7 days. 6 nights. 168 hours to go. After booking the trip nearly a year ago, I can’t believe it’s almost here. I’m so excited that I thought it worthwhile to spend a little time mentally prepping for all of the fun with my top 10 bucket list to-dos / to-see for this trip!

Hallgrimskirkja Church | Reykjavik, Iceland

10. Hallgrimskirkja Church. One of the most iconic landmarks in Iceland, it’s visible from almost anywhere you stand in Reykjavik. While the building architecture is truly unique, I’m most excited to see the enormous organ inside which is rumored to weigh more than 25 tons!

Perlin Restaurant | Reykjavik, Iceland

9. Perlan Restaurant (The Pearl). Said to be of the most popular tourist destinations. As a Chicagoan, surrounded by ridiculously fantastic restaurants, I hate when tourists don’t experience the more unique eats. I’m going to give this place a try anyway because WOW, views.

Street Art | Reykjavik, Iceland

8. Street Art & Architecture: All of the aerial shots I’ve seen of Reykjavik make it look like a majestic winter wonderland – bright colors, sleek lines and clean snow. Interestingly, you can’t tell from those snapshots the incredible street art that lines the town. We’re going to spend a whole day just walking around town… ‘least that’s the plan!

Laundromat Cafe | Reykjavik, Iceland

7. The Laundromat Cafe. This place has been on my list ever since reading a blog post about it. We typically make a stop at a place like this to draft our postcards and do some people watching. This place looks like the perfect place for that. Oh, and if we need to – we can actually do our laundry there too.

Lebowski Bar | Reykjavik, Iceland

6. Lebowski Bar. Yep, this is real thing. A bar… in Iceland… with a theme honoring the Dude. Reviews online say they’ve got a decent burger and cheap beer – sold. To top it off, 16 types of white russians and bowling lanes bring the theme full circle. There is definitely potential for us to have some fun here.

5. Reykjavik Folk Music Festival. I’ve been a fan of Folk art since being exposed to the Kentuck Arts Festival in North Port, Alabama – but can’t say I’ve had immense exposure to Folk music. In researching for this trip, I learned about this annual 3-day folk music festival which has in the past featured such artists as Of Monsters and Men (which I am familiar!). Artists and bands appearing at Reykjavík Folk Festival 2015 are: Teitur Magnússon, Ylja, Kólga, Funi, Timburmenn, Lindy Vopnfjord (CA)… and some others that I can’t pronounce. As a music lover – I’m super excited for this.

4. Golden Circle Tour & Gulfoss Waterfall. I am totally a nature girl and am absolutely mesmerized by the natural wonders of the world. This tour we scheduled is a smorgasbord of outdoor adventure. We’ll be seeing the Strokkur Geyser, Gullfoss waterfall, and Thingvellir National Park – which if you don’t know is where American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart and leaving a gap in the earth!

Gulfoss Waterfall (Golden Waterfall) | Iceland

3. Blue Lagoon & In-Water Massages. In the last year, I’ve become a spa junkie. I love the saunas, steam rooms, hot tubs and complementary champagne. I’m about to step my spa game up big time and spend the day at the Blue Lagoon! On top of just bathing in the geothermal heated water – we’ll be getting in-water massages!

Blue Lagoon | Iceland

2. Northern Lights. One of the seven natural wonders of the world – I’m most excited to see this because I don’t know if we will. No one knows when it will be visible – but we picked our trip timing specifically because it’s supposed to be more likely to appear during this time of the year. You know what they say – if you can’t see it the first time, try, try again!

Northern Lights | Iceland

1. And the thing I am ultimately most excited for… is exploring all of the above with the bestest bestie that ever bestied, my BFF Katy. Exactly one year ago we were having the time of our lives exploring Italy together. This adventure is going to be just as remarkable – and I cannot friggin’ wait!

Travel Besties | Rialto Bridge – Venice, Italy