Roaming About

A Life Less Ordinary

Tag: covid-19

Bye, Bye 2020 – Welcome 2021!

December 24, 2020 / / 64 Comments

A lot has been written and discussed about this past year. Jokes were made at the start of it. 2020. It looked interesting; sounded promising. New in so many ways. Now, it’s almost over. And it still went fast, despite the dreadful circumstances.

Santa in the cauldron, Tubac, Arizona

The pandemic messed things up for all of us. Nobody was immune to it. Yet, some people struggled more than others. Financially, mentally, physically, socially. In our circles, the lack of hugs, social interaction with friends and family, gatherings for special events (from celebrations to a funeral), and being able to go out for a meal or a chat seemed to be the extent of the “suffering.”

Christmas tree in the American old west

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Tidbits from the Road – Heading West across the USA

November 21, 2020 / / 54 Comments

The last time Mark and I crossed the United States from East to West was in October 2016. We attended the sailboat show in Annapolis as vendors with our marine WiFi and cell data product and invention, The Wirie, before driving to Northern California in our Prius. We had five days to cross this massive country in order to start our first housesit on the West Coast. We lasted a few years “out west,” house and pet sitting and exploring in our camper van Zesty, before making our way back east in the summer of 2019.

The Southwest is where our hearts lie. The vast, open spaces, low population, incredible natural sites, and sense of freedom trump the mountains and greenery of the East Coast. We think…

Our Route

If you’ve followed this blog for any length of time, you are familiar with our lack of planning. We pretty much take life as it comes, one step at a time; something that is evident in the title of my forthcoming travel memoir: Plunge. Anything can influence our route, our destination, our timing, our moods.

Here’s how we ended up in Arizona, this time around…

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The Summer of Covid – Pandemic Update from Newburyport, MA

August 27, 2020 / / 79 Comments

Lately, Massachusetts has not been one of the “bad” Coronavirus states in this tumultuous country. The guidelines have been pretty strict since the beginning of the pandemic (according to US-norms), the Governor (Charlie Baker) has handled the situation well, and most residents have been compliant.

(Hover over the photos for captions and click to enlarge.)

Boardwalk to the dog park
View over one of Newburyport’s marinas
A little oasis – and multi-use, off-leash area – along one of the rail trails

In my home country, Belgium, the reactions to this virus – real “lockdown”, strict rules, and fines instead of self-imposed quarantine, “guidelines”, and raised eyebrows – have had a drastically better impact. As a result, their Summer of Covid was more “benign” than ours. Restaurants, bars, theaters, pools, hairdressers, zoos, … have been reopened for many weeks. Kids went on summer camps and most schools (especially kindergarten and the lower grades) will start “as usual” on September 1st.

Historic buildings in downtown
Plaza and pedestrian-only area

How is the situation in Newburyport, where Mark, Maya, and I have been “hunkered down” since mid-April of this year (apart from a multiple-week trip to Maine and Vermont in June and one week in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in July)?

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Inside a Nomad’s Monkey Mind – What’s Next?

July 15, 2020 / / 84 Comments

Today, I invite you into my mind. If you accept, you might regret it. So much is going on in there, you might get overwhelmed, or mad, or jealous. This chaotic brain activity even has a name: Monkey Mind. Although, its description appears a bit harsh to define my condition. Thank you for supplying me with the correct term, Peta, when I mentioned this busy-bee thought syndrome in my last writing update. Luckily, those mulled-over and constantly-sprouting concepts aren’t all writing-related. That being said, the idea for this post formed while I was in the shower, head-writing it. 😊

Pensive position

Some background information to help understand our conundrums in regards to… our future:

