February 10, 2010 
Ok, this thing to do on the list of 101 Things to Do Before You Die is a list of iconic places to visit all around the world. So far, all I have marked off is the Roman Colosseum from my visit to Italy in January 2001. The other places that I have to visit before I can count this ONE thing as done are:
- Uluru (or Ayer’s Rock), Australia
- Great Barrier Reef, Australia
- Sydney Opera House, Australia
- Great Wall, China
- Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Machu Picchu, Peru
- Pyramids, Egypt
- Grand Canyon
- Golden Gate Bridge
- Taj Mahal, India
- Angkor Wat, Cambodia
When we visited Rome in January 2001, I was dissapointed to see how much of the modern city had encroached upon the colosseum and the Roman Forum that was across the street. While the Roman Colosseum was an impressive structure from the outside, I had to habitually remind myself that it was built over 2,000 years ago with none of the modern conveniences of today’s technology. Once inside, it was difficult for me to visualize what it must have once looked like, as the original floor is no longer there. There were also lots of places within the building that you weren’t allowed to go. I may have gotten more out of it if I had taken a guided tour, but back then, I wasn’t interested in that type thing. (Nowadays, I will sign up for a guided tour in a heartbeat!) Outside of the colosseum are men dressed as Roman Centurians that you could take your photo with – I thought it was cheesy then and didn’t do it, but it would have been kind of funny and would have made a good photo.
So there are a LOT of Australia items on this list, huh? But I think this is a pretty comprehensive list of iconic places to visit, minus tall buildings, which is another thing to do. Its interesting that there aren’t any mountains to climb on the 101 Things to Do List – I’ve been thinking a lot about Mt. Kilimanjaro because it doesn’t require any climbing equipment, yet its the tallest mountain in all of Africa!
When we have our 10 hour lay over in San Francisco coming back from New Zealand, I think I’m going to try to make my way to the Golden Gate Bridge. What other places should I visit (either in a quick stop in San Fran or the world in general)
