Kate and I are both knee-deep in to do lists. Changes of address, packing and moving, vaccinations, shopping, farewell dinners...

I want to take the next hour or so to create yet another to do list, but one with items that won't get checked off until after we start traveling.

learn to surf eat upscale sushi in Japan watch soccer matches (ongoing) climb Mt. Kilimanjaro zorbing watch sumo wrestling learn to scuba dive lie on the beach (ongoing) go tramping in New Zealand bungee jump (maybe) climb Mt. Fuji watch an Aussie Rules football match watch a Sumo match study yoga take a class in classic French cooking discuss the finer points of international beer with international friends discuss the finer points of local beer with local friends sleep in a castle buy a bottle of tequila from the source learn to make sushi wear a sarong and feel like it's the most natural thing in the world

eat a Kobe steak ride horses in Mongolia ride the chicken bus (with actual chickens present) cruise through the Three Gorges trek in Nepal study Gong Fu with the Shaolin Monks write a short story (ongoing) visit (and perhaps climb) Ayers Rock/Ululu study buddhism buy a kilt do volunteer work (ongoing) hold a meaningful conversation in a foreign language sleep in a hammock in a bamboo hut beneath palm trees on a white sand beach next to a deep blue lagoon (waterfall optional) full moon rave, Thailand ride the Moscow subway visit a Turkish bathhouse visit a Japanese bathhouse read, read, read (ongoing) barge through the canals of England Mecca

This list will continue to grow as new ideas come up and items get checked off.