We have spent the past two weeks eating our way through Poland. If you had asked me about Polish food before arriving, I would have said “well they eat pierogi and drink vodka!” I think many Americans know only this as well. But as much as I love the pierogi, I have learned all about the food of Poland – pierogi and so much more.
Poland’s tumultuous history is identifiable in their foods (history blog coming soon). Over the millennia the region we know as Poland was controlled by Prussia, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Hapsburg Dynasty, Russia, Sweden, Lithuania, Germany, Soviet Union and others. Watch this short video to understand how fluid the borders of this area have been. It’s fascinating.
Poland’s Changing Borders
So, of course that means for more than two thousand years the region has been influenced by the surrounding kingdoms and countries. But also, and perhaps more importantly, Poland has endured a great deal of economic hardship, which means developing simple foods with simple ingredients seasonally available or what ever is on hand.
And you will see that in the comfort foods of Poland.
Soups and Meats
Zurek Sour Soup. My favorite
In Poznan I had one of my favorite traditionally Polish foods, a soup called zurek. I really need to learn to make this delicious, bright, flavorful soup. Often called Sour Soup because of the fermented rye used, it’s very difficult to describe but definitely not difficult to eat. Want to try it? Check out this recipe.
Duck with beets and dumplings
Soups are very popular in Poland, particularly in the long dark winter, and in addition to zurek we had tomato soup, seafood soup, beet soup (borscht) and another sour soup with fermented rye and dill called zalewajka. I loved that one too. Want to try it? Check out this recipe.
In Poznan and in Wroclaw we also enjoyed wonderfully prepared duck, traditionally served with beets and yeast dumplings. We also had deliciously hand-made sausages and pickles served with mustard. Another favorite was a beetroot and strawberry salad served with warm goat cheese. A remarkable combination of simple ingredients.
Pierogi and Cooking Class
Fresh cured meats with pickles and mustard
We stayed the longest in the remarkable city of Krakow, where we had time to really dive into the culture and food scene. Here is where we ate the most pierogi, taste testing traditional favorites as well as a few new creations. The Pierogi Ruskie is the favorite amongst the Poles, and I have to say that is my favorite too. Simple ingredients of potato, cheese, and onion burst in your mouth, full of home cooked goodness. Another favorite we enjoyed was duck pierogi – a more modern take on
Duck pierogi
the traditional food. We also had mushroom and cabbage, spinach and cheese, blueberry, and raspberry.
So much pierogi so little time!
In Krakow I had a wonderful pleasure of spending half a day with Olga of Urban Adventures in her tiny communist era apartment, where we created some delicious pierogi, learning the nuances of preparation. The dough for pierogi is as simple as pasta dough, just flour, egg, water and a little salt. Hand mixing and hand forming is important to keep it traditional. Pierogi is always boiled, but left over pierogi is often pan-fried the next day for another delicious way to enjoy it. And since you can’t just make a few pierogi, there are always leftovers. There are many ways to enjoy Pierogi. Click on this link for a recipes for several of the most traditional ones, including Ruskie. I have also attached a pdf here with the recipe Olga so kindly provide.Pierogi receipe
Forming the pierogi
While spending the day with Olga we also visited the local Polish market where we learned to order the items we needed – in Polish – while the local merchants smiled and indulged our broken mispronunciation. At the market we also learned not only about fresh meat and produce, but about the many kinds of popular pickles, pastries, cheese and, surprisingly, lard. We ate bacon lard spread like butter
At the market fresh eggs and a polish cheese called Golka
on delicious fresh bread. Who knew that could be so good?
Christmas Traditions
Our visit to Krakow also included spending four hours one evening with Delicious Poland, walking around the city and tasting so many delicious polish specialties. Seriously I thought I was going to explode. If you come to Krakow definitely do a food walking tour – but DO NOT eat lunch before hand. So much delicious food. Here is what we ate:
Pierogi of course, at one of the city’s most loved family owned pierogi restaurants called Przystanek. We learned that sometimes fruit filled pierogi is served as a main dish, and the mushroom and cabbage pierogi is always served on Christmas
Ruskie Pierogi made in cooking class. The most traditional.
Eve.
Christmas Eve is a major holiday and the family gathers to make the pierogi together. A traditional Polish Christmas Eve meal includes 12 courses, symbolizing riches, the 12 apostles and the 12 months of the year. The feast begins with the breaking of a wafer and is followed by; red borscht, mushroom soup, carp, herring, mushroom and cabbage pierogi, sauerkraut, cabbage rolls, kutia (grain and candied fruit mixture), gingerbread, dried fruit compote, poppy seed cake.
Poppyseed Cake
Another wonderful Christmas Eve tradition in Poland is that every table is set with one extra seat. Traditionally set for anyone who may be alone or needing a meal on Christmas Eve.
Walking Food Tour Krakow
Our food tour continued at Zalewajke in the Jewish Quarter, where we enjoyed the zalewajke soup and the borscht (mentioned above). We continued to the Jewish Market square to try a more recent addition to the polish food scene, zapiekanka. This open face sandwich is the favorite fast food in Krakow, developed in the communist era when burgers were not allowed because they were too “American”.
Zapiekanka open face sandwich
Trying local vodka at Hevre (a converted Jewish Prayer Hall) I realized I actually like vodka, if it’s the good stuff! My favorite was the Bison Grass; so subtle and smooth. Next we visited a very popular local brewery called Ursa Major with a woman brew master! Here we enjoyed sausage and cheese with two beers – a no hop(!) summer ale (interesting) and a
Enjoying the Bison Grass Vodka
session IPA. Unlike most places we’ve been, American-style IPAs are very popular here.
So we are thinking we probably just have dessert left but no! We continued on to Kuchina u Doroty where we ate more! Two of my favorites of my time in Poland I had here – a delicious potato pancake covered in goulash called place ziemniaczane z gulaszem (try it) and a cabbage and sausage stew called bigos (try it) . In addition we had golabki (cabbage rolls), beetroot salad, kompot (juice) and racuchy, a fried dough dessert that tasted a lot like french toast, covered with yogurt and fresh berries.
Potato pancake with goulash
About this time Arne plopped me in a wheelbarrow and wheeled me home.
The women in my cooking class.
Our time in Poland has been incredibly delicious and that has been incredibly surprising. Poland is an underrated tourism destination, and now I know the Polish cuisine is also misunderstood and underrated. I will take everything I learned about the food and culture of this incredible country and refer to it often.
And someday, I will return. To eat, to enjoy and to savor all this country has to offer.
Arne enjoying some of the local microbrews
Dziekuje Poland! Fantastyczny!
Note – Traveling and eating in Poland is very inexpensive. Some of our nicest meals with appetizers, main course, dessert, wine and beer only cost around $40. As of this writing the exchange rate is 4 zloty to one USD.
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We love Paris like everyone else. But really that’s the problem. EVERYONE loves Paris (and London and Rome) and so you find lots of crowds and high cost. In our travels around the world we have really tried to find new places that few tourists go. Often these destinations end up being our most favorite. And the more we travel the more we want to encourage everyone to consider stepping out of their travel comfort zone, and exploring the unknown – the favorite destinations no one goes. Finding your way to the lesser traveled destinations creates less impact on the planet while bringing greater cultural awareness to the traveler. We ask you to consider these options:
Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Instead of Croatia consider visiting Bulgaria, one of our favorite countries we have ever been to. Bulgaria has so much to offer, and yet we did not meet a single American during the entire month we were there. We did meet lots of Russians, Germans and some Brits. Bulgaria has a remarkable coastline along the gorgeous Black Sea as well as great mountains for hiking. The food is amazing, the wine is cheap and the 5000 year history is astounding. And the people are so amazing, welcoming and proud. They have endured a great deal in their history, and they have a “come what may” attitude that is infectious. Go visit Bulgaria.
