The Gateway to America: Ellis Island

Lady Liberty

The journey millions of immigrants made to America was not easy. The 8 days by boat makes our future 8 hour flights look like joy rides. Their travel conditions were terrible, crowded, and dirty making our society's complaints about leg room and seat assignments trivial. They left relatives behind in their native countries, some they would never see again. No ability to Skype or FaceTime whenever they wanted. They came to a place where they could not speak the language. No iPhone apps to help with translation or currency exchange. They did all of this for a better way of life for themselves and their children. Could you do it? Would you be brave enough to leave your family and friends for life in another country? As we leave America in our rearview, we contemplated the appeal America had for so many millions of immigrants.

I'm Movin' Out!- A shift in mindset...

"If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies."

Moving is never easy to do. It is often the climax of a change in ones life. As humans, we tend to strongly dislike change, ourselves included. 

Our apartment was taken over by boxes, bins, and the accumulation of "things" that had taken place over a period of time. You find yourself making piles of clothes titled toss, donate, and storage. Well this time was a bit different for us. We had 4 piles. Toss, donate, storage, and trip! It was tough deciding what clothes made the cut for our 6+ month journey but we found a way. As the movers took all of our "things" away this morning, I thought back to the notion of accumulation of things. How is that we acquire so many items of furniture, clothing, books, DVDs, etc? I believe we hold onto things for their sentimental meaning. Not so much for the value of the item itself, but more for what that item reminds us of, a time or moment, or memory we want to hold with us. 

Why the recession is the best time to travel...

  

Round up your pennies and go!

Many people hear we are traveling and may think, "Is it really the best time to travel? Shouldn't you be saving your money?" We think differently. This may be one of the best times to travel! With many nations suffering like the US is, they are desperate for tourism dollars with many companies offering air, hotel, and tour group deals. Some of these nations thrive on tourism, so we like to consider our travels a bit of financial donation to some countries in need.

Some countries have recently decreased their visa fees to entice or promote travel to their country. It has been rumored that the Japanese government will be giving away free flights to Japan to spark tourism in 2012. After the earthquake and nuclear scares in spring of 2011, they have seen a significant drop in tourism. Many people are tightening up and are not able to spend money on luxuries such as vacations. If you can afford it, now is the time to find these great deals.

The American dollar may be weak compared to the Euro and the British Pound, but there are many countries where the dollar will take you far! If you venture to these nations you can spend very little for luxury accommodations and amazing food!

Less then a month till our departure!

Our handy dandy countdown app

Just 29 days away until we leave to see the world! We can't believe it is coming up so soon! Just packing our bags, putting our life into storage, putting the few bills we have on auto pay and leaving it all behind! Our last month "home" will be bitter sweet. Spending lots of time with our families, saying goodbye to friends, visiting our favorite restaurants one last time before we depart. We will miss everyone so much but yet we are so excited to see all that there is out there!

How can I travel around the world?

Okay, so you made the decision to take a long term trip. Congratulations! The hard part is over! But now, how does one even start to plan? We learned things about long term travel we never knew existed. Travel blogs with firsthand experience were filled with information, resources and plenty of inspiration!

1. Make your list of countries.

This part is easy. Start dreaming. If you've ever thought, "I've always wanted to see what Australia is all about!" or "I am fascinated with Japanese culture," then include those! No nation is out of your reach. The world is getting smaller and smaller, take advantage.

Sit down solo or with your travel partner and make your list. We spent a few breakfasts at our local diner editing our list, adding to it and trying to make a path around the world that makes sense. We had no idea how we would do it or even how much it would cost it, but make an extensive list that can be shortened if necessary. For example, an African safari was just too expensive for our budget and eventually didn't make the cut.

2. More Money, Less Problems... when planning travel!

I've read the same quote on several travel blogs and I will include it here. "Pack what you think you will need and save your money. Then halve your items packed and double your savings."

Goodbye New York, Hello World!

Have you ever said, "I want to go far, far away from it all!"? We all have.
Ever wonder what this rat race is all for? Yeah, us too.
Have you found yourself spending time and money on things that really shouldn't be a priority? Been there.
Do you put off your dreams for any number of the standard excuses?
 ... Not us. We are doing something about it!

We love to travel. We crave it. We have this burning passion for it. Why not do what you love? Life is far too short to not do what invigorates you, makes you feel alive, gives you a better sense of purpose in this large (but small) world. With little financial responsibility, a travel partner, and a decent chunk of savings, why not go?