Belated Birthday Post - 30 By 30

Thursday, October 9, 2014

When I left for Italy, I had a solid number of almost-ready-to-post blog posts here. Some were totally ready, others required a little bit of photo editing, or a little bit of writing, but I thought I could totally manage with posting regularly. I also planned to post about Italy on the go, and I was silly enough to think it would be possible to go out in the morning, spend a day outside and then come home and choose and edit photos and tell you about my days. Well - didn't happen! Travelling is beautiful, but also exhausting, so when I would get back home in the evening, I just wanted to s.l.e.e.p. Also, not to mention the internet thing - when you're travelling, you're highly dependent on wi-fi, which I hate. So anyway, one of the things I planned to post was sort of a bucket list, but not really, only things I plan (=wish?) to do before my 30th birthday*, and I wanted to do that on my 26th birthday, which was two weeks ago. I've always loved my birthday, and somehow I don't think 30 is too much - at least I changed opinion when a close friend of mine turned 30 and she was still the same person! But still, as I said here, one more year and I will have to refer to myself as being in my late twenties, which is crazy - especially when it comes to how I feel (and look!). And I feel like a teenager. OK, I shouldn't have told you this :)

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So, if you want to get to know me better, keep on reading. And enjoy your age, whatever it is!


1. Go to the States. The more I travel, the smaller the world seems, so now it looks pretty easy getting to the other side of the pond - at least a lot easier than it did couple of years ago, when I was situated in Serbia. Well, visa is still the issue, but it shouldn't be difficult to obtain. And then? Everything. Everywhere. New York. I told you already, I'm in love with that place even though I've never been there. And I just don't want to listen to people when they say it's smelly and dirty. It's New York City, watch your mouth!

2. Get a drivers license. I failed miserably when I was younger - everybody in my town got one when they were 18, but for some reason I didn't find it very necessary. Then I had some lessons in Belgrade, but they were awful and stressful and the driving instructor yelled at me for not knowing how to drive - of course I don't, I'm here to learn and you're supposed to teach me! I never took the test though. I think it's fair to say I owe my parents money for the lessons. Anyway, being 26 and not being able to drive is a bit of a pain in the ass, so I should get a license ASAP, because...

3. ...I want to go on a roadtrip from East Coast to West Coast. I think it's a perfect way to explore this huge country.

4. Go to Australia. And New Zealand. I have a place to stay in New Zealand (hi Anica :)), as well as some options to work there for a while, so we'll see where life takes me. So far I just know I want to go there before the age of 30. Also, don't Australia and New Zealand look almost extraterrestrially beautiful in the photos?!

5. Go to Africa. And even though I want to go to Egypt and Morocco, for example, when I say 'Africa' I mean deeper down. You know. One word: safari.

6. Go to India / SE Asia / Japan (or everywhere). Ok, you get the pattern. I want to visit every continent. I was being specific here because so far Asia has been the only continent besides Europe I have visited - I went to China two years ago (and loved it, OMG how I loved it!). 

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7. Go to South America. So far I don't have any preferences - I'll think about it when it becomes real. But Brazil sounds very appealing.

8. Even though I don't think it's likely to happen before my 30th birthday, I still want it to happen someday, so I'll include it anyway. Antarctica! Penguins!

9. Getting a Teaching English as a Foreign Language Certificate, so I could...

10. ...Teach English as a foreign language somewhere. My first choice was Asia, but my recent trip put some other ideas in my mind as well. Italy. Oh, Italy.

11. Bungee jump. I'm afraid of heights. From my previous experience I learned that the best way of fighting your fears is just - facing them! Then you 1. know you can, 2. realize that the outcome, whatever it is, is not the end of the world, 3. realize you're just awesome!! So I feel that bungee jumping would make me just the most awesome person ever. Not that it's something I want to be, but you know, it feels good. :)

12. Have those freaking braces already. I know I should, but the thing that really convinced me was a short video that a friend made of her teeth pre-braces, during-braces and post-braces. So all I need to do is, um, live in a same place for a year. Bummer.

13. Get Mom and Dad some plane tickets. Just need to figure out where to. :)

14. Get a dog. I'm a dog person. Always have been, always will be. I remember taking the allergy test at the age of 13, and thinking "please not dogs, please not dogs!". Luckily, it wasn't dogs. I'm allergic to cats a little, but just a little bit - I can still play with them. It's just that no matter how beautiful and elegant and loveable cats may be, I love dogs more. (And I should seriously stop asking people I've just met "Are you a dog person or a cat person?" and then judge them. Or love them more.) When I lived in Belgrade, I tried really hard to persuade my friend and flatmate to get a dog. She didn't even want to hear about it. And now I live abroad, changing countries every now and then, sharing flats, travelling. Those are not ideal conditions for a doggie, I know. But I do hope things will change and I will be able to get this wonderful animal. 

