Tahiti, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines: 6 months down. USA- We’re Coming Home.

It is definitely bittersweet to be writing this. How can 6 months possibly have gone by so quickly? I remember sitting in our newly purchased campervan [Sherman] in New Zealand crying my eyes out because I missed home- 2 weeks felt like forever to be away. I knew I would get stronger and it wasn’t just about being away or taking the longest vacation EVER [I think of it as a quarter life break], it was about learning new cultures, growing, and finding more about myself than I knew when I left. I have powered through the tears and found strength in knowing the journey was more than I even could comprehend at that time.

We have slept in campervans, cars, overnight trains, and airports; we have found ourselves staying in hostels, homestays, tents, hotels, and new friend’s homes; we have indulged in street food, picked fresh fruit that we have never heard of and tried it [in the jungle of Thailand, might I add!], grocery shopped and ate out of a cooler for weeks, and cooked endless amounts of meals on the gas stove that was bolted inside of our campervan.

What an incredible journey we have been on and through the ups and downs, we are landing back in the United States changed. Changed completely. It has been a frequent topic of conversation Adam and I have lately, “How do you think we have changed since we left?” It seems like a simple question but it’s truly hard to comprehend when you sit down and think about it.

I don’t feel like I’ve changed but more so grown in so many ways I didn’t know possible. I guess they can work hand in hand but it’s inevitable that once you start learning new things, the way you look at others will change with the new knowledge. Before leaving the US- I can admit now that I was close minded. Before this trip, have I ever been out of the country? Of course, we live so close to Canada. Oh, and I took that family vacation to Mexico way back when. Yes, maybe we can sometimes say we have been out of the country- but did you learn about where you went or was your mind in strict vacation/beach/cocktail mode? Mine was in strict vacation mode when I went and I was too young to appreciate it anyways.

We knew leaving on this trip we wanted all that traveling to foreign countries has to offer and then some. Giving ourselves about a month in each location we were able to settle in and learn about the country.

We successfully bought and sold a vehicle, made amazing life-long friends, stayed with locals, hiked around a volcano, hiked in the jungle, rode elephants, kayaked, scuba dove, covered ourselves in neon paint to attend a full moon party on the beach, got tattoos, white water rafted, and completed a Tough Mudder. Just typing this- I can’t believe that’s all true. How fortunate we are to see so many parts of the world and meet so many incredible people.

There are people that you meet who leave a lasting impression. We find ourselves lucky to come across these people in life and specifically in our 6 month journey. If you remember a previous post from our time in Australia and the amazing couple that invited us into their home, Harvey & Jane, to this day we still talk about how wonderful they are. The conversations you have and memories you make shape the way you grow and can be linked to how you may “change” along the way. We have handed our card out to many people we converse with along the way and we love the amount of emails we receive back. It’s not always easy to exchange information on the go but when you have it all written down on a card it’s much easier to hand over.

We met some amazing people through AirBnb as well- John Money in New Zealand for starters! John took us to the local bar and even made us a delicious pasta dinner and cake the night before we were heading out. We enjoyed a few beers and meals while talking about our families and how we got to where we were today. John also makes the most amazing cakes that Adam and I LOVE!! Yum. I don’t think John realized how nice it was to have a home cooked meal and how much we appreciated everything he did for us. Would we have met someone like John if we stayed in a hotel over an AirBnb location? My guess is no…and we would have missed out big time.

As I reflect on all of the great times we have had- you know some struggle came with it! Can you imagine being with your significant other for 6 months straight, every minute of every day? Can you imagine being with ANYONE for that length of time? You get real close, real quick and at times you want to get REAL FAR real quick. Haha. The best part is- we are closer than ever and on top of experiencing all the things we have, we are both absolutely confident we have found our soul mate- and how lucky is THAT!

I don’t think we can count the amount of times I said- I JUST WANT TO DO MY HAIR! I WANT TO BE PRETTY AGAIN. I WANT TO FEEL GIRLY. When you are backpacking all over- you have a small bag of clothes and that’s what you wear. EVERY. DAY. Maybe you trade some things out and buy others, but rarely because if you can’t carry it in your pack- you can’t have it. I made it to Australia until I made a very girly purchase- I bought a BRA. OMG you mean you can wear a sports bra EVERY DAY and you don’t want to? Girls- go 2 months in a sports bra and tell me you still like it. Life got much perkier after that purchase J. Yes we may be backpacking, but I realized I can’t give everything up. I still haven’t worn an ounce of make-up and absolutely love it. I am excited, however, to style my hair. I don’t know what I’m going to do with it since it’s grown so much and it really has no style- but it will be nice to not rock a braid or messy bun.

