Questions & Answers

Please send questions to Chris@JesterTravel.com or Angele@JesterTravel.com

You might be wondering why we would attempt such an experience.  The simple answer is: It beats commuting in traffic, sitting in a cube and staring at a monitor.  But, of course there is a much deeper answer.  We both love to travel and want to set a strong foundation for our marriage by spending the first year together. 

We have thought about extensive worldwide travel for a very long time.  Both of our parents have always traveled and we have grown to love it.  A quote by Mark Twain sums up the motivation.  "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover."

Here is another quote by W.M. Levis that reaffirms that our vision is not only accurate but also timely.  "The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it."  We could continue to work for the next 35 years, retire at 65 and then travel the world.  But then were will have only altered our perception of the world for another 15 years, as opposed to 50. 

Thomas Alva Edison stated, "Restlessness and discontent are the first necessities of progress".  There are people who achieve greatness by breaking the mold rather than trying to fit in it.  These are the people who stand apart by doing things their own way. If you fashion yourself as one of these people, you may want to put a time-line next to your dream and make it a goal. 

Question: 

Kris and I are getting pretty close to embarking on our own little adventure and we would love some of your widsom. We are trying to decide btw doing something similar to what you did...renting apts at each destination, or taking shorter trips and flying back home (we would rent a cheap apt in colorado as a base) in between. Which do you think would be easier and most cost effective? We are trying to make our money go as far as possible. Any insight or advice you guys might have we would really appreciate.

Answer:

From a pure economic point of view (if you to travel within Eastern and Western Europe) it is a lot less expensive to fly intra-Europe then go all the way back to Colorado and fly back to Europe.  Plus, trains are cheap too if you get a Eurail Pass. The reason I wanted to travel from place to place without going back home was a mental thing.  "The real voyage of discovery consist, not in seeking out new lands, but in having a new vision", A quote from Marcel Proust. If you are constantly going back to what is familiar to you, you will never get out of your comfort zone and experience what it is like to escape the rat race. 

In planning your trip, try not to plan too much or you will just feel like you are on vacation.  You will more easily get into the essence of the traveling spirit, if you take tips from other travelers and feel free to do what you want... A traveler on the road of discovery.  By, the way it look me 2 1/2 months to stop planning our days via my palm pilot.  I got sick 3 times during that period.  Once I relieved me brain of such strain (the hard working American mentality) I haven't been sick since.  I think my mind and body went through a little institutionalized shock.  Weird, because I always though of myself as such a relaxed person.  So I don't know if you really want to escape the rat race like I did, but if you do, staying away for a while is the best way.  You guys seem to have a wonderful relationship and have been married for a while, so it might be a little different.  But we really feel that being together literally 24x7 for the past 353 days has brought us closer than we ever expected.  We probably don't even realized the total extent of it right now.  We have learned to rely on each other instead of calling our parents or good friends when we catch a cold or get bummed out.  We haven't had any major disagreements so far, but if one does come up, we think this world tour will help us through the hard times.