Oh my strange goddess of going places, how is it possible it’s already time for us to move again?! Have I experienced my first six month blackout? Have I been living in some sort of LOST-like parallel universe in the same punishing tropical humidity? Either way, I refuse to believe I am just a crappy judge of the real life passage of time.

Anyway, apparently we’ve been ‘slow traveling’ for more than 5 years now – get it, selves! – and are coming to the end of our six month stay in Thailand – and for Peter, Sumatra – and prepping for our 7th official combined move of foolish excellence.

Moving Announcement 2018, Part 2: From Thailand to…

What I assumed would be a relaxed 6 month living situation on the Thai island of Koh Lanta quickly turned into a multi-stop tour of Thailand, a trip to Cambodia and two trips around Vietnam, complete with a dramatic boat gig in Sumatra and one undesirable bout of dengue for Peter. Needless to say, this has been my most productive blackout ever and I’m alright with trying it again in the future.

So where do we go after living in the arguable mecca of Places That Rule that are Costa Rica, Maui, Bali, Australia, New Zealand and Thailand? We’re going stateside again, y’all! And that state is CALIFORNIA. (stranger yells “westside!”)

The Thailand to California Low-Down

Though Peter grew up partly in San Jose, California, I have only been on a few short excursions to Los Angeles, San Francisco and Death Valley National Park, and like any non-idiot, have always wanted to see more of the state.

We didn’t just pick California out of a hat, though. Living on Maui, our best friends were a hilarious couple named Olive and Adam, who now live in the town of Lompoc about an hour northwest of Santa Barbara. They currently work on her parents’ farm, Tutti Frutti Farms, as well as another nearby farm called Raw Garden, and so we did what any good friends would do… basically invited ourselves to come live near them in reunited friend bliss.

But our decision to move to California is threefold, really. Besides just wanting to live near our former adventure buds again, who are sweet enough to already have a place for us to stay (thank you, friends!), we are also moving to California because:

• 1) We have lived outside of the U.S. for the last 3 years – and off the mainland for 5 – and want to be closer to friends, family and Mexican food again.
• 2) We desperately need to re-up our USD funds, as the exchange rate for Australian, New Zealand and most Southeast Asian currency doesn’t get you nearly as far, sadly.
• 3) There is a ton of the country we’re dying to explore, which is shockingly difficult to do from Asia.

The Journey & The Jobs

We are definitely going to miss Thailand and all of its warm, ultra floatable turquoise bodies of water, not to mention our new and old friends who have made this move incredibly fun, and the cheap delicious curries and noodles, and the crazy cool landscapes, and dodging monkeys on scooter rides through the jungle, and generally just being back in the wild weirdness of Asia, and alright I have to stop now so I don’t change my mind and become an honorary sea gypsy in the Andaman Sea…

What I’m saying is that it never gets any easier to say goodbye.

After flying from Thailand to Texas for a visit with friends and family, and likely a Halloween party or six, Peter’s parents have kindly decided to lend us their van for our move to California, which saves us from scraping together the last of our savings to purchase a rusted ’84 Mercury Cougar from a guy named Angus. It’s also a solid bonus that we have recent experience living in a van, because we’ll soon go back to temporary van life as we make the 24+ hour drive from Texas to Lompoc, hopefully with a couple of scenic stops along the way.

As far as employment goes, I’ll continue to do remote copywriting and marketing work for my current employers in Australia and Maui on a part time basis, but I’m also interested in doing marketing work for one of the 40+ wineries in the Lompoc and Santa Barbara area. Because the goal is to save up as much money as possible while living back in the States, I’m also considering working full time for a marketing agency, or even bartending again, though I’d obviously prefer to continue to work in my pajamas when at all possible. Peter will likely pick up some work on the farms, look for photography gigs, or get a yet-to-be-determined job somewhere in Lompoc.

AND! Though we are still in the early stages, Peter and I are in the process of planning our own Travel Writing, Photography + Videography Workshops in a few chosen locations around the world, ideally beginning in the first half of 2019. Hell yeah, y’all! We will teach participants how to create and design their own websites, write about travel, take professional photos and videos both above and underwater, and how to use these skills to gain international clients or make money through digital marketing tactics, all while traveling with us and gathering content in a gorgeous location.

We’re thrilled to take on our next Stateside adventure, and be sure to give us a shout if you happen to be in the area, are interested in hiring us for any one of our above-stated skills, or want to learn more about our upcoming workshops. Till next time, friends…