The Beauty of Travel

  "Travel isn't always pretty. It isn't always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that's okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind." -Anthony Bourdain

   This has been one of my favorite quotes recently for so many reasons. I've always loved to travel, but I had never completely "lived" it. Most traveling happens for a few days, or up to a week or two if you're lucky. On these trips you usually hit all the tourist-y spots before it's time to pack up and head back home to your normal life.

   I've never been very good with change, but had been enthusiastic for this trip for a few years. The drive from Quicksburg to Emerald Isle was full of mixed emotions; nostalgia for home and excitement towards the future, and lots of sleeping on my part (sorry Mom, I'm not a good co-pilot!) The last day in Virginia had been quite a blur, so the ride was pretty calming after such a hectic day. I had been running all day trying to see as many of my friends as possible, and packing all my junk into my not-yet-finished camper, and then hitting the road late that night. 

   Once I was getting adjusted to living here, the rose-colored glasses I may have accidentally put on while planning for the trip, came off. Reality hit with some unexpected bills and just the regular monthly ones, and the job hunt was difficult. I put in lots of applications, rejected a job offer because I thought another would be better, only for it to fall through. I've had a lot of homesickness and determined that I will have to re-home my best friend after talking with a local dog trainer about my options. It felt like everything I had planned on, was crumbling beneath me and there was nothing I could do. I felt bad that I have been miserable even though I'm on "The Trip of a Lifetime." Much like "normal life" though (is there such a thing? haha), you have to take the bad days with the good.  I've been told by many people to "have faith, things will work out." Some days that's harder than others, and some days, like yesterday, He sends a sign that convinces me I'm right where I should be.

   I went to the campground laundromat and there was an older lady in there folding her laundry. I still had a few minutes on the timer so I waited. There was the usual small talk, the typical "how are you's" and "the weather is getting pretty hot out there today!" But, the great part about campgrounds like this one, is some people live here full-time, and some people just come in every weekend. As we talked I learned that she had been to all seven continents, and would be on her way to Russia in a few days. Her and her husband were from Lake Norman, which is near Charlotte, North Carolina, and that she only comes to the campground about twice a year. I couldn't fully hear her soft-spoken voice over the washers and dryers, but it sounded like she said she was a tour guide. Living in a military town, I got the usual question of, "So are you a military wife?" I explained that no, I wasn't a military wife and talked about our new lifestyle and plans. She seemed genuinely excited and asked a few questions before I headed back to my camper. 

   So, as the quote says, travel isn't always pretty. There's going to be days much harder than others, days where I'd much rather be at home with my friends; but there will be the good days too, where I'm constantly getting to learn new things, see new places, and meet new people.  I have to remember to have faith and always be thankful for the little signs like yesterday, to be reminded of my dreams when I'm unsure of them myself, and to keep pushing myself forward. I've have always wanted to see as much of this world as I could, and that is what I'm going to do. I also have to remember that I (hopefully!) have plenty of time to do everything I want to do with my life, it's not just a now or never decision to live all of my dreams within the next year.

The most asked questions

Thought I would use this week's entry to answer some of the most-asked questions we get about our crazy trip!


"So you're on vacation for a year?"
Technically it's not a vacation at all. We are living in different places for three months at a time. We are living, working, and paying bills, much like everyone else; just in different places. In our down time, we are taking in the sites and finding fun things to do, the same way we did when we were in Virginia.

"How do you afford to do this?"
We started this trip with very little debt. We choose affordable campgrounds, and many places offer even better rates if you're staying for a few months at a time. And of course, we will continue to have jobs. They won't be the best paying jobs, but without having tons of bills, we do not need as much to live off of.

"Why would you want to travel so much?"
Ever since I was younger we have always traveled a lot, and chose experiences over "things." I had traveled farther in my first 10 years of life, than some people do in an entire lifetime. After traveling to Europe in the summer of 2014, I knew I wanted to see as much of this world as I could, and this trip was the perfect way to see as much of this beautiful country as possible.

"How do you decide where you're going?"
For the first stop we wanted to stay close to Virginia so we could return in June and watch some of my closest friends graduate high school. Mom always liked the Emerald Isle area of North Carolina, so we decided that would be the perfect first stop. For our future stops, we've chosen places central to things we wanted to see, and also based on the weather. We wanted to be in an area during it's "best" season [i.e. NOT wintertime for South Dakota! :) ]

"How could you leave home?"
For most of my life "home" didn't feel like home. I had always felt a calling to be somewhere else. It wasn't until I graduated high school and had a great group of friends that it really felt like home. Although I've had many moments where I just want to get in my truck and drive back to the Shenandoah Valley, I have to do this trip for me. There is so much about myself that this journey will teach me, and has already taught me, that I'm not giving it up just yet.

"Don't you miss your family and friends?"
Every day! Thankfully Facebook and texting keeps me in touch with everyone. Some of my friends are planning visits and I can't wait to see them! I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to go to a diesel event and meet up with two of my friends from home. Spending time with them definitely helped with some of my homesickness!

"What did you do with all your stuff?"
Threw away, donated, and sold LOTS of stuff. We have a small storage building back home that we are keeping some of our more valuable possessions in that we just don't have room for in the campers. We have downsized multiple times during this process and will continue to downsize. In just a month, I've realized how many clothes I have that I don't wear, and how much stuff I have that I just don't use, so I'll be purging again before we leave North Carolina!

"How can you stand living in such a small space?"
It has definitely been a big change, going from a 525 square foot apartment in the old house, to a 148 square foot camper. The remodel has taken a lot longer than we anticipated, so I'm still adjusting to my new small space. It is forcing me to tidy up frequently and get rid of lots of unnecessary things!

"How do you get your mail?"
We forwarded all of our mail to our neighbor's house. They send it to us at the campground about once a week. We have also switched to paperless, so that cuts down on a lot of the mail we receive.

"So are you moving back to Virginia in a year? When are you going 'home'?"
My "plan" is to move back home in a year. I'm sure the rest of my family will continue to travel, but I would like to eventually be settled with my own place and some land. Plans change all the time so it could change between now and next year, but right now that is what I have in mind. :)

Week #3 & 4

Even though we live near the beach, I was able to find a mud racing event in Hubert, North Carolina. Dad and I had a lot of fun, even though it made me second-guess selling my old truck!

Week 3 had a few slow days, laundry, cleaning, all the "fun" stuff! It also rained quite a bit over those few days. We spent some family time together and went to the Bogue Inlet Fishing Pier.

We also went to Beaufort one day to visit a farmers market, and then walked around the town a bit.

Week 4 we visited Fort Macon, it was hot outside but I got some gorgeous photos at the Fort. The lighting was perfect to get some great ones in black and white!

 After being here for about a month now we finally took the time to go to The Point at Emerald Isle and watch the sun set. Anybody who comes to this area should definitely take the time to do it at least once, it's worth it!

 This past weekend I went to Rudy's Diesel Season Opener in Julian, North Carolina. It was only about three and a half hours from where we are living. It was super hot that day but I was in truck heaven! I also got to spend some time with some of my friends, which may or may not have made my homesickness a little worse! I had a great day watching the drags and pulls, though!

The past month has went by pretty quickly, I'm sure before we know it we'll be on the road again!