Sunday, September 4, 2016

A Year to Remember!

Jordan, June, 2015

Thailand, June 2015

Laos, July 2015

Indonesia, August 2015

Palau, September 2015

Singapore, September 2015

India, October 2015

Bhutan, October 2015

Myanmar, November 2015

Cambodia, December 2015

Vietnam, January 2016

Australia, January 2016

New Zealand, February 2016

Samoa, March 2016

Chile, March 2016

Mexico, April 2016

USA, May 2016

Sunday, July 10, 2016

Lists

We have now finished our Big Trip.  What a year it has been!  And what amazing experiences we have had in so many countries.  Here is a sample:

Countries in which we have had bugs and infections:
  • Thailand - ants crawling across my head while sleeping on a mat on the floor at a homestay in the hills above Chiang Mai
  • Thailand - leech sucking my blood
  • Thailand - Mira had a bad stomach bug
  • Indonesia - I caught Mira's stomach bug
  • Indonesia - lice, which everyone but Rob got them
  • Indonesia - Rob had bedbugs
  • Cambodia - Rob and Maya had a little stomach bug
  • Palau - poisonous tree got Maya good (like poison ivy but worse)
  • India - Rob had mites with super long antennas in his underarm
  • India - Maya had a cold or flu
  • Australia - we all had leeches sucking our blood
  • California - Mira and I had bedbugs
Maya's legs after toughing beautiful Palau's ugly poisonous trees


Countries in which we ate insects:
  • Thailand
  • Laos
  • Cambodia
  • Mexico


Countries in which I saw friends (and location of where we first met that friend):
  • Thailand - Billy, Kathy, and Khalid (Louisiana and UAE)
  • Thailand - Dino and Helen (Rhode Island)
  • Indonesia - Denise, Jay, Charlotte, and Jimmy (Rhode Island)
  • Singapore - Ann, Michael, Demitri, and Thani (Rhode Island)
  • India - Tony, Alicia, and Fran (Rhode Island)
  • Bhutan - Nabil and Violet (Louisiana and UAE)
  • Myanmar - Josh, Zoe, and Zack (Jordan)
  • Myanmar - Jill and Roni (Jordan)
  • Cambodia - Matt and Sheila (California)
  • Vietnam - Reed and Ryder (Jordan)
  • Australia - Megan (Canada)
  • Australia - Dianne, Zekele, and Lindy (Zimbabwe)
  • Australia - Mandy (Washington)
  • Australia - Carolan, Tim, and Kirra (California)
  • Australia - Lesley (UAE)
  • Australia - Denise (Eritrea)
  • New Zealand - Helle and Warwick (Eritrea)
  • New Zealand - Liz (Eritrea)
  • Samoa - Cedric and Suzy (Massachusetts and Fiji)
  • Chile - Inaki and Meritxell (Eritrea and New York)
  • Mexico - Kathy (California)
  • Mexico - Holly (Washington)
  • Mexico - Jeanne (Zimbabwe)
  • Mexico - Lisa (Jordan)
  • Mexico - Jane (Rhode Island)
  • Mexico - Lessie (Mexico)
  • Hawaii - Matt and Sheila (California and Zimbabwe)
  • Hawaii - Paz (Rhode Island)
  • California - Sandy, Anneke, and Marijke (Canada)
  • California - Kathy (California)
  • California - Edie, Jimmy, Mimi, Cici, and Tia (UAE and California)
  • California - the Marsocci clan (Rhode Island)
  • California - Laura (Washington)
  • California - Dave (France)
  • California - Dom and Joao (Rhode Island)
  • Arizona - Kamal, Alia, Saif, and Azza (Egypt)

How to say hello and thank you in the 19 countries we visited (and Hawaii):
  • UAE:  marhaba, shukran 
  • Thai: swadi ka, kap kun ka 
  • Laos: sawadi, kap chai
  • Indonesian: slamat pagi tremakasi
  • Philippines:  kamusta , salamat po
  • Palau: alli alli, sulong 
  • India: namaste, dhandivad 
  • Bhutan: kuzuzangpola, karinchey
  • Myanmar: maklava  , chezutamari 
  • Cambodia: Suwa sudeh, awkun 
  • Vietnam: Sin chao, com an
  • Australia: G'dai, cheers or ta 
  • New Zealand: hello, thanks or ta 
  • Samoa: talofa, fa'afetai
  • Santiago: hola; gracias 
  • Easter Island: iorana; maururu 
  • Mexico: hola; gracias 
  • Hawaii: aloha, mahalo
Nadia




Friday, July 8, 2016

A Year to Remember


It seems like only yesterday I was setting out all my gear on the bed in our Amman, Jordan hotel room (June 21, 2015) before departing for our year-long trip around the world. Now, over a year later, and as the trip finds us relaxing at the beach in Rhode Island, I write what I believe will be my final travel blog before setting out for our next move/adventure.

What can I say, except - wow, what a ride the past year has been. We've traveled from one interesting destination to another, met amazing and interesting people, reconnected with close friends and family while also making new acquaintance along the way, grew closer as a family and re-affirmed the strong belief that - "We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us".