Slovenia
Slovenia
Instead of Italy go to fascinating Slovenia. From Trieste, Italy it’s just a hop across the border to Slovenia, the tiny country once part of Yugoslavia. We have been to Slovenia twice and I suspect we will be there again. Slovenia has a tiny coastline on the Adriatic, and our favorite town of Piran is a perfect place to visit and get some local flavor. But don’t stop there, Slovenia has some of the most beautiful mountain towns and lakes. Much of Slovenia is still agrarian and the people are welcoming and patriotic and friendly. Oh and the seafood. So darn delicious. Go visit Slovenia.
El Salvador
El Salvador
Instead of Mexico go to El Salvador. We just spent two weeks on the Pacific Coast of tiny El Salvador and we absolutely loved it. There are some Americans coming here, but mostly 20-year-old surfers. The media has made us believe El Salvador is a dangerous place, and yet it is no more dangerous than Mexico and Americans flock to Mexico. Come to El Salvador where the water is warm, the people are welcoming, the food is delicious and the history though brutal and bloody – is fascinating. El Salvador will soon come out the shadow of its violent past, so visit before the secret gets out. Go visit El Salvador.
Poland
Poland
Instead of Germany go to Poland. Poland is just beginning to step out of the shadow and become a tourist destination. And it should. We fell hard for Poland spending three weeks there last fall. Poland has some of the most astonishing history anywhere in Europe. The food is fantastic. The people are warm and happy to meet you. The historic villages are well-preserved and beautiful. And it is cheap and easy to get to. We loved Krakow as well as all the other places we visited and using the train in Poland was a great way to travel. You really should visit Poland now.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Instead of India go to Bangladesh. I loved our time in India too, but if you want to push yourself and visit somewhere no tourists go, visit the remarkable, tiny country of Bangladesh. Our short visit to Bangladesh provided us some of the most rewarding moments we have ever had in our travels. It’s difficult to visit Bangladesh without a guide, and we were lucky to find Deshguri, one of the few tour operators in the country. Through Deshguri we able to meet so many Bangladeshi people, who greeted us with more kindness than anywhere we have ever been in the world. We certainly stood out in both crowded Dakar as well as the beautiful villages and countryside, since almost no Western tourists come here. We learned so much during our time in Bangladesh, and left our heart with its beautiful people. A remarkable experience that everyone should have. Visit Bangladesh soon.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Instead of Thailand go to Sri Lanka. Thailand is overrun with tourists anymore. So if you are looking for beautiful beaches, mountains and more, visit Sri Lanka instead. The young backpacking set has found Sri Lanka, but few American visitors of the Fab Fifties era are traveling here. Why not? It is amazing. We spent three of our most favorite weeks in Sri Lanka, one of the friendliest countries we have ever visited. The Civil War is over and Sri Lanka is safe and inexpensive. The food is the da bomb. Hiking and history is around every corner and the beaches are incredible. We saw elephants and leopards, monkeys and snakes. Oh my. It’s Sri Lanka for me.
Namibia
Namibia
Instead of South Africa go to Namibia. Our ten-day tour in Namibia with Wild Wind Safaris will go down in our travels as one of the most remarkable places. This country that nobody has heard of is one of the most beautiful in the world. We had an amazing private guide during our time there, but you can also see the country easily with your own 4×4 vehicle (careful though, there is a high traffic fatality rate in Namibia). Namibia has a gorgeous Atlantic coastline, dry mountainous region that is like a moonscape, and multiple fascinating cultures such as the Himba, Damara and Herero people. And to top it off Etosha National Park – single-handedly the best wildlife viewing we have ever encountered. I absolutely fell in love with Namibia. If you have ever considered a safari in Kenya, Tanzania or South Africa take a moment and research Namibia. You will be so glad you did. Go see Namibia now.
Seychelles
Seychelles
Instead of the Maldives go to the Seychelles. First a word about the Maldives. We loved our time there, and luckily we found a very inexpensive place to stay. But in general the Maldives are expensive and there is no alcohol! So consider the Seychelles instead. A beautiful set of small islands out in the middle of nowhere off of east Africa. We spent a month on the tiny island of Praslin and loved every minute of it. Groceries were expensive and the variety was less than desirable, but the rest of the experience was very positive. The islanders speak French/Creole mix, and the shy people are friendly and religious. If you are looking for a place to kick back and relax with the warmest turquoise waters in the world, visit Seychelles now.
Portugal
Portugal
Instead of Spain go to Portugal. I hesitated about adding Portugal to this list because Portugal does have a thriving tourism industry. But we met very few Americans while we were there. Perhaps more Americans go to Spain because Spanish is a language more Americans can handle. But during our time in Portugal we had very little difficulty with the Portuguese language. We loved Portugal so much we would consider living there. The food is incredible, the cities are beautiful and the beaches are fantastic. It’s a remarkable place with such a variety of geography. Historically Portugal was once a powerful country of explorers and merchants, colonizers and tyrants but today, this quiet and beautiful country is laid back and relaxed and fun. Visit Portugal.
What is next for us?
We are now into a full-fledged planning phase of our next chapter of the Grand Adventure. We will spend May-September in the USA then depart again. Without really trying, we have noticed
Portugal
a trend in the countries we are planning to visit next, a trend towards less touristy. A trend towards staying longer in one place. A trend towards trying to make less of an impact and remove ourselves from the fray.
I think this is what we always intended to happen on this journey, but it just took us a while to get there. But when we look back on our favorite places we have been so far, it’s always the places with the road less traveled. It’s always the places with few western tourists. It’s always the places the cruise ships don’t go. The authentic and relatively untouched destinations.
Taking a cooking class and going on a food tour in every country I visit is a goal I have. And I accomplish it often, but not always. But when I can I always enjoy it and over the past couple of weeks I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing two countries, two cuisines, too delicious – the food of Taiwan and Malaysia.
Taiwan
We spent six days in Taipei Taiwan. We weren’t really tuned in to the Taiwanese cuisine, half expecting it to be just like China. But unlike China, Taiwan has been strongly influenced from Japan (with historical influence also from Portugal and Holland) and it’s noticeable in the cuisine. The Chinese influence comes primarily from Eastern China (Fujian). And certainly the fact that Taiwan is an island, the cuisine has a much stronger focus on seafood than much of China.
Scallion Pancake is one of our favorite foods we discovered in Taipei Taiwan
GoTuCook
A search online led me to Chef Calvin at GoTuCook. Thorough out our world travels I’ve taken cooking classes large and small, in cooking schools and home kitchens, from world famous chefs and humble housewives. And usually my favorite experiences are the ones where I have one-on-one time with the instructor in their home. This was my experience with GoTuCook.
The beginnings of a delicious shiitake mushroom and chicken soup
We met early in the morning at the Beitou metro station from where we walked to experience the bustling thriving market and the local vendors selling to the local people. I always love this experience with a local who can explain unusual ingredients, answer my questions and enlighten me to this way of life long gone in America.
Me at the busy Beitou morning market
Next we headed to Calvin’s apartment, set up perfectfully for cooking classes. I had chosen three dishes I wanted to make ahead of time from a variety of options listed on the GoTuCook website. I chose as a starter Jellyfish Salad and for a soup course a chicken and mushroom soup and for our main course two kinds of pork dumplings.
