Hello! We are Alison Armstrong and Don Read.
In our sixties, with apparently no other authentic option, we sold our car and apartment, sold or gave away all our things, and set off to discover the world. And ourselves. We started in Italy in 2011 and since then have travelled to Spain, India, Bali, Australia, Southeast Asia, Sweden, Mexico, South America, New Zealand, Cyprus, and more – it’s all in the blog archive. We will continue travelling until it’s time to stop – if that time ever comes. So far it suits us very well. We are interested in how the world works, how life works, how the creation of experience works, how the mind works. As we travel and both choose our course, and at the same time just let it unfold, we discover the mechanics of life, the astounding creativity of life, and a continual need to return to trust and presence. Opening the heart, and acceptance of what is, as it is, are keystones for us both.
Interests: Alison – in no particular order: travel, competitive figure skating (as a fan), blogging, photography, writing, acceptance, authenticity, walking/hiking, joy, creativity, being human, adventure, presence. Don – the same except replace figure skating with Formula One motor racing.
To discover more go here to read an article we wrote for Retirement and Good Living and here to read an interview we did with Nomadic Matt.
Changes: in March 2017 we made the decision to stay in Vancouver for at least the next twelve months. After five years and eight months travelling the world without a home we knew we needed a time out. Travelling is stressful and Alison’s body felt pummelled, and we both needed to stop for a while. Then we found the apartment! The rent is about half the normal rent for such a place in Vancouver. It was too good a deal to pass up. So once again we have a home, and for the first time since the end of August 2011 we own a car and furniture. We will continue to travel though not in the way we did before.
Alison did a seven-week solo trip to Japan and China May/June 2018.
We both went to Paris, India, and Japan for 8 weeks in Feb/March 2019, and to India and Malaysia in Feb/March 2020.
We’re now both in our 70’s though it doesn’t seem to have slowed us down much. We’ll set off again as soon as Covid lets us.
Adventures in Wonderland 
WOW, what a great website! You are such an inspiration, and it affirms my decision to start our own travel website – just launched a month ago. We are in our sixties, with similar attitudes. I don’t know if I can convince T to sell everything when we retire in just a few months, but we do love our adventure travels to little known places. Thank you for sharing your story – I just read it on Nomadic Matt.
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Hi, nice to meet you, and thanks for visiting. Glad you enjoyed our story. I travelled a bit around your new site – it looks fantastic, and I picked up some good tips about Ecuador which is in our plan for early next year.
I don’t know if we’d have sold our condo if we’d been able to rent it. That never came up since renting is banned by the building’s by-laws. Maybe you could just rent your place out and head off. No doubt you’ll find your way. Happy travels!
Blessings
Alison
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I will put a link to your site on my site, if that’s ok with you.
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Yes of course. Thank you so much. I’m honoured you would want to.
I was just looking at your site – it’s looking fabulous. Where are you guys at the moment?
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I also learned of this site from NomadicMatt and at the ripe young age of 71, will soon be off on a solo adventure of my own. In Matt’s interview with Alison and Don I picked up a much needed “mantra” that I will keep in caps on my iPad. It is “Whenever I feel vulnerable I return to the present because it is here that life is lived.” I sincerely want to thank Alison for this wonder mood lifter that is appropriate whether I’m home or far away.
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Hi Cosima, nice to meet you. I hope you have a fabulous time on your travels! And i’m so glad that you found my words about being present helpful. It seems to work every time 🙂
Blessings
Alison
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Just came across your blog and love it…hopefully I will be able to travel the world soon…love your pictures and curious what type of camera you are using?
Thanks
Lori
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Hi Lori, nice to meet you. Good luck with your travel plans/dreams. Thanks re the photos. I use a Panasonic FZ150. It’s a bridge camera with a Leica lens and a 24x optical zoom. I am no purist – I love photoshop. At the same time I think I am just about ready to upgrade to a full DSLR. I’ve always resisted because of the weight. When you’re on the road all the time weight really becomes a factor. Thanks for visiting our blog.
Cheers
Alison
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We first read your interview over on Nomadic Matt’s site, and are so glad to have been introduced to your blog. We look forward to following your adventure. Truly inspirational. We plan to continue traveling for as long as we can, and it’s always nice to hear of more people who are doing just that.
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Hello. Nice to meet you. Thanks for the tweet helping to spread the word. And thank you for your kind words. I hope you enjoy the stories of our journey, both inner and outer.
Cheers and blessings
Alison
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Hi Alison and Don
It is great to read about your experiences. Read your interview through a notification in Matt’s newsletter.
Hats off guys!
You are doing what many dream of..(including me).
Come visit us if you are in North India ever. Would love to meet you.
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Hi Madhu, nice to meet you and thanks for visiting. We were just in India – Delhi, Rajasthan, Agra and Varanasi, so probably won’t be back for a while. However we do want to go to the far north of India, Nepal and Tibet one day. Keep in touch. Perhaps one day we’ll meet in person.
