A Very Merry Blogiversary to Me!

This month The Bucket List Project is celebrating its one year Blogiversary (is that a thing?) and at the same time, The Bucket List Project’s 50th Blog Post! First of all, I want to say, “THANK YOU” to all my friends, family, and followers of The Bucket List Project. You all are the reason why I have had a remarkable year!

I started this blog with hopes to share once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Also, my dream was to inspire others to go out & chase their own bucket list! Whether that has happened is yet to be seen, but I made a commitment to give it a shot for a year. So here I am writing The Bucket List Project’s 50th Blog Post a little bit wiser with new goals for the next year of blogging.

How and Why I Became a Blogger and Started The Bucket List Project

One year ago, I left my corporate pharmaceutical sales job where I had been for nearly 12 years. I loved pharmaceutical sales. It was a great field that came natural to me and in the beginning it was very fulfilling as I worked with those in the medical field to help patients suffering from a variety of medical issues. However, during the last years, it kind of lost its magic for me for various reasons. But I pushed on until the day my company announced it was going to downsize. Many people scrambled for new opportunities in the pharmaceutical sales field or similar positions, but I didn’t! Instead, I had a revelation and took my leave from the company and the industry.

What was this revelation?

Well, a few years previous, I had been actively pursing my bucket list. It always made me feel good to not only pursue my bucket list items, but also share the ensuing stories with everyone. People would come up to me and ask me all about my adventures. What was even better was when they would find me and tell me how they decided to pursue one of their bucket list items because of my bucket list project! This all led to the revelation that I wanted to more actively pursue The Bucket List Project and share my story with anyone who would listen. I made a commitment to not only tell of my adventures, but also find ways to help others complete theirs. Thus, I started The Bucket List Project Blog and one year later we have The Bucket List Project’s 50th Blog Post!

Happy Blogiversary to The Bucket List Project! #blogiversary #travelblogger #bucketlist
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A Great Year of Blogging with The Bucket List Project

Sharing The Bucket List Project’s stories this year, has been an unbelievable experience on so many levels. Obviously, I love how I have been able to showcase the items I have been able to accomplish on my bucket list. But even more so, I love hearing how this crazy adventure has inspired others to start pursuing their own bucket list items. Below are some highlights of what I have done since starting The Bucket List Project Blog:

• Countries visited: 9
• States in the USA visited: 9
• Books read: 6
• Blog posts published: 50
• Things in my home state of Louisiana I have experienced: 11
• Cool things I have created: 1 (Visit Cuba Coloring Book)
• Weird things I have eaten: 2 (Haggis & Deep Fried Twinkies)
• Greatest accomplishment: Raised $5,680 for Angels’ Place New Orleans & Cool Earth charities!
• Biggest business lesson this year: That blogging is a ton of work in the beginning for small financial return.
• Best personal lesson this year: Despite the small financial return, blogging about The Bucket List Project has been extremely fulfilling and fun.

So what does this year hold for The Bucket List Project – for me personally, as a blog, and as a business?

For me personally, I hope to scratch off more items off of my different bucket list categories. Adventure Travel, Adventure Activities, and Personal Growth items have been fun and quite easy to pursue. However, I would like to focus on my Helping Others list a bit more by helping 2 other people fulfill a bucket list item and perhaps complete the Make A Wish Item. Also, I need to finally attempt to contact at least one person who is part of the hardest list I have, Making Amends.

In terms of The Bucket List Project Blog, I really want to turn this into my full time career. To accomplish this, I need to grow into a more valuable resource for Bucket List items. This will hopefully happen by sharing more fun posts about accomplishing items, but also revealing my struggles and how I overcame them.

From a business aspect, I hope to expand the blog’s reach. Therefore I will need to double monthly views and engage twice as many people on social media. Also, I want to increase my newsletter subscribers. That way I can share better information to more people who want to learn. I also want to create new branded products that will inspire people or help them with their bucket list dreams.

So how can you help?

Blogging is hard! According to statistics, most bloggers quit within their first year due the persistence and effort needed. Sure it may be easy to write one or two posts about an adventure that only your mom reads, but to turn blogging into a viable career, it takes a lot of behind the scenes tedious work! With that said, I am committed to another year of blogging, but honestly I need your help to get there. So how can you help The Bucket List Project get to the next level?

