Here are the TOP 10 places I want to visit before I die!
I don’t travel much, but these destinations pent up my travel energy 🙌
I have always avoided traveling since I was a kid. I did not appreciate the blessing in life known as travel. The journey from your home to a place alien to you, is in itself an adventure of sorts.
The journey is uplifting. Your mind needs a distraction from the hustle of life. A trip to another place can be mentally-cleansing and spiritually-uplifting for you.
So here are the top 10 places I want to visit before I die. Starting with…
10. Los Angeles
Los Angeles: Hollywood City, the City of Gangstas.
Better: The City in GTA San Andreas and GTA V
LA is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world’s most populous megacities. Los Angeles is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. (Source: Wikipedia)
When I say Los Angeles, I can guarantee a gamer can think of the following landmarks:
If you are a GTA gamer, you can actually relate to my feelings. Imagine looking at the landmarks that you have drove by in GTA, in real-life.
You look at the highest skyscraper in LA and you think: “Ooh, I have jumped from that tower in GTA”. Or “Ooh, I have robbed that bank before” 😂
I want to visit LA and maybe stay for a week. Visit the Grove, take a tour of Hollywood, look for easter eggs LOL. And the food, oof… exquisite.
9. Mt. Fuji, Honshu
One of the most beautiful mountains in the whole wide world. Here’s my order: Fuji, Kilimanjaro, Everest, Matterhorn, the rest.
Mount Fuji has this decency and calm to it, despite the fact that it’s an active stratovolcano.
Japanese culture is represented by the calming atmosphere after the sunset, pink blossoms everywhere and the sun dawning over Fuji.
I would love to get a picture of Fuji during a sunset.
8. London
London is one of the dream destinations I want to visit. Screw that, I wanna live there.
With its Elizabethan, Victorian and new buildings, it displays a plethora of architecture, design and street life.
There are many landmarks in London a tourist can visit: London Eye, Big Ben, London Bridge, Buckingham Place.
One of the most respected attributes about the city planning is the existence of River Thames. Every major landmark is beside the Thames.
Additionally, the Muslim culture in London has more than risen. I would love to go to Hyde Park, at the Speaker’s Corner. Meet elites like Mohammed Hijab, Subboor Ahmad, Ali Dawah.
7. Spain
Si habla espanol? I do. Well atleast, I am learning.
Spain is the perfect example of the combination of three different cultures. The Judeo-Christian culture and Muslim culture.
Spain was subject to some of the biggest historical events in the history of humanity. The Conquistadors originate from here. Philosophers like Averroes (ibn Rushd), Ibn Arabi were born here.
Cities like Barcelona, Cordova, Seville, Valencia, Granada and Madrid display the best culture in Spain. An intermix of 3 different cultures, the cities’ architecture and tourist spots give you an ultimate adventure.
6. University of Tokyo’s ATACAMA OBSERVATORY
The Atacama observatory is the highest observatory in the world, looking at the grandeur of the cosmos at a height of 18,500 feet.
I want to visit the observatory, take a look at all the different optical instruments, peek at the raw data coming every single minute and ooh, the laser pulses the observatory emits.
It’s one of the places with the least light pollution on Earth. Spread out a mattress, lie down and look at the thousands of stars in the sky.
I have never witnessed the milky way with my very own eyes.
5. The Pyramids of Giza
This is one of the most cliche travel destinations in the world.
No wonder it is. The pyramids complex reminds us of the ancient civilizations; the rulers of the world that left behind their legacies in the form of these gargantuan stones.
The pyramids are subject to all sorts of conspiracy theories. Ancient aliens, astronomical beams, aligned exactly like Orion’s Belt.
That’s just the outside. Once you go inside the pyramids, you enter another world. Cold, deep and full of epitaphs and hieroglyphs, describing the pharaoh’s life, family and history.
This is the place to go to. Not because it is in the USA (I don’t really care about that), but because my most favorite show in the world, The Office, is shot in this city.
I want to visit all the buildings shown in The Office. Penn Paper Tower, Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe, Cooper’s Seafood House and of course, Chandler Valley Center Studios (the office building in the show)
Check out this detailed self-guide of Scranton:
The Office: Scranton Self-Guided Walking Tour | Dunder Mifflin (visitnepa.org)
3. Palestine
We Muslims have an emotional connection with Palestine. It was the first qibla (direction of prayer). It has roots in our ancestry, from the time of David and Solomon (peace be upon them) to the conquest of Jerusalem by the Muslims in 1187 CE.
The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) glorified Philistine (Palestine’s original name) in his sayings (hadith). During the Prophet’s Journey to the Heavens (isra’ wal mi’raj), he prayed with all the prophets of God in the courtyard of Masjid al-Aqsa.
The ancient connection uplifts the experience. Even with all this, the culture of Philistine is a welcoming one. The street food, vendors in the market, the Palestinian people are one of the most welcoming people in the world.
1 & 2. Mecca and Medina
It’s not only a Pillar of Islam to visit Mecca and perform the pilgrimage (hajj), but it is a personal dream of mine to visit Mecca.
When I reverted to Islam, never have I wanted to visit a place more, than Mecca and Medina. These two cities are where the Qur’an was revealed. These two cities are the history of our beloved Prophet (pbuh).
May God give me a chance to visit these beautiful places before I face death. They are the largest pilgrim cities in the world. Vatican City doesn’t even come close.