I don’t even know where to begin with all of the ANIMALS we have seen! Penguins, seals, hedgehogs, kangaroos, wombats, koalas, monkeys, elephants, crocodiles, turtles, sharks, TONS of fish and so much more. Almost all of these we have seen in the wild and in their natural habitat. We hugged elephants, took selfies with turtles and spent an entire day hanging around kangaroos. These are the types of things I thought only existed in movies and on TV…until now.

The thought of a zoo becomes sad in a sense when you see these animals in their own world- they all should be free. We saw the most beautiful birds in Australia and while in Thailand, those same birds were in cages at a pet shop. It’s so sad and hard to not get caught up in emotions when you see animals like this. And the stray dogs and cats- OMG. I could tear up just thinking about all of the stray sick looking dogs we have seen during this trip. I want to just scoop all of these puppies up and save them. BUT when it comes to the treatment of animals around the world, we have to remember that other countries don’t have rules and regulations that the USA does and we can’t expect people to act the way we think they should as they don’t know better. They don’t know to STOP letting these dogs breed… if you can’t take care of one with food, love, and attention- you definitely can’t take care of one plus all of its babies. They don’t have vets sprinkled all over like we do in the US. On Gili Trawangan Island in Indonesia, only cats are allowed, no dogs. And one of our friends told us a vet comes to the island once a month for free to service the cats. A step in the right direction to say the least.


During this journey we have seen so much and lately Adam continues to say to me- “You would have NEVER done that 6 months ago!” Looking back, almost every time he has been right. You learn to appreciate things so much more when you take a step back and look at the big picture. You stop stressing about the little things and you learn to take more chances. Life is precious, everyone’s dream may not be the same but at least we’re all dreaming!

I took a chance and pulled a 180 on my life. I’m not sure how I gathered the courage to do this but I wasn’t happy with where I was and I knew I had to make a change. It was a BIT DRASTIC- but this trip has completely changed my life. I am so thankful to all of the people we have met, landmarks we have seen, things we have learned, and millions of memories I have made with the love of my life and my best friend. And an even bigger THANK YOU to everyone who has followed along with us and enjoyed a view into a few countries through our eyes. The support from our friends and family means the world to us. Just because we are coming home doesn’t mean the blogging will stop. We plan to take a little bit of time [before settling down] to travel around the United States and explore as much as we have in other countries back in our homeland. Hopefully then we will find a place we love and want to make “home”.

Life isn’t always about your job, your house, your car, and what you are doing Saturday night. Trust me, I know firsthand- I left my job, I sold my house AND my car, and I turned every day into Saturday. I saw the world and I may have taken 6 months off and away from everything but I found more happiness in these 6 months than I have in a very long time. I learned the importance of small things, learned that having a lot of material things can have the power to hold you back, and that if for once you find the courage and strength to do what truly makes you happy- you will finally feel free.

Our Last Stop- The Beautiful Philippines.

We arrived in the Philippines and started by spending the first few days in an area right outside of Manila called Makati. We stayed in a very convenient hotel called 24h- here, you can check in at any time you arrive and your hotel stay is for 24 hours from that time. This was great for us as we arrived at 6am and were able to check right in and SLEEP- perfect. We stumbled on a restaurant right across the street called Goto Monster- AMAZING.

The owners are so friendly and helped us pick out what to order. This included Lambanog, a Philippine alcoholic beverage most commonly described as coconut wine or coconut vodka. The drink is distilled from the sap of the unopened coconut flower, and is known for its potency and high alcohol content (80 and 90 proof). SIGN us UP! We are all about getting to know the culture.

After some discussion, we learned the places to go and see while in Makati- we made our way around the town and to check out the Sunday market.  We tried some delightful ice cream from Adam’s Ice Cream [Adam is actually from the US and his ice cream is to DIE FOR] and other local dishes.

While in Manila, we decided where we wanted to head next- El Nido, Palawan. It was hard to pick where to go as there are so many islands in the Philippines. The area of El Nido sounded a bit remote and quiet- which was exactly what we were looking for. We made our plans to fly into the closest location, Puerto Princesa, and from there we would have to take a 6 hour bus ride to reach El Nido.

Speaking of getting around, our prefereed mode of transportation here has been the tricycle/motorbike.

Not all are as sweet at THIS ONE, but we like to ride in STYLE! There are speakers and a little TV in the dash of this bad boy and we rocked OUT while cruising around.

Here we are with Ron our driver! Ron was our bartender the night prior and once he offered to show us around town the following day in his own tricycle- we couldn't say no!

One of the places he took us to was the Crocodile Farm.