My pretty dumplings ready for the steamer
I liked both the jellyfish salad (requires an overnight soak of the chewy jellyfish in the fridge before prep) and the fragrant soup with a broth we cooked with chicken feet as well as meaty parts from the blue chicken, but my favorite was the dumplings.
My new friend Chef Calvin of GoTuCook
Making Chinese style steamed dumplings takes some practice. I’ve done similar work in classes before (making empanada in Argentina, pirogi in Poland and dumplings in Vietnam) but it’s still a chore to get your fingers to make the beautiful designs if it’s not a task you do everyday. We made pork with cabbage and spices and pork with corn and different spices. And then we ate!
Of course we had leftovers and I brought dumplings and jellyfish to my husband who was back at the hotel.
I really enjoyed this class and plan to tackle dumplings on my own soon. I recommend GoToCook if you visit Taipei.
The pork “burger” was one of the best things we had on our Taipei food tour
Taipei Eats
We also took an amazing walking food tour with Taipei Eats where we expanded our Taiwanese cuisine knowledge with Taiwan Pork “burger”, stinky tofu, betel nut, scallion pancake and much more. Taipei Eats was one of the best food tours we have ever done. Our guide was amazing, there was so much food and we learned some interesting facts while meeting local people as well as other travelers from around the world. Such a wonderful experience!
This is probably the one and only time for me with the Stinky Tofu
Malaysia
What a country Malaysia is for a foodie. This remarkable country is a melting pot of many cultures, and it shows in everything, especially the food. Malay food is often spicy, and nasi (rice) features often. Eating with your hands is common. Pork is rarely featured in this cuisine because most Malay are Muslim.
Learning Indian cooking in Kuala Lumpur
On the other hand, many Chinese immigrated here in the 1800’s when this land was a British colony and the Chinese food is abundant, and often includes pork. Noodles, chicken and dumplings are also widely enjoyed.
And then there is the Indian food, representing the vast number of Indians living in Malaysia. The use of pungent spices and curries, more noodles as well as lots of vegetables make up this delicious cuisine.
Ancient Malay cultures enjoyed this rice flour treat
No matter what ethnic background, the people in this country love fried foods and fried chicken, seafood, samosa and much more are popular both as street food and in restaurants.
Off the Eaten Track
The food tour we took in Kuala Lumpur was very unique and one of the best ever. At the end of the evening we had sampled twenty-four (yes you read that correctly) foods of this diverse and delicious country.
A very local Chinese Soup with veg, chicken and tofu
We signed up with Food Tour Malaysia for their Off the Eaten Track tour and were met by our guide Timothy at a subway stop in a suburb of Kuala Lumpur called Petaling Jaya where we began our gluttonous odyssey at an outdoor Malay neighborhood food court that operates 24 hours a day seven days a week. Here we found just locals enjoying the foods they loved. We had Nasi Lemak wrapped in banana leaf; ota ota, a smoked mackerel wrapped in palm leaf; a rich goat and potato soup; fried chicken and fried tempeh. I was full before we left this first stop.
My husband Arne recruited to work on the “carrot cake” stir fry – one of our favorite things we had on our Kuala Lumpur food tour
Next we headed to probably the best night market I have ever been too, also in the suburb of Petaling Jaya. Here we learned about the popular “carrot cake” (not a cake in the sense we are used to, more of a pressed tofu), we had spring roll, noodles, dumplings and sweet Chinese daun pandan filled with peanuts.
Mackerel cooked inside a palm leaf
Next we headed to a very local-only Chinese open air restaurant to sample more noodles cooked over an open fire and a delicious soup with chicken, okra, long beans and potato.
Daun Pandan a sweet Chinese treat
Our final stop was an outdoor Indian restaurant, and we were the only non-Indians there. And darn it I was so full I couldn’t really enjoy the amazing feast of roti, lentil dal, curry, a giant fried pancake with a coconut curry dip, fried chicken and mango smoothie. Roll me home. What a night it was. If you are ever in Kuala Lumpur, do this tour – but pace yourself!
Banana Roti a sweet Indian treat
The Versatile Housewives
To round off our food frenzy in Kuala Lumpur we spent one morning with Ruth, a cooking instructor who brings the flavors of her native India to visitors in Kuala Lumpur through her business The Versatile Housewives. We learned to make one of India’s most famous dishes, biryani, with a group of local university students in Ruth’s kitchen. Biryani is a rich and flavorful traditional dish, often served at weddings and ceremonies. It can be beef or lamb or chicken. We made a chicken biryani. The flavors of this dish come together by slowly preparing the fresh ingredients of caramelized onions, vegetables and spices like cardamon, cloves and pepper as well as herbs like cilantro and mint. After slowly blending all these flavors with rice and chicken, the biryani is served in a giant bowl and enjoyed communally. Check out Ruth’s website for a great selection of delicious Indian recipes.
The beautiful Biryani we made with our instructor Ruth
No matter where you travel, diving into the culture through food is the most interesting and tastiest way to engage with locals, learn history and culture and broaden your culinary chops. Be brave! Eat the world!
I don’t take a cooking class in EVERY country, but I’d like to. I love to learn about local cultures through food and I look for that experience when I can find it. In some countries finding a class is difficult or impossible. Other times it just doesn’t fit my schedule. But I always make an effort and when I do attend a class I am never disappointed. Just today I signed up for a cooking class for my upcoming visit to Hong Kong.
I can recommend all of the cooking classes below…many of these I have written blogs about and you can click directly to read those blog entries. I encourage you to consider cooking classes, even if
Cooking in Tuscany
cooking isn’t a big part of your life. Taking a class in a foreign country with local people, often in their homes and with their families, is one of the most rewarding ways to open up the cultural lines of communication all while enjoying a delicious and fun experience. Fabulous!
Tuscany/Italy – My first cooking class took place in Tuscany with a group of friends we were traveling with seven years ago. We learned to make an amazing meal from the owner of the Villa where we were staying. She was a former chef and chocolatier! Our amazing meal included handmade pasta, vegetable terrine, beef loin and lots and lots of wine.
Argentina – We took a very fun cooking class in Buenes Aires during our two day visit prior to getting on a cruise ship. Unfortunately we were so jet-legged the experience is a little bit fuzzy in my memory. The class was
Cooking in South Korea
held in the home of the chef, and there were about 8 people in attendance. We made several different kinds of empanadas, made delicious chimichurri sauce and butter cookies and learned about Matte – the unique and ubiquitous drink of Argentina.
South Korea – in Seoul I spent two full days with a world famous South Korean Chef the Korean Food and Culture Academy and it remains one of my all time favorite experiences. One of the days I was with just one other student. The second day I was with four other students. I learned to cook about a dozen dishes including Kimchee and I have used these recipes over and over
Cooking in Croatia
ever since. Who knew Korean food was so amazing? I didn’t and that is one of the best parts of the experience.
Croatia – I’m a sucker for slow roasted meats and it’s one of the staple foods in many of the East European countries. My experience in Croatia was a mouth watering one, learning the ancient and incredibly delicious process of cooking Peka over an open fire. The lamb dish is spectacularly delicious and a celebratory Croatian speciality.
Guatemala – I loved my full-day private cooking class in Antiqua Guatemala. I had the chef all to myself and an English translator. We made several dishes, enough to feed an army, and I ended up taking all the food home to enjoy another full meal with my husband. Learning
Cooking in Spain
to make the tortillas was a favorite activity, that proved much more difficult that you might expect!
Morocco – In Asilah Morocco we were blessed to have the most wonderful Airbnb that included a daily housekee and full-time cook. What a special treat that was during our ten days in this tiny
Cooking in Thailand
ocean front village. Each day she cooked for us and we watched and learned from her. We also went with her to the market and learned about the local specialities from tagine to couscous.
