  

So when people enquire about all the wonderful things that Europe has to offer and the things I have had the amazing opportunity to see, I kind of have a mini panic attack.  

I am largely a homebody.  I love the Hart Compound Monfumo. 

So, I need to make myself a bucket list...if not just to make me feel better.  

I need to at least PRETEND that I have more of a desire to see the world than to just sit and tend to my tomatoes and basil in the veggie patch.  

So here it is - My bucket list of European places not done but definitely must do...

1) See Paris - Even if it is a solo journey.  Hubs is not a fan, so it would be hard as I am completely LOST with the French language...
2) Visit Spain - Not so picky where!  If for nothing than to just brush off my Spanish and eat tapas.
3) See the Vatican - A quick trip around Rome didn't cut it.  I want to see more!
4) Visit the south of Italy - Maybe not Napoli, but I'm thinking beaches, lemons and sun...
5) See Berlin - If just to see what remains of the divide...history not to be missed.
6) Spend more than an afternoon in Venice.  Sounds weird, as it is in my backyard, but I have never seen the sun set over Grand Canal. 

...and here is one I will be able to check off this list at the weekend...

7) See my baby girl learn how to ski on the SAME piste where I learned to ski 7 years ago...

Wow.  Where has the time gone...?  

So, What's on your bucket list?

xoxo sjkh