Abhinav Nigam

Bucket list · Experiences

A life outside the pull request.

Eighteen countries, most of India, and a map that is far from finished. Follow the red line. Pick an X.Spin the globe. Pick a pin.

Journals still to come. The countries and cities are real; the places across India, the life list beyond travel and the journals’ words and photos are placeholders for now.

Every seal in the book.Every stamp in the passport.

Boarding pass · 01 / 18

INDMYS

Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur.

Read the journalOpen the story

The tally, so far.So far.

countriescountries
18
citiescities
33
continentscontinents
2/7
of the known worldof the world
9%
leagues of red line from homekm of routes from home
17,50097,200

The book of intentions.The life list.

Travel is but one chapter. Here are the others, kept in the same hand.Travel is one chapter of it. Here are the others.

Every country so far, each with its journal.

The ones that need a deep breath first.Sample entries

  • Fly over Cappadocia at sunrise

    Done inDone · 2024TogetherCappadocia, Turkey

    The story

  • Learn to scuba dive

    Done inDone · 2023Bali, Indonesia

    Sample. One line on how it went.

    The story

  • See the northern lights

    Yet to be doneStill on the listTogetherTromsø, Norway

    Sample. One line on why this one matters.

  • Trek in Patagonia

    Yet to be doneStill on the listTorres del Paine, Chile

  • Jump out of a plane, on purpose

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

Dishes worth crossing a border for.Sample entries

  • An omakase counter in Tokyo

    Done inDone · 2025TogetherTokyo, Japan

    The story

  • Pho for breakfast in Hanoi

    Done inDone · 2022Hanoi, Vietnam

    The story

  • Eat our way through a night market

    Done inDone · 2019Together

  • Learn fresh pasta from an Italian nonna

    Yet to be doneStill on the listBologna, Italy

Skills to pick up and things to build.Sample entries

  • Write the essay that has been in drafts for years

    Done inDone · 2020

    Sample. The micro-frontend article finally went out.

  • Hold a conversation in a new language

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

  • Ship an open-source tool other teams use

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

  • Learn one song well on an instrument

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

Small ways to make the craft, and the people in it, better.Sample entries

  • Help people find their next role

    Done inDone · 2025

    Sample. The referral page on this site is part of it.

  • Mentor a hundred engineers

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

    Sample. One line on why it matters.

  • Give a talk at a conference

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

Plans that only make sense as two.Sample entries

  • A long road trip with no fixed plan

    Yet to be doneStill on the listTogether

  • Watch a sunrise on every continent

    Yet to be doneStill on the listTogether

    Sample. Two down, five to go.

  • Cook a dish from every country we visit

    Yet to be doneStill on the listTogether

No ticket needed. Worth doing again and again.Sample entries

  • See the sun rise and set on the same day

    Done inDone · 2024

  • A full day with the phone switched off

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

  • Leave a kind note for a stranger

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

  • Walk home a different way

    Yet to be doneStill on the list

Voyages in preparation.Next up.

  • INDISL

    Iceland

    Chase the northern lights

    Sample · 2027

  • INDPER

    Peru

    Walk the Inca Trail

    Sample · someday

  • INDRUS

    Trans-Siberian

    Seven days on one train

    Sample · someday

Kept in the album.Moments.

Articles of the expedition.How we choose.

Sample wording. In their own words, to come.

  1. Experiences over places.

    Sample. A city is a starting point; the list is about what we do there.

  2. Small counts.

    Sample. A walk home a new way belongs here as much as a summit.

  3. Two of us, mostly.

    Sample. Most of this list only makes sense together.

  4. Never finished.

    Sample. Every item ticked off adds two more.

Send word.Add to our list.

Know of a place, a dish or a deed that belongs in this book? Write it down and it will reach us.Know a place, a dish or a thing we should do? Tell us, and why. We read every one.