Namaste
Alison
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I second all the above – clicked here from Matt’s site, loved your interviews and keep having fun! best, Molly
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Thanks Molly. I’ve bookmarked your site – we’ll be in South America for 6 months from end Sept.
Cheers
Alison
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Great & I bet you two will love SA – I can think of a few spots that I bet would be especially appealing: Colca Canyon, Peru, Copacabana, Bolivia (and time on Isla del Sol – you’ll be in heaven!), Banos, Ecuador, Cusco, Peru (if can handle the altitude, many cool short trips nearby in addition to M. Pichu) – our free eBook on Cheap Places & Budget Tips I think you’d like, just sign-up for newsletter on site and it gets sent automatically. cheers 🙂
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Thanks for all this info. I was in Sth America for 4 months many many years ago – hiked the Inca trail before they had porters, but Don has never been and I’m looking forward to some new discoveries. We hiked in Mexico up to 10,400 ft so we know we’re good to that height. Will def check our your ebook. Thanks.
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Hi Molly
Please post the link to your newsletter and free ebook. Thank you
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Hi Rhonda, thanks for visiting. You’d probably be better off going directly to Molly’s site. She may not be looking here, or be still subscribed to this thread.
Cheers
Alison
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Oh My Gosh, you two are awesome. I sure wish my husband had the same love of travel and adventure as I do. I will follow your blog and armchair travel with you!! May you continue to enjoy your travels, and remain healthy and safe.
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Hi Janice, nice to meet you. Thank you for visiting our blog and for following us. I hope you enjoy the stories of our journey, both inner and outer. Don didn’t initially have a love of adventure or travel at all. I sort of eased him into it over the years until one day he discovered for himself how rewarding it is. Maybe you could start with a short trip to somewhere safe?
Blessings
Alison
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Thank you for sharing your wonderful inspirational stories. Life is all about our stories and your stories expand in a beautiful way. If you are ever in Bali, please come to see me at Side By Side Organic Farm. I set off at age 50 and decided to live a different lifestyle from others. I feel sure we could laugh and have some fun together. You are so right, whenever you feel scared, return to the present, our only true moment in life.
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Hi Pamela, nice to meet you! I’ve been looking at the Side by Side website – what a wonderful thing you and Ketut have created. I am so impressed with you big heart and generosity and vision. What a gift you are to Bali, and the world.
We spent a month in Ubud April 2012 so we probably won’t be back for a while. We loved it of course, and met our own Ketut who showed us around. When we do come back we’ll be sure to come to visit Side by Side.
Blessings
Alison
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We are a 60 year old retired CDN couple that travel to Europe every year and will be spending this winter in Spain and Portugal. I dream of backpacking in Mexico or travelling up and down South America or Southeast Asia but I have to admit that my biggest fear is safety. As well my wife is not too keen on ANY of those projects lol.
On the one hand you hear about how a lot of trouble spots are actually relatively safe if you are careful and follow some golden rules like being alert of your environs and keeping money and passports in safe places. However you also find out from reading blogs how so many areas are rife with fraud, pickpockets and muggings.
Health on the road is my other main concern even if I am generally quite healthy right now. We always assume that health care in Third World countries is non-existent or just not very good. I am sure that is not true (ie CUBA). I also always thought that once medical travel insurance starts going through the roof at 70 I would probably travel from an armchair in Canada. Your interview with Matt forces me to revisit this assumption.
Anyway I had to tell you that you are an inspiration to older (all) travellers.
Yves
Eastern Canada
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Hi Yves, nice to meet you. I do absolutely think it’s true that many so-called trouble spots are quite safe. Gosh, even the Australian Govt website says it’s not safe in Bali which is sheer nonsense. We have never encountered any problems anywhere but we stay in hotels where your belongings can be locked in your case and or room safe, and in the room. We don’t go off the beaten path all that much, but sometimes we do. Do your research – ie read reviews of hotels and tour companies. We often do one day hiking tours and always check the reviews of the tour company first. Even in India we never encountered pick pockets – they’re after the easy marks – people with their bags wide open, or who put them down to look through a table of merchandise. Get your hotel or well-reviewed tour company to recommend drivers. Yes it’s more expensive to travel this way, but infinitely safer. As I said we don’t go too far off the beaten path, and go with someone recommended if we do.
All our research told us that health care in Laos is pretty much non-existent, yet when I had a mild allergic reaction to a wasp sting and needed medical attention we found a clinic in Luang Prabang where there was a Thai doctor on duty. Medical service available for foreigners in Thailand and India are world class. I was sick in India also and received excellent attention. Also in Mexico. Most third-world countries these days have excellent medical care for foreigners in the main tourist meccas and big cities. We too were initially afraid of health issues and yet we always found the help we needed.
We carry with us broad-spectrum antibiotics in case we pick up stomach bugs (which we have a few times over the past 2 years). We also carry grapefruit seed extract to sterilize any fruits and vegetables we buy when we’re doing our cooking. We try as much as possible to never eat any raw food.
We are still covered by BC health insurance to a minimal amount. We don’t buy any other medical insurance – medical expenses are so minimal in third world countries we just pay as we go. In the case of catastrophic illness or injury we have MedJet Assist that will fly us to the hospital of our choice anywhere in the world. It costs about $800 per year for both of us.