Thailand – It’s a tough call for me to say which class was my favorite but I would definitely put my two days at the Thai Kitchen Cookery School in Chiang Mai very near the top. It was a comedy of errors how I ended up there, but in hindsight I was so glad I did. I loved the class, the staff and the wonderful foods I enjoyed over my two-days with them.
South Africa – Several of the classes I have taken over the years have been in the personal homes of the chef, bringing me closer to the local
Cooking in Belize
culture in a familiar and family way. In Capetown South Africa my husband and enjoyed a wonderful evening in the home of our Chef who taught us about local cuisine from the African culture with the European influence. We ate Emu for the first time and many other delicious dishes as well as exceptional South African wines with our Chef and her husband.
Vietnam – One of my all time favorite cooking experiences was in Hoi An Vietnam, which coincidentally is also one of my all time favorite cities. I took an all day class at the famous Mrs. Vys Cooking School.
Cooking in South Africa
The class began with a bike ride around the city that included stops at several markets, a beautiful organic community garden and at the home of a bean sprout farmer . I learned so much and enjoyed the bike ride as well. Returning to the school we toured the multiple cooking stations within the school watching the professionals making food beautiful before heading upstairs to the kitchen to tackle our own recipes. I ate so much that day, and learned so much, and highly recommend this place if you are ever in Hoi An. I hope to return some day.
Spain – I loved Barcelona, and especially loved the famous Mercado de la Boqueria for its color and festive atmosphere as well as delicious and fresh food. It was here where my class began, touring, tasting and
Cookin in Poland
purchasing the ingredients before heading upstairs to cook. Our three-hours class included such Catalan specialities as paella, gazpacho and Spanish Tortilla. I have cooked these items many times since.
Poland – Krakow is one of my favorite European cities, under-appreciated by many visitors to Europe.
Cooking in Vietnam
We loved the food of Krakow and did a food walking and drinking tour as well as a pierogi cooking class. My teacher was a young college student who was born and raised in Krakow. We met at the market where she helped us speak Polish to the vendors to acquire the ingredients we needed for our dish. We then proceeded to her tiny, communist era apartment where we maneuvered around her little kitchen learning to make the dough and the stuffing for several different pierogi. It was one of my favorite classes ever.
Belize – Learning about the food and culture of the Garifuna people of Belize, with our two adult sons was a highlight of our family time together in Belize. Cooking outdoors on an open fire with Chef Gloria doing everything from breaking and shredding the coconut to pounding the yams with a wooden mallet made the final delicious dinner all the more satisfying and fun.
So those are some of my favorite cooking class experiences over the past several years. To be sure I will be writing about more wonderful cooking experiences in the future. Because life is fabulous and delicious!
If you’ve been following My Fab Fifties Life for awhile you will remember our 2017 World Travel Awards from last January. I definitely feel with all of our travels in 2018 (covering 57,000 miles and 26 countries) we are well positioned to bestow the World Travel Awards – our version of the Oscar or the Razzy – on many people, places and travel experiences that have touched us this past year. Just like the famous movie awards, we have seen a world of real life
Australia
drama, fantasy, comedy, mystery, nature and animation. Enough to last a lifetime.
Berlin Germany
This is a long blog. But I believe it offers some valuable travel insight to the world. I hope you will find it informative and entertaining. So in keeping with the time of year for awards, I give to you our picks for World Travel Awards, Best and Worst of 2018 – My Fab Fifties Life.
(For reference – our 2018 countries visited were; India, Bangladesh, Maldives, Singapore, Guam, Australia, Indonesia, Fiji, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, USA, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Romania, Greece, Egypt, Jordan, Portugal, Spain, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Chile, Brazil.
DESTINATIONS
26 Countries
Australia
Favorite Overall Country – Australia
Australia takes the top award this year edging out a few others (Greece, Poland) but we both agreed. Australia is the best. The only negative about Australia is it’s expensive. But we believe the beauty, culture, nature and environmental awareness helped us choose it as our favorite destination of 2018. We plan to return in 2019.
Favorite City – Sydney and Krakow
Well there it is again – Australia. Sydney Australia and Krakow Poland take our award this year for favorite city, and basically for the same reason. Both offer a variety of cultural, historic and scenic options for visitors. Sydney also has beaches while Krakow has great food.
Most Beautiful City – Singapore
Singapore
Everything you ever heard about Singapore is true – sparkling clean, stunningly beautiful (especially at night), easy to maneuver and very pedestrian friendly, Singapore was our favorite beautiful city of the year.
Cutest Town – Brugge
Brugge Belgium
Singapore might take the big city award but we are more small town folks, and Brugge was a perfect little package of history, beauty, beer, delicious food and very friendly people. We spent four days and could easily have stayed on even longer.
Most Expensive Country – Australia
Australia has so much to offer, but inexpensive it is not.
Least Expensive Country – Indonesia
Mount Batur Bali
With some of the nicest people and most beautiful scenery Indonesia is a bargain, and we loved our time there.
Most Disappointing City – Ubud (Bali Indonesia) Ubud is no longer the sweet little artists/yoga village we all imagine from Eat Pray Love. When I saw the American brand chain stores I was so disappointed (Ralph Lauren, Starbucks, Nike).
ACCOMMODATIONS
29 Airbnbs, 42 hotels, 5 boats
Airbnb Antiparos
Best Airbnb Overall – Antiparos, Greece. We loved our relaxing three weeks in this gorgeous, private, and big airbnb with a stunning view and wonderful host. I hope to return someday. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/20657689
Best Airbnb for Service – Rio de Janeiro. Our short visit to Rio (we really should have stayed longer) was extra special due to the hospitable and generous host at our sweet Airbnb. She was one of the most thoughtful hosts we have ever had. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1149627
Best Airbnb for Authenticity –Santorini
Santorini
Greece. Hands down the most expensive Airbnb we have ever stayed in, and yet it was also incredibly authentic Greek cliffside dwelling with a stunning crater view. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15926564
Most Expensive Airbnb – Santorini $220 a night (see above)
Maldives
Best Value Airbnb – Maldives our tiny room
in a tiny resort on the tiny island of Huraa was $90 a night but included three meals a day for both of us. We loved our relaxing three weeks here. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/4490934
Lombok
Most Rustic Airbnb – Lombok, Indonesia. spending a week in a traditional Javenese cottage far from civilization was a favorite experience. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15991971
Least Expensive Airbnb – Lombok at only $52 was a bargain and so relaxing (see above)
Most Unique Airbnb – Key West, USA I thought spending four days onboard a 30 foot sailboat would be fun. Not so much. It was definitely unique. And cute. But also uncomfortable.
Favorite Hotel – Puri Lumbung Cottage, Bali this beautiful hotel complex made out of
Puri Lumbung Cottage Bali
traditional rice barns was not only beautiful, but it offered so many activities as part of our package and an incredible view at a bargain price. We loved our time here with our friends John and Carol
Worst Hotel – Singapore. Because Singapore is so expensive we booked this inexpensive $117 hotel and our room was literally a closet in the attic with no windows. It felt like a jail cell.
tiny Western Australia town of Exmouth and we loved our little Airbnb and the darling family that lived next door. We would love to go back. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/18258544
Worst Hotel Experience – Bucharest Romania. Arriving at our booked and paid-for hotel near the Bucharest Airport, we learned there was a “septic” problem. No room at the inn. Nearly five hours later we finally laid our heads on a FUTON, in a teeny apartment of some guy who wasn’t using it, well away from the airport but grateful to just go to sleep. We had a very early flight and it was not a great way to end our three weeks in Romania.
