Thursday, September 10, 2015

The New City Passport

I wrote a blog post the other day about how much I hate packing and with less than 24 hours left before I depart, I'm still procrastinating. This time, procrastinating involves a much larger project. Several of my friends have just relocated to brand new cities (well, the cities have been around a while, but my friends just got there) and I want to help them get out and experience new things.

Because I'm still procrastinating and maybe because someone who reads this has just moved too, I thought I'd put my hard work here as well. Happy hunting.

THE NEW CITY PASSPORT
Congratulations on making it to your new home! As you unpack your bags, you’re probably wondering what you should do next and, now, I have got the answer for you! Below is a list of activities for you to complete within your first year in your new and exciting city and hopefully at the end of the year, you will have a wonderful scrapbook of all the amazing things you never thought you would try.

Guidelines for the New City Passport:
·         Items do not have to be completed in order nor do all items necessarily need to be completed.
·         Photographic evidence is required for each activity. You should also save any other mementos you come across (playbills, tickets, receipts, etc.)
·         Add your own item to the list! In fact, that’s one of the things on the list, but feel free to add as many as you like. This is about remembering an incredible year, so anything that was incredible or special to you should be included.
·         Share the love! You’ve got roommates, feel free to send this list to anyone you think would benefit from having some fun.

To Do:
1.       Visit at least one popular tourist attraction
2.       Buy yourself a really ugly piece of memorabilia from your new home (i.e. tacky magnet or bottle opener but it has to be ugly and say the name of where you got it! Bonus points if it is wearable)
3.       Go postcard hunting!
o    Mail yourself a postcard today (make sure to date it!) describing how you feel about your new city and what you hope happens this year. Mail it to yourself (yes, this step is very important, it has to go through the US Postal service) and then put it somewhere safe, but don’t read it again. Write yourself another post card at the end of your first year and mail it to yourself and then compare the two!
o    Mail me a postcard! I just want to know how you’re doing, plus I love getting mail! Make sure to date it so that I know when you sent it!
4.       See a play (or 10)
5.       See a foreign film. Bonus points if there are subtitles
6.       Go to a concert (rock and roll, classical, that random indie-hippie chick with a guitar at the local coffeeshop, whatever)
7.       Visit a local museum/art gallery
8.       Volunteer for at least one hour at a charity of your choice (hooking up with ugly people doesn’t count as charity)
9.       Eat at an authentic Chinese restaurant (and no take-out either!)
10.    Try a foreign cuisine that you’ve never had before
11.    Eat at an exclusively vegetarian/vegan restaurant
12.    Find a really, really good pizza place and try a topping you’ve never had before
13.    Find a good place for breakfast that ISN’T Dunkin
14.    Get your coffee/work on your screenplay at a coffee shop that ISN’T Starbucks
15.    Go to an ice cream parlor (parlor? Restaurant? Whatever, it’s ice cream!) and order the most expensive thing on the menu (within reason, but hey, live a little!!)
16.    Find a thrift store
17.    Go to three independent bookstores (that you’ve never been to before). Bonus points if you can find a bookmark (or business card)
18.    Make dinner – get all of the ingredients from a local farmer’s market or independent stores
19.    Take a different route than your usual one to work (or the gym or somewhere else – anywhere you go on a semi-regular basis)
20.    Go to a yoga class
21.    Go to a Zumba class
22.    Visit your local library and take out a book
23.    Say hello to a neighbor that you don’t normally talk to
24.    Plan a day trip for somewhere outside of the city
25.    Make a new friend

26.    Add at least one thing to this list: 

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