Over the past year we have:
  • Visited 19 countries from the foothills of the Himalayas to island atolls in the Pacific
  • Traveled on 100's of buses, ferries, buses, trains, tuk-tuks, rickshaws, and foot trails traversing through jungles, urban sprawls, panoramic vistas and more
  • Flown on no less than 69 flights
  • Experienced amazing diving all over the world (I logged 32 dives while Maya exceeded this number by logging 14 dives in two weeks in Hawaii - thanks to our close friend Matt who owns 3 dive shops on Oahu)
  • Been hosted by and/or met up with good friends and family along our route - by my count we connected and spent quality time with no less than 25 sets of family and friends.
  • Ingested every kind of noodle, curry, insect, fish, and local delicacy imaginable
  • Arranged 7 house swaps where we recharged our batteries and actually cooked our own food.
  • Managed the trip with only one backpack each (until Mexico toward the end of the trip where we added a family suitcase to hold things we'd acquired throughout our travels).
  • Sent more than 180 postcards to family and friends
  • Saw the most amazing wildlife including wild tiger, orang-utan, komodo dragons, giant manta rays, sharks and octopus, platypus, kangaroos, wombats and wallaby's, whale sharks, elephants, camels, kookaburras, and much much more.
  • Posted close to 160 travel blogs
  • Lost one laptop computer due to a slimy taxi driver in Hanoi, left behind countless numbers of flip flops, t-shirts, toothbrushes, and other small personal items. Fortunately, we didn't lose a single piece of luggage the entire trip.
  • Took literally thousands of photos
  • Slept in more beds than we care to remember
  • Registered beautiful memories that will last a lifetime 
For the past month, and as the year-long adventure wraps up, we've been staying with friends in Hawaii, southern California and now Rhode Island. In late May, we wrapped up a terrific few weeks with Matt and Sheila on Oahu before staying with Sandy and her gracious family (minus Peter who was in Europe) in San Diego. We then stayed with Dom and Joao who are like family to me in their San Diego home, while also visiting our good friend Kathy who lives in Cardiff and visited us previously in Todos Santos/Baja, Mexico. Fortunately, we also had time to spend an incredible few days with Jimmy and Eddy and their children on their boat for a 4 day sail to Catalina Island - beautiful. While in LA, we stayed with my close childhood friend Bob and his wife Lisette and their 3 daughters and had a chance to see Bob's brothers Chris and Dino and their parents Bob and Rose. Thanks to all of these special people for the wonderful hospitality they showed us. We also were hosted for a delicious sushi dinner in LA, compliments of Dave, who Nadia met in Geneva and had a chance to go hiking with in the Alps.
We hope we can return everyone's sincere and overwhelming hospitality by having everyone come visit us abroad in the coming year(s).

We're now staying with our good friend Nina at her beach house in Narragansett RI, where we're able to spend time with my brother Jim and other close friends from Rhode Island. I've had the chance to go fishing 'striper' fishing a couple of times with my good friend Tony and spend a #10 day on Block Island with Denise, Charlotte and Jimmy "Man of Mystery' Robbins.

So - what's next? In a few days I'll fly to Wash/DC where I'll be in training for my new job with the US State Department as their Office of Transitional Initiatives Country Representative for Burma/Myanmar. If all goes well, we expect to fly to Yangon (Myanmar's capital) by late July so the kids can start at the International School of Yangon on August 3rd. I'll be working out of the US Embassy and we hope to be living in a house not too far from school and the Embassy (traffic can be a bear in Yangon). We're also quite excited to get a new dog once we're settled (Mira can't wait).

The family is looking forward to this new adventure and I'm truly grateful that, even though it was a considerable risk for Nadia and I quit our jobs to do this trip, everything seems to be working out as we had hoped. I'd like to think we gained a bit of positive karma from the monks in places like Bhutan, Laos and India.

It's been a great ride and I wouldn't hesitate doing it again if the chance presents itself.
For now, signing out until the next big adventure.........          Cheers, Rob

Wreck diving with Maya in Hawaii

Mira with sea lions, La Jolla Cove in San Diego

Relaxing hot tub experience at Dom's house

At the Delmar Fair

At Harry Potter village, Universal Studios LA

Lucy, Mira and new friend at Universal Studios

The Marsocci/Maroni clans at Bob and Lisette's house

Cathy and Maya anchored off of Catalina Island 

Sundowners with Jimmy and Eddie on Catalina I.

Avalon

Lobster pot markers, Block Island

New Harbour, Block Island





Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Do Overs?

We are now exactly one year and six days into our one-year around-the-world trip, for which we quit our jobs, jumped off the cliff, home schooled our children, and traveled to 19 countries around the world.

We are about to fly to Rhode Island, where we typically spend our summer vacation with family and friends.  After that, we will move to Myanmar and get on with our "regular" lives of living in a foreign country doing humanitarian and development work and attending international schools.

