Random Reflections and (Sort of) Deep Thoughts from the Road

Over dinner or while we are walking somewhere, Rich and I do a lot of back and forth about what we love about traveling, what we miss about home, what we are glad we did, what we might change, etc. In other words, we take some time for reflection.

We thought it might be fun to share some of these reflections with you!  We will still do our next 30 days post– think of this more as eavesdropping on some of the conversations we have back and forth as we hang out all day, every day.

And in terms of process, we answered the questions in the order our names are listed (i.e. the first person writes his or her response blind, and then the second person can respond).

What it is the one physical thing from home you miss the most?

Rich: Our large, grey, comfortable sectional couch. From watching the Eagles and Georgia football games to Homeland, Handmaid’s Tale, and Game of Thrones, it is where we unwind. It can be difficult to relax fully when you are switching destinations every 3 to 5 days.

Amanda: HAIR CONDITIONER.  Hear me out.   None of the hotels and AirBNB’s have it, and we fly so frequently that I can only buy it in travel sized amounts.  Also, everything we do is terrible on my hair– being in the sun and the heat, swimming in pools, oceans, and waterfalls, using the random shampoos provided by the hotels and AirBNB’s.

I think about a huge bottle of great conditioner every day.  I read articles about conditioning treatments (here, here, and here) which is just torture because there is no CVS or Sephora in Laos.  And if there were, I could only buy the best products in travel sized amounts! Seriously, #1 fantasy: a huge, budget busting bottle of Moroccan Oil conditioner.  The end.

What is one experience from home that you miss that you expected to miss and one experience from home that you miss that surprises you?

Amanda: I expected that we would miss family and friends, and we do.  Events that would seem super regular at home- kids’ birthday parties, friends going out to dinner- seem the coolest from this far away (“Oh my gosh, look at all those people we know in the same room!”).  Abbey starting high school has definitely been the most expected, hardest thing to be away for.

I realized yesterday that I unexpectedly miss folding clothes.  We are at the mercy of our situation on how we will get our clothes clean, but yesterday our AirBNB provided laundry service for a small fee.  I had to fight the urge to ask if I could fold the clothes myself when they came out of the dryer– the allure of clean clothes, DRIED IN A DRYER (not a given in most of the world), and then the sense of task completion when they are all folded neatly…sigh.

Rich: I expected to miss the fall, the start of school, and football, and I have. I especially miss the start of school this year as it is Abbey’s first year in high school. Fall is our favorite season: the cool temperatures, La Colombe coffee on our couch on Saturday morning, and watching football. Our travel route has us in summer in almost every country we visit, and fall seems so far away. Also,  halfway across the world “American” football is non-existent. This is unimaginable back home.

The unexpected experience I miss most is food shopping and having a well stocked refrigerator. I am a creature of habit and love my Saturday mornings at Whole Foods. I miss selecting the meat, fish, and produce that Amanda turns into delicious meals. I also miss the convenience of going into my fridge and grabbing a drink or something to eat whenever the urge arises. When traveling you have to plan out how to get every meal.

What is something that another country does way better than the United States?  Like, why don’t we do that at home?

Rich: Bus safety. All buses in SE Asia and some in Europe have two employees on each bus. Makes total sense. We have all heard stories of SEPTA or Metro violence, passengers not paying fares, etc. It is illogical to think one person (the bus driver) can collect fares, enforce collection of fares, ensure bus etiquette, prevent bus violence, and DRIVE THE BUS!

In other countries, the bus driver does just that, drives the bus. Another employee collects the fare, and keeps an eye on the bus and its passengers. Makes total sense. Part of me can’t help think that transportation companies in the U.S. are more concerned about their bottom line.

Amanda: I basically wrote this question because Rich is so fired up about the buses!

Something that we have seen in Asia that makes so much sense to me is that all of the escalators have motion sensors so they only start up when someone steps on them.  Genius!  Why does the escalator need to run continuously and waste energy?  It should just come on when you step on the platform right before you step on the escalator stairs.  An elevator doesn’t go up and down when there aren’t any passengers on it. America, you’re welcome.

Let’s talk about time.  Does it feel like it is moving more quickly or more slowly than you would have expected?

Amanda: That’s tough.  I cannot believe that we have been out of the country for 89 days, and I also cannot believe that we have seen everything that we have seen in only 89 days.  Like, oh remember when we were at that waterfall in Iceland, and then we were in Sicily for a long time, and now we are at a waterfall in Laos.  So in that sense, it is moving really fast.

However, it feels like FOREVER since we were in the United States grabbing a cheeseburger and going to CVS.  And I had a job? Feels like a lifetime ago.

Rich: I agree with Amanda here. Iceland seems like so long ago; however, I can not believe how much of the world we have already seen so far. We have learned how big the world really is and how small we really are in it.

What is your very favorite part of traveling the world?

Rich: For me, it is seeing how different cultures live and learn from each other across the world. I love the world fusion. I love it in food (Think: Bing Bing Dim Sung in Philly- Asian/Jewish food). I love it in music (Think: Hip Hop collaborating with Rock). Also, spending time with Amanda, the learning and growing we are doing together is amazing!

Amanda: Oh, that was sweet– thanks! Besides being with Rich, I really enjoy the unknown unknowns.  I might have a vague notion of what a town or a country will be like, but then all of these surprises unfold along the way.

Some of the surprises are amazing- trying a new delicious food or seeing something in nature that looks like nothing I have ever seen before- and sometimes they are a little quirky or even frustrating (oh, our “bus” is actually a minivan and the driver changes twice in five hours and the second driver gets out of the bus to pee on the side of the road once an hour and then drops us at a location in the next town that is not the bus station).

For better or worse, I almost always kind of love all of the surprise.  Things are never boring, and there are lots of good lessons about accepting things as they are.

Was taking this trip the right decision?

Amanda: Oh, absolutely.  There are so many things about having the opportunity to do this and seeing all we are seeing as well as being back home when we are finished that I hope I will appreciate forever.  There is psychological research that gratitude is the key to happiness, and I feel like we are making a yearlong investment in a lifetime of happiness.

Rich: Yes! We talk all the time about how lucky we are to be able to do this. I want to live a big, full life. I want to see the Big 5 in Africa, swim in the Mediterranean, dive the Great Barrier Reef, do Yoga in Bali, hike Machu Picchu, visit all of the great U.S. National Parks, and try great food, beer, and wine from all over the  world. And we get to do it all now!

Feel free to send more deep (ha!), higher level thinking and reflection questions our way!  Sending our love back across the world to you.