Roaming About

A Life Less Ordinary

Month: November 2018

Meeting Friends New and Old…

November 30, 2018 / / 49 Comments

From the heat to the cold…

One of the reasons Mark and I moved into our camper van Zesty in July, was to experience the freedom we so desire. Being free to go and stay where we wanted, for as long as we pleased. And, being free to adjust our route to incorporate visiting people dear to us, whether we hadn’t seen them in years, in months, or ever!

And so, one of the highlights of our travels this past summer and fall has been meeting up with friends old and new. What a blast it was! While Mark and I enjoy our “us-time”, socializing with people we connect with, have things in common with, or share interesting conversations with cannot be matched.

John and Andre in Rollinsville, Colorado

We house sat for this amazing couple and their dog Oscar, in the fall of 2017. As we headed north from Santa Fe, where our latest RV adventure in Zesty started, we made it a point to stop by and say hello. They welcomed us with open arms, John took us white water kayaking, we hiked together, and we shared a couple of nice dinners.

Then (2017):

Hike with John, Andre and Oscar, before the house sit

Now:

Dinner out with our Colorado friends
Oscar had stitches from a wound this time around
The first time for Mark and I to go whitewater kayaking.

Rachel in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Mark and I met Rachel in the South Pacific. She and a friend were sailing the area on SV Namaste, just like we did on our 35’ catamaran Irie. We spent many enjoyable nights together on either boat in French Polynesia, shared adventurous hikes and celebrated two Christmases and New Years together. We visited her in Port Coquitlam, near Vancouver, where she and her sister Nina’s family invited us to stay in the house for as long as we wanted. Rachel also took us to Whistler. We ended up staying four days, since we all got along so well.

Then (2014 – 2015):

Fabulous fresh lobster dinner,, received as a trade with a local couple
Sun downers at the beach in the Marquesas
Christmas on Irie in 2013
Christmas on Irie in 2014
New Year’s Eve 2014 in Huahini, French Polynesia: Liesbet, Monique and Rachel

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Our Oregon Trail

November 23, 2018 / / 46 Comments

When Mark and I crossed the border into Oregon mid-October, we were welcomed with blue skies and friendly smiles. A tad different from the Olympic Peninsula. An Indian summer had arrived and the outdoors was calling. Before heading into nature again, Mark and I stopped in Portland. We met up with a dear friend we had last seen in Luperon, Dominican Republic, ten years ago. It was another reunion that will make it into a separate blog. As a matter of fact, we reconnected with three sets of friends in this state. I ought to dedicate my next post to all the beautiful friendships we experienced while on the road these last four months.

Portland

The biggest, most vibrant city in Oregon is not its capital. That honor belongs to Salem, which we would visit with friends later on. In Portland, we succumbed to urban camping. We had read about a 24-hour parking lot in the funky Alberta neighborhood, NE of the city center, where one could “settle” for $1.50 a day. This small piece of land, the size of a parking spot, became our home for a couple of days.

Our home base for a couple of days

We explored the popular bar and restaurant scene of Alberta on foot.

Fall in Portland
Funky stores
Food trucks are popular
There are many of them, throughout the neighborhood
Art is a part of this area as well.
We loved the colors and the vibe of this neighborhood

We rode our bikes across the Willamette River into the city center to soak up the vibe along the waterfront park (with its many homeless people), downtown and in Washington park.

This bridge is my favorite and the one we took with our bikes. There is a separate lane for bikers and pedestrians.
Downtown Portland
Old and new coexist
Pioneer Courthouse Square
Mark and I spotted and used an all gender restroom for the first time. It was a bit more complicated, but oh-so making sense to have all the facilities in one room.
One of the statues dispersed throughout downtown
Quite a few bridges cross the Willamette River into downtown Portland.
Time for another lunch with a view
Taking the bikes into Washington Park and its famous rose garden
Happy Halloween!
Of course, we had to check out world-renowned Powell’s book store.
Floors and floors of books (an entire city block) are overwhelming, to say the least.

