Two days before the year 2016 begins I sit here on the Thai island of Koh Samui in the lovely home we’re caring for, looking out at a coconut grove. The dogs are sprawled on the cool tile floor, the glass sliding walls are open to allow the breeze in, while the music of birds, the flight of butterflies and the scurrying of geckos pleasantly distract me. I am preparing to write a recap of 2015 and it feels like a perfect setting to do it in.
We’re three months in to our third year of nomadic life and as we decided during our pool time yesterday it’s a life that has exceeded our expectations and we have absolutely no desire to stop anytime soon. Maybe not the best news for our families back home in the Pacific Northwest but thank God they love us enough to support us anyway.
This past year has been a great one for us in so many ways. We have explored ten countries on three continents, met hundreds of amazing people, learned to say hello, thank you and please in six languages, attended four travel business conferences, spent time with family in five countries, traveled on countless planes, trains, boats and buses, exercised in every environment imaginable, worked over 3,000 hours on growing our business and only got sick three times between the two of us.
We have grown, evolved and improved (at least we like to think so), as individuals, as a couple, as travelers and as entrepreneurs. We have also tried our best to contribute in a positive way to the people and places that we’ve been blessed to experience. This is what we think of us meaningful travel and it’s what helps us maintain a healthy and happy life balance.
Of course this lifestyle is not all coconut groves and butterflies. We have our share of challenges just like anyone else. Ours just happen to be a bit different than most of our friends…unstable income, no home and few belongings, constantly missing our family and friends, maintaining a good relationship while together 24/7, staying fit and healthy on the road…and these are just examples of the regular day to day pains. I won’t even get started on the more bizarre and unexpected issues, that’s a post all it’s own. However overall we have never been happier and see the challenges as a very fair trade off, if you follow our blog then this is probably obvious.
In case you didn’t happen to catch every one of our posts in 2015…or maybe you liked them so much you want to read them again!?…here are a few of our favorites from Live Dream Discover as well as guest posts on Fit Living Lifestyle and other sites. We’ve broken them down into categories for easier reading.
Live Well
This is where you will find stories about life and the things we do to live a healthy and happy one.
House Sitting in Southern France: A Little Slice of Heaven
Find Balance on Rattlesnake Ledge
A Guide to Staying Fit in Split While on Holiday
Steel Donkey Bike Tours in Barcelona
Why We Chose Split Over Dubrovnik for Our Time in Croatia
Hiking in Thailand ~ Jungle Trek in Koh Phangan
How We Satisfied our Wanderlust in Whistler
Dream Big
Here we share dreams from the past and the present, both our own and those of others
Seattle Pride, Family, Travel and Dreams
The Colosseum Underground Tour Let’s You Follow in the Footsteps of Gladiators
How to Get a Sak Yant Bamboo Tattoo in Thailand
Were You Born to Be a Gondolier?
Discover The World
Stories from our travels as we explore this amazing planet
Dubrovnik, Croatia: So Much More to Love Than Game of Thrones
Tossa de Mar ~ A Medieval Town of Beaches, Coastal Hikes and Bull Lovers
Experience Southern France in the Winter
Paris in 48 Hours: A Quickie in the City of Love
The Thai Island of Koh Phangan is Not Just for Full Moon Debauchery
Buffalo Tour of Chiang Mai: A Taste of Local Life in Thailand
So what’s in store for the Live Dream Discover duo in 2016? Well hopefully more of the same. We have big dreams for our businesses, so work will definitely be a huge focus. Of course we never really stop growing and evolving so we hope to be even better by the end of next year! Plus it goes without saying that travel will factor into everything we do.
For good or bad (we say good) we now have a life where work and personal growth are intertwined with traveling and experiencing new things so really our biggest challenge, as always, will be maintaining a healthy balance. Definitely not a cake walk but we are getting better at it.
The year 2016 is still largely unplanned but what we can tell you is that we will be in Asia until at least April. The big question is How to Decide Where to go in Southeast Asia as we can’t possibly see everything. We asked our fellow travelers and you, our readers, to help us decide and so far we have confirmed that the Philippines and Cambodia will be on the list. The rest is still open for debate: Vietnam? Indonesia? Myanmar? Laos? It will be a tough decision.
We have also signed up for a one week retreat at Chivasuka, a small wellness retreat in the Lanna hills of northern Thailand. In their own words they offer a “holiday to a healthy and balanced life.” I mean really? Could it be a more perfect fit for Live Dream Discover?
We will eat a raw food diet and spend our days hiking, meditating, doing yoga and getting massaged. I am beyond excited as I’ve always wanted to do a retreat like this. Nathan is a bit afraid of going without meat and caffeine for seven days but the owners have assured him he’ll not only survive but come away feeling happy, healthy, vital, beautiful, strong and energetic! Whoo hoo!!
Beyond that it’s wide open. Of course we will be sharing the plans with you as they form and we really, really appreciate you all being there to share them with! We are so blessed with the support we receive from everyone and are thrilled to see our blog grow into a great community and business platform…it makes the long hours of work so very worth it.
So as 2015 comes to a close we look back and remember all the amazing people we’ve met, the incredible things we’ve seen and done and say thank you to everyone that contributed to such a fantastic year. Looking forward to 2016 we wish you all love, health, happiness and peace and hope you will join us in
Living Well, Dreaming Big and Discovering the World!
Born in England, Sarah developed her wanderlust at a young age as she traveled around Europe with her parents. As a young adult she spent every penny she could on experiences as opposed to possessions. Eventually she found a way to earn a living doing what she loved: traveling, writing and capturing images of the wondrous world we live in. When not on the go Sarah enjoys time in her “sometimes home” of Vancouver.