Best Meal – Tapas Tour in Sevilla Spain our self guided Tapas Tour in Sevilla’s Triana neighborhood was so delicious and fun. A perfect Spanish memory.
Best Cooking Class – Krakow Poland I really enjoyed learning to make handmade Pierogi in the tiny communist era apartment of our sweet cooking instructor.
Best Beer – Brugge runs away with this
Brugge beer
award, nowhere else even in the running. Brugge is a beer lovers town and we are beer lovers. Our visit to Brugge was memorable for many reasons including the wonderful selection of really outstanding beer.
Best Food Experience/Tour – Brugge wins this one too! We really enjoyed having dinner in the home of a lovely Brugge couple who through the website With Locals offered a home cooked Belgian meal in a typical Belgian home. What a lovely treat.
Port Wine
Best Drinks Tour – Port Tour Porto Portugal. I wasn’t sure I was going to like this tour but it ended up being so wonderful, educational, delicious and fun. I highly recommend this if you are in the beautiful Portuguese city of Porto.
CULTURAL AND NATURAL EXPERIENCES
Guam
Best Sunset – Guam. With Gin and Tonic in hand and enjoying some family time while visiting my niece Bekah and her husband Davy, we enjoyed our favorite sunset of the year on the little Dungcas beach in Guam.
Most Authentic Cultural Experience – Bangladesh Tour. Who goes to Bangladesh? Well just about no one, and it is exactly the
Bangladesh
reason we enjoyed our time there so very much. By far the most authentic and least touristy country we have been to in a long time. The people were so interested and amazed by us and they treated us like celebrities. We loved our time there.
Antiparos
Best Beach – It’s a tie! Antiparos, Greece and Ilha Grande, Brazil both deserve to be winners, even though they were quit different. Antiparos was amazing for the solitude, beauty and spectacular turquoise water. Ilha Grande had such warm water and the beaches were clean and beautiful despite being challenging to get to, we loved exploring the Ilha Grande beaches
Egypt
Best Tour – Memphis Tours Egypt was one of the best tour companies we have ever dealt with providing us incredible detail prior to arriving, and being present and on top of every detail throughout our ten-day visit to Egypt and Jordan. Our guides, drivers, accommodations and everything else were flawless.
Best Driver – Kadek in Bali. I found Kadek on Trip Advisor and he served as our driver for our entire three weeks on the island of Bali. He was a very good driver, spoke great English and in addition to picking us and dropping us at our destination he made sure we saw lots of interesting things along the way. I hope to meet Kadek again some day.
Berlin Germany
Best Free Walking Tour – Berlin Germany. We have done so many free walking tours over the past several years and only once did we NOT like our guide. But the young lady we had in Berlin was hands down one of the most charming, interesting, factual, fun and entertaining humans I have ever met. It made for a most memorable experience and a big tip for her.
Best Tour Guide – Cristian, Santiago Chile. Cristian was our guide on a bus tour we took the day we left our cruise ship and headed to Santiago for our flight. We spent the day touring the wine region of Chile as well as seeing a small authentic rodeo and dancing. Cristian was patient,
India
informative, interesting and entertaining.
Best Bucket List Historic Site – Winner Taj Mahal. Runner-ups The Great Pyramids and Petra. I cried the day I stood in front of the Taj Mahal. It was even more beautiful than I imagined. And lucky for us, we hit it on an unusually clear blue sunny day with hardly any people. Magnificent site to
Cairo
behold. Totally worth it. Of course the Pyramids and Petra are a close second. After seeing these sites your whole life in pictures, it’s surreal to finally see, touch and feel such awesome history and beauty first hand.
Best Snorkeling – Maldives. You might be surprised we aren’t giving this award to The Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Yes that was amazing. But our best one day snorkeling actually took place in the crystal clear
Maldives
blue waters of the Maldives, on a tiny sand island of only about 20 yards wide and 75 yards long. Here we witnessed the most beautiful coral reef I’ve ever seen, and the most amazing variety of fish and sealife.
Best Natural Site – Uluru Australia. It’s a trek to get to Uluru. And like everything in Australia it will be expensive.
Uluru
But standing next that incredible natural phenomenon will be something you will never forget.
Best Manmade Site – Panama Canal Panama. I had no idea how much I was going to enjoy our eleven hour crossing of the amazing Panama Canal. Truly a modern day wonder of the world.
Malaga Cathedral, Spain
Best Cathedral – Malaga Spain. We see a lot of cathedrals. Sometimes individual ones are difficult to remember. Malaga is not one of those. A distinctively beautiful design inside makes it my favorite and most memorable cathedral in 2018.
7 Ladders, Brasov Romania
Best Day Hike – We have a three way tie for this one with 1. Canyon of the Seven Ladders, Brasov Romania 2. Campuhan trail in the rice fields outside of Ubud, Bali. 3. Coogee to Bondi Beach ocean trail Australia. All providing us wonderful days outdoors in three very distinctively different natural settings.
Best Multi-Day Hike – Well, the Camino Portuguese of course!
Most Exhilarating Outdoor Experience – Morning swim Denmark. Even though it was August, jumping into the North Sea before breakfast was an eye-popping way to start your day – and a very Danish thing to do!
Australia
Expensive but Worth it – Climbing the Harbor Bridge Sydney Australia $467. I had to really convince Arne to do this because it was outrageously expensive. But in the end he agreed it was worth it. An impressively well done and safe operation with a spectacular view to boot.
Platypus Australia
Best Wildlife Experience 1. Platypus spotting Australia 2. Aligator Spotting Florida. We love it when we can see wildlife in its natural habitat, untouched by humans. Seeing a wild platypus in Australia was so incredible. I still can hardly believe our luck and timing to spot the elusive and shy creature. On the other hand, seeing literally dozens and dozens of alligators within just a few feet of us as we rode bikes on the Shark Valley trail in the Florida Everglades was one of the strangest experiences of my life.
Auschwitz
Most Moving Experience – Auschwitz, Poland Hands down – seeing and learning about the extermination of Jews in Auschwitz and in Krakow was the most astonishing and moving experience in all of our travels. I tried to put it into perspective in a blog. It was difficult. Some people choose not to visit. For us it was the reason for going to Poland and I believe EVERYONE should go.
Performance, Ubud Bali
Best Performance 1. Bali 2. Sydney 3. Krakow It’s one of our favorite things to do when traveling, attending a local performance. And this past year we saw several remarkable shows including two fascinating and authentic indigenous dance shows in Ubud Bali, a circus/dance show at the Sydney Opera House as well as an outdoor spectacle of La Boheme on Sydney Harbor. In Krakow we enjoyed a piano solo performance of Krakow’s favorite son Chopin and LOVED a string quartet concert inside the tiniest historic chapel.
Best Museum Skagen Denmark A surprising find in this tiny historic seaside town in Northern Denmark, Skagens Museum featured the remarkable art of the amazing talents of the area’s 1800’s artist colony.
Ecuador
Best Cultural Art Experience Ecuador Panama Hat Making in the tiny mountain town of Monticristi a tradition endures where skilled artists produce these works of beauty known as Panama Hats.
Berlin Wall
Best Historical Art Experience Berlin Wall The reason we came to Berlin was to see the iconic wall, which did not disappoint, and the rest of this amazing city made it one of our favorite stops on European adventure.
