Six Months Done
In our sixth month of travel, we visited Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. We celebrated Christmas and New Year’s on the road, away from family and friends. We took a “vacation” at a resort in Phuket. We ate insects.
I am a changed person. I suspect I will revert to much of my old self after some time settled back in Maryland, but when I think about what life will be like then, I struggle. There are so many things I can’t imagine or believe or forget.
I can’t imagine having as much clothing as I used to have, and I even struggle to imagine having more than I have now.
I can’t believe that I drank fresh camel milk and ate durian fruit, tarantulas (twice!), red ants, beetles and crickets.
I can’t forget how far from home I felt in Morocco. It felt so expansive - the distance between me and home.
I can’t believe the luck we’ve had in being present for other country’s special holidays.
I can’t imagine driving to the stores and restaurants within a mile of my home, and yet I can’t imagine not driving to these places.
I can’t forget how weird U.S. dollars looked to me this month when I saw them again for the first time in over five months. I thought, did they change the bills while we’ve been away?
I can’t believe all of my possessions fit in a backpack and a purse - weighing about 35 pounds - and that I don’t have to carry anything for the kids.
I can’t forget the wonderful people who’ve entered our lives this month, and that those meetings were only possible because of this trip. First, our new friends in Singapore gave us all a fabulous dinner and night of connection during the Christmas season. It was so nice to meet people who had lived where we had lived and had traveled to where we had traveled and whose kids connected with our kids. Second, we met another round-the-world family whose travel plans put them in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam at the same time as ours. We connected through Instagram (@mylittlevagabonds) and Facebook and the courage of asking to meet. Cindy, Pierre, Julien and Lily left California a year ago and hope to travel for years to come. There is just something I love about meeting people who have the spirit of world travel.
Now, we prepare to visit New Zealand for one month, to connect with old friends and experience a familiar settled way of life in a brand new setting.