Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Where We Are...

Logistically  

We have a few things sort of hammered out.  We are at the planning stages right now where everything is reconnaissance.  We are asking around, reading, emailing, talking to various families who have done RTW trips.  There are quite a few out there.  I have my sponsor list almost done and pretty soon will be executing the emails, inquiries, and phone calls.  I am at the hunting and gathering stage and I only have some simple ingredients.  
The trip itself has a few kinks in it we have to figure out and we should have the itinerary finished in a few months.  There are a lot of things to factor- transportation, availability of routes, roads etc.  And this will be a very rough, rough itinerary because we won't really know what it will be like in 2011.  A week before each change we will have to confirm everything.  For instance, there is only one ferry from Tunisia to Sicily, and it only leaves weekly, which I didn't know.
Financially, I am not too worried about this.  Luckily, our every day expenses are simple.  (there will be an entire post on budget coming up).  We are going to be very dependent on saving literally nickels and dimes, fundraising, and sponsors.  Also, I start my quest for the publishing aspect of it soon.  We have a very simple life, with one small car, and home made lunches.  I think also, we are at the point in our life where we don't possibly need anything else. This is through the generosity of our parents.  We make enough money to sustain ourselves with very little savings, but I always think something as common as money should never get in the way of your life.    
Theoretically:
We are at the part where we are still dreaming up this trip, and it isn't quite real to me.  The thought of it is real to me.  The thought of being with my kids and my husband for 4 months sounds like a dream.  To be able to share these sole, precious moments of their life, together as a family makes me want to work harder than ever to get to this goal.  I am already a busy person, but having this as a goal has really changed my step in terms of work and the everyday grind.  Trips always do this to me.  I feel like when stuff gets hard, I have this to look forward to.  Not to say, I don't enjoy my family when there isn't a trip planned, I just feel in my total element when I have a trip planned somewhere.   Overall I think travel is good for you.  So other people should do it too.  
I spent my college years starting things, finishing some, and then starting other things and not finishing those.  I traveled in between those, and the only regret I have is that I wasted my time spending it in the classroom.  Don't get me wrong, I understand the value of education, and that alone is a journey in itself.  But I also understand the value of life, and precious, precious time.  I can always go back to school.  I can always go work somewhere and make money, but I will never have Myla be 3 and Emily be 2 ever again.  

Anyway, enough of this sap.  I thought I would close today's post with my favorite travel quote...

The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. 
- St. Augustine

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