Wrapping It Up

On Friday, November 7, we headed home.

To put it in the words of our beloved Amazing Race, we:

Traveled to nine (eight for Emily) countries
Tread on two tectonic plates, North America and Eurasia
Visited two continents (we spent an afternoon in Asia)
Experienced four time zones
Took nine (eight) flights
Flew, drove, or otherwise rode 15,801 miles
Walked 743,421 steps
Stayed in thirteen (twelve) Airbnbs or hotels
Managed locations with nine languages: Icelandic, French, Catalan, Spanish, English, Dutch, Czech, Romanian, Turkish. (Google translate was a big help for menus!)
Worked with six currencies: Icelandic Króna, Euro, British Pound, Czech Koruna, Romanian Leu, and Turkish Lira. (We did not use much cash, as credit cards were accepted just about everywhere. We mostly used cash for tips, especially in Turkey. There was not a big tipping culture in the other countries we visited.)

We traveled with one suitcase each, weighing about 45 lbs. We had clothes for about eight days and planned stays in places where we could do laundry. Emily had 3 pairs of shoes (sneakers, hiking boots, flats), Russell had 2 (sneakers and hiking boots). We had a wide range of weather to contend with, which made packing trickier. Emily was very sick of the clothes she brought. Russell did not really experience this as he sort of wears the same thing every day everywhere. Russell’s carry-on was a tech backpack that had his cameras and recording equipment. Emily traveled tech-light, with a phone, tablet, and Kindle. Our Verizon plans worked well almost everywhere. (We’re looking at you, Paris.) We traveled with a kitchen knife, cutting board, and meat thermometer, which made for easier cooking in Airbnbs of various states of well-stockedness. At times, we also carried some spices and cheeses with us. In most places, we ate breakfasts and lunches in our Airbnbs and balanced cooking dinners (or eating leftovers) with visiting restaurants.

We did hardly any shopping for non-consumables, in large part because we didn’t want cart around more than we had to. Before we got to Turkey, our purchases consisted of a cowbell in the Pyrenees, some postcards, a heating pad, and a dishtowel. In Istanbul, we bought a coffee pot, a couple of bowls, and a few gifts. We had left some things with Marina in Romania (the knife, cutting board, and dishtowel, the heating pad) which gave us some more space.

Our time together was priceless. We were able to spend wonderful times with the kids in their European elements, saw places we had dreamed of, ate astoundingly good food, and enjoyed (almost) every moment together. Russell may not have achieved all of his work goals, but was able to get lots of writing done (he has since finished his book draft!) and interviewed two philosophers for his Why Teach Philosophy project.

We’ve been asked how we got along, spending so much time together for two months, usually without anyone else around. The answer is that we did great! We spent a lot of time just enjoying each other’s company, marveling at our good fortune to be able to do this wild trip. Of course, there was some minor snipping at each other, mostly when we were tired or hungry or occasionally miscommunicating. There wasn’t a lot of pressure, we did what we wanted and didn’t do what we didn’t want to do. Having our own spaces for managing food, not having to manage restaurants for every meal, was essential. We typically stocked up on fruit, cheese, cold cuts, and bread when we arrived in a place, and so could have relaxing starts of our days. Russell would write a bit and Emily would walk or read. And then we would have the rest of the day enjoying the area and each other. We weren’t worried about seeing everything or missing a “must do.”

Since our cross country trip with the kids in 2012, our ethos while traveling has been to do at least one cool thing a day and try not to regret what we don’t do. Sometimes we did do more than one cool thing, but we avoided overdoing things. We talked a lot about the ethos, as if it were a mythical protector, and it kind of was.

Sometimes, we over-plan travel, exhausting ourselves. When our time in a place is limited, it’s hard not to try to pack a lot in. The more languorous nature of this trip allowed us to avoid the pressures of tourism. And it also, in a way, allowed us to enjoy the more touristy aspects at times. The few typically touristy things we did, like the food tour in Istanbul, were great. The trip made Russell think more positively about retirement. Our days had a lovely and sustainable rhythm, with quiet working mornings, active fun afternoons, and great food in the evenings.

We had amazing luck on our travels. The weather was mostly beautiful, with just a few days with rain, and a couple of nights. None of our flights had any major delays. Our only little hiccup was a mixup with the Airbnb in Hunedoara that we were able to resolve within an hour. Flying home on November 7, the day that flight cancellations from the government shutdown were first taking effect, had us a little worried, but all was fine. It was a really long travel day, leaving our hotel at 5 am, and getting to Great Neck at 8 pm (with an 8 hour time change!) – just under twenty-four hours of travel just to Long Island, with another five driving home the next day.

We returned to gray, freezing weather (boo!) and lingering colds (boo!), but also our dog (yay!) and bed (yay!). And a lifetime of memories.