So, I was chatting with my favorite youngest daughter Kylene a few weeks ago and she casually asked me how the plans are fleshing out for our upcoming half-year of nomad travel. And after a half-hour detailed update and our chat-with-you-soon goodbyes, it dawned on me that were she not sweet of heart she probably would have flat out asked me: “What the hell, Dad? You haven’t posted anything in, like . . . FOREVER!”
Well, let’s put an end to that nonsense, okay?
I don’t know about you, but it’s been a crazy last 4 months here in Baja Sur. The weather’s been unusually cool and the winds a bit stronger than seasons past. So, less time for us basking on the beach, but plenty of hours walking the crop-rich farmlands around our casa here, as the field workers have cycled through basil, strawberries, and muy hectares of poblano chiles (sometimes loaded into the bed of your Chevy pickup!). In fact, the annual Festival de El Chiles y La Fresas was just a week ago.
It doesn’t get much better than standing at the grill looking out to the wind-chopped Pacific at sunset with the aroma of fresh-caught seafood (or Costco top sirloin?) and newly harvested produce a la parrilla.
We purchase our weekly vegetables and strawberries from Johnny and his niece Flor at the local Sunday market just up the road. He’ll often throw in a gratis bundle of basil with the rest of our basket. That’s Flor, second from the right with the sunflower, who performed with her folklore dance troupe at the market a few weeks ago.
Late April and May are the months that most of us snowbirds begin flying back to our thawed-out northern habitats, so many of our Pueblo Pescadero neighbors have already departed. Though it’s still an active time to celebrate life here. Even this weekend we had the soft opening of a new bocce ball night spot (here in Mexico we call that la petanca!) and our favorite German-themed beer bar Bajavaria soft-promoted their new downtown Todos Santos El Centro location. Congrats, Tim and Tina.
Well . . . enough of that. (Can you tell we love it down here?!) Let’s get down to Nomad Life 180!
As I mentioned when we launched this website, the logistics of facilitating four-and-a-half months of actual on the road travel has proven to be quite daunting. Booking air travel and lodging has been interesting enough, but then there’s also the endless research determining what the heck we want to do once we get to where we’re getting.
For example, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival has now published the bulk of their schedule. That means 3,500 different shows from 50+ different countries across 250 different venues. Yeah, right? But the reality is, despite the several hours of spent poring over the online festival schedule, we’ll probably end up getting there and ad libbing the whole thing.
And between the 160 available distilleries and craft breweries in the Speyside and Highland regions of Scotland . . . . Nancy keeps reminding me that I need to narrow that down. Within a 30-mile radius around our Charlestown of Aberlour rental cottage there are 53 different distilleries! Not to mention that’s the hub of my entire Gordon heritage and my brother Eric has provided me a ton of lineage history to explore.
For example, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival has now published the bulk of their schedule. That means 3,500 different shows from 50+ different countries across 250 different venues. Yeah, right? But the reality is, despite the several hours of spent poring over the online festival schedule, we’ll probably end up getting there and ad libbing the whole thing.
And between the 160 available distilleries and craft breweries in the Speyside and Highland regions of Scotland . . . . Nancy keeps reminding me that I need to narrow that down. Within a 30-mile radius around our Charlestown of Aberlour rental cottage there are 53 different distilleries! Not to mention that’s the hub of my entire Gordon heritage and my brother Eric has provided me a ton of lineage history to explore.
Yet, we keep reminding ourselves that every snag or complication we run into is hardly the end of the world. These first world problems, even in a worst case scenario, will still be a privilege to enjoy.
So, here’s where we stand with 15 days till we wing our way north from Baja Sur and begin our 180 days of nomad living:
- For our initial five weeks out of the gate we’ll enjoy an awesome AirBnB in Kirkland, WA, a few blocks north of the marina. And we’ll end our travels at a cool garage attic VRBO in Bothell, WA, for our month back in the PNW before returning to Baja.
- Just today we finalized the AirBnB for our first 10 days in the Tuscan town of Siena, a beautiful ground level condo 4 blocks off the Piazza del Campo. And with that booking we’re now fully locked in for lodging for our first 103 days of the journey and our final 35. So, other than the two days in Montepulciano/ Ravenna and our 5 weeks in the Puglian heel of Italy, we’re good to go on overnights.
- For our initial five weeks out of the gate we’ll enjoy an awesome AirBnB in Kirkland, WA, a few blocks north of the marina. And we’ll end our travels at a cool garage attic VRBO in Bothell, WA, for our month back in the PNW before returning to Baja.