1. Read, Comment, and Share our blog posts!
2. Like The Bucket List Project on Facebook and then comment and share our posts!
3. Follow The Bucket List Project on Twitter and then comment and re-tweet our posts!
4. Join The Bucket List Project on Instagram and then like and comment on our pictures!
5. Check out The Bucket List Project on Google+ and the +1, comment, and share our posts!
6. Follow The Bucket List Project on Pinterest and then re-pin our pins to your own Bucket List Boards!
7. Sign up for The Bucket List Project Newsletter!
8. Recommend to a business that may have products or services that helps people with their bucket list, to check out how to Work With The Bucket List Project.
9. Visit & consider using any of The Bucket List Project’s partners, affiliates, or advertisers listed on the website and in blog posts.
10. Share with me your thoughts on the blog, my latest activities, or some way it may have benefitted you. (This to me is unbelievably valuable and drives me to continue!)

Again, thank you to everyone who has followed our great adventures during this first year of blogging. I hope you enjoy where The Bucket List Project goes this coming year as we accomplish many more bucket list items!

Bust out the Bubbly! It's The Bucket List Project's 50th Blog post! #blogiversary #bucketlist
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Don’t forget to Pin this to your Bucket List Board!

The post The Bucket List Project’s 50th Blog Post! appeared first on The Bucket List Project.

About 10 years ago, a group of crazy people calling themselves ‘The Adventurists’ created an insane 14-day Bucket List adventure race – The Rickshaw Run. Essentially, they created an adventure where participants drive a 3-wheeled Tuk Tuk (a tricycle with an engine) across all of India.  The catch? Well, no one knows what will happen during the race or if they’ll even make it to the finish line.  If you are crazy enough to enter this insane adventure race, you will battle the 1.2 billion people and 140 million vehicles in India. But you will do this all while experiencing an epic adventure trying not to die all while having the time of your life! If you survive, you’ll love to reminisce these funny but true things about the Rickshaw Run.

If you are crazy enough to enter the Rickshaw Run, you will battle the billions people & millions vehicles in India while trying not to die all while having the time of your life! #rickshawrun
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You are going to get lost!

Perhaps one of the most funny but true things about the Rickshaw run is the term “un-route”. The Adventurists use this phrase to describe the path between the starting line and finish line! This is because they do their best not to guide you in order to protect the sanctity of the insanity. Besides, it would be pointless to do any planning or mapping with all the unknown variables that will be thrown at you by the sub-continent. So, expect to get lost everyday. You will drive through the labyrinth of people, animals, and millions of vehicles just searching for a place to sleep and eat every day.

You will become the best defensive driver in the world!

There may be no place in the world scarier to drive than India. The roads are littered with more obstacles that you would find in a Japanese game show. Every day you dodge cows, pedestrians, and countless vehicles that will you put your Frogger skills to the test. You won’t be able to relax behind the wheel, you will learn what defensive driving really is!

Hot Tip: Most places in India are safe to walk around. And though driving across India was a bit nerve racking we never felt unsafe. However, as in any place you travel please use common sense and stay to main areas while exploring. We also strongly recommend that you consider getting Travel Insurance from World Nomads. It is a simple and flexible insurance to keep you safe while participating in this wild adventure.

Going to the bathroom will be a scary adventure!

The only thing scarier that driving in India is using the bathrooms! Of course, none of these bathrooms will ever be considered one of the best toilets in the world. In fact, in the beginning you will find yourself perplexed upon entering a traditional Indian bathroom. If you are lucky, you will find a traditional western style seat. But usually you will see a squat toilet (a hole in the ground with two foot grip pads on each side). If you dare to squat it out, then the real adventure begins. You then have to figure out how to “wipe” with the Bum Gun or a bucket of water with a small pitcher hanging on the side. From that point on, you will undoubtedly hoard any toilet paper you find as you fight off the symptoms of Delhi Belly!

You will sell your soul for a hot shower!

Driving in the Tuk Tuk is a great feeling as the lack of doors opens you up to all of the environment of India. However, you will also collect all of that Indian environment all over your body. Each day you will be caked in the dust, exhaust, and pollution of the road as you struggle to even run your fingers through your hair.

You will carry so much cash, you will feel like a pimp!

At the end of 2016, India created a homemade cash crisis, as Prime Minister Modi announced that all 500 and 1,000 Rupee notes would cease to be legal tender and needed to be exchanged for newly created 500 and 2,000 notes. This caused somewhat of a financial scramble as ATMs were constantly out of cash. Couple that with a great exchange rate ($1 USD to $67 INR) and finding an ATM with cash, you’d likely withdraw so many bills you’d walk away feeling like a baller!

Expect to break down and even crash!

When arriving at the starting line, The Adventurists will recommend that you take one of their mechanics classes. However, unless you consider yourself a grease monkey, these classes might as well be taught in an ancient Sumerian dialect. The Tuk Tuk is a simple engine. But it will most likely cause more issues than any space craft created by a NASA engineer. If somehow you do manage to avoid major break downs, don’t fret. You are bound to crash as the sub-continent and its drivers will throw everything they has at you and your Tuk Tuk.

