So, here we are at an anniversary. It has been 4 years ago this week that we set out on our journey of discovery, both of ourselves and the world. 50 plane rides, countless buses, and a total of 110 different beds. The word so far is life is pretty bloody marvellous.

Life Planning Session
I honestly can’t say why we started this adventure. A lot had to do with “If not now, when?” I know a good part of it was formulated on our back deck in Crossfield, Alberta with a rum in hand. Sometimes a quality beverage can be the impetus for a grand idea.

On November 7th, 2013 we headed out for Belize with a vague idea that we were heading west-ish and some house sitting may be part of our plans. We started in Central America, then after 21 months had a short visit back in Canada before heading across the Pacific Ocean.

Sunset with Friends
Though we only did three house sits in Central America, they were a tremendous success for us. We met some awesome people and enjoy some great sunsets.

The house sitting was out of control, in a good way, in Australia. And the success of that carried over into SE Asia. We get a lot of questions and comments about house sitting; “How do you find them? How can people just let you in their homes? I could never do that. I would love to do that.” All I can say is the vast majority of home owners are wonderful people who love their pets and recognize that having a house sitter come to their home is an absolute win/win situation. We have made some great friends and have been called to come back and do repeat sits. Without a doubt it has been one of the great discoveries of our travels.

Costa Rica to Australia
Some of the 40+ beauties we have had the pleasure of taking care of.
Australia and beyond
Our success connecting with our furry friends has made our adventure all the more enjoyable.

With 25 house sits under our belt and well over 40 animals we have cared for we look forward to many more years of house sitting.

Karen's Tattoo
As we live out of suitcases collecting souvenirs and trinkets is not something we do. Hence my love of photography. Karen took it one step further by taking a photo I had taken in Belize and having it done into a tattoo on her ankle while we were in Australia. A wonderful memento.
Race Collage
Another way of creating wonderful memories is to register in races whenever possible where we are travelling. I have managed to do races on volcanos, beaches, river valleys, shorefronts and many incredible trail runs. In addition it has helped with fitness and more importantly connect with friends around the world.

It certainly has been an eye opening experience and being out of the direct influence of North American media has given me a different perspective on world events. My go to news outlets are now out of Australia, China, Ecuador, and Britain.

Scuba Diving
Though we rarely travel someplace just to dive, if there is diving where we are travelling we make a point of getting at least a bit of diving in. We have been fortunate to get under the water in Belize, Roatan, Panama, Costa Rica, Hawaii, Australia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Fiji.

The most difficult part of our lifestyle is being away from family. The comforts of a home and the tasks and responsibilities that come with that are not missed at all. But being away for birthdays, family gatherings or just stopping by for lunch are by far the greatest challenge.

Posing with the original Melbourne Cup.
You never know for sure which way the road, or life will take you. So we both encourage everyone to follow your dreams. And never forget to savour the journey

All that being said, we are looking forward to years more of exploring, meeting new people and at least another 100 or so new beds to lay our heads on.

 


Comments

4 responses to “Anniversary Blog”

  1.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    Wow, it’s hard to believe it’s been years ago

  2.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    oops 4

  3.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    Congratulations and happy anniversary!
    Thank you for sharing and inspiring us to follow in your footsteps. We have just completed our 5th assignment….yay!!! We have only one more secured for new year as we race towards our retirement date of Sep 1 but we are sure that many more will come our way and we hope to do some catching up.
    Please keep the stories coming, it fuels our enthusiasm.
    Seize the day!
    The Dingles

    1. Thank you, and congratulations to you. We are so very pleased to hear things are going well for you.

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