Getting ready to travel again 1

I’m getting ready to travel again. I’ve really enjoyed having the past year with my family. I must confess I had a bit of a dilemma deciding whether to travel again or to stay put in a comfortable apartment home close to my family and friends. But in the end, I chose the travel my soul craves over the comfort my heart craves.

During my first 3-year travels a woman told me: “You’re cold-hearted.”
Shocked and stabbed by this, I asked: “Why?”
“If you can leave your family for so long, family and friends must mean nothing to you.”
“Actually,” I replied, “it’s because I am so confident in the love of my family and friends that I can go out on my own.”

This same deep connection I have to my family and to my best friends is why I am saddened, but not afraid to leave them and travel again.

Actually…as has been true since I started this travel life in 2011, I’ll continue to be in touch with my friends pretty much the same as while in the same town/region/country as them. That’s by phone. The really hard part is giving up days of just sitting on a couch or at a table with my mom or other family, of being in their presence.

Travel breaks

This past 1½ years of travel break was very different from my previous one.

Last time, I’d house-sat all over Los Angeles and also stayed in Texas. I loved being back in LA where I could see the people I love. However, I was frequently moving. Sometimes after just a few days. It was exhausting in many ways. Educational, interesting, and money-saving, but exhausting.

This time I sublet an apartment in LA for most of the time, starting just about a month after my return to LA. I did some house sitting this time too, for past clients and during a period when the primary lessee needed her home. I also stayed with a generous “Mac friend” for about 6 weeks during that time. It felt great to have my own apartment, my own space. It was great to be able to pull out my own (folding) shelf and a few small things and have them with me again. I was comfortable and I had a home — and it was hard to actually opt to give that up again when I had the option of remaining there.

Getting stuff ready to travel in an EagleCreek Carry-on

What now?

I have been out of that apartment for a few weeks now and I have my ticket to fly to Europe. I am comfortably ensconced in what I have come to call “my room” in my “Mac friend’s” home.

Bank cards, credit cards, medical stuff… all taken care of or in the works. Much of this stuff can’t be handled on the road, but I hear the dentists are good in Spain and I have a great dentist in Jerusalem.

Little by little I’ve selected the tech I absolutely need to bring on my next travels. Even the smallest cable I can live without is being left out.
Little by little I have been sewing the dress and two skirts I want for my next travels.
My washcloth has been halved. Items have been pared down.
Soon I’ll have 2 new hard drives (a WD Passport and a rugged Sandisk Solid State Drive that’s smaller than 3″x3″x½”) and I’ll prep them for my work and photos for my next travels. (Update: After 4-5 months now, I can tell you I love them!)
Soon (it has to be real soon!) I’ll find a camera for my next travels. If I used even the newest, top iPhone I’ll miss having a real zoom. (Update: I selected and love another Panasonic Lumix.)

Before I leave, I’ll be stashing my last non-travel items, such as my sewing machine or spare clothing, back in a family member’s garage.

And then…

I’ll be off on the next travel adventure. I’m starting off in the Mediterranean; stunning views, nice weather as Europe cools down, and hopefully some time on the water. Come on back here to see how my travels progress and how they can help you.

Note/tip: As a safety precaution, I don’t typically post about a place until I’ve left it.