Count Dracula Romania
Kitsch Award – we make an effort to avoid tourist kitsch, but sometimes we fall for it, as we did in Sighisoara Romania. Touted as the birthplace of Vlad the Impaler (Count Dracula), we paid a couple of dollars to walk into a dark and spooky room where an open coffin waited with the Count himself asleep. Well until he jumped up and scared me to death. LOL.
Least English Spoken – Brazil. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil and we found through out the country even in high tourist areas English is rare. Much like in Portugal and in Spain, there are few fluent English speakers. Even in the airport and on the flights English is unusual.
WEATHER
Hottest Day: Ilha Grande Brazil 95 degrees F and 76 degree dew point. We swooned.
Muxia Spain
Coldest Day: Pontevedra Spain 39 degrees F on our Camino de Santiago we froze and this was the start of my chest cold that lasted 8 weeks.
Wettest Day: Muxia Spain a four day monsoon kept us indoors, stuffing paper towels into the frames of the windows to keep the water from pouring in.
Windiest Day: Antiparos Greece – a rare October cyclone closed down shops, the ferry, and toppled trees.
TRAVEL
30 flights, 8 train rides, lots of small boat rides, one river cruise, two ocean cruises
Smallest Airport – Paros Greece
Worst Flight Experience – Iceland Air lost luggage. It took three days before we saw our luggage again.
Worst Airline – Scoot. Worst flight I can remember in a while from Singapore to Perth. Everything cost extra including baggage, drinks, food and even a blanket.
Train Travel
Best Travel Experience – Europe Train Travel. We had a wonderful experience using the trains from Belgium to Germany to Poland and throughout Andalucia and I would do that again in a minute.
Worst Airport – Manila We had a long layover here and there was nowhere to sit. There was no ATM to get local currency and none of the concessionaires took credit cards. The part of the airport we saw was old and dirty.
Camino de Santiago Portugal
Best Airport – In contrast and like everything else in Singapore, the airport is new, shiny, efficient and beautiful.
Dead Sea Jordan
Worst Security Line – Seattle WA USA. Way to go USA. My flight from Seattle to Nashville was a near disaster when I arrived more than two hours ahead of schedule to find a more than two-hour security line. Seattle’s inability to separate out domestic and international travelers and offer expanded security lanes has made it one of my least favorite airports in the entire world.
Worst Travel Experience – missing our flight in Perth. Expedia took the blame and even gave us a $200 credit for this flight debacle, but it didn’t help our situation as we had to stay an additional day in Perth and did not get to see the town of Alice Springs before heading on to visit Uluru. Hope to see you again someday Alice Springs.
So there you have it. The winner of the Fab Fifties version of the Oscars for 2018. But you do know, the real winner is me. Me and my husband. The luckiest people on the planet. Who needs a little gold statue when you have a Fab Fifties Life?
What a fabulous life it is.
Please comment and share. We appreciate your love.
No, God will not save them. Nor you, friend, nor I.
But let us not flinch, as they march on, to die.
-Wladyslaw Szlengel, Polish Jewish Poet of the Ghetto
Auschwitz famous gate
Why I Came to Poland
For many years I have wanted to come to Poland. My first realization of that desire was when I saw the movie Sophie’s Choice. My god. That movie changed me. I was only twenty-two years old I think. Very naive.
“Is it best to know about a child’s death, even one so horrible, or to know that the child lives but that you will never, never see him again?” ― William Styron, Sophie’s Choice
I don’t remember learning much about World War II or the Holocaust in high school. Was I absent that day? I remember Anne Frank however. We read that in junior high. We discussed it in class, but my memory of it being a bit edited as perhaps they thought we were too young. They were trying to protect us. But who protected Anne? No one.
I don’t think you can be too young to hear these stories. How else can the facts sink in, in a way that it becomes a part of our daily conscious where we naturally abhor intolerance and speak out against it? How else can our youth be fully informed, aware and not jaded – as the horrors of that time in history slip farther into the past?
Complacency
WWII had only been over for 15 years when I was born. It’s been longer than that since September 11th happened (17 years). Time is a convenient blanket, smothering the memories and protecting complacency.
Jewish families being herded out of Krakow
Complacency is the world’s evil and our world is full of it today, yesterday and always.
Auschwitz
Human Numbers
I am by no means a WWII or Shoah expert. But I have a place in my heart that aches for what happened here in this beautiful country of Poland that I have fallen in love with these past two weeks. I want to think of what happened here in human faces and real lives, but the numbers haunt me and I need to share;
Three MILLION Jews exterminated in Poland, half of the six million killed in total
Only 10% of Polish Jews survived
Another estimated but undocumented 1.5 million ethnic Poles killed – many for helping, aiding or hiding Jews
Suitcases of victims
Human beings like you and me. People with names. Birthdays. Lives. Goals and dreams. Doctors and lawyers. Teachers and housewives. Students. Rabbis. Men, women, children and entire families. Grandmothers. Beautiful young women. Little boys. For no reason other than hate.
“You kill yourself when you hate. It’s the worst disease in the world.” ― William Schiff
After I saw the movie Sophie’s Choice in 1982 I began to search out books and movies about the topic. Not just about Poland but about the war, and the death camps. As you are aware I read a lot. I have been deeply touched by many books – in fact many recently, that have come out about this topic. Although some of these books and movies are fictional, many are not. And there is so much to learn from both the non-fiction and fiction stories.
Jewish Cemetery Kazimierz (Krakow)
The Nazis
The Nazis invaded Poland in 1939. That first year they stripped Jews of their possessions and their jobs and herded them into walled off ghettos. The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest and contained more Jews than in all of France. More than 100,000 people starved to death in the Warsaw ghetto. Many more died of horrible disease such as typhoid, cholera and dysentery because medical care was unavailable. If you haven’t seen the movie The Pianist it’s a must. Haunting story of the Warsaw Ghetto.
“Humanity seems doomed to do more evil than good. The greatest ideal on earth is human love.” ― Wilm Hosenfeld, The Pianist: The Extraordinary Story of One Man’s Survival in Warsaw, 1939–45
By 1941 Hitler’s right hand man Himmler began his calculated plan to
Bullet riddled ghetto wall Warsaw
annihilate the Jews of Europe through genocide. Within two years 800,000 people had been shot to death and buried in mass graves.
But it had only started. The 1943 Wannsee Conference launched the final solution of the “Jewish question”. Six death camps began the mass extermination through gas chambers using Zyklon B. Auschwitz-Birkenau was one of these.
From the ghettos in Krakow, Warsaw and around Europe the Jews were loaded on trains – told to take minimum belongings and their valuables for their new life in the East. Thousands would die on the trains, suffocated and
The selection process at Auschwitz on arrival by cattle car
starved. Their valuables? Pilfered and to this day most unaccounted for.
Have you seen the movie The Women in Gold? It addresses the issue of the things the Nazi’s stole from their Jewish victims, particular a painting in this case by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt.
They’ll never admit to what they did, because if they admit to one thing, they’ll have to admit to it all.
– The Women in Gold
Cattle Car that brought victims to Auschwitz
Death Camps
Those who arrived at the death camps were quickly processed through selection. Most were dead within their first few hours at the camp, stripped and taken to the “showers” which of course were not showers. Anyone lame or old or young or unable to work was exterminated immediately. The rest would work to death.
The Paradise of Death
It was like an old religion Dividing the saved from the damned. Only that the saved went to hell. The damned- to the paradise of death – Raquel Angel Nagler
Auschwitz was also home to the notorious Doctor Mengele who did unspeakable things to children, twins and other unusual “specimens” who he used as human guinea pigs for his “research”. Have you read the book Mischling? One of the most astonishing stories I have ever read. Astonishing and sickening.