And then, we had three days left, before we would meet good friends in Monmouth, near Salem. The city life (and its noise) wasn’t very accommodating to our wallets and ears, so east we headed in our camper van, towards the town of Hood River.

The Columbia River Delta

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The Olympic Peninsula, Washington

November 15, 2018 / / 39 Comments

When Mark and I were “done” with Vancouver Island in Canada, the beginning of October, we faced a dilemma: taking the ferry through the San Juan Islands and visit Seattle, or hop on the older alternative and discover the Olympic Peninsula. Since you read the title of this blog post, you know what we decided.

The Olympic Peninsula is a relatively large, remote and “forgotten” appendix in the Northwest of the state Washington. It’s well-known for its rain, rainforest, lush surroundings, and more rain. So, we knew what to expect, when we took Zesty for a spin through this fertile and moss-covered region. The highlight of the area is Olympic National Park, for which our annual national park pass came in handy again. There is a big circular route around this huge wilderness playground, but since we were heading south, we had to choose between the east or the west side. The western road offered more access roads into the park, but the eastern route offered a detour to Port Townsend, a town we’d heard nice things about. We doubted ever coming back this way, so found a solution.

Sail loft
Marina – this town is very boat-oriented
Waterfront
“Skyline” of Port Townsend
Lots of historic buildings in town
Stroll through town…
Buildings from a bygone era
Old tobacco advertisement on the wall
… and along the waterfront. Whidbey Island lies across the channel.
Historic downtown

Port Townsend

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IWSG Writing Update November 2018 – No Progress

November 7, 2018 / / 52 Comments

Every first Wednesday of the month, the IWSG (Insecure Writer’s Support Group) engages writers to share their fears, thoughts, progress, struggles, excitement, encouragement, or anything really, about their writing. A different question is posed each month, as a writing prompt for IWSG members. Answering it is optional. For November, the question is: “How has your creativity in life evolved since you began writing?”

This amazing, supportive group of writers was founded by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Today, the co-hosts are  Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor JQ Rose Ann V. Friend and Elizabeth Seckman. Feel free to swing by their sites and see what they’re up to.

My answer to the question (How has your creativity in life evolved since you began writing?)

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Monthly Expenses – October 2018

November 4, 2018 / / 12 Comments

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂 Since July 2018, Mark and I have lived and traveled full-time in our camper van Zesty, which has affected our expenditure, compared to our previous house and pet sitting lifestyle.

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for the two of us. Under groceries we incorporate all the food, produce and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and Mark's vitamins and supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor's visits. Health insurance and costs are related to my health care as a permanent resident in the US. Mark is still eligible for free health care in the state of Massachusetts as of today. If a non-emergency were to happen outside of that state, it will be expensive! For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast. I still pay a small quarterly fee in Belgium for health care (required to retain citizenship), which I mention in my year report.

Approaching the Olympic Peninsula, Washington by ferry from Vancouver Island, Canada.
Mark prefers to remain indoors during the 1.5-hour ferry ride.

October was more expensive than other months, mainly because we bought flexible solar panels for Zesty, drove a LOT, and took a ferry from Vancouver Island back to the US. Before we left Oregon, we stocked up on wine from Trader Joe's, as this state does not charge sales tax. It's also the reason we had the solar panels shipped to a friend's house here. Savings in the long run. 🙂

Mark installs the wiring for our new solar panels.
We found a nifty way to store these efficient, slim panels. We have yet to use them!

A new category has been added to our expense report: phone charges. In the past, our business took care of that amount. Mark and I still buy the same 5GB T-Mobile data plan (with free streaming) for $30 a month. Because he's always on the lookout for better deals, we usually manage to find discounts and pay around $25 for this "skimpy" plan. We manage to deal with all our internet-related tasks by adding visits to libraries, information centers or McDonald parking lots with free WiFi for extensive research and blog commitments (posting, reading and commenting). Our cell data limit is enough for daily life on the road and communications. If we pick up a signal...

One of our less attractive library visits in Northern California.

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