This post is about security
https://alisonanddon.wordpress.com/2013/08/20/this-nomadic-life-security-on-the-road/
Thanks for your comment, and for following the blog. I hope you enjoy the stories of our journey, both inner and outer. And I really encourage you to follow your dreams!
Blessings
Alison
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Thank you for the tip on grapefruit seed extract and broadspectrum antibiotics. I also find it quite interesting that you just pay as you go for care in 3rd world countries. I will continue to read your blog.
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Just saw your blog..very inspirational to myself and my husband (late 40s, Canadian too). I was wondering though where you plan to travel next and if you think you may have to eventually stay in Canada (for its medical benefits?). My husband and I would like to travel more but are struggling as part of the ‘sandwich generation’ – looking after our kids and elderly parents…they are all still dependent on us. Any advice from your experience! Thanks!
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Hi Jo, nice to meet you. We’re off to Montreal for 3 weeks to visit family, then down to South and Central America for 6 months.
We’re working out the medical coverage as we go. Until sept 2014 we can be out of BC and still have coverage. We also have MedJet Assist which in case of catastrophic illness or injury will fly us to the hospital of our choice. Medical coverage is very inexpensive in 3rd world countries, and those who can pay can get good medical treatment as we discovered in Laos, India, and Mexico, so we pay as we go. We could claim it back from BC med but don’t bother as it’s usually such a small amount.
Long term we haven’t resolved the medical insurance issue yet. In BC we can be out of province for up to 7 months per year and still have coverage. We don’t think too much about long term. Life tells us its secrets as it unfolds.
Eventually you’ll be out of the middle of the sandwich 🙂
When that happens go live your dreams!
Blessings
Alison
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Great story. How do you keep yourself occupied 16 hours per day? Could you describe a typical day or two? Thanks and enjoy.
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Hi Steven, nice to meet you. Um . . . there is no typical day. I spend some hours each day working on photos/blogging. Don spends some hours each day on travel research and making bookings for wherever we’re going next. Apart from that days can range from lazy days at “home” reading and doing not much, to doing/seeing all the things there are to do/see in whatever place we’re in – kayaking, trekking, riding elephants/camels/ox carts, etc, seeing astonishing sights and fabulous museums, attending festivals. It often seems there’s too much to do/see and not enough time to just be. Sometimes it’s hard to find a balance.
One of our favourite things to do it to just walk around wherever we are to get a feel for the place. We’ve discovered some of the best things that way. I think you could read any blog post and find a “typical” day except that each one is unique.
Cheers
Alison
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I appreciate the info. Once the kids go to college, we intend to travel extensively. I have already traveled extensively through work, but would love to travel without restrictions and a timetable.
Take care and look forward to reading about your adventures.
Steve
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Hi Alison and Don – I read your interview on Nomadic Matt and was so happy to find another retired couple similar to us who have sold everything and become perpetual travellers. Like you, we realized that the “American dream” (probably comparable to the Canadian dream!) no longer made us happy and decided to follow our “someday” dream and travel. We started our travels in Mexico and are moving slowly through Central America followed by South America. After that, Europe then ??? I love meeting younger people as we travel but there is a definite rapport when we meet other travellers and expats in our age group. I look forward to reading your blog! Anita @ No Particular Place To Go
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Hi Anita and Richard, how wonderful to meet you. I’ve been travelling all over your blog and will put it on my desk top. Let’s keep in touch. We’ve just gone back north from Mexico for a quick family visit to Sweden. Next is more family time in Montreal. Sept 25 we fly to Buenos Aires. So as you slowly travel south from Central America we will be making our way north from South America. How great if we could actually meet somewhere along the way. I do agree that there’s a special rapport with people our own age.
You began your nomadic life 19 Sept 2011 flying to Mexico. We began ours 21 Sept 2011 flying to Italy!
Looking forward to meeting you both in person one day
Cheers
Alison
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Hello there,
Just stumbled upon your blog and am loving it. We too are Canadians from the prairies.We have been living sort of a double life but are almost ready to take the plunge.My husband is in his 50’s and does contract work so we are able to get away for the frigid winters.I am retired and do all the groundwork and logistics. We bought a little condo in South FL which we hope to use as our home base. We plan to explore Panama this winter and perhaps stay there for the remaining 6 months of the year that we aren’t in FL.Just had the real estate agent come to assess the house here.I am so ready.I look to you guys as our inspirations! We love to just blend in with the locals.I love it when people ask us for directions,etc!
C+P
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Hi Corrie, nice to meet you and thanks for visiting our blog. Highly recommend taking the plunge 🙂
Blessings
Alison
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Hi Alison and Don,
Thanks so much for following along this past week as we asked our Readers to help us pick photos for the Capture the Colour Photo Contest.
We truly love your wonderful blog and your gorgeous photography, so we wanted to invite you to join us in the fun quest. We are posting our final submission tomorrow (Saturday September 7) and you will see that we have nominated you to submit.