“The whole world will never look back. And if they do, they’ll probably say that it never really happened.” ― Affinity Konar, Mischling
It’s disgusting to me there are still those who believe it never happened. Same people who think we didn’t land on the moon? Same people who don’t believe in Global Warming?
Idiots. This is fact;
1.5 million Jewish PEOPLE died at Auschwitz; 200,000 of them children
Memorial in Krakow for 65,000 Jews killed from that city
3 million Jewish PEOPLE exterminated in Poland
6 million Jewish PEOPLE murdered in WWII
150,000 Non Jewish Polish PEOPLE died
23,000 Roma Gypsy PEOPLE killed
15,000 Soviet POW PEOPLE killed
25,000 others GONE
Where the death camps were
Ignorance
Before the war began Poland had the largest Jewish Population in Europe. More than 3 million citizens whose ancestors had been in Poland for more than a thousand years. Only 10% of the Polish Jewish population survived WWII and the genocide.
Many ethnic Poles died trying to help the Jews. But others turned against them. It was similar in other countries. While there are many stories of resistance fighters in France and Poland there were other citizens who helped the Nazis. Recently I read the book Sarah’s Key and learned about the French Jewish Roundup in Paris in July 1942. I had never heard of this horrible thing before. Shame on all those whose smugness, prejudice and hate killed so many.
“The truth is harder than ignorance.” – Sarah’s Key
Where they burned the bodies
The thing I keep asking myself is why did we not help them? Where was the United States? Where was the League of Nations? Where was the Catholic Church? As early as 1941 it was common knowledge in the world leaders what was happening. People and governments looked away. Partly because they were afraid, or busy fighting other battles, but this was genocide. Pure and simple. And no one came.
The remains of the incinerators the Nazi’s destroyed at the end of the war
My time in Poland has been both lovely and gut-wrenching. The Poland I see as a visitor is beautiful. But I know, like all nations, there are underlying problems and anti-Semitism is here. As an American I am painfully aware of how ignorance begets hate and intolerance – rampant in my country. In the past, in the present and more likely than not in the future – there will be hate. People who can’t or WON’T tolerate anyone who is different from them.
I don’t believe hate is something you are born with. It is learned. Hate and prejudice is learned. Just like empathy and tolerance is also learned.
Educate Yourself
It brings me back to two things I promote on this blog;
TRAVEL – My message through this blog has always been one of inspiration. And inspiring anyone to pack a bag and go to an unknown place is my greatest goal. You will be changed. You will be full. You will be amazed, what travel can do to your life, your prejudice, your tolerance and your happiness. Just go.
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” – Mark Twain
Those who didn’t die on arrival lived in hell
2. READ – My other message on this blog is to read, read, read. And if you can, learn to read outside your comfort zone. Read history, and fiction and non fiction and more. There is nothing so simple as reading a book that can open your mind to the world outside your door. Just read.
“Reading is an exercise in empathy; an exercise in walking in someone else’s shoes for a while.” —Malorie Blackman
Poland and Auschwitz are sacrosanct now. Everyone should come here to feel and remember the human lives. The very real human beings who became ashes.
One women.
But of course it’s not possible for everyone. So read. Watch films. Learn. And most importantly, remember. Remember a little girl. An old man. A family. Most importantly remember what we humans have allowed to happen in our recent past. Think about the Holocaust in names and people’s lives rather than numbers and dates. Don’t let that die. Otherwise, nothing was gained and we all are lost.
Books
(This is nowhere near all that is out there. Just some suggestions)
The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas by John Boyne
Mischling by Affinity Konar
Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
Night by Elie Wiesel
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
Sophie’s Choice by William Styron
Ireana’s Children by Tilar J. Mazzeo
The Zookeeper’s Wife by Diane Ackerman
The Pianist by Wladyslaw Szpilman
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter
Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
Maus by Art Spiegelman
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Where victims were sent
Movies
Schindler’s List
Sophie’s Choice
The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas
The Hiding Place
The Diary of Anne Frank
The Pianist
Life is Beaiutiful
Son of Saul
Maus
Immortal Bastards
Europa Europa
Au revoir les enfants
The Women in Gold
Fiddler on the Roof (not WWII but spectacular anyway)
Follow my blog with Bloglovin Note – at the request of one of my friends, I have updated this blog, originally posted in November 2016, with fresh new information. Enjoy it again.
“How exactly do you prepare to leave the country and travel full-time?”
As our departure day to leave the USA again grows near, this is the recurring question. People we meet often show, interest, surprise, envy, jealousy, horror and confusion. But most of all they are curious. How exactly do you prepare to leave the country and travel full-time?
The Grand Adventure Thailand
So over the past couple of weeks I have been pulling together some details to share again. A lot of details. In fact, I would answer the above question with a simple sentence. “It’s in the details.”
Before we embarked on the first phase of the Grand Adventure we spent several years preparing. A younger person, like my son, can prepare more quickly, in a matter of months. But for Fab Fifty rock stars like me and my husband, it took more time.
For us about three years.
The Grand Adventure Morocco
When the idea first sprouted, I knew immediately we would do it. Without a question I knew it was right for us. All while knowing it isn’t right for everyone.
In fact, making a major life change like this should take some serious soul searching – are you cut out for a life of travel? What is your tolerance level? Consider everything from beds to cultural customs when considering your personal tolerance for living outside of the United States. Do you have phobias? Afraid of bugs? Snakes? Rodents or people not like you? Are you afraid of cultures where everyone isn’t white? Are you willing to eat new foods, communicate in languages other than English and squat to go to the bathroom? Give it a think because, a life of full-time travel isn’t for sissies or intolerant people. You gotta be open, willing and fairly fearless while being smart, observant and adventurous.
Once you know your tolerance level that in-turn will help you determine your budget. Because if you are only willing to stay in upscale American style hotels, then your budget will need to look very different
The Grand Adventure Vietnam
from ours. Our travels have us staying in primarily Airbnb’s that average about $70. And honestly if you are only willing to stay in American brand hotels with 300 thread count sheets and someone to cater to your every whim – well, you should just stay in the USA. Because you will miss the most rewarding part of travel – getting out of your comfort zone and expanding your world view.
We have a daily budget of $200 all-inclusive (transportation, lodging, food and misc). This is plenty for most places and not enough for a few places, but we are frugal and hope it all evens out. Because the
The Grand Adventure Spain
reality is if we can’t stay within our designated budget then the Grand Adventure will be over, sooner rather than later.
Speaking of timeline – we don’t have one. This of course would not work for everyone, but for us it fits. We will continue the vagabond life as long as we are having fun. As soon as it becomes anything other than fun, we will wrap it up. But so far, 99% fun.
So listed below are some “details” on how to prepare to leave the country and travel full-time. Most of these things we have had to learn on our own – so if this list can alleviate any work for someone else considering traveling abroad full-time in retirement, use it well.
PURGE – we started our purge process more than two years before we put our house on the market, as we let go of nearly every bit of fluff we owned, including house, cars, boats, trailer, furniture and more. We have a 10×12 storage unit now that is holding what remains of our stationary lifestyle and life’s memories. During this same period we worked to purge my Dad’s house, remodel his place and get it on the market as well as move him to a smaller place. It was a big goal to get him out of his large house before we left. It was a huge job but it needed to be done.
The Grand Adventure Cambodia
DOCUMENTS – we updated our passports even though they were not expired, so we would not have any issues with needing to do that from abroad. We also updated our Washington State Drivers License. We will carry a copy of our marriage certificate with us but not our birth certificates because the passport is sufficient. We have researched every possible country we think we might visit to learn the entry/visa requirements. We are carrying extra passport photos because some countries require obtaining a visa on entry with photo. We also carry International Drivers License, even though we have NEVER been asked for one.