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15. Learn German. Considering the fact that I had German in my elementary, which was like in a previous life, I might be a little late... but not really late. Last spring in Paris I decided I absolutely had to learn two more languages in the next ten years. The hard part was deciding: which two languages? Well, living in Berlin and loving it so much helped answered the question, or at least half of it. If I stayed in Europe, I would really love it to be in Berlin, so there we go!
16. Learn Italian. Yes, I said in the next ten years, so again another thing that doesn't have to be fulfilled by my 30th birthday, but nevermind. I also had some Italian ages ago, and I was amazed to see that I actually remember a lot! I tried to use Italian as much as possible last month in Italy. I'm sure I sounded like a caveman at some points, but hey, at least I didn't have TOURIST! written all over me when greeting and ordering in English. Well, they probably figured out I was one after like second sentence, but at least I hope they found it charming that I was trying.
17. Spend at least 3 months in Rome. I don't know what I could do there (teach English?!), but this city made me fall in love with it like no other. Not everybody I talked to agreed - most people think Florence is more beautiful - but I don't. For me, Rome is perfection. Beauty at every corner. Loveliest architecture. History. Food. Scooters. I just want to immerse myself in that city, without having a tight schedule that requires seeing all the sights in one-two days; I want to walk without an aim through the picturesque little streets. I want to live Rome. 


18. Learn how to make better photographs. I think my photography skills have gotten better in the previous year - and that's also something I have to thank my blog for, because I'm trying harder :) - but still I'm an amateur. I have tons of bookmarked sites about photography, but you guess it - I don't have the time. Why doesn't a day last 36 hours?!

19. Learn how to knit. Actually I wanted to do this last winter in Finland, I have no idea why I didn't! Everybody in Finland knits, it's so popular that they come to the university and knit during breaks or even classes! It's a really cool skill, especially when you loooove winter scarves. I'm all into hand made stuff, it's just that I never make anything myself - I love to support others instead. Well, knitting seems like something even I could do.

20. Take a calligraphy course. Call me girly, but I cannot resist quotes and such written in a lovely way, then framed and hung on the wall or just put on the shelf. If I didn't live this nomad lifestyle, I would buy every single such item I could have found in Finland and Germany! (And Holland seems cute enough so I'm sure they also have those.) So I might just take the course instead and do everything I want the exact way I want!

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21. Ride in a hot air balloon. This was not on my list until I saw this post by Katie from HopeEngaged. It looks just magical - I don't know any other words to describe it! Also, the post was the reason for me to start wanting to visit Cappadoccia - before that I only wanted to go Istanbul in Turkey.

22.  Ride a horse. But really. I once was on a horse's back but he was... walking. That wasn't much fun. I was 13 and I guess my great-uncle, the owner of the horse, didn't want me to stress out, but hey, I want my horse to run. It's what they do in movies, right?!

23. Learn how to apply eyeliner. OK, I know it's hilarious. But still, it's a life skill, isn't it? I don't really do make-up. In fact, I bought my first foundation and blush less than a year ago. But I guess that's a good thing, I mean, I don't have to cover up with tons of make-up, I'm good with mascara and a lipstick. Still, when I see girls (live or in a magazine) with a really well done make-up, I get a little bit envious. Just a little bit. So while I don't want to bother with shades and shimmers and primers (what is a primer anyway?!), I think it would be really nice to be able to have that elegant line made with an eyeliner. Was this too much talk about make-up? Oops.

24. Run a half marathon. I'm not joking. Everybody who knows me knows that I'm not really a workout person. But when I used to run, I loved it, I loved the feeling after running! And then I stopped. I have plans for starting running again soon (soon meaning this or next week) and I hope they don't stay just plans!

25. Read The Lord of the Rings trilogy and watch the movies afterwards. Yeah, you probably opened your mouth in a disbelief now. The thing is, I tried when I was really young (like 9) and didn't like it. So I never took it again. People ask me how come I never saw the movies, but I really don't want to see them before reading the books.

26. Watch all the movies that are currently on my to-watch list. Around 100 of them, yep. And count in around 60-70 I already have on my computer.

27. Same goes for the series. I have a list (not 100 though). I seem to have a list for everything.

28. Take advantage of my Mom's amazing cooking skills, i.e. learn to cook! Also something I should have done when I was way younger. I mean, it's not that I would starve to death if I had to stay inside for a couple of days with groceries and a ban on eating sandwiches, but what I make is edible, and that's mostly it. My Mom is the world's greatest cook, so I should definitely pick up a few tricks.

29. Write. That's something I really love and really want. I'm just scared. I guess all the writers (and no I'm not calling myself one!) are. I got this book for my birthday from a friend. I was very touched. But still, when it comes to actually opening Word, I end up facing a blank page. Or if I don't, I think what I wrote is crap. I think I need to work on that.

30. Figure out what I want to do with my life. And where. Obviously, it's not the least important thing on my list. Somehow it's the one I don't want to think about. But I'll have to. Just for the sake of the adulthood.

What do you want to accomplish by the age of 30, or any other that seems like a milestone? (But isn't really. I do know that.) 



*my 30th birthday is on September 26th, 2018. Just so you know I don't cheat.

4 comments:

  1. looove this post! we have many of the same goals for 30!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks sweetie! But at least you already knit :)

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  2. Sa zakašnjenjem: SREĆAN ROĐENDAN!!! :D
    Želim ti da ostavariš sve sa spiska pre i posle tridesete. ;)
    Pozdrav iz Srema.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hvala - čestitke primam cele godine :)) veliki pozdrav Sremu iz Holandije!

      Delete

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