Please participate at whatever level you like. We just wanted you to know that we think your blog is a joy! 🙂
All the best, Terri and James
Here are the links to our post titled Capture the Colour 2013 and the contest.
http://gallivance.net/
http://www.travelsupermarket.com/c/holidays/capture-the-colour/
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Thanks very much for this wonderful compliment. Keeping it in mind – very appealing, but as always pushed for time.
Blessings
Alison
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What a great website! 🙂 thank you and have a great time!
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Hi Chris, nice to meet you. I glad you like the blog. Thank you for following. I hope you enjoy the stories of our journey, both inner and outer.
Cheers
Alison
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Hi Alison,
thank you for the warm welcome!!! 🙂
I love stories about journeys no matter if inside or outside… I’ll plan a trip to the north of India next month – do you have tips for me?
Is there a possibility to email you too? 😉
all the best,
Chris
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Hi Chris. Have you been to India before, and how far north are you going? We haven’t been to the very northern states up by Nepal and Tibet though we want to and probably will sometime in the future.
A little further south and I definitely recommend Varanasi. It was one of the highlights of our time there. We loved Delhi, the Taj Mahal really is extraordinary when you see the real thing, and go see the Rajasthan desert – Jaipur and Udaipur. Do a camel safari.
Regular India tips – don’t drink the water. Ever. Don’t eat any uncooked food. Carry antiseptic hand wipe and use it often. Don’t leave any stuff unattended. Ever. Though I left my camera on a train and it was returned to me so you never know. Get a price before you get into a taxi or tuk tuk.
Have fun!
Alison
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Hi Alison and Don. I have found two ways to view other Capture the Colour entries. One is just to enter “Capture the Colour” as a topic in the WordPress Reader to see other WordPress entries but you probably already knew that. Secondly, use Twitter to search for #CTC13 and you will see a lot of entries which have been tweeted.
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Thanks so much Eric. Gonna go have a look now.
PS I didn’t already know that!
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Thank you so much for your nice comments on my blog – you are an inspiration and I will enjoy following your travels – you will love Patagonia!
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Thank you! We are already quite excited about Patagonia, but first Buenos Aires, Iguazu, and Uruguay. Then off to Patagonia in November when hopefully it will be a little warmer.
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I am so glad to read your story/life of happness. I also follow thetimelessride.com 35 more working months and I am out to explore.
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Hi Ron, nice to meet you. And thank you. We are having a fairy tale life – it seems to be an endless gift. We never take it for granted, and are filled with gratitude. We feel as if we woke up one day and found out we’d won the lottery. We don’t know how we got so lucky. Why us? Life itself is the endless blessing.
Only 35 months to go! It will go by in a flash! Don’t forget to enjoy the present 🙂
I poked my nose briefly into thetimelessride. What a guy! I’ll certainly be having a longer look.
Thanks for visiting
Blessings
Alison
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Came across an interview of you both on Nomadic Matt. What I wanted tosa you guys are such an inspiration and you have an amazing blog too.
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Hi Chris, nice to meet you. Thanks for you your kind words. Your own blog is pretty wonderful – been exploring a little bit 🙂
Maybe one day we’ll show up in Japan!
Cheers
Alison
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Thanks for taking a look. Both of you will love Japan
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wow! I am glad I fell upon this blog, so mutch positive wibes from these posts. love it! Happy travels you two!
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Thank you so much. I’m glad you get the feel of the blog. We are very blessed. Happy travels to you too!
Cheers
Alison
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Wow! You two are an inspiration! I’m just thinking about the freedom you get to experience…and, of course, the wonderfully diverse cultures you come across. Happy travels to you both!
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Thank you! Freedom, yes we have that, and we revel in it – freedom to do what we want when we want. We are very very blessed, and it took a lifetime, not to create the income to do it, but to believe we could claim freedom. I know of people in their 20’s, 30’s, 40’s with the same freedom because they claimed it. And in the end freedom is just a word, just a concept. Life just grabs hold of you, and lives itself the way it wants to, and doesn’t let go until it’s done. It’s the wild ride that’s so enlivening.
Blessings
Alison
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PLEASE enjoy your travels first. If it’s a rainny day [write]. In my travels I to find myself writting and reading at night, not seeing and learning their way of night life. We can as ll wait. thetimelessride.com, he is good in posting, but there are days. .. in the open book section people post “where are you”, he never replys… I just love your stories when they come. If a month went by I would just check the bail bonds in the area. HA HA.
YOU & Don enjoy first, we can wait.
Ron L.
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Hello Ron, thank you so much for your support, and for your encouragement for us to write at our own pace. I can’t ever imagine going for as long as a month between posts so you won’t be needing to check any bail bonds. 🙂
Cheers
Alison
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What to say?
I’ve been glued to your blog for long time now, and don’t know what to write here.
It’s not just the beautiful blog, but the whole adventure.
Let me just wish you, All the Best for your adventure and waiting for your next post.
Thanks a lot for sharing.
Have a great day.
Sreejith.
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Thank you so very much Shreejith for your kind words. I glad you’ve been enjoying our adventures.
