40 before 40

Number 40

Well, here it is… the full list of things I want to do before I turn 40. Wish me luck!

  1. Go to the festival of lights in Lyon
  2. Beat Jan at mini golf – he always wins, but just once I would like to beat him (completed: 19 August 2018)
  3. Make flour soup (a staple of Basel Fasnacht)
  4. Watch 10 films in German – I hate watching dubbed English films, so this will probably also mean finding 10 German films!
  5. Read the rest of the books from the BBC Big Read Top 200 – I have 63 left to go. (Read: 8/63)
  6. Learn basic Ukrainian – get to at least level 3 on Duolingo
  7. Visit Ukraine – this was originally on my 35 before 35 list, but I changed it due to safety concerns. I’m hoping in the next 5 years things will calm down a bit…
  8. Go out for afternoon tea
  9. Build a snowman
  10. Visit Auschwitz
  11. Look for dwarfs in Wroclaw
  12. See the leaning tower of Pisa – it’s probably not even that impressive, but I just want to see it
  13. Read 25 non-fiction books (Read: 1/25)
  14. Read a book published in each year of my life, so one book each from the years 1983 until 2023 (Read: 27/41)
  15. Give at least 100 pounds or euros each to three separate charities
  16. Try 10 foods or dishes that I haven’t had before (3/10)
  17. Take the funicular up to Rochers-de-Naye (thought to have been the inspiration for Rochers Neiges in Agatha Christie’s “The Labours of Hercules”) – thanks to Chomeuse for this one!
  18. Cook 10 recipes from cookbooks I own
  19. Try an Escape Room
  20. Eat 5 or more portions of different fruits/vegetables every single day for a week (Monday-Sunday)
  21. Take the Glacier Express
  22. Visit a new place in Switzerland for each letter of my first name – thanks to Kezzie for this fabulous suggestion! (4/8)
  23. Visit Pompei
  24. Eat pizza in Naples
  25. See the Rocky Horror Show in the year of its 50th anniversary (since that will be the year I turn 40, if the actual show turns out to be after my birthday I will count this item as completed if I at least have the tickets!)
  26. Get a dog
  27. See the Northern Lights
  28. See a play on the Seebühne (floating stage) at the Bregenzer Festspiele.
  29. Make chicken Kiev
  30. Get the tattoo I’ve been planning for a while – first I have to find a decent tattooist and someone who can draw it for me!
  31. Bake and decorate a cake
  32. Read The Canterbury Tales
  33. Get a new dining table
  34. Remove all my books from my dad’s house, either by having my dad take them to charity shops or bringing them to Switzerland.
  35. Bring my doll’s house over from England.
  36. Go whale watching
  37. Take a trip to the Farne Islands.
  38. Get to my goal weight… but I’m not telling you what that is 😉
  39. Take an in-person course or join a group – it doesn’t matter what as long as it’s something that makes me get out there and interact with actual people. (Scary!)
  40. … I am leaving the final one open for now. If anyone has any suggestions please tell me in the comments (not bungee jumping). Otherwise I will definitely think of something to put here at some point.