My DNA Bucket List | Where I Want to Travel Based On Genetics (2024 Update)

If I didn’t narrow down a travel bucket list somehow it probably would have been a list full of… just everywhere in the world! There are very few places I wouldn’t go if given the opportunity. Like, if an all-expenses-paid trip to Antarctica was laid out in front of me, you bet I’d muster the courage to make that treacherous boat ride across the Drake Passage!

Anyway, I figured I’d start with where I want to go based on the results of my Ancestry DNA test. There’s a connection to each of these countries that I’d love to learn more about.

I was both surprised and not surprised by the results I got back from Ancestry. First, it says I’m much less Italian than I grew up believing – mind-blowing news to me! It also says that I’m basically a European mutt, which just makes sense, honestly.

---

UPDATE: Since the original publish date, Ancestry has updated my DNA results several times. As more people take DNA tests the comparison pool grows larger, and they can more accurately pinpoint what ethnicity region your DNA looks like.

My Background

So, I grew up with the predominantly Italian side of my mother’s family, and I feel very much Italian.

Right now, I am mentally pinching my fingers together on my left hand and bouncing them in front of my face to accentuate that word feel. Using my hands to reiterate what I’m saying – I do it all the time! That’s pretty Italian, no?

As Italian as I feel, I don’t see an Italian-American when I look in the mirror. I don’t resemble my grandmother’s sisters, aunts, or my cousins with their olive skin, thick dark hair, and brown eyes. My fair complexion and light blue eyes scream some kind of mixture of English, Irish, and Scottish, just as Ancestry reports.

I know very little about my father and his side of the family. As well as my mother’s father and his family origins. I have to assume that the bulk of my non-Italian DNA comes from them.

My Ancestry Make Up

2020 Original

• England, Wales + Northwestern Europe 40%
• Ireland + Scotland 24%
• Italy 21%
• France 8%
• Greece + the Balkans 4%
• Germanic Europe 3%

2024 Update

• Ireland 32%
• Southern Italy 17%
• England & Northwestern Europe 15%
• Scotland 9%
• Northern Italy 8%
• Aegean Islands 6%
• Germanic Europe 6%
• Norway 4%
• Greece & Albania 3%

I still proudly say that I’m Italian whenever I’m asked despite Ireland coming out on top. Well, except that one time an Italian man in Italy asked me what I was, and I couldn’t give him a straight answer at first. That was my very first existential crisis!

Also, I can’t really deny my Italian heritage with a surname like Quaglieri, even though it’s not even my familial name. That is a story for another time, though!

Where I Want to Travel Based On My Genes

Now, based on my Ancestry test results, here is my DNA bucket list!

Ireland & Scotland – 32%

Even at 24% of my DNA, this is the same as England and Wales. With a little more information, I bet I could track down some distant and not-so-distant relatives!

My DNA Bucket List Places in Ireland and Scotland

County Mayo, Ireland | For no other reason really than my grandfather’s name is Mayo. *shoulder shrug* County Mayo is known for having the third-highest cliffs in Europe at Croaghaun, Achill Island, and some of the most picturesque landscapes in all of Ireland.

Scottish Highlands| While most filming for the show Outlander did not actually happen in the Scottish Highlands, these are the places depicted in the first book. I’d love to see Inverness, Culloden Battlefield, Loch Ness, the Highland Folk Museum, and Glen Coe.

Italy | Southern Italy – 17%

Compared to the two previous sections, this portion of my DNA is more fine-tuned and specific. It drills my DNA down to the area in the inner circle pictured above. And it tracks since I’ve managed to trace this branch of my family tree back to the 1660s in this region.

This also happens to be the part of my family history that I know the most about, and I don’t even know all that much since my family isn’t big on sharing information. What I do know is that my maternal great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from a small town in the early 1900s.

It’s so exciting to think that I might meet some distant cousins when I go there!