And I really really hope we can get to Kerala one day – your blog is beautiful.
Namaste
Alison
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Thanks a lot for your nice comments.
I am so happy to see your reply.
Once I reached home I was discussing with my wife about your blog.
Wish you a wonderful time in Argentina.
🙂
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I hope Nepal is also in your wish list…Welcome to Nepal in advance 🙂
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Hi Alisha, nice to meet you. Yes! Nepal is definitely on our list! It has been for a long time. One day we all get there.
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Hi Alison!
Both of you are great inspirations for the young people like us. I am so happy to know that you are not planning to stop traveling for now. I hope you’ll make a trip to Malaysia someday and especially to Sarawak 🙂 Keep in touch!
Love,
Margh
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Thanks so much Margh. It’s lovely to hear young people get some inspiration from us to see the world. It’s the best education you could have. I hope we get to Malaysia one day too. Maybe see you there 🙂
Alison
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Show me a fellow that has travelled with an open mind and I will show you a human being.. with integrity and compassion.
.Not a zombie created by the constant paranoia deliberately spread about others that aspire to be different. The motives all along being ulterior and a tendency to remain hegemonic.. all a stuff of cunning calculation and of self greed.
Travelling is a mind blowing experience…and the experience will neither fade nor ever leave your memory.. It will inevitably make you tough and yet very likeable and indeed, beautiful.
As a young boy, I grew up exactly overlooking the source of the River Nile…a River where we took risks and learned to swim and at times swam with crocodiles and hippos around. However, imagination being such, I had to find out where this glorious River heading North actually ended.
So, with very little in the pocket and hardly a map, I followed that River to its end carrying a back pack through the Nubian desert (Southern Sudan), Egypt .. Halfa and Shellal and then on to Europe via North Africa. I was 17 and it took me three and a half months to reach Sweden ..21 countries . The rest is history…the Travel Bug invaded my spirit and I have never looked back.
When someone or some pseudo authority says ” Don’t go there” . Me thinks…aha! must be really nice…So go there…I promise you, you will be amazed at what you will find and how thankful you would be to yourself for having the courage to try.
Alison and Don..my fellow Canadians…Good for you and I love what you are doing.
I particularly like your advise to would be travellers not to fret about health and what is available in third world countries. People have been brainwashed into thinking that only the Northern civilizations have the answers to things.
Maybe we might bump into each other somewhere ..maybe South America..
We are preparing for Alaska to Argentina on a 4×4 with an Arctic Fox… I like to hug the beaches and love my darjeeling tea …and this rig can do that with everything aboard..We will meander at our own pace and dare to go where they say not to.
.
.Brash maybe, but have to cultivate that 6th sense. Street smarts are a must.
Check out some of the nuts that are on the road at this time:
http://thebluetruck-e.blogspot.ca/p/meet-greet-with-roadies.html
Kindest regards.
mashoud
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Hello Mashoud, nice to meet you. Thank you so much for your wonderful long comment, and for sharing something about yourself. That journey as a seventeen year old was obviously life-transforming, and extremely courageous of you, and yet I bet you really had no choice but to go.
It would be wonderful if we met up on the way somewhere. Your Alaska to Argentina trip sounds marvellous. Such an adventure!
I know what you mean by using the 6th sense, we live by it and feel ourselves to be very very blessed. And yes I agree, street smarts are a must. Also if we listened to everything we read about how dangerous places are we’d never go anywhere.
I checked out that blog – lots of nuts on the road 🙂 all no doubt having a great time.
Happy travels my friend
Alison
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Alison,
Your courtesy greatly appreciated. Many thanks.
Now that I have ‘discovered ‘ you and Don, it would be a delightful experience to host you, should you ever return East . I am an hours drive from Montreal, along the St.Lawrence Seaway. Just one E-mail would suffice and we would not hesitate to pick you up. Just bear that in mind.
All the best.
mashoud
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Thank you so much, very kind. We’ll certainly keep it in mind.
Alison
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Hi. . . You are really like an inspiration for all young travelers like me. I really salute to our energy and enthusiasm. I like you guys. God bless you.
Actually one of my friend is a running a website about travel guidance and he is looking for some travel bloggers who can accept a guest post.
If you are also interested to add a guest post. Then please contact him at stephen.r@joguru.com
Thanks and best of luck for you for you future travel plans.
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Hi Armida, nice to meet you. Thank you for your kind words. I’m so happy to hear we can be an inspiration to others.
I had a look around your wonderful blog, and really enjoyed your photos and travel stories.
We don’t usually do guest posts but that doesn’t mean we can’t be persuaded!
Perhaps you could give me the link to your friend’s website so I can find out a bit more about it.
Thanks for your support
Blessings
Alison
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Hi Alison,
Thanks for your nice response and sorry for the late reply.
Actually i was busy in contacting Stephen to know in detail about his website services and policies. I told Stephen about your website and both of you guys. He was just amazed by listening about you as you are so energetic even after 60.
Stephen is currently working on a website “JoGuru.Com”. It is travel guidance related website and also has a feature about itinerary planning.
