Our Travel Bucket Lists

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Meggan: Welcome back everyone. To yet another highly anticipated episode of the travel mug podcast.

So before we dive in to this ultra exciting episode, what have you been up to the past week?

Jenn: It's been a very exciting week because we have booked a trip. It's very exciting. We're going to Scotland in June. My best friend is getting married on the isle of Skye. So this is. Third time planning this wedding, but we're going in june.

Meggan: She stuck with it. I love that. She's just like, screw it. And she's like, well, yeah,

Jenn: we're getting married on Scotland or we're not going to get married at all. That's kind of,

yeah, we're in full on planning mode. Flights, we're going for two weeks and we've booked one accommodation that is where we're going to be for the wedding.

So we're just kind of in the midst of planning everything else and yeah, it's, it's a, it's a very exciting time. What's up with you.

Meggan: I do need to ask you before we go on, are you guys going to do the driving?

Jenn: We are. Yes.

Meggan: Oh, that's cool. I would recommend that be your next booking is definitely your car rental. Cool. Well, for us, I mean, same old same old but Saturday night we did get out of town. I needed it. I needed away from my apartment walls and we did go to beautiful Chester Nova Scotia, where we've not spent a ton of time.

Jenn: Yeah,

Meggan: we stayed at like the quaint and quirky in the Mecklenburgh Inn we found it just by like perusing, Google maps. Like we've talked together. You never know. Never know. I know. And the owner, Susie, it was kind of cool. She is like a classically trained chef. She went to England, went to like chef school culinary school. I'm sure it's called and her breakfast didn't disappoint. Like it is the quaint little place. Like we had a really good time. Everything in Chester closes at nine.

Jenn: Yeah.

Meggan: And we did as much as we could. We took advantage of the time. And yeah, no, it w it was really good to get away and I didn't know how much I needed it until we were like sitting in a cafe in Chester. I felt so good. Amazing. And since we've last recorded, I became a great aunt for the first time.

Jenn: Congratulations. Very exciting.

Meggan: January 14th, little baby Gracelynn was born. We're going to call her Gracie, unless she's bad, I guess. Come here. Young lady. So yeah, great aunt at 45, I guess I'll take it. Whatever, whatever.

So speaking of getting away from the everyday, like we're all dying to do this. We wanted to have some fun this week and talk about our bucket list destinations. People have bucket lists for a variety of things, ours, of course, with travel amongst other things. And we hope to make these reality.

Of course one day. So Jenn what do you got up first? Where's your first bucket list?

Jenn: My first bucket list is California. I've always wanted to go. I it's funny. I, as a, a young young ish teenager, I'm not sure what year I wrote this, but I wrote like a list of things that I wanted to do in my life. Not just travel, but travel was definitely on there.

California was on that list. It's one of the only places on. Specific lists that I haven't gone yet. But California is a Disney pilgrimage for me personally. So I've been obsessed with Disney my whole life, like the movies of course, and the parks, like I've talked about before. But for me, it's not just that it's actually Walt, the man.

And it's really funny cause I actually, I get emotional when I like. When I hear his voice, like when I talk about him, it's a really weird connection that I have to him. I just. It's I love his creativity. I love his drive. I love how he came from nothing and created this huge thing and how much he loved to entertain people.

So Walt never actually got to see Disney world in Florida because he died before it was finished. So I want to go to the park that, that he built, where kind of everything started. So Disney land in California. You can actually like book a package where you can do like a private tour of like archives and the studios, like where they animate and make movies.

And yeah, I just, I really want to go there. It's like experience all the things. I also want to do like the Pacific coast highway and kind of all of the other, like California-y things, right? Like there's tons of do in California. That's not just Disney. We had planned actually a whole California trip, probably like five, no more than five years ago now.

Cause we've been in COVID for so long, but probably like. Seven or eight years ago now. And part of the Pacific coast highway was like washed out and you would have had to drive way in land. And we were like, what's the point of doing that trip if we can't do it the way we want to do it. So we kind of shelved it, which, I mean, I think in the long run is a good thing.

Cause I want to do the trip the way that I want to do it. But also now it's like, oh, we thought we would do that in like two or three years. And now it's like, all these years later, Yeah

Meggan: With climate change though. I wouldn't wait too long.

Jenn: No, no. Before California's broken off and gone completely.

Meggan: And you're going to hate me when I say this. Been to California many times, but I went to universal, but I never went to Disney.

Jenn: I mean, it's not for everybody. Right.

Meggan: And it's not even that. Cause I've been to Disney world and loved it. A brilliant time. But we did go to Universal I saw Vince Vaughn. So there was that.

Jenn: Yeah. I feel like there's a lot more like celebrity sightings in Disney land than there would be in Disney.

