Someday I Want To See...

Israel! Okay, I know I haven't done one of these posts in a while (looking back, the last one was in October 2009 - wow). Anyway, I would love to visit Israel for a couple of reasons:

1. It just so happens one of my best friends from high school lives there. Just from her talking about what life is like for her, I think it would be really eye-opening to visit an area so different from the communities I've personally experienced.
2. I think it would be a great way to put various Bible stories into perspective. I'm more of a kinetic learner, followed by visual, so physically seeing and experiencing the region would go a long way for me.

Matt and I actually talked about visiting Israel on our honeymoon, although it didn't work out. Maybe someday we'll have an opportunity to check it out, though. 

Have you ever been to Israel? What are the must-see or must-do locations & activities you experienced?

Someday I Want to See...

Scandinavia! Yes, I know I've been there twice...once when my family went to Norway and Sweden in 1997 and then again when I studied abroad in Norway in college. But I really want to go back, and I would love to visit Iceland and Finland as I've never been to either. Denmark would be cool, too, although it's lower on my priority list.

Last night as I was folding laundry I found two holes in one of my Norway shirts (my "Norway, land of the Vikings" one). I love that shirt, and was really sad to see the holes...so naturally I informed Matt that we'll need to go just so I can get a new shirt. This got us thinking about how much it would actually cost...needless to say, a trip to Scandinavia is out of our budget at the moment, but I can say that hotel and airfare isn't nearly as much as I thought it would be. I guess those trips start to add up once you get there and decide to do things. If I ever make it back to Norway, here are the things I would need to do (in no particular order):

• Eat at Peppe's Pizza (I still crave their BLT pizza even though I haven't had one in 4 years).
• Eat a kebab (those things are so good in Europe).
• Go back to Hamar and wander around where I used to live.
• Visit the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo (one of the ones I never quite made it to).
• Take Matt on the Norway in a Nutshell tour.
• Eat Chinese food in Bergen (we always eat chinese food in Bergen).
• If we're there around this time of year, buy and drink Julebrus (Christmas soda).
• Buy a new Norway shirt (since that's the urgency for going now...)
  

Obviously, that's only a partial list. If I was actually going anytime soon I would put a lot more thought into it, but those are the things I would want to do off the top of my head.

Then of course, there are the excursions to Finland and Iceland. As I've never been to either, I would need to do research to figure out what I want to do, but both sound really cool (and not just because of the weather). As I'm just as much Finn as I am Norwegian, it would be cool to see that part of the world.

I'm not quite sure why I want to go to Iceland so much...I think it's because it looked so fun in a video we watched in one of my Scandinavian Studies classes...and because that's where the team from D2: The Mighty Ducks is from...haha.

So...if anyone wants to take us on an all-expense-paid trip to Scandinavia, we would be happy to go. Although, to be honest, we'd probably be happy to go anywhere if it's all-expenses-paid...

Note: Matt thinks this sounds like a ploy to get a free trip, but it's not. I'm just sharing why I want to go to Scandinavia...again =)

Someday I Want to See...

Russia! St. Petersburg to be more specific. My whole reason for wanting to go might sound a little silly, but about a year and a half ago I was looking at this person's pictures from Russia and there were photos of a gorgeous park where you could rent big puffy dresses and take pictures! After seeing that, I was hooked. I have no idea what the park is called or what else there is to do near St. Petersburg, but if I were to actually go I would do some research first...plus I could walk around singing "Rumor in St. Petersburg" from Anastasia.

Someday I Want to See...

Africa! I'm not quite sure which country in Africa I want to visit, although when I was in 4th grade I decided I wanted to go to Kenya (my parents had friends that lived there). My main reason for wanting to go, though, is because I would love to see giraffes in the wild. I had a 7-year obsession with them when I was growing up. In high school I actually counted and found out I had over 1,000 giraffes in my room. Although the obsession has since dwindled, I still like the animals and kept the more unique treasures (giraffe soap dish, giraffe tea set, giraffe chopsticks, etc.) in addition to the ones with sentimental value.

One of my favorite experiences was feeding giraffes apples at Marine World when I was about 10. Not only did I get to see them up-close, but I even got to feel their tongues on my hand as they grabbed the food! Seeing them in the wild would be amazing, though. They're so graceful and quiet (opposite myself...maybe why I liked them so much?).

Here are some little-known giraffe facts that most people don't know:

• Despite its length, giraffes only have 7 bones in their neck (the same number as humans).
• Giraffes have four stomachs, just like cows, which means they also chew their cud. Could you imagine the same food going up and down that long neck multiple times?
• Although most people think giraffes don't make any noise, they do. Giraffes moo. It's not very common, but every once in a while they'll let one out.
• Giraffes have extremely long tongues - 22 inches - which help them pull leaves off branches. The tip is black while the rest is pink (I think it probably helps protect them from the hot sun).
• Giraffes are 6 feet tall when born, and a baby must drop 6 feet from their mother to the ground. Talk about a scary welcome to the world!
• Although giraffes tend to be peaceful, a mother giraffe can kick a lion's head off when protecting its young. Now that's pretty hard core...
• Most giraffes' favorite type of food is Acacia (which also happens to be in certain types of gum, although I don't remember which brands).
• There are multiple species of giraffes (I think about 7...but I could be wrong on that). I don't remember them all, but my favorite is Reticulated. Masai is very common as well.
• Male giraffes will show off their masculinity to female giraffes by standing side by side, twisting their necks around each other, and head-butting each other until one of them gives up. Sexy, huh?

There are many more interesting facts about giraffes, although that's all I can remember off the top of my head. Someday I hope I'll get to see one in the wild - that would be so cool!!

Photo Credit: Martin Pettitt