November 2015 – Eastbound and Down

After countess nights of staying in, making dinner, and working on a puzzle, we are finally on our way! After no new clothes for a year, crashing (very graciously) in my cousin’s basement for the month of November, and selling nearly everything we own, we are off to start this crazy adventure.

We have spent an untold number of evenings on the couch discussing finances and flight plans, immunizations and State Department safety checks, packing lists and how to say goodbye. We have painstakingly researched credit cards that have no foreign transaction fees and great benefits for travel. We have acquired Sheckles, Dinar, and Lira along with quite a collection of prescription antibiotics. And we have fit the next nine month’s of my and Jonathan’s belongings into two backpacks weighing respectively, 25 and 35 pounds. So away we go!

Currently, the itinerary looks like this from November through August (though revisions will most certainly be necessary):

Israel –> Jordan –> Greece (for a 12 hour layover in Athens!) –> Turkey –> South Africa –> Botswauna –> Sri Lanka –> Thailand –> Vietnam –> Cambodia –> New Zealand –> Australia –> Indonesia –> Bolivia –> Peru –> Ecuador –> Colombia –> Panama –> Cuba

Any and all suggestions and contacts along the way would be graciously welcomed! I truly believe the best way to travel is through the connections of friends. Shoot me an email with anyone we should meet, the places and foods we just can’t miss, and anything we should probably avoid 🙂

Thank you all again for joining us as I jot down our conversations, ideas, spins, facts, and pictures of the world we will be encountering and processing over the next 9 months. All our love.

PhotoEditor-1448910028459 — Best friend surprise visits are the best way to say farewell to the US!

It has not been easy. I know we are going on an incredible adventure and amazing things await, but it has not been easy. Jonathan and I have built a life in Colorado surrounding ourselves with people, puppies, and mountains that are proving to be increasingly difficult to say goodbye to.

I know right??

We have families who we love and love us unconditionally, best friends who have always been only a phone call away, and new friends who have been overwhelmingly kind and wonderful to the both of us… and we are leaving it all for a while. It is scary to think about the moments that will inevitably arise when I need a to go on a run with a girlfriend, Jonathan wants to check out the newest brewery with a buddy, or we wish we still had the fresh produce and latte deliveries from the family we built in Colorado. It makes me almost nauseous to know I will miss two of my best friend’s weddings and the birth days of kiddos that I am already over-the-moon in love with. Nope, not going to be easy. Thank god for today’s technology that allows us to maintain contact with those we love – however I am anxiously waiting for teleportation to become a reality. Beam me up!

Bareford family Christmas — Bareford Family Christmas

With The Rauk's at the bottom of the Grand Canyon — With The Rauk’s at the bottom of the Grand Canyon

We often get asked, “Will you miss your jobs?” Jonathan shoots back with a resounding “No way!” while I am a bit more hesitant in my answer. I am leaving an incredible place where I have had the pleasure to work with some of the best patients and co-workers this profession has to offer. I love what I do in physical therapy and prosthetic training – teaching, healing, helping – and though I know I will miss my job, I also think I will miss the feeling of contribution. It has been difficult for me to grasp the idea of 9 months without truly contributing. It feels selfish. I know that we will meet people along the way who we will share skills and knowledge with, but it still feels a bit empty. I plan on learning, observing, and absorbing as much as I can on this adventure, however, I hope I can find plenty of places for contributing, helping, and serving as well. It is impossible to see how this adventure will contribute to our futures and to those we will meet, work with, and love down the road. But I have good feeling big things are going to happen- things that will change Jonathan and me for the rest of our lives.

So thank you everyone! Thank you for supporting us on this crazy decision. Thank you for showing interest and excitement. Thank you for sharing your homes, advice, cautions, and pep talks. We will miss you all and cannot wait to see you all again soon!