I just got back from my European jaunt that took me from France, Northern Spain, Portugal, and Iceland and I’ve been busy catching up on work and climbing. But already I’m feeling that familiar itch and longing, the sign that I’m ready to hit the road again.
Thankfully, since I’m always cooking up plans, there’s always something in the horizon. Sometimes it’s a just a few days-trip to the local climbing crag or a backpacking trip to the woods. But this time I have some big plans.
Here’s what’s coming up.
Sri Lanka for #TBCAsia
Professional Travel Blogger Association is holding its first ever conference. I’m fortunate to be one of the hosted bloggers (along with these guys) for the conference.
As part of being a hosted blogger, we’ll be visiting various parts of Sri Lanka while staying at Cinnamon Hotel and Resorts properties. All of this while networking and learning the latest trends in working with destination brands. This is the first travel conference done in its format and I’m very curious to know how this will work.
After the conference I’ll be exploring Sri Lanka on my own. I’m not quite sure where to go yet. But most likely I’ll be heading to the Sri Lanka countryside – somewhere cool, mountainous, and green. Then again, I’m a sucker for fresh seafood, so spending a few days gorging on seafood on a beach village sounds pretty awesome as well.
And because I will be ‘in the area’ – why not bundle in some other places I’ve been wanting to check out as well?
Hong Kong
Hong Kong by Ross Pollack
I’ve always known Hong Kong as a shopping mecca, filled with skyscrapers and bustling street markets. I was surprised to learn that 70% of Hong Kong is still considered countryside with stunning mountain landscapes and small fishing villages. My kind of destination really.
Having said that, I’m not planning to stay in Hong Kong for very long, and I hate rushing. So I’ll be playing it by the ear to see how much I can see of Hong Kong realistically.
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur – Photo by Christopher Chan
Is there anything else to do in KL other than eat and shop? I guess I’ll find out. I’d be just content spending a few days here eating though.
Indonesia
Home sweet home. I haven’t seen my parents in over 2 years. I miss my family. I miss the food. A visit is way overdue.
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Our last post was published 3 weeks ago and I’ve been really slow in finalizing details on the above destinations because I’ve been hugely distracted by a big life change.
We’re moving!
Come 2015, we’re going on a roadtrip. Indefinitely. That’s right. We’re hitting the road to travel and climb all over North America.
We’re moving!
If this seemed like it came out of nowhere, it’s because it did. One month ago I didn’t think that we’d be saying good bye to our rent-controlled apartment in San Francisco. Or that we’d soon live in a 60 sq-ft home on wheels. All of that so we could travel and climb.
But some ideas have a way of latching on and not letting go until they’re fulfilled. This is one of those.
In all honesty I’m still getting a grasp of the reality of what we got ourselves into. It’s overwhelming… But I keep telling myself, we’ve done it before and we can do it again.
MORE: Last Day at Work
But still, I’m flip flopping between paralyzing fear of the uncertainties of it all and the giddy excitement of new adventures ahead.
Departure date has not been determined, but I figure it’ll take us a few months to purchase a van and retrofit it.
UPDATE: We bought a van!
Read more: Van Life
Our 2008 Sprinter
So hmm, yeah – in between writing a draft and publishing this post, we found our van/future home. Here it is! It’s a 2008 Dodge Sprinter with a high roof. This thing is HUGE! And if we can say so ourselves, a beauty!
In the past week we’ve started its conversion into the ultimate climber/roadtrip van, complete with a bed, kitchen, and a solar powered office. It’s a LOT of work. But it’s been satisfying seeing it all come together.
So yes, here it is to a beginning of new adventures. I’ll be writing more about our plans and our work on the Sprinter, but first thing first: Sri Lanka!
I’m feeling that old familiar itch again myself – your van/house looks amazing! You’re going to have SO. MUCH. FUN!!
Sounds exciting! Good luck and have fun in your adventure. Don’t forget to write.
Wow, how exciting. First, enjoy your adventures in Asia and seeing your family. After 2 years, you certainly deserve to spend lots of quality time with them! And then I can’t wait to follow along with your road trip adventure. You may know that my mom owns an Airstream and do a bit of traveling around in it…I think the U.S. is such a great country for that kind of travel.
Having just gotten off a 7 month road trip in the U.S. (I’m totally jealous of your van!), let me wish you the best of luck in your new adventure! Oh, and if you don’t already, checkout the podcast The Dirtbag Diaries. I’m pretty sure you guys will love it.
Oh, man. I just spent 7 months in a tent in the U.S. (a van would have been pretty amazing btw) so I have an idea of what you two are getting in to. Have a great time. You’ve got a big adventure ahead 🙂
Super cool! I’m really hoping you’ll write more about how your solar powered office comes together. Brent and I have often talked about doing a massive road trip across Canada, but being able to continue working online is a huge limiting factor at the moment.
We definitely will. But one thing for sure… it will be a learning experience. Technomadia has tons of resources on mobile internet and running an online businesses from their converted bus. Dakota (traipsingabout.com) also ran his business from a Sprinter and so go poke around their site to see how they did it. We pretty much copied everything they did 🙂
This sounds so exciting. I can`t wait to see some pics of your van once you have converted it into your new home.
Yeah! I was waiting for this post. Our past year rolling around the US on bikes and in our Sprinter hitting mountain biking locations was great. You’re going to love van life!
See you around the States. Looking forward to a picture with two Sprinters together in a beautiful location. We’ve just gotta get back to the west coast to pick ours up again…
Congratulations!! We look forward to seeing how you trick out your van. My husband and I would like to do something like that someday and are still weighing the pros and cons between a travel trailer, RV, retrofit van etc so we will follow your progress with anticipation. Have fun and a great trip to Sri Lanka.