Eight months. Yep, it’s been 8 months today since we left the USA and it is time to turn our compass towards home. I love our travel life. But I love our little Villa de Verano as well, and we love spending summer in Washington State. So, it’s time. Home Again Home Again Jiggety Jig.

A Look Back

This is year 8 of our Grand Adventure. What a crazy life this is, but also rich and rewarding. This past 8 months we have tackled some difficult places (Papua New Guinea), some favorite places (Brisbane, Melbourne, Tasmania) and some chilly places (Bologna, Puglia, Sicily). We have learned new things and enjoyed watching spring arrive in places like Crete.

More Blogs Coming

I have not finished writing about our adventures in year eight. Coming up North Macedonia, Serbia, Vienna, Bratislava and Madagascar. All worth a read. But meanwhile, this week I just wanted to talk about home. The Grand Adventure is not the kind of life everyone wants, but for us it really is satisfying, particularly knowing we can always go home. Homeward bound. Home Again Home Again Jiggety Jig.

What’s Next

What’s next is the question we get probably more than any other question about our travels. So in brief let me share. We will be back in the USA for four months this time from Mid May to Mid September. In September we will travel for six weeks and then return to the USA for the holidays. During this six weeks we will visit three countries we dropped when we had to return home during COVID; Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Then we will do a tour once again with Intrepid Travel to the Five Stans before returning to the USA for holidays with our family.

After our time home for the holidays (November – January)we don’t know yet, but we have some ideas. We will definitely travel and are considering the South Pacific and Australia in the winter and Europe again for spring. Our trips from now on will be shorter, possibly three to four months. We have learned over the past few months that eight months is too long, our bodies can’t take it anymore. So the continuation of the Grand Adventure will revolve around shorter adventures and longer periods at home. It’s been an evolution, and luckily we both are on the same page about this.

Home Again Home Again Jiggety Jig

I am amazed and grateful at how many people follow our adventures, ask questions and seem genuinely interested in this travel life. Thank you for that. While in the USA, we plan to stay put for most of the four months, with the exception of one short trip to Las Vegas to see Elvis Costello for my husband’s birthday. We really want a quieter summer without travel. Spending time with our adult children and our moms close to home. Time to get some projects done around the house (new laundry room and more). We look forward to golf, hiking, and getting back on a running schedule – I need to drop a few pounds travel has gifted me…so much great food. I’m looking forward to gardening, quilting and some redecorating. I need to continue the photo project I started last summer. I just need to be HOME. These are things that make us happy and keep us healthy. I hope to see some of you this summer.

Be sure to stay tuned for upcoming blog posts. See last week’s post About Albania – Tirana & Beyond. Thank you for your comments, shares, pins and continued interest in what we do. This life – a real Grand Adventure.