Month 1: In Review (Travel Stats)

Well, it’s official! We made it through our first month as a nomadic traveling couple on the road (and we still enjoy each other’s company!). It took a minute to get into the groove of life out of a backpack. Packing all your belongings up every 2-4 days and walking (sometimes miles) with them strapped to your back can be pretty draining. We packed light, and THANK GOSH. Otherwise I think my back would already be permanently hunched from climbing with it up the hundreds of cobblestone steps we encounter each day. Always living out of someone else’s home means amenities are inconsistent.  With random flat mates there might be a wait to shower. Clean clothes need to dry on a clothesline (no dryers).  Buying groceries is pretty straightforward, but you make sure you only buy enough for the few days at a time. WIFI is our lifeblood- always in search of the WIFI stickers at cafes and stations as well as solid connection in our accommodation. Walking… everywhere, all the time. Cabs are not in the budget. Public transit is a lifesaver but can be slower.  We’ve realized that America focuses heavily on convenience.  These conveniences are typically not used in Europe, or aren’t at a price point we are willing to cough up.

We’re getting a good rhythm going now. Our bags can be fully packed up and closed in 5-10 minutes. Each item has its perfect place- the beach hat sits clipped onto the top of my pack, the water bottles on the side.  The kindle sits in the top pouch, and the computer against my back. Each article of clothing goes into its respective compression pack (our ‘closet drawers’) and leftover maps/brochures from the previous places get tossed. Souvenirs are not in the cards. Doners & Kebabs are becoming part of our diet. Sandwiches are easy to make for lunch, and the bread is always fresh! We cling onto FREE WIFI when we see it, taking screenshots of all angles of our google map for directions to get us around town.  Our Spotify music is synched for offline listening. The rain jackets are always nearby and the Go Pro is always in tow.  We walk, and then walk some more.  We’re used to the giant skeleton style house keys our hosts provide us, and always download the Metro maps to our iBooks before arriving. Out of all things, we are trying to slow down, enjoy life, and take in the moment.  We made it here.  We are really doing this! Coming off demanding full time jobs, we both have a hard time slowing down. This has been a goal of ours. Taking in every church, alley road, world heritage site, and attraction… but also taking time to get lost in a good book that inspires, to do our daily bible study, or go for a run along the ocean. Though it is still a work in progress, we are loving every minute as nomads.  One month down, nine (or ten or eleven) to go. Carpe Diem!

Month 1 Travel Stats

Countries Visited: 5

Cities Visited: 21

• United Kingdom – London
• Italy – Naples, Pompeii, Mt. Vesuvius, Amalfi Coast (Maiori, Minori, Ravello), Capri, Rome
• Croatia – Dubrovnik, Vis, Hvar, Split, Zadar, Plitvice Lakes
• France – Paris, Tours, Loire Valley, Bordeaux, Saint Emilion
• Portugal – Lisbon, Lagos, Sagres, Sintra

Transportation

# of Flights: 5 (all Ryanair, EasyJet except the initial flight from the states)
# of Bus trips: 17
# of Trains taken: 8
# of Ferry rides: 6
# of Metros used (per city): 5
# of Miles walked: hundreds!

Total # of miles traveled: 7,524

Fun Facts

Current level of Candy Crush: Level 81, Splendid Days!

Books read other than travel guides: (the Kindle rocks!)

• Josh: 2 (Wild, The Best American Travel Writing)
• Marissa: 2 (Wild, Tales of a Female Nomad)

Health: Marissa got a cold for a couple days in France but it was short lived.  Otherwise we were both healthy!

Biggest $ Saver: SteriPEN water purifier & water bottles: This has saved us oodles of dollars already! Water is not cheap in Europe and Marissa has a weak stomach.  This has been a lifesaver.

Best (pre trip) Purchase:

• Josh: Nylon Daypack and zip off hiking pants
• Marissa: Merrill sandals and (compressible) raincoat

Items Purchased (this month):

• Bottle Opener: How’d we forget this?
• Sunglasses: 2 pair for Josh
• Power converter: Busted our original while frantically swatting at a bee
• Longsleeve Shirt: Marissa prepping for colder weather coming soon

Biggest Messup: Zadar: Forgot Bus tickets: took local bus all the way to the central bus station and realized we didn’t have our bus ticket for Plitivice Lakes NP (at the house) so we had to take the bus back and rush to make it.  We did make it!

Biggest Win:

• Airlines: Making it one month on budget airlines with zero additional fees (baggage, check-in, food etc.) We may have had to shove our backpacks into the luggage stand to prove they fit- but we MADE them fit!
• The Euro going down in value to the USD- our money is worth more now than when we left!

Craziest thing seen: Paris: teenager grabbed a free ride by sneaking into the luggage hold of the bus from the airport to Paris and then the driver running after him once we reached our destination.  He was the first thing we saw when we went to grab our bags out!

Budget

Under Budget, Success!! We made it through a very expensive part of the world under our budget! We have quickly learned how easy it is to overspend, and how strategic you need to be regarding what you decide to spend money on.

• Our Most Expensive Country: England
• Our Most Expensive City: Paris
• Our Cheapest Country: Croatia
• Our Cheapest City: Zadar

Favorites

Favorite Foods: Pizza (Naples), Fish & Chips (London), Quiche (France)

Favorite AirBnB: Zadar flat

Favorite Destination: Amalfi Coast

Favorite sites: Hiking in Amalfi, Exploring Plitvice Lakes, Happy hour overlooking castle and gardens in France, Walking the Old Town walls in Dubrovnik

Best Nightlife: Lagos & Lisbon (Bairro Alto)

Favorite Photo: Amalfi Coast  (Positano)

Coming up…

Month two will be much colder; we’re heading to Ireland, Scotland and Iceland! Busting out the wool socks….