 

 

 

We had lots of fun hanging with Ron and he even gave us a lift to the bus terminal to catch a ride to El Nido!

 

Also to note- it is rainy season. Look these things up prior to when you arrive, as we were in for some surprises.

There are some funky things to mention about El Nido that were firsts in our travels so far. To start, there are no ATM’s, so take out enough cash to last you while you are there as the closest ATM is in Puerto Princesa [6 hours away, by bus]. Also, there is only power from 2pm to 6am every day in the whole town. It’s like someone flips a switch and the power goes on and off for everyone- crazy. So we took our money out and made our way to the bus terminal where we immediately hopped on and handed the appropriate peso amount once we were on our way.
Once we arrived in EL Nido and made our way to where we were staying, we were in for a few more uncomfortable surprises: no flushing toilet [or toilet seat] or hot water. We are used to the no hot water part as we have gotten quite used to taking cold showers every day, but the no flushing toilet? There are some things you just wish you didn’t have to experience when traveling and this probably was one of them for me. You fill a bucket up after using the toilet, and pour the water in to manually flush it and hope gravity does its job... That’s about all I’m going to say about it. Once we get home, I request separate bathrooms for both Adam and myself as there are some things that should stay foreign between couples- LOL. You can also see the showerhead right to the left of the toilet... and you thought YOUR bathroom was small.

 

Let's talk about those walls... WOW. I love green and all but CALM DOWN.
Digressing...one of the best parts about this place is the landscape. Three days in a row we rented kayaks and explored around. We found secret places and took some incredible shots.

 

 

 

We are so fortunate that we are able to take these pictures but you must remember- they don’t always come out great. Here’s a funny video that shows the outcome of one of our brilliant ideas: Nicole to do a handstand on the kayak. Now, I thought it would be moderately difficult. I made one wrong step into the waterproof cubby and it was all over. This has to be the best fail to date.

 

The OTHER best part is the people we have met. The restaurant we ate at the first night we were here had live music- and these two singers [Chris & Mike] were AMAZING. As soon as their set was finished we started talking with them and their personalities were as awesome as their singing.

So incredibly friendly and we kept going back to hear them sing. After making friends with the two of them- we learned Chris' grandmother rents out a place nearby so we decided to check it out. Next thing you know, we moved our things over there and Mike & Chris were our neighbors. These two guys are the type of people you WISH you met while traveling. And it doesn’t even stop there- their wives and babies are just as awesome as they are. Mike’s wife Meg and adorable daughter Kai and Chris’ wife Dorie and adorable daughter Mayo.

Clockwise: Chris [in blue and white], Dorie, Mayo, Kai, Meg & Mike



Chris & The Girls

It was interesting to talk to Chris about the area since he was born and raised here. There are tons of homes, schools and buildings around his grandma's house now but he still remembers when it was surrounded by rice fields and nature. You look around and can’t even picture what that would look like and wild to think that just a few decades ago all of these surroundings didn’t exist. We are so fortunate to have met these two families as they have made our time in El Nido more than we hoped for. We will miss our friendly neighbors when we have to leave!!!

We spend so much time at the spot Chris & Mike sing at, the owner invited us to her son Alon's 4th Birthday party! We got to try tons of local food and it was so nice to be invited to such an event where we saw only friends and family. We felt the love :)

As some may have read or seen on the news- the northern Philippines experienced another major typhoon- Glenda. Glenda is a bitch. While we were in Makati- Jean, our friend from Goto Monster, was telling us that they were already aware that it was coming. They experience about 20 of these a year and have a good idea of how to prepare for them as much as possible. There is only so much you can do and when you live in an area that is prone to natural disasters, you just do what you can. Being in El Nido- we only experienced HEAVY rain and wind from the typhoon since we are south of the path Glenda took. Two days of on and off down pouring and strong winds that would wake you up in the middle of the night- but luckily nothing damaging and after talking to Chris and Mike- it wasn’t even that bad. I guess we just aren’t used to it Haha. Thankfully, we are safe but that isn’t the case for some of those in the Manila and northern areas. Keep them in your thoughts because although you may be able to try and prepare for something like a typhoon- you can never predict the power it has.

On a lighter note- you can get super legit bags like this one for CHEAP.

We will spend a few more days in El Nido then back to Puerto Princesa we go. We spend a few days there, and a few days back in Manila, then we FLY BACK TO THE UNITED STATES. Holy MOLEY I can’t believe this time has come. I have already started writing my reflection of this trip and it’s taking longer than expected...also proving to be more emotional as well. But it will be posted soon.

I was asked a few good questions from a friend of mine and after I respond to her may decide to post them on here. We have learned a lot of good things through our travels and if they can help anyone else in theirs- why not share them!