- Just today we finalized the AirBnB for our first 10 days in the Tuscan town of Siena, a beautiful ground level condo 4 blocks off the Piazza del Campo. And with that booking we’re now fully locked in for lodging for our first 103 days of the journey and our final 35. So, other than the two days in Montepulciano/ Ravenna and our 5 weeks in the Puglian heel of Italy, we’re good to go on overnights.
- Just today we finalized the AirBnB for our first 10 days in the Tuscan town of Siena, a beautiful ground level condo 4 blocks off the Piazza del Campo. And with that booking we’re now fully locked in for lodging for our first 103 days of the journey and our final 35. So, other than the two days in Montepulciano/ Ravenna and our 5 weeks in the Puglian heel of Italy, we’re good to go on overnights.
- Those Sienese 10 days were originally planned for 17, but we reconfigured the final week for stays in Pienza, Montepulciano, Ravenna, Bologna, and back for another 2 nights in Florence.
- We’ll venture out from Galway, Ireland, one day for a 2-hour car jaunt to remote Achill Island to visit the 155-year old McLoughlin’s Bar, currently for sale, but only to someone bearing that same surname. And we’ve also cut short our Galway stay in order to overnight in Cork and visit the Midleton/Jameson distillery and the House of Waterford crystal headquarters.
- Recently, we also added visits to the University of Oxford campus and a long day’s worth of west coastal Scottish distilleries between Glasgow and Inverness (Oban, Ben Nevis, and Dalwhinnie). And if Coila, the Scottish muse of music, blesses our timing, we’ll drive an hour from Inverness to Ullapool and the Arch Inn to enjoy RuMac, the wildest accordion player on the planet.
- Oh, and we purchased our tickets for this year’s Washington Brewers Fest at Seattle Center. That’s in June.
Keep your eyes open for more frequent posts here, as the adventure of a lifetime approaches. And if you haven’t yet subscribed for email alerts whenever we post something new, you can do that below.
We’ll be in touch.
Drank a Punk IPA on the top of a hotel in Bangkok!
Indeed, they are everywhere!
I would still be walking from the Firenze train station to your first airbnb!!!!
I’m sooo sorry you had to suffer through the gelato tastings to find the One. Somebody had to do it!
I totally agree about the sangiovese grape. One of my favorite wines is a Super Tuscan. Mainly made with indigenous grapes blended with non-indigenous vines like Cab Sauv and merlot. One of the top wines in the world! And a bargain price.
In Nancy and your honor, I made a Tuscan chicken dish the other day. Except it didn’t look like the food you pictured….and didn’t taste like it, I’m sure!
Enjoying your trip with you!
Hey Jim, love that you’re following along, and appreciate your comments. The Tuscan wines are truly a joy, though we did enjoy a Puglian red this evening while in Vieste. Awesome town. You’d love it!! A festival tonight with music or comedy every night a stone’s throw away.
Ah, the Pantheon, one of my favorite buildings, especially considering its age.
Yes, we’ll be back in Florence in Wednesday and Thursday next week. We’ll tour the Pantheon then.
Okay! I will have the house tagliere board for two! For myself! And 2 glasses of wine??? You can’t fool me.
Just read an article about the area where Nancy’s family lived. An area known for its unique buildings with a purpose to evade taxes!
Trullo buildings in Alberobello! Also, now B and B’s. May your safe journeys continue!
Ahh, the Trulli of Alberobello. We won’t be lodging in one, but plan to spend a morning or afternoon visiting Alberobello. Thanks again for your comments, Jim. We head to Montecino and Montepulciano today. Puglia in a week.
We loved Dublin (actually ALL of Ireland!) but didn’t have enough time there.
The library was amazing as well as the Book of Kells but I see the books are all gone! Must be renovating.
Big fan of Jamie…..sooo jealous!
Totally agree on Guinness tour.
They’re restoring (un-dusting) the books in the library at Trinity College; only about 10% on display. It’ll be a several-year project.
Glenn, not surprisingly your lilting eloquence embellishes the accompanying pictorial fare and invites one to pour a wee dram with which to enjoy both!
My hope has been to capture the spirit and flavor of the places and people we encounter on our journey. I’m glad you’re enjoying it.
Wow, that all sounds so lovely, except for the driving part! That would make me so nervous.
I’m really not trying to dominate the comment section but………
Where you are brings back sooo many memories of Derry (wife, not place!). She, also, was my navigator and her job was to pick the ivy off the passenger side mirror because I was so close to those damned rock walls avoiding a lorry coming at me @ 100Km/hr on a 1 & 1/2 lane road!
We went to Connemara National Park, climbed up most of the way, and went to visit the great love story that Kylemore Abbey represents.
The walled garden was amazing, too.
