How has Planning School affected your Bucket List?

I came across this blog today called 50 Year Project where the blogger hopes to visit the 192 UN countries (now there’s 193, but who’s counting?), watch 100 must-see movies, and read 1001 must-read books before he dies.

As planning students, I think we have a really interesting opportunity to formulate our own bucket lists based on cities. From the international labs and studios (Japan?! Seriously, how cool is that?) to the local, national, and international case studies that fill our classes, is there a better program out there to figure out your own bucket list?

Personally, here are the first 10 places/cities/monuments/etc. I can think of that I just have to see before I die, either from a planning and architectural history perspective or just the tourist in me (maybe a little of both).

Visit where the Berlin Wall once stood. I did a paper last year on the restoration/reconstruction of Museum Island, and the impact of that one piece of infrastructure was (and is still) such an important part of history that I feel like I’d be really missing the point of studying planning and understanding the politics of it if I don’t get to Berlin.
Climb Macchu Picchu. Just because.
Take a gondola ride in Venice (I didn’t have time/money when I was in the city about a year and a half ago, but what a great reason to go back!).
Stand under the I-Beams of the Seagram Building in New York City and worship Mies van der Rohe.
Structure? Ornament? …Awesome.
Photo From: http://designinquiry.net/designless/650/designing-less-from-bau-to-bim-part-i/
Wander the axes of Washington D.C. and head over to Mount Vernon and Monticello during day trips.
Fallingwater in Mill Run, Pennsylvania. It’s Fallingwater…come on!
Frank Lloyd Wright! Must see!
Photo From: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/specialsections/lifelists/lifelist-fallingwater.html
Actually visit Las Vagas. I haven’t been since I’ve been old enough to gamble. That just seems like a waste. Of course, I’d have to bring along “Learning from Las Vegas” and have Robert Venturi guide me.
Go to Canada. It’s right there, how haven’t I been there yet? Recently, another student posted this time lapse video of the Toronto skyline on ASPD’s facebook page and it’s certainly exciting to see such a drastic change over such a short period. What’s next for the Great White North?
Visit the cemeteries of New Orleans. A friend of mine told me that to really experience a city, you have to visit the cemeteries. As weird as it sounds, the cemetery visit to almost every city I’ve been to has been one of the absolute highlights of the trip (Athens and the Carlo Scarpa project in San Vito d’Altivole, Italy in particular were both wonderful experiences).
Take the Freedom Trail Walking Tour in Boston and experience one of the country’s first walking tours. Plus, I could have New England clam chowder in New England and catch a game at Fenway Park, one of the oldest stadiums in the country. So…Boston here I come!

How odd that of the first 10 places I thought of, 6 of them were in the US. I feel like most bucket lists are more grand and internationally focused. Maybe that means I have less of an excuse not to finish it (at least this portion).

What about everyone else? What projects have you studied that you just HAVE TO visit and see and experience for yourself?

– Stephanie Byrd, 2nd Year MPL, Concentration: Design and Preservation of the Built Environment