  • Mark and I met the end of 2004 and have been nomads ever since (me 1.5 years prior to that).
  • With two big dogs, we attempted a sailing adventure, which failed after nine months of prep.
  • The four of us traveled throughout Mexico and Central America in an RV for one year instead.
  • This was followed by three months in-limbo at a friend’s place in Texas, contemplating a move to Belize, a country that pleased and attracted us.
  • But, Mark’s dream to go sailing persisted: we lived in a tent and Toyota Tacoma with our two dogs for two months, in search of the perfect catamaran. We found Irie in Annapolis, Maryland.
  • An eight-year sailing journey brought us from the US to the Caribbean to the South Pacific.
  • After selling Irie in Tahiti, we didn’t want to settle but needed a break from our travels. The solution: house and pet sitting; frequent changes of scenery and the conveniences of a house.
  • Until we got itchy feet again and bought our current campervan, Zesty. Overland adventures continued, in combination with welcome breaks, house sitting.
  • We adopted Maya in June 2019 and house sitting was not an option anymore. We preferred our life on the road by then, so it all made sense to travel full-time again.
  • Then, Covid happened and we got stuck in a room above the garage in a city for many months.
Our first sailboat, a monohull, before departure from the San Francisco Bay area, California
Our truck camper (2005 – 2006) parked on a beach in Costa Rica
Ready to leave Texas in our Toyota Tacoma, spring 2007
Before leaving on our sailing adventure, Annapolis, Maryland
Irie under sail in the Society Islands, French Polynesia
Darwin on the bow of Irie in Martinique
Zesty boondocked at a lake in Southern California
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Views of COVID-19 – Life As A Nomad Guest Contribution on “Travel Tales of Life”

May 1, 2020 / / 0 Comments

For the last five weeks, Sue and Dave of the popular travel website and blog Travel Tales of Life invited worldwide travelers and citizens to contribute their views and experiences in regards to the Coronavirus. Their fascinating series provides insights into life during this pandemic, all across the globe.

This week, we are featured in their “Life as a Nomad” chapter, together with two other wanderers you might know: my real-life friends and long-term bloggers Lisa from One Ocean At A Time and Ingrid from Live, Laugh, RV. Check out our and other people’s contributions here.

Views of COVID-19 – Life As A Nomad

The COVID-19 Effect on Two Nomads in a Camper Van

Every country, every Canadian province, and every US state had somewhat of a different approach when the Coronavirus spread within its borders. Having friends and family all over the world and reading the latest testaments of global citizens and travelers on Sue and Dave’s blog, we realize how measures and rules vary from social distancing to self-isolation to total lockdown. I feel for my friends in Puerto Rico, Grenada, and South Africa, for example, who can’t even walk outside of their (rented) accommodation. Internationally stranded nomads (people without a home of their own) take the grunt of the current travel restrictions. Not only have their plans and lifestyle changed, but they are digging deep into their pockets to either fly, sail, or drive back to their home country or book a hotel room or Airbnb abroad.

Our own situation is tricky as well, despite our familiarity with uncertainty and challenges. My husband, Mark, our 60-pound rescue dog, Maya, and myself have been living, working, and traveling in our 19ft camper van Zesty for roughly three years.

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Human Encounters in Florida – Meeting Friends before COVID-19

April 16, 2020 / / 70 Comments

Karmen and Tom in Marineland

I’ve mentioned it before, 2020 couldn’t have been off to a better start for us – at which point, it did cross my mind that it could only go downhill from there. But the first week of January comprised good times with our old boating friends Tom and Karmen, who finished renovating a new-to-them catamaran. We met many years ago sailing in the Bahamas and stayed in touch, crossing paths throughout the country. They swung by twice in their converted camper van while we house sat (in Santa Fe, NM and San Diego, CA) and we visited them in Monmouth, Oregon to learn first-hand – and with all our senses – how they created the successful and innovative pizza restaurant, Yeasty Beasty. Don’t you love that name?

Beach walk in the town of Marineland
Mark hauls Tom up the mast of his catamaran – reminiscing old times.
Our friend Karmen is creative, and not only with her camera.
Game night on SV Sauvage
Giving Karmen and Tom a ride into St. Augustine – Maya happily shares her space
Happy hour with the pizza girls!
Sailing friends reunited!

We also met up with communal sailing friends Dan and Jaye.

Going out for drinks and tacos with sailing friends Dan and Jaye

Marian and Cliff in Jacksonville

Also in January, I finally met blogging and memoirist friend Marian Beaman. She and her husband Cliff graciously invited us into their home for a yummy chili lunch and hours of conversation. Marian, a Mennonite until age 24, blogs at Plain and Fancy and recently published her heartfelt, well-written memoir Mennonite Daughter – The Story of a Plain Girl, which offers a glimpse into 20th century Mennonite life and documents her experiences and life-altering decisions as Marian Longenecker.

Cliff and Marian in front of their comfortable home
Marian and I honoring the hibiscus flowers in her yard
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