SPREADSHEET – we created a spread sheet, which is evolving constantly and we can access via Google Drive, to track all of our travel including air and ground transportation and lodging. This spreadsheet includes notes regarding entry rules for countries. It’s also a fun tool for tracking so many things from miles traveled to beds slept in. The data we have is incredible.
MAIL – we are using a PO Box that belongs to my Mother-in-law, but we are trying hard not to receive
The Grand Adventure Croatia
any mail. We have notified our friends and family not to snail mail us, we have contacted magazines and catalogs to eliminate junk (not very successful however) and we have changed all of our banking, retirement and property related mail to online only. I canceled my 35 year subscription to Bon Apetit.
TECHNOLOGY – we have new smart phones, an iPad and my Brand new light weight Mac Book that will travel with us. In addition we will bring our old flip phone. For our smartphones (we each have an iPhone) we buy a sim card in each country for one of our phones to enable the phone to have a local phone number and data. We then also use our iPhones with wifi for things like blogging, Facebook and Instagram. The flip phone is programmed with our old Verizon phone number from the states. Although we don’t plan to use that number often, it keeps it active for emergency.
The Grand Adventure Seychelles
We also have our Bose noise-canceling headphones and our Bose SoundLink Mini speaker that measures about 6 in x 3 in. We carry this with us and it allows us to listen to music using Spotify and listen to Audible or other books.
APPS – We have a few travel apps we like especially Airbnb, Expedia and Google Maps. We also have a Google translate which is really cool. You can point your phone at a sign or menu item in another language and it will show you what it says in English. Love it. We use WhatsApp, an app that allows you to make overseas calls via the internet, this is primarily the way we communicate with our kids. To call our parents, who aren’t on WiFi, we use an app called TextNow which allows free phone calls from anywhere to the USA. We also use Kindle, Yelp, Uber, Get Your Guide and Trip Advisor.
The Grand Adventure New Zealand
CORDS AND CHARGERS – I honestly don’t understand why there isn’t a universal cord for all electronics, but alas wishful thinking. So we have organized and sorted all our cords, charges and adaptors to travel along. We research ahead to make sure we know what adaptors we need in each country. We have one packing cube we use for all of these items.
CREDIT CARDS – don’t you hate it when your credit card company announces suddenly that you are being mailed a new credit card because your card has been compromised? Well that would really screw us up if that happens. So we have FOUR credit cards. One is our primary and three are backups. Three cards have no foreign transaction fees (which is a killer). We also have multiple ATM cards. All credit and debit cards are chipped. VERY IMPORTANT is that we do not carry all these cards together in one place. That way, if our wallet or purse is lost or stolen, we will have back up cards available in a different location. We have contacted all of the card companies for both credit and debit and let them know we will be traveling abroad for an extended period. We have put a reminder on our calendar to do this again periodically. We carry several hundred US dollar in cash for emergencies.
The Grand Adventure Portugal
PRESCRIPTIONS – I take two prescriptions regularly. It’s been a challenge to get enough of my meds stocked up. My insurance company will allow, with a special doctor’s note, two 90 day vacation overrides. I have been stocking up in other ways too, but it’s not going to be enough. I will need to find access to these meds to fill the rest of the time, because we won’t be back in the US for a visit until next summer. Shipping prescriptions abroad is illegal. We have some people coming to visit us, so I may have them bring me my pills. But I am confident I can find the meds or an equivalent. I will need to pay cash for those at the time. I have also 12 months worth of contact lenses and we each have our glasses plus a back up pair.
DOCTORS – during the three months we have been in the USA we have had a ton of appointments; family physician for full physicals, new prescriptions and precautionary antibiotics; eye doctor for new contacts and glasses; dermatologist for annual check up; dentist for cleaning and some work; gynecologist for check up; and annual mammogram. I had my updated yellow fever, and DPT shot and did a round of typhoid and got a two month supply of malaria meds.
MEDIVAC INSURANCE – considering our age, we felt there was value in purchasing evacuation insurance. This insurance covers expenses to transport us back to the USA in case of a medical emergency that can’t be handled locally.
The Grand Adventure Spain
EXPEDIA AND AIRBNB – we love how these two
online websites allow us to keep files of all your bookings. This eliminates the need for printing and gives us easy access to our bookings. We use them both frequently.
DECIDING WHERE TO GO – After two years of non-stop travel we feel much more comfortable with our movement around the planet. It feels natural. We usually agree on where we want to go and make our decisions based on budget, weather, safety and interest. We love to go new places, but have a few favorites we return to. We take turns planing the itinerary, often taking a country each.
Although we aren’t completely booked yet, we have a plan for August 2018 through June 2019 that includes; Denmark (visiting Arne’s cousins), Belgium, Germany, Poland, Romania, Greece, Egypt &Jordan (the only countries currently where we are doing a tour), Portugal & Spain (where we will walk our second Camino de Santiago), Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru & Chile (these five countries on a cruise with Arne’s Mom), Brazil, Costa Rica (joined by our friends from Washington), El Salvador, Belize (joined by our two sons), Guatemala, Honduras, Dominican Republic and Cuba.
The Grand Adventure Tunisia
GIRL STUFF – I’ve learned some things about myself over the past two years. Despite how easy it is to have long hair and wear it in a pony tail everyday, I just hate the look on me. So the budget will need to include more haircuts. Mostly I do my own nails and wear hardly no makeup, but I still like to have my eyebrows waxed from time to time. I have just a handful of earrings and necklaces I wear and of course the charm bracelet. I’ve just purchased a jewelry case that’s I hope will help my jewelry not take such a travel beating.
The Grand Adventure Australia
PACKING – this topic is by far the one most people ask about, and indeed one of the hardest. We will continue to use two large REI rolling bags. Arne will continue to use his backpack as a carry on. But this time my backpack will stay home and I just purchased a new rolling carry on. And packing cubes have changed my life. Organized and categorized I love using packing cubes.
It helps that we are traveling, for the most part, to warm climates or to areas during their warm season. We may see cool and rainy in Portugal and Spain in the late fall. Honestly the clothing choice has been easier than the shoes. And the bulkiest items are not clothes or shoes it’s toiletries and
The Grand Adventure Namibia
medicines. I just purchased a flat style toilette bag to replace the larger boxier cube style one we have been carrying. I’m hoping this will free up some space in the suitcase.
Without a doubt I am bringing twice the clothes as my husband, but I have learned so much this past two years for what works for me and what is comfortable and easy to maintain.
The Grand Adventure Laos
I threw out almost all the clothes I used the past two years and have replaced them with fresh, new and comfortable. Watch for a blog soon all about my new travel wardrobe. I think you’re gonna love it.
In addition we have our electronics and documents and toiletries, first aid and meds. We have our Scrabble game, our hiking poles, a selfie stick, an REI titanium French press, a can opener,a small knife, collapsible small cooler and colander. I have a new “butt cushion” to hopefully alleviate sciatic pain on long flights. I’ve thrown in some pens and pencils, scotch tape and packing tape, a bungee cord, cloths pens, plastic bags (multiple sizes) our headlamps and some extra batteries. Of course I don’t leave home without my Washington State University flag, my Seattle Seahawks flag and THE MUG.
So there you have it. The details. I’ve probably forgotten something. We feel more prepared and less anxious than when we left two years ago. We are looking forward to this next phase.
Ready to launch year three of the Grand Adventure! T minus 33 days.
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