Frequently Asked Questions

(Photo by the_clusters via Flickr)

We get some really cool questions, both in person and online.  And over the last 14 months we’ve answered many of them in blog posts.  But you guys know I tend to get wordy, so Warren came up with the brilliant idea of putting them together in a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section.

We received a few really great questions last week that haven’t made it into the FAQ yet, so I’ll answer them here now.  For answers to all the other ones (my favorite is “what does your mom think?”), click here.  (Mom, if you’re reading, feel free to weigh in.)

Q:  What are your lingering fears about taking off into the unknown?

Right now our fears are more about leaving than traveling, if that makes sense.  We still have a house to sell, and in this market that can keep you up at night.  I’m also starting to feel the pain of leaving good friends and family behind for a few years and wondering how that will change our relationships.  As far as the trip goes, we  don’t have any big fears because we’ve traveled quite a bit already.

Q:  Do you think you are relying too much on having Internet access outside of the US?  Will you maintain the blog?

I’m sure there will be times when we won’t have Internet access, but judging from posts we read from travelers all over the world, this shouldn’t be a problem.  We will still maintain the blog – I can’t walk you through something mundane like cleaning out my closet and not show you cool stuff like the Galapagos Islands!

Q:  What will you do if you get into a big fight in a place where you don’t speak the language?

This question made me laugh because we actually got into the biggest fight in our marriage at a bus stop in London.  It was EPIC.  We both stormed off in different directions from the restaurant and met up by accident by a bus stop near Hyde Park an hour or two later.  How is that for coincidence/fate?  At any rate, we both learned a big lesson from that, which is that if we need time apart when we’re fighting, we need to have a cool-off period with a designated meetup.  I don’t think it matters whether you speak the language or not – when you’re in a place with restaurants, shops and parks there will always be things to do where language isn’t a huge barrier.

Q:  Is there flexibility to the travel route, and how long do you plan to stay in each place?

This whole trip is about flexibility, and if you look at our travel route you’ll just see a list of places we want to go.  We may see them all, and we may not.  The goal for the trip is that we learn to live more in the moment, so we can only plan one trip at a time.  Our first stop is in Ecuador, and we already have it planned.  Once we get to Ecuador we’ll decide on the next destination, and so on.

So let me ask you a question now.  If you were going to make an FAQ about your life, what would be the best question and answer? I’d love to read about it in the comments section.