I have watched the very perplexing movie “The Banshees of Inisherin”
I agree, Galway is awesome!! We did indeed have a brew or two @ Monroe’s!
Keep your comments coming, my friend. We love having you along for the ride.
I love vicariously eating and sight-seeing with you two! And I’m glad I’m not splitting the bill!
Asheville and the Blue ridge Parkway were the some of the highlights on my trips around there. We, also, skipped the Biltmore tour. $50-head to see someone else’s ostentatiousness!
And I now have to put Curate on my list…..love me some Spanish tapas!
No doubt, our joy of good food has us reevaluating the dining budget! 😉
Have been hearing a lot lately about Charleston’s foodie scene!!!
I want a raclette burger and order me the trout with crawfish at Vern’s!
And be careful driving out there. Might get a little wet!
Stepping out of Vern’s last night it was dumping!! Thankfully they loaned us an umbrella for the short walk home, but with sandals . . . pretty sloppy. And yes, both of those food items were incredible.
Excellent post! I love how the architecture helps avoid the taxman… brilliant!
What a fun day!!! And then, to a Spanish restaurant serving some of my favorite tapas and vino!!
A new post after just 24 hours? You spoil us, and set a high bar for the detailed story-telling of your adventures! If the rest of your trip is half as enjoyable as your first day out to be, you’re in for a treat. Love you both and enjoy the humidity (and everything else, of course).
Hola to you two!!
A word of caution, kinda. Watch out for Travis Decker in Leavenworth!
Not that I have vast knowledge for packing for long trips, I would think taking along some “tradeable” clothing you can bargain with! Like a nice BBB shirt in exchange for a nice Italian sweater! And save room for souvenirs and fun stuff! No one will care if you wear the same shirt three days in a row, except Nancy!!
Also, I can partner with you about losing family. It certainly speeds up as we get older.
Yeah, definitely one of the downsides of aging!
What a great surprise it was to have you and Nancy swing by Green Lake, looking forward to hosting you both in Tucson next year! I had forgotten to mention during our conversation that there are two new Matador restaurants in S. Carolina if you are feeling nostalgic. Thanks again and safe travels, already excited to follow along!
Thanks for the heads up re. the Matadors. I see it’s actually a restaurant with a separate “Mezcaleria by Matador” next door. It’s 1.5 miles from our AirBnB. We’ll definitely go there. Glad to know you’ll be following along on our travels. Take care.
Wow! I bet you’re both getting excited for your continuing adventures. Love reading about them. We miss you guys!
So excited! Already loving our “vacationing” in our hometown, and chomping at the bit to truly hit the road. Miss you two, as well. Glad you’re following along. Hope your summer’s starting off great.
Whooohoo! You’re on your way! 👏🏼🌟
Looks like you two are loving and living life well. Love the narratives and the photos
Thanks, Sandy. Yes, life’s awesome.
(And Kirkland is just so cool, as I’m sure you remember.)
We love Kirkland, especially Isarn Thai 🤤🤤🤤 One of my favorite Thai restaurants! It looks like your adventures are off to a great start. Enjoy your time with family and friends!
Thanks, Kelsey. Isarn Thai is one of our daughter Kylene’s favorites, as well.
Hope you and Scott are enjoying your early summer.
Godspeed my friends. See you soon, hopefully it will involve libations and excellent conversation. Miss you guys!
So very excited for you two and looking forward to being on your adventure with you! I must be on your roster twice as I received 2 email notifications. Enjoy every minute and I hope to see you at one of your visits to BB!
Jealous…can’t wait to see and hear all about it
Bon voyage, and we’ll see you in Asheville!
I could not be more excited for you both! Have an amazing time in WA (wish I was joining for graduation) and on your stateside portion of this adventure. Can’t wait to see you in the Burgh in a few months. Cheers to new adventures!
Thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience, Best of luck Glenn and Nancy. Safe travels🙏🌺
Thanks, Al. Glad you’ll be following our adventure.
OMG this sounds absolutely amazing!!!!!!
Thanks, Lisa. See you soon!
Hello Nancy and Glenn!
What an exercise in travel planning and what a tremendously exciting and interesting journey it will be.
From reading your update, I’m not clear on the exact date you will be departing the US and/or Mexico and when you are scheduled to return. Could you confirm, please.
Are you going to be measured for your dress Gordon kilt while in Edinburgh?
Looking forward to ‘sharing ‘ your adventure.
Love, Angela
Safe travel and dr8nk a few for me!
Thanks, Michele. See you at the shop in a couple of weeks.
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I think I already signed up but…maybe not? Anyway, should be signed up now
You’re golden.
Add me to mailing list pls!
You’re good to go.