Traveling healthy and happy

More Challenges!

We came back from a 12 day cruise, after the COVID shut down we can now move around the world, kinda. This cruise was planned 3 years ago. It was a beautiful itinerary that kept changing as time passed. Wow, how to be flexible. We did learn so much about history as well as how age does effect your travel-abilities. I know that my mind doesn’t know how old I am. My bones do. But, our minds can be healthy and still adapt and learn. That was the exciting part.

We had so many hoops to jump through. Vaccines, antigen testing, re-testing and passports, excursions were cancelled, new ones made and flexibility was a must. We did see so many wonderful places, learned unknown, to us, history and even the rain and cold did not slow us down.

This was a way for us to see a world we had not experienced before. Well we have sailed on 5 night cruises, Trafalgar Tours of Europe and of course driving and pulling our Airstream CC!

As our physical abilities have changed, we changed. Due to health issues we had to go from a towable to a small class C. For me the challenge is learning to love the new way as much as I had our Airstream. Our Leisure Travel Van Unity FX to be precise. The Unity is smaller than our 27 ft Airstream. The Leisure Travel Van is 25ft total. It really is a physical and emotional shift. Funny how we connect to our vehicles and how we feel while we are in them.

We had promised ourselves that we would not drive more than 4 hours a day during our travels. Well we drove 10-11 hours. The dogs were not comfortable. We did stop every couple of hours for them to relieve themselves. We even stopped for lunch and ate in our coach after walking the dogs. This was a family event trip. We had time frames to be in different cities to see family and be home for my hubby’s work schedule.

Hopefully, this will be the last time this happens to us. A challenge to work through. I have made a list of goals for our future travels. Not on a ship but our little motorhome. We still have not been able to agree on a name that would reflect her personality and our feelings about her.

Here are a few of my goals: 1) learn healthy meal planning that will take advantage of the plates we travel through and keep a budget. Good health and new flavors are a challenge; 2) Use the tools we have to plan how to take advantage of boon docking, Harvest Hosts and with some full hookups interspersed; 3) Develope a financial stream to help augment our goals and dreams while on the road.

Do you have travel dreams/goals? Please share your goals/dreams of how you are looking to solve the puzzles. Happy Travels.

Write a comment and let me know what you think about and would like to hear more about.

Keep traveling, be healthy and enjoy your world.

And So It Goes. . . .

The current situation in our world is something to ponder. It will bring out the best or worst in mankind. Luckily the majority of what I am seeing and experiencing is the best. As the year for me started badly. Today I see that that social distancing and less work, travel and increased fear.

As I look around where I have been in our little rolling home, where I would love to be and adventures that may come, I am lucky. I have my health, loving family and my freedom.

I love this chance to look to the future, learn from the past and enjoy the moment.

This is a picture that belies many things. Is it light in the storm? A warning of a storm? The quiet time before the spring brings new life, more activities in your life, and the rush to keep all going well?

As I review Airstream blogs of what people are doing to prep for new adventures I start dreaming. The message appears to show how to take a positive advantage of time. Cleaning is not really addressed but great ideas of decorating, brightening and updating Airstreams are.

Take advantage of the good we can accomplish today, prep for tomorrow and hope springs eternal.

The End Is The Beginning

Here it is then end of a decade! A new decade begins and excitement is in the air!

We have spent most of our time this year handling health issues and family needs. We traveled back and forth to Colorado and California as well as Idaho. We learned that one of the joys of all the challenges was the beauty we found in our ordinary travels.

If you have ever traveled between Las Vegas Valley and Central California you know that parts of this path is “beautiful” – wellll. We learned that taking a back road or alternate route opened our eyes to very beautiful seasonal changes that we have missed by not looking. Traveling with our Airstream allows us to stop and smell the roses! We learned to stop when tired at beautiful, clean rest tops that are free and available to all. We can rest in our own “home” and wake to wonderous sunrises sipping our fresh made coffee preparing safely to continue our travels.

We did not realize the help that is out there to help us to have safe travels. The ability to find gas stations or rest stops or historic spots – there is an app! We utilized the Apps this winter between Southern Nevada to Colorado and from Southern Nevada to Idaho. Fantastic finds in out of the way places when we urgently needed gas, a rest spot and a new look at our routes.

A Christmas look at the KOA in San Antonio! It says it all!

Be thankful for this past year and look forward to a healthy, happy and bountiful new year!

(a little note – we will have a new small traveling cookbook available after the first of the year!)

Our Baby is Home

Finally we have our 26 footer and a beautiful tow vehicle! We had planned our first trip would be for our Thanksgiving celebration but instead it was in Davenport California Costanoa. Why? Because we were renovating our home for sale! But what a wonderful gift.

We needed to go back and forth from Davenport to our home everyday for clearing and cleaning and packing our stuff. It was at least 60 miles round trip each day. It sounds like a very long trek. It was and it wasn’t.

I have lived almost all my life near the ocean and Monterey Bay in particular. I had never really looked at the ocean or enjoyed its various changes throughout the day. But the drive each way at various times from early morning to late evening was a magnificent gift.

Our new baby made the stress and physical strain bearable. We had to clean her up but that was a work of joy. I used non-chemical cleansers that had little or no scent. She shined and sighed and even smiled. H2O home is what I have used on all our Airstreams and home. Airstreams are “green” so I have kept her clean the same way. Her linens, dishes and our clothes are also cleaned with H2O products. For traveling it is easy and economical and safe for us and our doggy.

We put our cooking utensils, clothing and food in our “tiny” home and were quite comfortable. We could sleep listening to the ocean waves and feel at home. We had beautiful views as we drove back and forth. Clean ocean air as we walked in the evening and early morning and have coffee looking out at the morning sky. It is a wow.

We lived in our tiny home working on our big home for over a week. In that time we really learned about what real needs were and letting go of stuff. It was an eye opener. I donated so many clothes I no longer wore, furniture we really did not like or need and helped a new SJPD officer fill his apartment with pots and pans, dishes, and a TV stand. We felt so blessed that what we did not need or want could help someone else.

I got to start cooking after a long recovery from an accident and the tiny kitchen was fantastic. The sights of the early morning fog, wave action and fishing boats were like tiny miracles I never really saw in my lifetime of living near it. We were also able to buy fresh caught fish that was so very tasty and healthy! What fun to live like a tourist in our own back yard.

A really great part was on our very last morning at Costanoa KOA we happened on the new owners of our very first Airstream! We couldn’t believe it and we all hugged and cried. They live nearby also and happened on an overnight fun trip just to relax. They have traveled often and “Cynthia” as she is named is loving it. We also found out they love utilizing Harvest Host through out Central California, Washington and Oregon. They have found many wineries and farms that allowed them to stay over night at no cost. It is a great organization and we are going to use it ourselves. Wonderful things happen on our journeys and we are so thankful to be able to travel comfortably and meet so many new friends.

Next going to Las Vegas to remodel another home and then travel for the Thanksgiving vacation to Colorado! We are such lucky ducks.