With Covid cases in our next destination of Medellín, Colombia spiking in a third wave and ICU capacity exceeding 100% at many of the hospitals, we decided to hop back to the US between our stay in Mérida and Medellín to get vaccinated…
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Jim and I love walkable cities. Sometimes we have a specific destination in mind, but usually we just turn on random streets as we explore and see what we see-no end point in mind. The act of exploring and discovering is why we travel.
It's how we randomly stumbled across the “Stencil Painted Birds” here in Mérida, Mexico.
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Last Saturday I woke up seeing weird flashes of light out of my right eye. This is one of the not so glamorous parts of full time nomad life: medical stuff that can’t wait to be investigated.
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Over many years of using Airbnb we’ve learned that reviews can be the most important part of choosing where to stay. A picture is worth a thousand words—and pictures on Airbnb are very important—but if you travel enough you learn that there are ways to mislead with pictures just as easily as with words. Previous visitors are where the real gold lies in figuring out what it will really be like when you stay someplace.
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We get asked this question quite a bit. What's the one thing you travel with that other people would think is weird? I have a few answers for that…
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After our shortened stay in Belize, we settled in nicely at our Airbnb in the Tao Community near Akumal on the Mayan Riviera…
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If you’re someone who likes to stay active and be at least a little fit, traveling can throw a big kink into your plans. When you travel full-time, especially if you’re moving to a new place every month or two, it’s challenging to build and maintain a fitness routine…
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I'm social and enjoy having a busy schedule full of activities, adventures, and meet ups. Oftentimes this means finding friendly folks wherever I am that are willing to hang out with someone that will be gone a month later. (And one that speaks English since I am foreign-language challenged!). As someone that strives to have purposeful, intentional interactions with the people in my life, this can be hard.
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I had been looking forward to our stay in Belize both for the farmhouse we had booked through Airbnb and for the opportunity to visit parts of the country we hadn’t reached on our vacation here about five years ago. Our previous trip had us visiting some of the Caribbean islands off Belize’s coast as well as the mountains in the west, not far from the Guatemalan border. This time we would be more in the southeastern area.
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There are no shortages of wildlife adventures in Costa Rica. In the span of just one day, Jim picked up his shorts off the floor to find a snake napping in them, then later watched a scorpion strut across the terrace while he stretched before bed. That was right after he saw the biggest possum he’s ever seen trying to cross the terrace.
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When you don’t plan to be in the US for more than a few weeks a year, how do you deal with health insurance? Indeed, this is one of the biggest struggles of anyone who lives an unconventional life without employer-provided insurance. But when you’re not even going to be in the US for more than a few weeks a year, it adds another dimension.
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There is a reason the must-sees are must-sees. They often are amazing experiences. And of course, if you only have a week or two of vacation, what choice do you have? See the must-sees, follow the path, maximize the big chunk of cash you’re plopping down for your vacation! We still do a lot of those things, too, but we have the luxury of going a step further and not wearing ourselves out in the process.
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I couldn't just skip over Sedona and the fantastic time we had hiking there. Our neighbors were friendly and welcoming, the views fantastic, and the weather hot—just the way Jim likes it!
So many hiking trails! We spent five weeks and there are still trails on my list that we didn't get to…
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After six weeks of bouncing around week-to-week seeing friends and family in the states, it feels nice to be settled for a month. Waking up with the sun, sitting in our outdoor living room, sipping my tea, and watching the abundance of wildlife around with the ocean in the background is just where I want to be. It just feels soul-soothing.
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Even as we’re all watching the number of Covid-19 cases in the US increase and the restrictions here in Denver, CO are getting tighter, more countries are opening their borders to US citizens. Of course, this is very good for us, but with continuing uncertainty about the disease and the responses from politicians, it’s not as helpful as you might think!
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I'm a fan of stargazing and things space related. Unfortunately, I'm also a fan of falling asleep at nine every night! 😂
Here in Arizona though, the sun sets early-ish this time of year. It helps that Cottonwood and its nearby cities like Sedona and Camp Verde, are Designated Dark Sky Communities.
After a nice sunset hike at Doe Mountain, we headed to our viewing area with a blanket, some cheese and crackers, my trusty new tripod, and my phone. That’s right, just my phone. As much as I love taking pictures, I just can’t bring myself to travel with the added weight of our fancy Nikon.
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While I’m not a foodie in the traditional sense, I could probably be considered some sort of foodie because I really enjoy cooking and I love baking. Although trying local foods at restaurants is not really what pushes us to travel, one of my favorite parts of travel is the grocery shopping- I love exploring the shelves and finding interesting ingredients. I think you can learn a lot about the local culture at the grocery store.
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The familiar landscapes are some of the most fun to visit and get reacquainted with. It’s been a long time since we've had the chance to hike in New Hampshire and there is no shortage of hiking options! I could spend four hours hiking every day and not get bored with it. Even the hikes I visit again and again seem to give me a different experience each time I visit.
Being in the heart of the White Mountains means easy access to a lot of trails. Jim warned me that no one would be interested in a dozen blog posts about hiking, not even him and he went on most of the hikes. Oh Jim. So, in the interest of keeping my memories succinct, here are my top five hikes in the area.
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