Stephen has created some itineraries in infographic format and he is approaching some bloggers to add that respective infographic image as a guest blog post. He just needs a back link to JoGuru from the bottom line of the infographic image.
Some of the infographic image as a guest post has been approved now. Just have a look at the link below which is a guest post.
http://justinwashere.com/one-day-paris-itinerary-infographic/
You can see a back link to JoGuru at the bottom of the infographic image.
In return Stephen will share your website post on his social media followers.
Please let me know your thoughts or better way you can directly contact with Stephen.
Waiting for you reply.
Thanks & Regards.
Armida
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Thanks for all this info Armida. I sent an email off to Stephen. Joguru.com looks like a great site.
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Thanks Alison,
I will inform it to Stephen.
Thanks for your help. Take Care. See you soon.
Regards.
Armida.
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Hi – I just nominated your Hi – I just nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award, here is the link: http://thetravelwench.com/2013/12/19/very-inspiring-blogger-award-2/
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OK, I have some typing issues, sorry about that!
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Lol 🙂 Don’t we all!
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Wow! Thank you so much. I’m very honoured. Be assured I will respond, but it will probably be a few months down the road. I love responding to award nominations, but sometimes we’re so darn busy travelling it takes a while!
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You’re welcome! I’m very inspired by your travels! That’s a very good reason to not be responding for a while, what better reason than traveling and doing what you love!?! 🙂
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How magnificent. No. 1, the photo is just gorgeous. No. 2, I’ve always wondered how people can afford to do this, this wonderful business of being free roaming. II know, you sold stuff & gave it away, but you know how the world is, always need money.
A beautiful picture.
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Thank you. You’ll get to your days of free roaming. It’s possible, it really is.
Thank you for visiting our blog and for all the ‘likes’.
You have such strength and courage I know you’ll find your way.
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Hello Alison and Don
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Hello again,
Sorry – I was doing a test to make sure I could post a comment, before I started my real post!
Nice to meet you. I am a follower of Nomadic Matt and today’s topic was ‘Alison and Don’, so here I am to introduce myself :0)
My name is Debbie, I live in Australia and I am 53. My husband Len, is 66.
We are in the early planning stages of a 2 year retirement trip starting around November this year. (2014)
(I see you are currently in Cuzco. We were there about 13 months ago and I loved it and wished I had organised more time there when I planned our trip).
Our destination for the two years is the America’s, starting in Central America for 6 months,then USA for 12 months and finally Canada for 6 months. I see you are from Vancouver, but am wondering if you are planning on spending any time in these areas?
I am interested in following your experiences in these countries (as an older couple) to pave the way for our own trip.
Plus I would love some recommendations of accommodation more attuned to our needs – similar to yours.
We hope to stay in apartments for a month or so from time to time, so any recommendations are very welcome.
We plan to travel by bus through Central America – probably starting in Panama and working our way up to Mexico where we will fly to the US and buy a car.
Cheers
Debbie from Oz
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Hi Debbie, nice to meet you. We’re having 3 weeks in Cuzco and the Sacred Valley area – we like to travel slow and there’s so much to see and do here.
I’m so sorry we won’t be of much help since we’ve never been to Central America (it’s on the list) and we’ve never rented accommodations in Canada or the US since we either had our own home or stayed with friends. We can however recommend some must sees (which you’ve probably thought of anyway) in Canada and US, and some good websites for finding accommodation.
Canada – Vancouver is a beautiful city. Would also recommend at least a visit to some of the Gulf Islands off the coast – Saltspring Island, Galiano Island, Gabriola Island, etc. Saltspring’s the liveliest and has a fabulous Saturday market. Then of course Banff and Jasper National Parks, Niagara Falls, Montreal and Quebec City. We both love Montreal. I’ve not been further east than that. I lived in the far north for several years and if you want to get off the beaten track go visit Atlin (just south of the Yukon border) and explore the Yukon – stunning scenery in both places.
For the US we can recommend pretty much the obvious – Grand Canyon, Yosemite National Park, Death Valley, Yellowstone, Sedona and area, New York (don’t miss it! It’s amazing), the 4 -corners region (Utah Colorado New Mexico Arizona, especially Mesa Verde), Taos in New Mexico, and the Taos Pueblo (Don says it’s astonishing) .
We stay away from the US these days since now Don’s over 70 the cost of travel health insurance is beyond ridiculous.
With regard to accommodation we’ve used http://www.HomeAway.com for finding apartments. We frequently use Booking.com (primarily because you don’t have to pay in advance and can often cancel pretty much up to the last minute) for both apartments and hotels. We’ve also used Agoda.com (who have recently begun to offer free cancellation and no pre-payment) for hotels. Agoda also gives 5 to 7 percent back in rewards which can reduce the cost of further bookings with them.
It’s likely we’ll be visiting Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Guatamala in March this year and will be blogging about our travels there so stay tuned.
I am really curious about Nomadic Matt’s topic of the day being “Alison and Don”. Where did you see that? We didn’t know anything about it.
