03Nov 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#54 Run with the Bulls in Spain: Part 2

#54 Run with the Bulls in Spain: Part 2

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 8th July 2017 in Pamplona, Spain. This post continues on from the story in #54 Run with the Bulls in Spain: Part 1. I woke up around 6 am and the atmosphere had not changed much, compared to 2 am. There were still thousands of people running around the city, singing, dancing and drinking. In fact, I think there were probably more people as they had woken up early to get to the course. The course is well defined and is either blocked off by wooden fences or has buildings on either side. The run starts at 8 am but people begin to make their way to the course as early as 6 am. It took me a minute to wake up and…
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20Oct 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#54 Run with the Bulls in Spain: Part 1

#54 Run with the Bulls in Spain: Part 1

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
In January 2017, my girlfriend at the time, Sarah, and I were living in New Zealand. We were experiencing the worst summer New Zealand had seen for several years and were not looking forward to winter. Our solution to the problem was to spend the winter months in the UK and spend some time travelling around Europe. We quickly decided on dates and booked our plane tickets. Once our dates were confirmed I pulled out my bucket list to see if I would be able to cross off some items while travelling. One of the main things I had been wanting to do for a long time was to experience the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, Spain and run with the bulls. This event draws thousands of participants and spectators…
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22Sep 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#63 Attend a European Soccer Match

#63 Attend a European Soccer Match

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 15th October 2016 in Newcastle, England, UK. This story continues from where #69 Go to Stonehenge left off. After spending four days in the Scottish Highlands, it was time to start making my way back down to Newcastle. My friend, Craig, offered me a place to stay in his home with his wife, two kids and two dogs. Craig is a Geordie through and through and was excited to show me around his city. He took me by the Tyne Bridge, which out-of-towners says looks like a small version of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. I think this annoys some Geordies, but Craig laughs about it. We spent a bit of time down at the beach in Tynemouth and returned there later one night…
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25Aug 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#69 Go to Stonehenge

#69 Go to Stonehenge

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 5th October 2016 in Salisbury, England, UK. This story continues from where #77 Get a Picture with a Buckingham Palace Guard left off. The following day, I rented a car and left London on a 10-day road trip that would have me ending in Newcastle. I began heading west and had Stonehenge in my sights. Ever since I first heard about Stonehenge, when I was a kid, I wanted to visit the site. Even at a young age, I loved engineering marvels, so it is no surprise that I became an engineer. Stonehenge is only a couple of hours from London, so I made it there not long after mid-morning. I was expecting to arrive at a parking lot and then walk up,…
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11Aug 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#77 Lesson] Sometimes Life Isn’t Like the Movies

[#77 Lesson] Sometimes Life Isn’t Like the Movies

BUCKET LIST, LESSON, TRAVEL
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #77 Get a Picture with a Buckingham Palace Guard. I am embarrassed to admit that I honestly thought that I was going to be able to make faces at a Buckingham Palace guard. I am abundantly aware that Hollywood dramatises almost everything, but I thought this one was different. I had seen it in so many movies that I thought it was actually possible to achieve. While you can get close to the guards, you cannot get close enough to make faces at them. And if you do make faces at them, chances are it will end up with you in the hospital. I was glad that I had Jackie to tell me that this was unrealistic. At least that prepared me…
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28Jul 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#77 Get a Picture with a Buckingham Palace Guard

#77 Get a Picture with a Buckingham Palace Guard

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 4th October 2016 in London, England, UK. This story continues from where #78 Make a Call form a London Phone Booth left off. Over a few pints, Jackie shared with me the harsh truth, that I was not going to get a photo of me making faces at a Buckingham Palace guard. I heeded Jackie’s advice and made my way to the Tower of London instead. Jackie claimed that the same guards were positioned at the Tower of London and I would probably have more luck getting a photo. I arrived outside the Tower of London at 8:30 am. This gave me time to grab some breakfast and take some photos of the surrounding area in the beautiful morning light. Tower of London…
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14Jul 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#78 Lesson] Stay in Touch

[#78 Lesson] Stay in Touch

BUCKET LIST, LESSON, TRAVEL
This life lesson relates to my previous blog #78 Make a Call form a London Phone Booth. This was a pretty simple bucket list item to achieve, it was just a phone call to my parents. As I have said before though, there is a life lesson in all of these. No matter whether they are easy or hard. This one taught me how easy it is to stay in touch. And also, the importance of staying in touch. My dad was excited to receive the call and it was good to update him on the next leg of my journey. As I grew up, and began to start travelling on my own, my parents and I developed a rule – No News is Good News. Back then, the only…
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30Jun 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#78 Make a Call from a London Phone Booth

#78 Make a Call from a London Phone Booth

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was completed on 3rd October 2016 in London, England, UK. In early 2016, my best mate, Kyle, told me he was getting married. The wedding was scheduled for the end of September and he told me that I was socially obligated to attend. I still had not been home since 2013, so I felt that he was right. It was time to go home. Like many of my adventures, I decided to tie in some bucket list items along the way. The plan for this holiday was to go home for two weeks to attend the wedding, catch up with friends and see my family. After that, I had two weeks planned over in the UK, where I had four bucket list items lined up. This…
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16Jun 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
[#23 Lesson] Keep Your Wits about Yourself When Travelling

[#23 Lesson] Keep Your Wits about Yourself When Travelling

BUCKET LIST, LESSON, TRAVEL
This life lesson relates to my previous blog post #23 Ride in a Gondola Boat in Venice. In my travels throughout the years I have experienced, and have been told about, many schemes where locals will try to hustle unsuspecting tourists. The sad truth is that you never know when it is going to happen until it is already in the process, or worse, it has already happen and you have been deceived. It doesn’t matter whether you have been travelling your whole life or whether you are on your first overseas adventure, everyone is susceptible to being hustled while travelling. One time when I was travelling in Cuba with my family we were on a tour and walked past a beggar. The beggar first asked where we were from…
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02Jun 2021 by Dave Macleod No Comments
#23 Ride in a Gondola Boat in Venice

#23 Ride in a Gondola Boat in Venice

BUCKET LIST, TRAVEL
This bucket list item was complete on 15th July 2016 in Venice, Italy. During the same skydiving holiday in Italy to Grand Turismo, mentioned in my previous post #90 Go to Pompeii, I had this bucket list item in my back pocket. My main purpose for the holiday was to jump out of airplanes as much as possible and I was successful at this by completing 104 jumps in three and a half weeks. The weather in Fano was ideal for jumping and consistent almost every day, which is how I was able to complete so many jumps. However, I had hung out around enough dropzones and knew enough about weather patterns to know it could not last forever. Or at least one side of me was hoping that would…
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