Meggan: I know California is beautiful though, for many, many reasons. We want to go back there and do the same, like PCH road trip as well. That sounds awesome.

Jenn: Yeah. I was just watching on Netflix breakfast, lunch and dinner. Have you watched. It's like a food show where this guy is a chef and he goes around with different celebrities.

In the last episode we watched, they were in California. And they eat like, that's basically all they do, but all the food, the food looks. So it sounds amazing.

All right. Where's your first bucket list destination.

Meggan: So I don't know why this is because I grew up on the ocean, but this is a very different ocean.

So I have always dreamed of like staying in one of those villas that's over the ocean. So like either the Maldives or Fiji or Bora Bora could care less, which one I'm not married to any of those places. I just will take any of them. And I've drempt of this for the, oh the while. Like I just picture myself. Me or someone else, if there's someone there to help me rolling my little suitcase down, like the wooden walkway to the hut over the ocean, it sounds dreamy. Like I can't describe like how I feel that I love the ocean. I love being next to it. It was across the road from my childhood home. Like we're both ocean kids. So that would be a huge deal, but this would be a very different experience. Now I have heard, although I've not done a lot of research at like the nightlife and those kinds of places isn't as, as much because the resorts are so different than like your traditional Mexico resort. But really either way a week of just sort of living like that, regardless of all the other stuff I just think would be incredible.

So I hope at some point during my life to be able to do that,

Jenn: they look so amazing. And I just feel like it'd be so relaxed,

Meggan: Opening your door. I guess maybe even if they have some kind of glass floor or something, like it's just right there. Like, no matter how many times you've seen the ocean, an ocean view is always desired.

Jenn: It doesn't matter how many times I've seen it.

Meggan: Exactly. All right. So the next one you have up is definitely one on mine too, but I'm leaving it to you. So where to next?

Jenn: The Galapagos! I feel like probably the first. 3d movie I saw was like a documentary about the Galapagos, like the trays, the turtles, and like that sort of thing. And I've always been kind of fascinated with it. It just feels like. A whole other worlds, like planet.

Meggan: I can't even imagine.

Jenn: Like I literally can't imagine.

And like, obviously I want to travel there in a way that's not like detrimental. So the wildlife there, so you'd have to be careful about picking like a tour company to go with. But I just think that it would be really like an amazing experience. And it's funny, like my husband went to Ecuador the year that he graduated university with some of his university friends.

Obviously they were on like, you know, a budget it, and so they were like right there, but they didn't go to the Galapagos because it was just too expensive for them. So I know that he kind of regrets that too. So hopefully you can go together someday, but. Yeah, it just, it looks so amazing.

Meggan: I know it's it literally is like, in my mind other worldly, it would just, I don't know, it would be an adventure of a lifetime, for sure.

Jenn: For sure.

Meggan: For me, number two. And these are not in any particular. I'd like to just put that out there. I'll take any at all. So next step for me is Australia. I actually said to Pete, like, you know, when I need to think of some places that I maybe. Forgetting. And he's like, you always talk about Australia.

I'm like, yes, of course. Yeah. And back in 2004, when I spent the month in France that I did it was like a, an essay competition at work or whatever. And my first choice they had got you to choose the places was Australia. But France for a month was fine. Um, But really, it was definitely my first choice.

And then the next year, my friend Shannon won and she got to go to Australia and I'm like, that is so rude because continue to this day. But yeah, I have a friend who lives there as well. Nicole, who I've never met, we're sort of like, I guess been like pen pal buddies through another pal for like, I'm going to say 15 or 20 years. On my wedding day she likes sent me flowers. Her child was born on my birthday. Like we, I don't know, like, and So I really, of course want to meet her and spend some time with her as well, but really there's so many things to do. Like I want to hold a koala and I want to see a kangaroo and like maybe visit Ayers Rock and see the gold coast. And I do want to go to the Australia's Zoo just to see sort of like the foot print everlasting that Steve Irwin left, and I know they're huge into conservation there. So I think I would feel good going to that zoo just to see the work that his children have carried on and stuff. There's just so much, and I know it's a incredibly far to go. I cannot picture Peter flying to Australia and being sane when we get there. And B you really do have to have extra time because. So long, the country's so big, you really are going to have to be choosey because will you get back a second time? So I'd love to have a solid month at some point. And just go as well.

So yeah, definitely Australia is up there for me. So someday!

Jenn: Yeah, australia is also on my list it kind of goes with the next one I'm going to talk about. But my uncle and his wife did Australia and then they took a cruise from off front, like leaving from Australia and they, their pictures, everything just looked so amazing.

And I would also like to go there, but. I chose New Zealand for my list because it's not as spidery as

Meggan: true. This is true.

