The World I Have to See...

There are certain places I just have to visit. Like my eldest brother... I have an urge to go places... and see things. Thats what makes a Pirate after all. I've been thinking about this lately... its been on my mind. So be patient while I organize a list.

1) Antarctica: Not necessarily my dream vacation... but an antarctic cruise is fascinating to me. The Last Continent is like another world. Definately one of the ultimate Family Adventure Vacations. A 10 to 18 day cruise would do the trick for me.

2) Lake Baikal: This is the world's largest fresh water like by volume. It holds a staggering 20% of all the fresh water on the planet... at least in liquid form. Baikal is said to be a Fairy Land... locals say fairys are drawn from all over the world to see its beauty and to commune with the visitors. The legend says that one such fairy met a man named Baikal... and fell in love with him. They traveled all over the lake together... but the man was insecure. He was afraid his humaness was a flaw that could not be overcome... and one day he left. The fairy searched all over for him... and when she found him... she cut off his feet... so he could never run away again. Yes... I want to go to Siberia to see a lake.

3) Kolyma Highway: You likely have no idea why I'd want to see a highway... but bear with me.. and I'll tell you about the Road of Bones. Uncle Joe Stalin decided he needed a road between Yakutsk and Magadan. It was built by prisoners... in likely the most cruel form of forced labor the world has known. It is said that each meter of road cost one human life. The ground was frozen so hard.. the corpses couldn't be buried... so they were actually used as ballast in the construction of the road itself. So as you travel the road... you are literally moving over the cadavers of those that died building it. The ruins of the old gulags and forced labor camps can be seen along the road... and the memorial to the dead up in Magadan is something I need to visit. Its roughly a 1240 mile trip by motorcycle.

4) Lake Toba: The worlds highest lake... in Sumatra. Its also the world's largest volcanic lake... and a source of some rather outlandish speculation.

5) Isreal: For a Christian... surely this needs little explaination.

6) Egypt: Hot Air Ballooning over the Pyramids. Yes.

7) The Amazon: duh.

8) Saif ul Muluk: Its only accessible by a jeep road... or 6 hour hike during the summer months. Permanant ice blocks... multiple glaciers... Another lake of legendary beauty.

9) Alpamayo: This is arguably the most striking mountain in all the world. When I think "mountain"... Alpamayo is what I see in my head... this has been the case since I was a child... long before I even knew Alpamayo existed.

10) Jenny Lake: Grand Tetons. Again... Duh.

11) Mount Kailash: Arguably this is the most religiously significant mountain in the world to non christians. It is said that if one should walk all the way around it one time... all sins and transgressions are absolved. Pilgrims come from all over the world. Me? I just want to see the 22,000 foot tall black rock. The Himalayas... nuff said.

12) Glacier Lake National Park: Duh.

Its occured to me that I don't have enough time to even describe these places the way they deserve... the obvious ones don't need much description though. If I have the time... I'll write more about each one... and of course... there are countless more to add to the list.