You will be hounded by the local paparazzi!

Indian Tuk Tuks normally have yellow tops with either a black or a green bottom. So you can imagine the stares you are going to get as your ride your Skittles colored chariot down the road! Everywhere you go, locals will approach you begging for a “selfie”. They will even drive you off the road hoping for a picture to document the time they met some crazy westerner in their neighborhood on their Facebook page.

Ordering food will be a game of Russian roulette!

Beware of the Delhi Belly! This warning will haunt you every time you visit a “hotel” (aka: restaurant) in India! Make no mistake, the food in India is amazing if you can figure out what to eat. It’s just that every time you enter a “hotel,” after being shuffled to the wash rooms, you are handed a menu of countless options and usually without pictures. Therefore, you’ll find yourself pointing to the couple of words you recognize and hoping for the best!

You will communicate a lot via sign language or charades!

According to Census of India of 2001, India has 122 major languages and 1,599 other languages. What felt funny but true about the rickshaw run was that none of them felt like English. However, the Indian people are wonderful and will work with you to figure out exactly what you need. Whether you are ordering food at a restaurant, trying to explain what is broken on the tuk tuk, or just having a laugh with the local kids, get ready to use all kinds of hand signals or charades to get your message across.

Kingfisher Beer will become your stress reliever!

When in India, drink as the Indians drink. Since 1978, Kingfisher has been the most trusted brand of beer in India lubricating those who partake in the refreshing beverage. After a long tense day of navigating your rickshaw, you will immediately look for a tall Kingfisher to relieve the stress of the day and celebrate the fact that you didn’t die.

You’ll make best of friends while having the time of your life!

The Adventurists describe the Rickshaw Run as.

“A 3,000km Indian adventure in a 7-horsepower glorified lawnmower. The Rickshaw Run is easily the least sensible thing to do with two weeks.”

But to be honest, it is probably the greatest and most sensible thing you can possibly do for two weeks. You will meet people from around the world, all joining in an insane adventure. With your new friends, you will discover not only a great country, but also a lot about yourself. Plus if you are able to survive you will have the time of your life.

Don’t forget to Pin this to your Bucket List Board!

Disclosure: This post, “Funny But True Things About the Rickshaw Run”, may contain affiliate links. Using the links doesn’t cost you any extra, and it helps keep the site free, fun, and community supported! Eric & Darcee will never recommend a product that we don’t genuinely believe in, actually use ourselves, have researched, and trust. Please see the disclosure policy for more information.

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Merriam-Webster defines an “adventurer” as someone who likes dangerous or exciting experiences; a person who looks for adventures! Well there is no doubt that in creating the Bucket List Project several years ago, I have sought out adventures of all types. I would spend hours scouring the internet, reading about the experiences of other “adventurers.” Many of these adventure activities and travels were typical to a person with wanderlust. However, there is one adventure that caught my eye and has totally stoked the insatiable adventurer in me, a Bucket List adventure race called The Rickshaw Run.

What is the Rickshaw Run?

The Rickshaw Run is a 14-day Bucket List adventure race that began 10 years ago by a group of crazed people who called themselves the Adventurists! With the hope of making the world less boring, they strive to create adventures where you don’t know what will happen tomorrow or if you’ll even finish the race.

I finally found the un-suspecting co-pilot I needed to join me in the January 2017 Rickshaw Run. Darcee and I will begin the race on January 2nd from Fort Kochi near the bottom of India. For the next two weeks we will race along the west coast toward Jaisalmer in a 3-wheeled Tuk Tuk (a tricycle with an engine). There will likely be many wrong turns, mechanical and mental breakdowns, mutinies and a love-hate relationship with Indian food, all while we are raising money for two charities dear to us.

We will race our highly unstable glorified tricycle, that will break down continuously. While travelling without a set of directions, we will attempt to overcome more obstacles in our path than contestants on a Japanese game show. We will battle the 1.2 billion people and 140 million vehicles in India while experiencing one crazy adventure and trying not to die!

So why on Earth am I doing this?

The short answer – Why not?

Those of you who know me, know that each year I actively tackle many of the over 200+ items in the Bucket List Project as well as try to assist others in going after their personal bucket list dreams.  It’s driven me to accomplish my dreams as well as given me the opportunity to help others!  The Rickshaw Run is helping me accomplish several of my Bucket List items:

14) Participate in 1 Adventurist Race: the Rickshaw Run

165) Learn & Play Cricket with Locals in a Foreign Country

69) Travel to the Taj Mahal, India

199) Raise thousands of dollars for charity

Now of course adventure is the name of the game when it comes to the Rickshaw Run. However, amid the insanity, it has allowed me to do something amazing before even starting the race, give back! One of the major pre-requisites of the Rickshaw Run is to raise funds for charity. Together with friends, family, and even some generous strangers, I was able to raise over $5,600 for both Angels’ Place New Orleans & Cool Earth! You can see & still donate to these great causes via our GoFundMe page at www.GoFundMe.com/EricGamble

The Rickshaw Run looks like the ultimate Bucket List Adventure Race! #RickshawRun #bucketlist
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Still don’t understand what we are about to do?

