Life as a Bucket List

 

The other day I had a discussion with my friend and I came to the conclusion that the reason so many people are unhappy with life right now is due to the fact that so many of us, intentionally or not, view life in a 'bucket list' format. A lot of my friends definitely view life as a success only by 'ticking off' goals or fulfilling expectations of either themselves or others. I, myself am also very guilty of this. The struggle is, I suppose, managing somehow to find happiness and not measure it in any way. However, that seems like an unrealistic expectation for anyone, as happiness is always measured somehow; either by yourself or by those surrounding you.

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful." - Albert Schweitzer

BE REALISTIC

This is definitely key to feeling better about life; having a positive attitude will enable you to to focus. If you stop measuring life by what you've achieved or not and instead concentrate on what is going well in your life, you will automatically be happier. By not having any excessive expectations of yourself you can find a find of contentment without feeling the need to be in constant control. I've become a bit of a perfectionist with age, so this is something that I do have to work at. However it's important to learn how to channel your inner control freak. Sometimes you have to think to yourself that if you're obsessed with having better, it will be impossible to be happy with what you do have.

"Life is like a camera... Focus on what's important. Capture the good times, develop the negatives and if things don't work out, take another shot." - Ziad K. Abdelnour

FOCUS ON YOU

Most recently, I've learnt that putting yourself first doesn't make you selfish. Sometimes you have to think about yourself in order to be happy, or at least feel happier. I'm sure everyone has that friend who never seems to be around when you need them, or when you have a problem. I've learnt that sometimes you need let these people drift out of your life. There's no point in begging people to be around you, especially if you're not feeling positive as it will just drag you down again. If you continuously focus on what makes you happy, and what you want then you're much more likely to get it. Confidence is genuinely the key to providing happiness, as difficult as it is to find. I doubt that anyone in the world is 100% happy with themselves but the sooner that you accept yourself for who you are, the more likely you are to find like-minded people and therefore grow a new, more supportive friendship group.

"Being honest may not get you a lot of friends, but it will always get you the right ones." - John Lennon

FIND AN OUTLET

Blogging has become a really useful way of letting out my emotions; I spent a long time thinking that life wasn't worth living and that I had nothing, when actually sometimes you need to make you life the way you want. I've always been creative and so that was an obvious thing to re-ignite within my life. As I enjoyed photography so much during my studies, I knew that was something I wanted to go back to, blogging has become a great way to mix photography with reality and it has become a visual diary for me. In the next few months I'm looking forward to starting to scrapbook alongside this as a way of keeping positive. I'm planning that whenever I'm down, I can look through the good times and remember that it can always get better. I've had a really rough year, most of it ruined thanks to negativity and depression but I feel as though I'm finally back on the right track; at last I'm looking forward to the future and actually feel in control of it.

"An entire sea of water can't sink a ship unless it gets inside. Similarly, the negativity of the world can't put you down unless you allow it to." - Anonymous

My travel bucket list

 

Rome, Italy

I've always dreamt of visiting Italy, ever since studying the Romans at primary school, strange as that sounds. I'm in love with the architecture of Rome and the deep history, I really enjoy visiting museums and galleries, as well the opportunity to learn more about a place and Rome has such a rich history I know that I could do all of those things with ease. One obvious sight to see is the Colosseum, as well as others such as the Vatican, Trevi Fountain and the Sistine Chapel. I studied art at university and Rome has so many pieces of art I would literally be spoils for choice of what to see, and obviously the food and drink would be incredible, Italian ice cream anyone?

Tromsø, Norway

The reason I want to visit Norway is primarily to see the natural phenomenon that is the Northern Lights, but I'm also interested in the Polar Park, Lutheran Cathedral and the Cable Car which runs through a mountain range. There's also many museums and art galleries to see but ultimately the main pull of Tromsø its the breathtaking views you see throughout the city; it's rare to see such natural sights such as the sea, mountains and the night sky all at the same time and truly appreciate it.

Sydney, Australia

It's going to sound a bit strange, but in short; during primary school my best friend emigrated to Australia with her family. Like many childhood friendships, it fizzled out but we still have each other on Facebook and wish each other happy birthday every year. But ever since then, I've always had a wish to travel to Australia. From a tourist point of view, I really want to see Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Opera House, The Royal Botanic Garden, The Rocks and Taronga Zoo.

Budapest, Hungary

I've always wanted to explore more in Europe, particularly as I've always been interested in architecture. Budapest is home to some really spectacular pieces of architecture, especially in gothically styled churches. There are so many beautiful buildings to visit, such as Buda Castle, Chain Bridge, Hősök tere, Fisherman's Bastion, St. Stephen's Basillica and the Hungarian Parliament Building. It's one of the largest cities in Europe and a has some strange but interesting things to do, for example the Budapest Pinball Museum and I would be tempted to indulge in a buffet-style night time river cruise.

San Francisco, USA

The Golden Gate Bridge is probably the most well known architectural reason to visit San Francisco, but there are also many other highlights, includin Land's End, San Francisco Bay, the Palace of Fine Arts and Alcatraz Island. Aside from that, it's also a massively populated and busy city as the main commercial and financial centre of Northern California; therefore skyscrapers are everywhere and make for a beautiful viewing, particularly at sunset.

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Ever since reading 'The Fault in our Stars' by John Green I've always had a passion to see the city of Amsterdam (and yes, I am aware that it is a fictional book!) the main reason the being the huge artistic culture of the city. There are so many things to see, some sad and some really enjoyable. These include The Anne Frank House, Van Gogh Museum, Rijksmuseum, Oude Kerk, Heineken Experience and the Joods Historisch Museum. I have to admit I'm not fan of cycling though, but I'm sure walking would do just fine :)

Stockholm, Sweden

Sat next to the Baltic Sea, Stockholm is the capital but I mainly want to visit and see the areas that I've read about so much in the 'Millenium Trilogy' by Steig Larsson, strange as that may sound. I particularly want to see the medieval town of Gamla Stan, as well as other sights and attractions such as The Vasa Museum, Djurgården, Drottningholm Palace, Fotografiska, Nobel Museum, Livrustkammaren, Nordic Museum and Långholmen. Plus there are so many little hidden cafes and bookshops to explore.

Prague, Czech Republic

By far the ultimate destination for architectural beauty, Prague is made up of gothic churches and medieval buildings. Some of the main tourist attractions are the Charles Bridge, St. Vitus Cathedral, Prague Astronomical Clock, the Old Town Square, Museum of Decorative Arts and Prague Castle. Another reason to visit Prague is my childhood love of Ballet; Prague is famously home to the First International Ballet School and there are many performances to be seen at the National Theatre.

Barcelona, Spain

Atoni Gaudi's architectural creations are famous throughout the world and the Sagrada Família is definitely an excuse to visit Barcelona alone; however there are so many sights and attractions to see its almost impossible to decide where to go and what to see. There is the Gothic Quarter, Casa Milà, Park Güell, The Picasso Museum, MACBA Barcelona Contemporary Art Museum, Barcelona Cathedral and Santa Maria del Mar. Not forgetting the beaches and natural sights as well.

Geneva, Switzerland

I can't even fully explain why Geneva is on my wish list; but there are some really beautiful places to visit, such as the St. Pierre Cathedral, Musée d'Art et d'Histoire, the Natural History Museum of Geneva, Jet d'Eau, Musée d'Art moderne et contemporain and a Grand Théâtre de Genève. It seems like the kind of place which would be perfect to wind down and generally relax in.