Thoughts Before We Leave Home – Part 2 –

5 things we’re looking forward to and 5 challenges we expect to face on our travels

This is Part 2 of our post highlighting the adventures we hope to experience and the travel challenges we expect to face as we embark on our nomadic journey!

Related: Part 1 of the post to discover what we are looking forward to most on our travels!

Part 2 – What Will Be Challenging

1. Balancing travel time with work time

All play and no work makes Jack a mere toy! Not that we would mind that, but contrary to popular belief, this shall not be a ‘holiday’ since we intend to work on various projects as we travel around. Although time management is not something that we normally find challenging, working from an environment which is unpredictable and constantly changing is something we have never experienced so far! 

2. Being together the whole time & not managing to find our own space

This is a big concern for both of us. When Nikki is asked how long we have been together, his automatic cocky reply is 2….much. Although we have been a couple for quite a while now, we are both rather independent and normally spend a lot of time apart, so being together 24/7 will surely prove to be challenging (we will most certainly want to kill each other at some point). We have already thought of ways in which to minimise the effects by actually spending some time travelling separately if necessary, having friends come join us in different stages of our journey and respecting each other’s own space. We don’t plan on turning our social media into a couples drama, so our regular followers can breathe a sigh of relief. Only time will tell whether we will survive this challenge!

3. Traveling on a very tight budget

Although we’re normally great at minimising travel expenses (which is how we afford to travel so much), we do like to eat out at restaurants, treat ourselves to an occasional massage or a glass of wine during our travels. This time round, it will be a lot of street food, night buses (to save on accommodation) and a can of beer if we want to treat ourselves! How well is Nikki going to adapt to my strict controls? That is subject to intense negotiations!

4. Missing our support networks

I am blessed with loads of friends and family members who I love spending time with, some of who I confide in each time I’m going through a bad patch (especially if my worries relate to Nikki!). The thought of losing such important friendships terrifies me to no end. I feel lucky that I am leaving to travel at a time when communication has become so accessible! On my trip to Cuba in 2003, I would try (and not always manage) to call home every few days which was fine since it was a relatively short trip. Can’t image doing that now! Nikki, for his part is typically more reserved and isn’t much into confiding, yet being distanced from his family and close friends will not help with ‘homesickness’, which probably what he fears most out of the whole plan (that, and the dieting imposed by myself!).

5. Becoming disillusioned with travel

Travel has always been a priority in our lives and it it is probably what we have invested in most in the past years. We will finally be living our dream of long term travel. But will we enjoy it as much as we are hoping to? We have read quite a few stories of travelers who returned home to their routine because traveling long term was not what they expected or imagined at all. Will it work, or will there be moments in which we “hate” traveling and regret our decision?  We will never know unless we take the plunge. It’s a risk we are willing to experience as we both consider the regret of never trying it out, to outway any foreseen financial loss!

Stay tuned to this blog to find out whether we will manage to make it!

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