Once in a Lifetime vs. Some Thing/Place to Return to
Sometimes Less IS More
NOTE: To those of you who are new, and introduced to us via the article in Business Insider, welcome! That article was called, “I'm an American spending my retirement living in 50 different countries. I've loved these 4 — and have one clear favorite,” and was edited down to just four since publication space is tight. Since I originally started with NINE favorite countries, here’s my original list:
in Italy…
As we sit at a coffee shop in Siracusa, Italy, on the small island of Ortigia, we reminisce about our last time here, in October 2019. Things were so different then! We were less than 12 months into our travels after leaving the US in February 2019, and during the interim we lived in Spain, Tivoli (also Italy), Croatia, and several other European towns for shorter periods of time. Coming to southern Italy was a dream destination for us, and even though winter was around the corner, the weather during our six weeks here was terrific! Some rain, some wind, but overall quite nice, so much that we were able to swim in the Mediterranean outside our lodging!
The town of Siracusa is full of history, with a beautiful 8,000 year old ruin, the Temple of Apollo, at the island entrance. Ortigia is an island, but only a few hundred feet from the town of Syracuse (the English version of the city name), so crossing back and forth is effortless. The streets and alleys look exactly as you would imagine: covered in stepping stones, full of narrow passages, and walls as thick as a human head. After we left here in December of that year, we went to Athens for a few weeks, since that was our launch city to Asia, which we were about to visit for the first time.
Over 43 countries since 2019, there have been some that are “one and done,” and others we will revisit. We will probably never return to South America, Egypt, Israel, and a few other places. But there are several we long for, and anticipate returning to, like Da Nang, Vietnam; Bali; Siem Reap, Cambodia—and here, in Southern Italy. We will depart in two weeks, return to Palermo for a few days, then take (yet another) ferry to the island of Sardinia for a week. Then back to mainland Italy via Naples and through the Amalfi Coast, and finally, in June, another ferry to the Balkans, so we can reset our Schengen time. Over almost five months we will be on our BMW bike (named Hermes), and will end in yet another place we love: Brasov, Romania, and finally, venture back to Saranda, Albania, until almost the end of the year.
For those who live life on the road, as nomads, as many of you do, you probably have your favorite places, whether it be a region, country, or city. We do too.
Along with the places we love, and may or may not return to, we have had a wealth of EXPERIENCES that may be one time events, or possibly repeatable. As a travel journalist, we have been gifted some really cool stays, including the Jamala Animal Lodge giraffe park in Canberra, Australia, the Arna glamping resort in Bali, and most recently, a five star resort in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
When we walked into that resort in Cambodia, which was designed by one of the most world-reknown hotel designers in the world, we were blown away by the opulence. It started with our own private villa, with a lap pool outside, to a magnificent bedroom with windows all around, and then through another door to the second bathroom, walk-in closet, and large shower exposed to the outside with an outside tub! It was beautiful and had us in awe, but after one day we recognized that as beautiful as it was, it was unwieldy and cumbersome getting around. I know, hard to complain in a $567/ night villa, right? As part of our stay we also were gifted a four course dinner which had been highly touted through press releases and media write ups. Make no mistake, it WAS special and unique, but Kat and I both left wondering what all the hoopla was about, and we both walked out unimpressed.
A few months prior we stayed at a five-star glamping resort, Arna in Bali. It was cool, it was unique, and it was great for 2 days, but we both decided that it was not a place that we would necessarily want to stay at for a long time or return to. Our five star resort in Siem Reap was terrific, but when we were shown the less fancy "deluxe room," we both agreed that would have been great, and more real for us!!
It's a big world, and whether we want it to or not, it will keep on spinning. Each minute, each day, month, and year will roll on whether we want it to or not. Our kids, grandkids, and parents (if you are lucky enough to have them) will all age.
And so will we.
Live each day in appreciation, and if you visit somewhere that REALLY resonates with you—go back! There’s plenty of places that you will yawn over, so appreciate those special places, too.
Meanwhile, here’s some links to past places we have stayed along with some blog archives.
Chapter 94- Is it Time to Consider Leaving your Country? (Published On: July 18, 2020)
https://travelyounger.com/chapter-94-is-it-time-to-consider-leaving-your-country/
updated: https://travelyounger.com/chapter-232-is-it-time-to-leave/
Chapter 165: Friends, Old & New, Around the World (for those concerned about making or keeping friends along the way)
https://travelyounger.com/chapter-165-friends-old-new-around-the-world/
Chapter 153: How SAFE are other countries in the World? (beside the US) this comes up a LOT, and there is usually nothing to fear, but…
https://travelyounger.com/chapter-153-how-safe-are-other-countries-in-the-world/
Chapter 144: A Travel Younger Reality Check: traveling older (relating our revelations about getting “older”)
https://travelyounger.com/chapter-145-a-travel-younger-reality-check-traveling-older/
Croatia, Bali and Italy, again please. My top is France!