It began with a Budget (truck)

March 31, 2018

Hello there! For those of you who aren't family or friends, we are two architects who love design, travelling, hiking, and the outdoors in general. Ever since we met, almost 10 years ago, we have dreamed of a big trip around the world to visit places not easily reached on a normal vacation. After living in Seattle for over 4 very happy years, we decided to take the plunge and travel the world! While it was a hard decision to leave our amazing home, jobs, and friends, it felt like the right time to go on this adventure while we had the opportunity.

*View from our cosy Seattle apartment - we sure are going to miss looking at this everyday!*

We have currently planned travels through southern Africa and Asia returning back to the States for Christmas and to decide what happens next. For all intents and purposes this blog is going to be a bit rough around the edges but hopefully will give some insight into where we are and what we are up to. So far we have been away from our home in Seattle for about three months! The most difficult part by far was how to organize our route according to when best to visit each country. It took us about 6 months before we were ready to commit to buying our actual plane tickets! Once we got past that, the rest happened insanely fast. Before we knew it, we were giving our two weeks notice, saying goodbye to all the incredible people we have come to know in Seattle, packing up our apartment, selling our furniture and trusty Subaru, and loading up our Budget Truck for a 45 hour/3,800 mile trip back to Florida. We did make sure to sneak in one last Washington hike up Hex Mountain during our last week despite the insanity of packing, as a fitting way to say goodbye to the PNW.

Hex Mountain - enjoying the peacefulness of a midweek hike for our last Washington adventure

We didn't exactly luck out with the weather. We hit everything from torrential rain for the first 2 days through Washington and Oregon, to blizzards over mountain passes in Wyoming, 60mph sustained winds in Kansas that made our truck feel like it had a sail, and then more rain in the southeast. We spent 10-12 hours each day driving and it wasn't exactly the fun and romantic version of the Great American roadtrip most people dream of.

Slightly terrifying drive over a Wyoming mountain pass on our way to Florida

However, we did manage to stop for one relaxing afternoon and night in Denver. It was an awesome visit, where we got to spend some time with our friend Avik, checking out some sweet restaurants and bars. We even finally made it to the Clyfford Still Museum, designed by Brad Cloepfil. What an incredible museum, both for the art and the architecture!

Clyford Still Museum, Allied Works Architects

Once back in Florida, we spent a whirlwind 2 weeks catching up with friends and family, celebrating Reid's birthday, tying up lose ends like travel insurance and bank accounts, and beginning the rather daunting task of packing. Let's just say fitting 9 months of clothes and gear appropriate for all seasons and two continents proved slightly challenging. But we did it! And before we knew it, we were at the airport and heading towards New York for our first stop.

We had a great two nights with Ross and Joanna and baby Ethan, timed perfectly to celebrate Easter with them. We had our first test of our gear when we woke up to some spring snow, and had to walk about a mile in the snow to the train station with our backpacks. I was about ready to throw half of it in the dumpster by the time we got there, but we survived and headed to the city to spend our last night in the States with Carmine and Kate. We spent the day checking out some new architecture, going to the Whitney Museum, relaxing with drinks at the Top of the Standard, and having a wonderful reunion dinner at Ootoya with good friends. The next morning we were on our way to JFK for a 15 hour flight across the pond. Hard to believe that almost a month after our last days of work in Seattle, we are finally boarding a plane for Johannesburg!

A quick tour down the Highline to visit the Standard Hotel & Whitney Museum

Visiting with family and friends was the highlight of NYC!