Jenn: That's the one thing that like deters me from Australia. I'm like spidery

very spidery,

Meggan: but it's so true.

Jenn: But also like, dangerous spidery, like, you know, I don't love spiders. I live in a giant old house. There are spiders. I can deal with them because they're not going to poison me.

Meggan: I'm not there to murder you.

Jenn: Anyway, I'm going to talk about New Zealand.

And like there's so many amazing things to do in New Zealand. I don't even really know where to start, but I want to do a lot of like, outdoors stuff there, like a lot of hiking.

A girl that I knew from high school moved to New Zealand and I just kind of like low key stock her social media. What are you doing there? This looks really cool. Right.

Meggan: Do you mind if I come visit?

Jenn: Yeah, like I know we talked like twice, but you know,

Meggan: those times meant a lot to me and I'd love to follow up.

Jenn: I mean, it just looks amazing, but anyway, I also really want to do like a Lord of the rings tour. Cause. You know, I'm a little nerdy, but if we just watched Lord of the rings movie, like two weekends ago, fresh in my brain about how cool it is there. But yes, lots of amazing things to do. Obviously, I feel like if we're going to go that far, we'll probably do Australia and New Zealand because like, it's that far

Meggan: you're in the neighborhood,

Jenn: you're in the neighborhood, so you might as well just, you know, take a month and a half and do it all.

Meggan: I mean, if I have it, I'll likely do the same. I completely agree. You're there. Just do it. Exactly. Exactly. Well, I'm going to go in another direction here and different part of the world. So next on my list is Cappadocia, Cappadocia

I'm gonna go with Cappadocia though. It is in central Turkey. So I learned about this place. Have you heard of.

Jenn: Yes. Yes.

Meggan: Well, I learned about it from one of the travel bloggers that we follow on YouTube and it just looks so amazing. So they're tall kind of cone-shaped rock formations, adorably called fairy chimneys, which I mean,

Jenn: that's amazing

Meggan: enchanting. And really like the site of looking at them for. In the far distance is just really incredible. You can walk for like kilometers and just explore different ones. You have to be careful of course, but just exploring them. Looks really incredible homes. They're built out of the stone that people actually live in.

The hotel accommodations are like mostly stone and we actually looked it up like either hotel.com, hotels.com or booking.com. And the prices are actually really reasonable. Um, Yeah, I know. This was a couple of years ago, so we'll have to see, but and it's honestly like just one of those places that as soon as I saw it, my heart was just like, it was kind of like Iceland. I'm like, you must go there. Like,

Jenn: yeah.

Meggan: It looks really incredible. And I just would love to like explore them for myself. And obviously, you know, Turkey can be controversial and political and there's a lot of different things to consider, but it is on my list. And hopefully if the world can just calm down that I can hopefully get there someday and explore them. And I want to stay in like a stone hotel.

Jenn: That's really cool. And like, Turkey's also on my list. Didn't make this specific bucket lesson it's on my Rolodex of lists

so many places and yeah, I think that would be. A super cool experience and also like other worldly, like totally different.

Meggan: Anything at this point, besides Clayton perk to me is other worldly. So my standard with my bar is very low.

Jenn: White point just opened up these like tree houses. Is it weird to book something 15 minutes from my

Meggan: that's where we're friggin at man, although White Points now closed, but yes, one,

Jenn: yes. They said the tree house is open on the 1st of February. So

Meggan: I would support you in this venture.

Jenn: I think Ryan would be like talking, doing,

Meggan: we can just sleep in our own beds for free

Jenn: seriously. All right. So the next one I'm going to talk about is a Baltic cruise, which is something that we almost did, right?

Like that's what we were talking about doing with our cruise credit from Norwegian, which we did end up getting our money back from Norwegian cruise line. So now we don't, we're not forced into a cruise, which is nice not to be forced, but this is what we would have done. Although, if I was having my, my first choice, I would like to do like a Viking river cruise type of cruise, like a smaller ship. And you know, you can get more into littler places in a smaller ship, but some of my family have done a Viking river cruise. I remember, you know, my grandparents getting the mail, like the little booklet and just going through it and being like, wow, this looks so,

so here's a lot of countries like OD like Baltic and Scandinavian countries that I'd really like to visit. And so the cruise is kind of like a sampler platter, right? Like you kind of get a day or two in each, and then obviously I'd like to probably choose some of those to go back to. Eventually, but I just like the option of having a little, a little cruise in a couple of different places. And then maybe another time being like, okay, let's go back and spend more time here.

Meggan: Well, that's exactly it. It's just a different kind of travel. Like, you know, you're used to one thing, well, let's try this and just have a dibble dabble of a few places. And then if you fall in love somewhere, you're just like, okay, well this we know we're coming back for sure. So there's certainly a, you know, there's value to that.