Cheers and happy travels. It sounds like a fabulous trip you’re planning.
Alison
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Alison – Can you please email me urgently???
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Not sure what to do here Debbie. I have removed your comment with the links because when I clicked on the first link it opened my gmail account. There should not be links out there that can open my gmail account. When Don clicked on it it opened his gmail account. This is a little troubling to us. The other two links were fine – one opened up NomadicMatt’s interview about us and the other opened the volunteering site.
Do you have any insight into this?
Thanks
Alison
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Hi Debbie,
Sorry I took so long to get back to you – we’re in different time zones.
What a curious mess. There’s definitely something amiss, but maybe not as bad as we think. When you clicked on that link it opened your gmail account, when I clicked on it it opened my gmail account, and when Don clicked on it it opened his gmail account – so none of us got access to another person’s account, only to our own, which is a good thing.
I’ve deleted all the comments showing your full name – that would have come from joining WP I suspect. See if you can “unjoin” and rejoin with whatever name you like – it could be just Debbie or anything else you like. By the way the photo next to your posts connected to your FB page which is something I’ve never seen before. Usually those photos connect to Gravatar.
Anyway I think it’s all okay except that link is such a mystery. Is the link that opens our gmail the same link you received in your original email from Nomadic Matt? And when you first opened it did it then say “Today’s topic is Alison and Don, and give a link to our interview” – or something like that? Where did that link come from? It’s all a bit weird. Have you ever before had an email/newsletter from NomadicMatt that included a topic of the day with a link to an article on his blog?
Anyway nothing seems amiss this end now though I think I will be more vigilant about logging out of gmail, and the blog, from now on. Hope it’s all okay your end too, though any info you can share would be helpful. I may then contact Matt about this because he may be having trouble too.
Fingers crossed for both of us. I’m feeling okay about it since at least we only seem to be able to get into our own accounts.
Thanks
Alison
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Hi Alison,
I showed my daughter what happened and she said it’s all OK. The link will only ever open the readers’ Gmail if they are logged on, and if they don’t have an account the link will go nowhere. I had to suffer a lot of eye rolling from her part to find this out! lol.
Also, they only way I can show you the original email from NM is to forward it to your email address as his page does not include an e-link.
You could give it to me, I could forward the email then you could delete the comments (as you have been doing) so your email and mine is not made public on your blog. It’s up to you.
We live and learn every day don’t we?
Cheers
Debbie
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I had such a chuckle about your daughter’s reaction. I must admit I do kinda wish I’d grown up with all this technology so I didn’t have to learn a new language in my 50’s/60’s. Still not fluent by a long way. Thank goodness for the next generation to set us straight lol.
I am both very surprised, and curious about NM’s email.
I’ll email you.
Cheers
Alison
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Hi,
Happy New Year.
I just found your blog and wanted to invite you to guest post on our retirement site Retirement And Good Living about your traveling adventures.
If interested please send me an email and I will forward additional information.
Thanks,
Simone
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I’ve emailed you
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Just to add to the mystery, I am now also receiving your emails through my work email address, which I did not attach to your blog in any way.
I am too proud to ask my daughters help again!!
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That is really weird. I noticed your work email address showed up associated with the above photo of you. Both the photo and your name are links to your FB page – so it must have been after you “liked” the blog on FB. I think there must be some connection between FB and WP. However I realized it was obviously a work address so deliberately didn’t use it when emailing you. I just double-checked and the email I sent you was definitely to your private gmail address. I can’t imagine how it would also show up at your work address. I hope it doesn’t cause any problems for you. Maybe ask your daughter anyway just to make sure it’s okay, even if she rolls her eyes at you lol.
The mystery continues . . . . .
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Then again, maybe I did inadvertently when I ‘liked’ your blog on Face Book.
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You can also change your settings on FB – maybe change the email address you’re using on FB from work address to home. I think that should be possible.
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Maybe our destiny is to be linked together!
🙂
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I’m going to follow you guys – looks like we have a lot in common! All the best, Nancy
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Thanks for following. I think we do have a lot in common, only we hope never to go back to work 🙂
Hope your book is a huge success!
Cheers
Alison
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hey from ecuador! congratulations on your well-deserved award from nepaliaustralian’s just-announced results! it’s an honor to see your site, and i look forward to joining the others who value your posts and the free spirit attitude that you share with the world!
lisa/z
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Thank you so much lisa. Congratulations to you too for your well deserved win. Your site is beautiful and captivating. I love your designs.
Maybe we’ll see you in Ecuador. We arrive on Feb 12 – still hoping for a Galapagos trip.
Apart from Galapagos, Quito and an Amazon trip – where would you recommend?
