Year 1 - Review

Year in Review

We sold everything we owned except what fit into a 10x10 storage unit and left Baltimore on 9/30/2022. Since then we have traveled to 13 countries (usa, mexico, ecuador, portugal, france, spain, england, italy, montenegro, serbia, albania, greece, north macedonia).

We've stayed overnight in 30 different places, a combination of hotels, apartments, houses, or with family and friends. We try to limit flights, both from environmental concerns and because it's not a pleasant way to travel. We've taken trains, planes, buses, taxis, ferries, ubers, private cars, but mostly we walk whenever we can. This year we walked 1,070 miles and over 1500 flights of stairs. Yes, I use an app to track all that (Pedometer+).

We don't own a car, and we try to keep our environmental footprint small. But to offset the times when we do fly, or take cruises, we donate to a company that plants trees and invests in environmentally sound energy projects. This year our funds went to planting 1702 trees and 44 energy projects. If you are interested, check out www.ecologi.com/billandraine

Overall, we spent more than expected. We had family emergency which meant one round trip flight to the US from Mexico. We replaced gear. We bought stuff that we ended up not needing. Flights in general were much more expensive than we had anticipated, partially due to increases in fares by airlines. The cost of our month in Baltimore was eye-wateringly expensive. We also need to be careful about hotel nights. We either need to go with cheaper hotels, or cut the number of nights.

In general though, once we were in a destination, our budget was more than sufficient. Next year, we will also be able to take advantage of travel points and that should cut costs for flights and hotels.

We definitely intend to continue with our full time travels. It has been a wonderful experience.I feel like I've grown so much, and learned even more. If you are thinking of going, GO. Seriously. GO. You won't regret it.

For me the highlights were our cruise to the galapagos, seeing the monarch butterly migration, visits with family and friends, venice, monte isola, the food everywhere, the streets of Seville, a weekend in Porto, Aix, Cassis, Kotor, the trip from Quito to Cuenca, the bag of figs the neighbor brought us,the small conversations with locals, the unbelievable kindness of people everywhere, seeing new sights, and seeing things in person that I had only ever seen in pictures.

Things don't always go as planned. For me, the lowlights included our bus trip from Sarande to Ohrid, Bill getting sick in Mexico, me flying home for a family emergency, my tachycardia in Cuenca, the time I left my phone in the taxi, the riots in Marseille, our first christmas away from family and friends, and missing loved ones.

I have developed a profound gratitude for hot showers, good wifi, places where you can drink the water, clean laundry, a good bakery in walking distance, walkable cities, a comfy pillow, and ATMs.

Best Of/Worst Of:

my favorite new foods -- bacalao a bras, ajvar, pide, stuffed peppers, all things tapas

least favorite - cevapi

Best places -- Lisbon, Aix en Provence, Seville, Podgorica, Ohrid, Monte Isola

Worst Place -- Marseille

best gadgets -- my iphone, the universal power adapter (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BMGL6CBB), my pack (https://www.amazon.com/Osprey-Europe-Farpoint-Wheels-Muted/dp/B09KQ42TD9), Bill's pack (https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?variant=11530908172332),

battery operated razor (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Q3PUJI)

Worst gadgets -- small travel camera https://www.amazon.com/Olympus-Tough-Waterproof-Camera-Bundle/dp/B07WZGZ4QW (my phone took better pics)

Travel towels

https://www.rei.com/product/221819/packtowl-personal-towel?color=SAGE (never needed and they take up space/weight)

Best advice -- go to Macedonia

Worst advice -- days between ports don't count toward Schengen visa

My advice -- GO, just GO.