Stone Henge

No. 12 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

The oldest on our bucket list
by some margin I’d suggest
So it’s fitting that to Wiltshire
we should some time invest
A place I must be honest
many times when just a boy
I came to with my parents
to explore and to enjoy

Parc Guell

11 of 12 in “the bucket list” series from Jemverse

Gaudi continued smashing
bits of china for Parc Guell
in the hills of Barcelona
to which we’ve been as well
It really is quite lovely there
and not one to be missed
if you like us are working
through a growing bucket list

Korcula (aka ‘Korcula revisited’)

10 of 12 in “the bucket list” series from Jemverse

To Korcula by tender
Inside the city wall
I climbed the tower of St Marks
some thirty metres tall

The view across the rooftops
full of terracotta red
took my breath away, although
the drop filled me with dread

But I made it back down safely
to walk streets of ancient stone
on this island in Croatia
Marco Polo once called home

Lands End

9 of 12 in ‘The Bucket List’ series from Jemverse

A cold day in February
two thousand and seven
when we finally got to Lands End
on the southernmost tip
of the fine Cornish coast
awaiting us just like a friend

Venice (aka Gondolier revisited)

8 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

Our gondolier sang songs
as he took us into shade
Cool waters in our gondola
combined with serenade

The ancient walls around us
and narrow waterways
Venetian history spoke to us
on this happiest of days

It was beautiful, exquisite
and we had a moment there
Tears of joy from what we saw
in Venice everywhere

Jublains

7 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

though the sun was shining
it was minus fifteen there
and absolutely freezing
in Jublains in open air
Northern France, December
Two thousand ten all wrapped up warm
we visited the fortress
on the hilltop all forlorn
But we really didn’t linger
but walked swiftly round the walls
of this fortress that the Romans
used when conquering the Gauls

The Minack

6 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

Shakespeare wasn’t present
on the bleak Atlantic coast
when we visited The Minack
(though we gave him there a toast)

We quoted from ‘King Lear’
and ‘Macbeth’ as there it seemed
the thing to do in this fine place
as its creators dreamed

And yes our bucket list to England’s
shores and places reaches far
as there’s plenty here to see
which is quite spectacular

Santorini (aka ‘Six hundred steps and an ice-cold beer again)

5 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

Sitting on the harbour wall
with an ice-cold beer
Watching cool blue waters
in Santorini here
I’ve climbed six hundred steps
to Thira at the top
avoiding several donkeys
who looked fed up and hot

Rhodes (aka ‘Mandraki Harbour revisited)

4 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

On Rhodes, the ancient city
built in medieval time
reflects the yellow of the sun
in every way, divine

Windmills on the harbour wall
once caught the southern breeze
Their ancient sails now still of course
beside Aegean seas

And in Mandraki harbour
where Colossus may have stood
I walked beside those windmills
because today I simply could

The Parthenon

3 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

The Parthenon up on the hill
overlooking Athens city
Part of the Acropolis
in ruins (more’s the pity)
But there for two millennia
plus five hundred give or take
it’s looking pretty marvellous
for its age make no mistake

Paris

2 of 12 in “The Bucket List” series from Jemverse

We climbed the Eiffel Tower
by the steps not by the lift
with energy and stamina
right there within our gift
And the view of Paris from the top
was worth the climb indeed
made better by the going down
we later did at speed