Cheers
Alison
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hey! in one month you’ll be in ecuador! yay!!!
cuenca is a beautiful well-dressed lady, and she always gives me a comforting dose of visual comfort. just sitting in the park in front of the blue-domed cathedral is enough to satisfy me! i also like to visit the nearby banos de cuenca (?) and always feel better the next day after time in those thermal waters…i visit hostal duran’s site, but last time the water was too cool for my comfort. ask to check the water temp before you pay!
leaving cuenca heading up the avenue of volcanos, you will probably pass near the ruins of ingapirca. if you’ve seen macchu picchu, it might be a let down, but i love the site. i
if you go to banos near volcano tungurruhua, you might cointinue from there and go to tena and puyo, at the beginning of the amazon. it depends on your itinerary what to do in what order!!!
south of quito and riobamba and off the beaten path is lovely guaranda.. i love going to guaranda; you won’t see many tourists there, and you’ll pass the beautiful snow-capped chimborozo as well. http://playamart.wordpress.com/2012/11/16/mystical-andes/
otovalo is worth visiting for the colorful market as well as the colorful people. i stay about half an hour away at the oldest hacienda in the country, hacienda guachala near cayambe. there’s also a great middle of the world site near the hacienda and is well worth the half-hour stop if you take their ten-minute scientific lecture.i’ve written a handful of posts about guachala. http://playamart.wordpress.com/2012/10/29/escape-to-the-andes-the-middle-of-the-world/
well that should hold you for a while!!! enjoy the rest of your time in peru!
lisa
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Wow! So much information. Thank you so much. We’ll be getting on with our research now and planning out route through Ecuador. You’ve given us lots of ideas.
Alison
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I second Otovalo plus I loved the day we spent at Cotopaxi. We had 8 days in the Galapagos ….mostly good, but I would do it different if I did it again.
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Hi cooperellie, thanks for your input. Otavalo has always been on the list though I forgot to mention it in my comment above. I was there 35 years ago (!) and have never forgotten it. We’re rethinking the Amazon trip. Will def keep Cotopaxi in mind.
Re your Galapagos trip – what would you have done differently?
Thanks
Alison
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Our trip started on the ‘EDEN’ at San Crisobal. I think we did itinerary ‘B’, but I would have to check and it might be different now anyway.
We signed on for 8 days for around $2500 ($AUS) each. Like most people I agonized for months and months trying to pick the right tour, but now I have been there I would do it different as I mentioned.
3 people joined us at Santa Cruz on day three which I think was smart.
It was just luck on their part as they just arrived and got the best deal they could find from the agents in town. I am sure they paid a third or less what we did.
But the money is not what bothered me….I feel the first three days were just going around killing time waiting till we picked them up so we could get going. We did see some great stuff, but nothing compared to the last 5 days. The first three days were spent (mostly) visiting the Darwin Centre, towns, Wall of Tears etc……. too boring for me. I just wanted to go to the islands and snorkel to my hearts content!
So what I would do next time is arrive in the islands and pick up TWO x 5 days trips to include –
1) Isabela, Fernandina, James Bay, Rabina, Nth Seymour.
2) Genovesa, Espanola and Floreana
You will not find one tour that does them all as they have set itineraries by law.
Unless you hire our own private boat!!!
Our first three days were –
San Cristobal, Plaza, Santa Fe, Santa Cruz, Darwin Centre etc.
Anyhoo – that’s what I would do if I had my time again.
Cheers
Debbie
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Thank you so much for all this info. It sounds like going direct to the islands is the best bet. Lots more research to do.
Cheers
Alison
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We also did a 4 day Amazon side trip from Puerto Maldonado in Peru, which was nice, but a bit underwhelming IMO. Except for the odd patch, the rainforests there were only 60 Years old. Our Australian Daintree forest is better.
The Amazon in Ecuador may be better. I now wish I had spent those precious four days for a longer time in Cuzco or Arequipa.
I have found months of planning and researching doesn’t mean you will always get it right!
cheers
DB
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Oh you’re so right – all the planning and research still doesn’t mean you always get it right, as we well know. We’ll probably go to Amazon from Ecuador. I’ve been, years ago, and we’ve both been to Daintree, so it’s up to Don. We think we have a couple of good leads for Galapagos now.
Thanks for your tips
Cheers
Alison
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Hello Alison and Don! What a fantastic blog you have! Beautiful photographs and very good write-up too! Will be stopping by here more often. Have a great day ahead!
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Thank you so very much for your kind words.
And to you too – have a great day!
Alison
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Add your blog here http://bit.ly/KCtT5r !
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Why? What is it? Who are you? I don’t read German.
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I love this and that you let go of your material external trappings and perhaps some internal things as well in order to make this journey of awareness. I am looking forward to catching up reading about some of the places you have been and where you go next! Burma is of interest. I have a friend who was just there and we have not had an opportunity to discuss the visit as yet so I am off to read about your journey! Thank you for sharing your experiences with all of us!
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Thanks so much – yes there was a lot of letting go of internal stuff, and continues to be. We know the internal journey is more important than the external, but also we couldn’t imaging the internal journey happening in the way it has if we hadn’t taken the leap to take the external journey which continues to be exciting and enriching beyond words. Hope you enjoy our journey through Burma – it was amazing!
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The Hubs and I want to be you when we grow up! If we live thru the kids. We traveled before and hope to again after. Your blog….the closest thing to a vacation I shall see for a bit!
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Hang in there, your day will come!
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