My DNA Bucket List Places in Italy

Ofena | This is where the majority of my ancestors have lived for the last 350+ years, and where my great-grandparents (Maria and Giuseppe) lived before moving to the US. According to Ancestry, my Great x7 Grandfather, Francesco Moscardelli, was born in Ofena in 1666. That’s as far back as my family tree goes, so far.

Ofena is a small village (or commune, as its called on Wikipedia) in the Abruzzo region of Italy. It is close to the Gran Sasso e Monti Della Laga National Park, home to the highest point in the Apennine Mountains. There are miles of vineyards, olive fields, trails, and wide-open spaces to explore in the mountains surrounding the town. As far as I can tell, less than 1000 people live in the village today. I’d say there are plenty of things to keep me busy when I visit!

Castel del Monte | This town popped into my family tree in about 1825 and ancestors can be traced back to 1712. It’s only a 25-30 minute drive away from Ofena, so I’d say that’s worth a visit!

Villa Santa Lucia | Only one ancestor in my family tree was born in this town but it’s only an 8-10 minute drive from Ofena. Plus, it’s on the way to Castel del Monte. So, I might as well, right?

England & Northwestern Europe – 15%

I find this portion of my DNA fascinating because of the region’s history of human movement. It’s a mish-mash of Celtic, Roman, Viking, Norman, and Anglo-Saxon bloodlines and cultures. Because of this, who’s to know what lineage I actually have ties to?!

This is a significant portion of my DNA. With even just a little information about my father and maternal grandfather, I bet I could make some family tree connections and find some living relatives.

My DNA Bucket List Places in England

Any town that is also a town in Massachusetts | Did you know there are over 150 towns in the UK that share a name with towns in Massachusetts? For years now I’ve been marking them on a Google map and plotting a big, long road trip to visit all of them!

Germanic Europe – 6%

Could this be remnants of Anglo-Saxon ancestors that immigrated to the British Isles? Perhaps. Just like my Greek DNA, ancestors would be impossible to trace but worth visiting and imagining how far back in time they existed.

My DNA Bucket List Places in Germany

Munich | I’d love to visit Munich in the winter to explore the Christmas Markets, drink all the Glühwein, and eat all the German sweets and snacks. As the capital of Bavaria, Munich is a great starting location to explore the rest of Bavaria, probably in the shoulder season. That light purple blob in the screenshot above (mostly in Bavaria) indicates that it’s a concentration of DNA similar to mine.

You may have thought that I listed Munich because it’s home to Oktoberfest. Sadly, you are wrong. Giant crowds of drunk people are not my jam. However, if I were to go to Munich during Oktoberfest I would follow this guide to avoid crowds by Wandering Chocobo.

France – 8%

This is where the concentration of DNA drastically declines. Meaning that any ancestors I have in this area were from several centuries ago.

My DNA Bucket List Places in France

WWII Sites in Normandy | Learning about the events of D-Day from afar, like in school or through films, is one thing. Seeing the memorials and beaches, feeling the sand with your own hands, being in the place it all happened is quite another. I’d follow this guide 7 of the Best D-Day Sites to Visit in Normandy by Destination WWII.

Giverny | To balance the heavy history, I’d go elsewhere in Normandy for art. Giverny, France is where Claude Monet lived and worked most of his life. Monet’s home and gardens – the source of inspiration for much of his work – are open for exploring, and his burial site is nearby (because I’m totally into cemeteries).

Greece + Albania – 3%

Making up only 4% of my DNA, my ancestors in Greece would be impossible to trace. I’m not sure how it works, it might go back a thousand years. Imagine if I was related to Plato or Socrates!?

My DNA Bucket List Places in Greece

The Ionian Islands | I love places with distinct borders, like the island of Corfu for instance. The island lies off the Western coast of Greece, straddling the border of Albania at the heel of the boot of Italy. Amazing! Also, the island has deep roots in Greek mythology – something I’ve been interested in since I was a kid.

SAVE THIS POST FOR LATER!