3/3/19 – 3/3/20
Today is exactly 1 year (+1 extra day for leap year) since we started this Refresh Journey. This morning, we were moving from Coffs Harbour to Gold Coast, Australia and I enticed everyone to recreate the first photo we took when we were ready to leave Seattle.
Here are a few facts and observations about this past year:
1. We’ve been actively traveling for the past 366 days.
2. We spent 65 of those days moving from one location to another.
3. We traveled to 19 countries across 4 continents.
4. We took a total of 36 flights so far.
5. We slept in 82 different accommodations.
6. We’ve traveled in airplanes, rented cars, took ferries, rode in tuk-tuks, tricycles, in longboats. We (mostly Pedja) drove over 5,000 miles so far in Ecuador, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Denmark, Serbia/Bosnia/Montenegro, Australia.
7. Using Trail Wallet App (sadly only for iOS) has been a great way to keep track of all of our expenses. I’m proud to say that we are still slightly under budget.
8. We haven’t messed up any dates/reservations/planned locations so far. All has been going according to plan (with the exception of the latest coronavirus scare when the airline canceled our flights to Hong Kong)
9. We had two close calls with paperwork but got them fixed at the last minute (at the airport) – Vietnam visa and Australian ETA.
10. We don’t have a favorite country; every place had its own vibe and there was something to enjoy all along the way.
11. We only came across good people, not a single “jerk”. This is not an exaggeration. None of us could recall a situation where we felt that someone we crossed paths with was no good. In general, people everywhere are good people.
12. We met new friends from Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, South Africa, New Zealand, Holland, Belgium, Portugal, Thailand, the US, Philippines,…
13. This journey has not been all fun and games – we’ve experienced some highest highs but also some real lows.
14. I’ve been keeping a list of new experiences and accomplishment for each kid and they include things like riding camels, holding pythons, scuba diving, longest zip-lining, swimming with sharks, surfing, climbing coconut trees, learning needlepoint, installing laminate flooring, learning to cook, eating with chopsticks, learning to type, conquering some fears, etc.
15. It turns out we are all very much city people but we enjoy a good mix of urban and nature sites.
16. Kids are (occasionally) missing home, Petra more than the other two, but we, not so much!
This is not a long vacation but instead, it is a journey with the usual ups and downs of typical life. Still, it is a dream come true in every possible way and at this point, it is hard to imagine what comes after it.
Refresh Journey 