Bucket List Places to Visit! By Many Cousins, edited by Pat Kinsella Herdeg

Part One:

A few days of warmer temperatures has me thinking of traveling! So, I asked the cousins: Where are one or two places in America, or in the world, that you have been and feel others in the family should put on their bucket list?

Here are the first of our places to visit:

From Aunt CB:

I feel like Cinderella! MY bucket list fell apart years ago,  but here are some places that I loved! 

Hampton Court, England- -By the time that we got there, I only had few minutes to RUN through the place but I loved it! Had read so much about it!  Henry the VIII had grabbed it from his councilor 
[ OLD FOOL!} and kept it for himself! As I especially like English History, I wanted to see where he had lived! [he and Ann for One!]

Hampton Court Castle

 I also love Borthwick Castle ,14 or 20 miles from Edinburgh, Scotland. Really enjoyed this because of family connections. Mary, Queen of Scots, slipped through the portal off the side of the great room, to escape her "council'! I could have never have fit through but she had help, dressed as a pageboy! The fireplace in the same room have roasted a whole ox and left room over. Stepping in the worn hollows of the circular steps to the second and third floors, I felt that I was following my ancestors.

As an added plus, Sue Kinsella also chose Borthwick Castle. She writes:

Borthwick Castle - A castle of our own! Through the Baker family, in southern Scotland (TBC story at http://taylorbakercousins.blogspot.com/2008/10/castle-of-our-own-by-sue-kinsella.html)

Aunt CB At Borthwick Castle

 Aunt CB, aka Mom, continues--As for the rest, I guess I am a USA gal. Loved Watkins Glen as a kid, go visit Bridget (Chris' daughter) there this summer!! 

From Uncle Jack:

Newgrange, Ireland is at the top if my bucket list and I encourage others on the blog to add it to theirs.

Newgrange is in County Meath and is often called the Stonehenge of Ireland. Funny thing, it is 1000 years older than Stonehenge (and in my opinion much more impressive) but was practically unknown until it became a member of the European Common Market in the 1970's. It was then that tourists began to hear about it and it became very popular.  

My first visit there was in 1975, shortly after archaeology work was completed on it. At that time there was just a small bookshop on the site and one or two other visitors. I just walked over to the main entrance which was covered with small quartz stones interspersed with a few football sized black rocks embedded in them. I then walked up a narrow passageway to a large vaulted chamber which was illuminated by electric lights. I learned that on December 21, the shortest day of the year, this chamber is illuminated by the rising sun.

I was told that the quartz stones had come from a nearby river side but no one knew where the large black stones came from. It wasn’t until 2002 that it was discovered that the site of these stones was a beach called Rathcor in County Louth, Ireland. Now hold on to your hat-it turns out that Rathcor is the home of my Ferguson ancestors!! So when I visited Ireland in 2003 with Tim, Kristin and my brother, Bob and his wife, Mary, we journeyed to Rathcor and sure enough there were black stones still to be discovered on the beach. Kristin was kind enough to scramble down and pick up several for us.

From Evelyn Taylor:

For me, it would have to be Australia and New Zealand to be put on your "bucket" list.

 In New Zealand on the north island at Waitomo, a must experience are the

 Glow Worm caves.  

Glow Worm Caves

From Chris Kinsella:

Quebec City - Old world charm in America.  Only walled fortress city in America.  Very historical with battle of Quebec on Plains of Abraham.  Food fantastic

Quebec City

Scotland- very historical with castles everywhere.  People very friendly.  Incredibly kid friendly much more than US.

 Scotland

More places to dream about in the next installment!