Frequently Asked Questions

Let’s get some of the basic stuff out of the way.

Q: How long were you gone?

A: We planned a series of trips which, after calculating the time in between, came to about 15 months.  Due to budget, health and other life stuff, the final count was 12 months. 

• 3 months in Europe
• 1 month in Costa Rica
• 1 month in Peru
• 2 months roadtripping in the US
• 3 months in Southeast Asia/Australia
  
• 2 months in Nashville

We couldn’t bear to leave the animals behind for a whole year, which is why we planned a series of trips as opposed to continuous travel.

Q: So, what happened with the animals?

A: Our dear friend, and his pup, re-located to Nashville and lived in our house to take care of Lincoln and Penny.  Zee kitten laideez, Gilda and Gillian, went to live with one the best families on the planet, where they are now permanent residents.

Q: Where did you go?

A: Internationally

• England
• Scotland
• Denmark
• Norway
• Sweden
• Estonia
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Poland
• Czech. Republic
• Austria
• Germany
• Switzerland
• Spain

See this post for specifics of the Europe itinerary, or use the categories to the right to catch up on the journey.

• Costa Rica
• Peru

See this post for specifics of the Central/South America itinerary, or use the categories to the right to catch up on the journey.

• Thailand
• Cambodia
• Vietnam
• Australia

See this post for specifics of the Southeast Asia/Australia itinerary, or use the categories to the right to catch up on the journey.

  United States

• Florida
• Tennessee
• Missouri
• Illinois
• Iowa
• Nebraska
• South Dakota
• Wyoming
• Colorado
• Utah
• Nevada
• California
• Arizona
• New Mexico
• Texas

See this post for specifics of the Road Trip itinerary, or use the categories to the right to catch up on the journey.

Q: Don’t you both hate flying?

A: We tried to minimize the number of flights and focused on overland travel once we arrived in a country.  However, we still clocked about 70 hours of flight time, so we worked out a happy system: John declared war on everything about 6 hours prior to each flight, including stationary objects, me, hard-working airport employees…in general, the whole world.  I took a lot of benadryl, sunk into a confusing fog and did not cry when we hit turbulence.

Q: Becci, did they take away your green card?

A: NO.  Mum, IT WAS NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN.

Q: Did you have to quit your jobs?

A: John pretty much controlled his own schedule, so he didn’t really have to ‘quit’ per se. I left an amazing work-family to go on this adventure.  I didn’t request a leave of absence, so yes, I quit my job. It wasn’t fair to my employer or me to put a time-limit on this adventure.  It was risky to assume that I would want to pursue the same career when I returned.  After the heart-ache over the animals, this was the hardest part to grapple with.  Corp. Worry Monster in Charge of the mysterious ‘when-we-get-back’ phase came to visit every now and again, whispering “You’ll never find a better job than the one you had.”  Fortunately, while I was on the road, I realized my previous employers were exactly the folks I wanted to work for, and I am now gainfully employed by them again.

Q: Becci, didn’t your back stop working?  How did it hold up?

A:  It’s better, thanks for asking.  I had a couple of incidents, which you can read about here and here.  The thing is, I will always have to be careful, I will always have bad days and I will always need a back brace within crawling distance…but I now know I can get through the set backs on the road as long as I am stocked up with emergency supplies (drugs).

Have other questions?  We are happy to answer them…post them in the comments!