Gili Trawangan: The Island of Diving and Swimming with Turtles. Oh... and We're Coming Home!?

I can’t believe the past two weeks have gone by as fast as they have.

Gili Trawangan is one of the most amazing islands, or even location in general for that matter, that we have been to. There are no motorbikes or cars, the only mode of transportation is by walking, bicycle, or horse and cart. There are no police and everyone is so incredibly friendly. You can find cheap accommodation and the food is reasonable as well.

 

 

Bringing goods to and from the island

Coconuts everywhere!

You can walk the beach and snorkel just about anywhere and come face to face with beautiful turtles while doing so.

There are dive shops left and right while walking the main road [but the only smart choice would be Diversia :)] and they all charge the same price so there is not haggling. PERFECTION.

We stayed at the same homestay the whole time in Gili T and loved it- Gili T & B. The room included air-conditioning, breakfast, and some awesome hosts! We forfeited the hot water in order to stay in a cheaper room but it really wasn't even needed. We paid about $16USD a night and definitely plan to go back and stay there when we return to Gili T in the future!
We were in Gili T for 16 days and within that time I was able to scuba dive 11 times; imagine how HAPPY I AM!! This has been the most amazing experience I believe I have had the entire time we have been traveling. Diving is truly my passion and being able to dive once or twice a day has been like a dream come true.

Happy, Happy, HAPPY!

 It makes me so happy to have the GoPro down there with me so I can resurface and share the pure beauty that is the underwater world.

If you have never dove, I suggest it’s something everyone should try at least once. Being under the water and hearing nothing but the sound of you breathing is a whole different kind of tranquility.

 

Add gorgeous colors and beautiful fish to the mix and it proves to be nothing short of a world you never could have imagined. There are so many types of fish and different marine life down there that every dive is different, even if you are in the same location.

I took so many photos and videos it was hard to pick favorites but here are a few from the many dives in Gili T:

NEMO! :) Clownfish

 

Blue Sea Star

 

Clownfish in Bubble Anemone

 

Cuttlefish

 

Lionfish

 

Lobsters

 

I'm not totally sure what this is but it was beautiful!

 

Scorpionfish

 

White Sea Horse

 

White Tip Reef Shark

From the sharks to the tiny clownfish- you will see something different every time you go down. I love love LOVE it and wish to find somewhere to live where I can dive as much as I have on this island.
We [yes, WE!] have been diving with Diversia on Gili T and if I could personally hug each person that works there a million times I think I would.

 

Tim blowing O-Rings

Gianca & a Clownfish

The experience has so much to do with the people- and these are some of the BEST people from all around the world…I guess it helps that this is an Italian dive shop as well!
Adam did his DSD [Discover Scuba Dive] course and got right in the ocean- it was awesome! He was able to dive three times with Diversia and we had the GoPro to capture his first time diving-so happy! 



 

 

 

 

I dove 10x during the day and was able to do one night dive which was AWESOME. Bringing a flashlight down and diving in the dark is a whole different ball game…especially when you see a 2 meter [about 6.5 ft] giant moray eel slithering along- you back up REAL QUICK!

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have had an amazing time in Indonesia and are quite sad to be leaving. We know we will be back here and it is my personal mission to get my dad here to do some diving!
 

We left today on a fast boat back to Bali and decided to ride on the top. Little did we know we would end up getting soaked- but at least I got to work on my tan! HA This photo was pre-drenching and prior to them handing out plastic bags to put your things in because there was so much water.

 

SO next up on the list… PHILIPPINES! We have decided to bypass Hong Kong [original plan] due to the company who we purchased our tickets with, Mandala Air, ceasing all operations and canceling all flights. We were left to search and purchase a new flight and decided to pick one more stop and spend our last month there.

We knew our flight home [omg, we're coming home...] flew through the Philippines so the decision was made! We changed our flight home to no longer come from Hong Kong which was the first leg, but to only take the second leg which was Manila, Philippines to LAX.

We head to the Philippines on July 5 with nothing planned yet…oops. There’s always tomorrow J But what we DO KNOW is that we have our FLIGHT HOME. It’s bittersweet really. I’m ready to get back to the US but also sad that it means this incredible journey of country-hopping is coming to an end…for now at least. I don’t want to think about it quite yet so we will save those sad thoughts for a later post.

We are COMING HOME!! We land our happy little traveling feet on US soil the morning of July 27th in LA. We are heading right to the east coast because I think I may have a breakdown if we are back in the states and I don't see my parents ASAP! :) But then its off to the west coast to travel around and hopefully find a place to live for a little bit.
But for now- thank you Indonesia for being my diving happy place and here’s to the Philippines!!