Jenn: Yeah, definitely. Anything like living here? I mean, our Halifax airport is great, but our, our flight options can be limited. And so it's harder to get to, especially like Scandinavian countries, right? Like there's no direct flight, really like, you know, we have a seasonal flight to Germany.

We did get direct flight to Glasgow with west jet, which is really nice. So yeah, it's just a, it's nice to get over there and then kind of hop around and then

Meggan: so close over there too. Like it's the world is so different on the other side of the Atlantic it's

Jenn: I know, like, can you imagine going to another country for like a weekend?

Meggan: I know, that's the thing about if you lived over there, you could just jet off to like Spain for the weekend. Or like, I actually have a friend who lives in London and her trips from the weekend, or like I went to Chester and you went to like, Portugal. That seems wrong to me, but it is,

Jenn: it's so true. Yeah. There's just, it's a way better jumping off point over there it is.

Meggan: Yeah, no, it is for sure. And speaking of seasonal flights to Germany, I'm just going to put it out into the universe that I would like to be on one of those in June. Thank you very much. Thank you. Okay.

Jenn: Fingers crossed fingers crossed

Meggan: Um, so for my last choice, I kind of was up in the air again, like you I'm sure there's like so many places and Copenhagen and Denmark was definitely high on my list, but I did choose if possible. And my last one is an ethical safari. So maybe that's an ironic statement. I don't know. I do know people who've gone on them and they have been sustainable ones where animal habitat isn't, you know, abused, but I of course would do my research.

But like Botswana or Kenya. But it is definitely a dream that I have. And like, I am a scardy cat. So seeing animals in the wild, the only way I would want to do that is in like a Jeep. I mean, I've seen elephants and I've seen giraffes, but I guess I've seen lions and tigers too, if I think about it, but like not in their own dwelling, and I just not, I'm not ready. I'm not the lion whisper. Like I follow on the Instagram and I'm not ready to like do that. So yes, seeing them in their natural habitat really does interest me. And I dunno, I'll do my research and it would be the trip of a lifetime. And one of those ones I feel like it's a little farther down, so who knows, unless I like come into tons of money, you don't have to work.

So we'll just hope for that. I'll send that out to the universe as well.

Jenn: I I'm also scaredycat and I, like, I also was scared when we did hiking in Cape Breton that we would come across a moose. And like,

Meggan: as did we. Were the same,

Jenn: for the most part, the moose is going to leave you alone. Right? Like. If there's that chance, I was just like, I'd rather not see the moose. Whereas a lot of people are hiking in there. Like I hope I see a moose.

Meggan: Me too. Like we are the exact same. Like we heard a big crash when we were on the one of the Franny trail. And we're both like, should we just go home? Like let's call this and then on the skyline trail, and like, I literally carried a stick. I'm like, I don't want to like see a coyote. So I scaredy-cat,

Jenn: it's a scaredy cat. Definitely. It was funny. I kind of, I told my husband, you know, Places I wrote down, he was like, you didn't write down Easter island. Like you love Easter island. Oh yeah.

Meggan: Many choices.

Jenn: And then like, I also want to go to like Disneyland or Tokyo Disney and Tokyo Disney sea. And there's like Shanghai D like, I would like to hit all the Disney parks that's like huge bucket list for me,

Meggan: all of our listeners are at home going duh Jenn we knew that

Jenn: knew that, but yeah, we did Disneyland Paris on our honeymoon, and obviously Disney world in Florida. So I just got California. China and Tokyo left. No problem.

Meggan: That's it. That's it. Let's get all this other crap taken care of and we'll start on these lists. Yeah.

Jenn: Oh my goodness. So that's it for today's episode. We want to hear what's on your travel bucket list. So hit us up on social media and tell us what's on your list because maybe we need to add it to ours.

Meggan: Great. I need it. Not that I need more ideas, but I need more ideas,

Jenn: more ideas, you know, so as always, you can find us on our website, travel mug, podcast.com on Facebook and Instagram at travel mug podcasts. And now you can support the show by buying us a coffee. So the link is in the show notes there, you can like donate one time or you can donate monthly.

And it just kind of helps us with the cost of doing a podcast. Cause it does cost money and yeah, you

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Meggan: We're not always perfect here. I mean, honestly, we are most of the time,

Jenn: there's some early ones that oh.

Meggan: Can imagine. Yeah. We're much more comfy now. And really we're the travel mug podcast. Why wouldn't you want to buy us coffee to put in these mugs? Yes,

Jenn: we'd. Our mugs are empty. Please put some coffee.

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Jenn: So, yes. And please consider leaving us a review on apple podcasts or Spotify and sharing the show with a travel loving pal.

And we will talk to you again soon. Bye.