As I reflect on our trip, and think about the big picture, and as we visit friends here in Southern California, I think about what I would do differently, if we were to start the trip over again.

I would:

1.  Go slower and visit fewer places.  Upon the advice of people who had already taken similar trips, we revised our trip itinerary several times, slowing it, and reducing the number of countries and places we planned to visit.  

I still think, however, that we planned too much and didn't allow enough down time.  

I would go at a much a slower pace.  Visit fewer countries.  See fewer sights.  I would plan more "rest stops".  I would allow time for us to just be in a city or town or village, to experience life in different places.  I would allow more time for processing all that we say and all that we did.  Time to just "be".

The Cara Mia off Catalina Island, where we spent four days with my childhood friend, Edie, on her gorgeous sailboat, lounging and catching up - a perfect "rest stop" on our Big Trip.

2.  Take school less seriously.  Except for math, we didn't need to take schooling so seriously.  As long as they were reading regularly, and writing regularly, the girls didn't need as much formal schooling as we did.  They learned so, so much from everything we did and saw.  By osmosis.  By doing.  By experiencing.  By participating in the planning.  By asking questions of our guides and our new friends and acquaintances.  By seeing and experiencing and becoming so accepting of so many diverse foods and ecosystems and people and clothes and cultures and religions and lifestyles and values.  There are so many ways to do things and the "other" is also "right".  This is what it means to be an world citizen.

3.  Take strong, well-made roller suitcases instead of backpacks.  There were very, very few instances in which we actually needed backpacks.  We always checked bags when flying (because we had toothpaste and shampoo and first aid gels, etc., etc.,  which exceeded the liquid limits found everywhere with carry-on bags).  And there were many time in which we would have had a much easier time (less sweat) had we pulled along a small suitcase with wheels.  We didn't need to "prove" we were travelers by carrying backpacks instead of suitcases.

4.  Plan side trips with part of the family, in various configurations, to separate from time to time.  Maya and I took a trip on our own at the beginning of the trip.  We left Mira with family friends at the end of our trip.  I took three different week-long trips on my own during our Big Trip.  Rob went off for a long boys' weekend for four days at one point while we were in Mexico.  These were fantastic breaks, but we should have planned time for more little side trips with two of us going in one direction while the other two went in another while we were on our Big Trip.  One year is a long time to be together 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week, for one year.

Photos of Rob and I during a rare four-hour period of being away from the kids while at the San Diego County Fair in Del Mar, California, USA

All in all, it has been an absolutely fantastic year!  We have learned a lot about ourselves, about each other, and about our relationships with each other.  But I'd do things slightly differently if I were doing it over again.  If I was making recommendations to other families wanting to take a similar trip, I'd suggest they do things a little differently than we did it.

None-the-less, I would absolutely recommend a trip like this to anyone and everyone.  Life is fragile and short.  You might not be here tomorrow.  Take a leave-of-absence.  Take a sabbatical.  Quit your jobs.  Travel with your kids for a fair length of time while they're old enough to remember the trip.  Take a risk.  Do it.  Experience new things.  Create memories.  Spend time with loved ones.  Carpe diem!

-  Nadia

Monday, June 20, 2016

Happy Father's Day!

To Rob, an amazing father to our amazing daughters!

Love, 

Nadia 


Monday, June 13, 2016

Winding Down

It's hard to believe, but we are down to the last couple of weeks of our "Big Trip".

Unlike other portions of our trip, since we're in the western states of USA, we are spending our time with long-time friends and with family I haven't seen in years.  While we're still exploring new things, much of our time is spent story-telling and answering questions about our year-long, 19-country adventure.

Some of the Al-Alawi clan at the Grand Canyon:
Saif, Amira, Mira, Nadia, and Kamal (back row)
Alia and Maya (front row)

One question I've been asked a few times is "are you tired of it?"  (or varieties of that question, such as "are you ready to stop").

In all honesty, I'd have to say 'yes, I'm ready to end the trip'.

It has been a fantastic year, full of adventures and learnings and discovery of all kind, but...

We know that if all goes well, we will settle in Myanmar (aka Burma) for the next few years.  That in itself is an adventure.  Where in Yangon will we live?  In an apartment or a house?  Where will the girls go to school?  Will we finally get a new dog (to "replace" Sawa, the white German Shepherd who had been part of the family for 14 years)?  What is it like on the coast of Myanmar?  And how about the north - we only visited Yangon and central Myanmar when we were there in November.  And what about the other expats - what are they like?  I want to end the trip mostly so that I can find the answers to these questions!


I'm also ready to stay in a place with a kitchen for more than just a week or two.  I like eating fresh fruits and vegetables.  I like creating delicious meals from them.  I like being able to control what and how much I eat (especially now that we're in USA where food habits tend to be pretty different from our family food culture).  I miss being able to open a fridge and make a quick and simple snack or meal without having to go to a restaurant for it.

And (while I hate to admit it), I'm looking forward to wearing some different clothes -  I'm tired of my four or five shirts!!  I want a few more items of clothing.  I don't want to HAVE to do laundry every few days.

Nadia