Still not sure what exactly this Bucket List Adventure Race will look like? Then watch this promo from the Adventurists themselves.

Don’t forget to Pin this to your Bucket List Board!

The post A Bucket List Adventure Race – The Rickshaw Run appeared first on The Bucket List Project.

Ok So I realize that it is already mid May and that 1/3rd of 2016 is already over but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t plan it out!  I just didn’t share it yet!   In fact, every January, I tend to sit down post Christmas and start Bucketlistlusting (is that a word?) from my Old Notebook.  Then I literally create a year graph and draw out how I think I can manage it.  Then I place it by my notebook in a place where I and anyone can see it to always remind me of my commitment to my dreams, hopes, and goals of the year!

But if you read the Origin of our Bucket List Project, I stated that I needed to always post it online for 3 Main Reasons:

1) I need Everyone’s help…keep me accountable, help me find ways to accomplish my goals, or just cheer me on!!

2) I want to help others with their own Bucket List Items.  #103 on my list is to Help anyone Complete an Item on their Bucket List within 1 year of them Helping me Completing one of mine!!

3) I want to Inspire People to Dream & then to GO OUT & COMPLETE THEIR BUCKET LIST!  If I can do this, then ANYONE CAN!  Too many people, my Friends & Family included, just go through life living a mediocre existence!

Therefore, I am here now to post up my 2016 goals for The Bucket List Project & perhaps some insights on how I am going to pursue these items this year.

Now 2016 is a Special year for me in that on February 25th, I actually took my 40th lap around the Sun!  So I decided to go after a couple of big ticket items. So Below, I will list what I had written on my Graph and add or tell you what I have already changed.  Let me know in the comments below if there is anything that is on your list this year or is there anything else that I should add or subtract.  Also, let me know if you want to join me on any of these adventures or projects!

February

• #199) Raise a Minimum of $2,500 for a Charity I Care for Angel’s Place in New Orleans
• #200) Explore my home state of Louisiana
  • c)  See the Preservation Hall Show Live

March

• #202) Ride in a Submersive Underwater Bubble (S.U.B.) in the Bahamas

April

• #118) Geocache in 4 Cities (#1 New Orleans)
• #200) Explore my home state of Louisiana
  • b)Visit Tabasco on Avery Island
  • g) Boudin & Beer at Fred’s Lounge in Mamou
  • h) Zydeco Brunch at Café Des Amis in Breaux Bridge
  • s) Drive the Bayou Teche Byway

May

• #78) Experience the Kentucky Derby
• #104) Finish Reading the 5 Major “Arts” Books
• #203) Start Reading my 11 Classic Adventure Books
• #77) Experience the Indy 500

June

• #188) See the Synchronous Fireflies in Elkmont, Tennessee
• #5) See my 6 Pack Abs

The Next 3 were added to June/July 

• #109) Walk the Camino de Santiago from France to Santiago, Espana
• #185) Visit and Stay with 3 Different Friends who live in Foreign Countries so that I can Reconnect with Old Friends & See that Country through Local Eyes (My Family in Leon, Espana while I am Hiking the Camino)
• #153) Drink Port Wine in Portugal

July

• Do one of my MAKE AMENDS Items hopefully!

August

• #55) Return to Fenway Baseball Park to See the Red Sox Play the Yankees
• #54) Go to a Summer Olympics
• #124) Travel to Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
• #185) Visit and Stay with 3 Different Friends who live in Foreign Countries so that I can Reconnect with Old Friends & See that Country through Local Eyes (My Brazilian Friends I met in 2012)

September

• #187) Travel to Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada
• #108) Do 4+ Outdoor Adventure “Mud Races” (4th & Final is the Spartan near Banff, Alberta, CA)

October

• #167) Celebrate Dia De Muertos in Mexico
• #185) Visit and Stay with 3 Different Friends who live in Foreign Countries so that I can Reconnect with Old Friends & See that Country through Local Eyes (Stay or Visit with Mike Poissenot for Dia De Muertos in Mexico)

November

• #70) Climb the Statue of Liberty
• #79) See the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in Person in NYC
• #89) Travel to the Niagara Falls

December

• PREPARE FOR THE ADVENTURE OF MY LIFE!!!!!

Don’t forget to Pin this to your Bucket List Board!

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