It’s been a busy year so far. After celebrating New Year’s on Palolem Beach in Goa, India, I hung out on that beautiful beach for a few more weeks before leaving for South Africa, where I spent ten days traveling around with my mom.
From there, I headed west, and after a quick visit to the USA, I continued to Mexico in order to lead my two-week Wander Across Mexico Tour, a tour that was an absolute blast and that I could not have been happier with. In fact, I thought the tour went so well that I’m working on putting together another Wander Across Mexico Tour, which I’ll run in November of this year. So, if you might be interested in exploring Mexico, let me know and I’ll place you on the early list so that you won’t miss out once I do make the official announcement in a couple of weeks.
In the meantime, I do have a few travel plans in place for the near future as well, plans that I’ve just finalized in the past few days.
First, in exactly one week from today I will be flying….somewhere….somewhere that I can’t tell you about just yet. I’ve decided to keep this destination a secret until moments before I leave. All I’ll say is that it’s a destination I’ve been very curious about for a long time and I really do think you’ll find it to be quite interesting as well. I really can’t even believe that the timing and logistics all worked out and that this trip is actually happening!
But enough of that until I announce the destination next week. Must keep secret.
Just before the end of April, once my above trip is over, I’ll be off to wonderful Istanbul in order to lead, along with Anil from FoxNomad.com, the “I Love Istanbul” tour during the first week of May, another tour that I can’t wait to get started. The tour will last for six days as we explore every corner of what more and more people, including myself, are labeling as one of their favorite cities on the planet. Let’s see if the tour participants agree!
Once the Istanbul tour is finished, I’ll then pop up to Bucharest, Romania for a couple of weeks (I sure do miss that city!) before heading back to the USA for a wedding at the start of June.
And those are my travel plans for the near future.
In other news…
I recently decided to make the switch to a Mac, with my new MacBook Pro with Retina having just arrived yesterday. I’ll let you know how the transition from my beloved Acer Aspire Timeline X goes once I have some time to fiddle around with the MacBook. (I still feel that Acer offers some of the best travel computers out there.)
This week, for the first time in my life, I tried Key Lime Pie. I must say, that’s one lovely kind of pie. It might rank up there with papanasi, a Romanian dessert, as one of my favorites.
Speaking of Romania, my Wander Across Romania & Moldova Tour has now been moved to the end of August. If you’re interested in participating in this trip, just let me know and I’ll send you more details!
What’s your plans for the near future?
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Sounds exciting, hope you have a great time wherever you are. We’re in Australia for only another 12 days, then we fly to Jakarta, and stay in Indonesia for 2 months…
Your plans sounds really exciting and I’m looking forward to hearing all about them. I’ll be leaving for a year (at least) to teach English in Spain, and then see what the world has in store for me. I’m looking at buying a MacBook before I leave too as my current 7 year old Dell is near dead.
Well, I’ve got London in May, Versailles in May or June, Portugal in June/July, Los Angeles and San Diego in August/September and Barcelona in October:)
I might be interested in your next Mexico tour. I start a 3-month vacation in November, so it will depend greatly on the dates you choose. Could you add me to your list of interested people? Thanks!!!
Hey Pamela – I have added you to the list and have sent you an email as well with more details about the tour. If you don’t receive it for some reason, let me know and I’ll try to send it again!
Have fun Earl! Next month I’m leaving for Brussels and Amsterdam. After that I fly to Ljubljana and I’m taking 3 weeks to make my way over to Budapest before I head back to the States. Any tips between LJU and Budapest?
Hey Neil – Oooooh, Ljubljana! I love that city! Unfortunately I don’t have any recommendations between there and Budapest though, for the simple reason that I got stuck in Ljubljana because I enjoyed it so much that I didn’t end having time to explore the region more.
I just returned yesterday from my 4 month backpacking trip across 26 countries. So far, Thailand is my favorite country and Locarno, Switzerland is my favorite city. I’m about 2 months behind on writing about my experiences so I will catch up these next couple weeks as I figure out what comes next. I made the mac-switch about 4 years when I started my design studio and haven’t looked back since. I use the 11″ macbook air with the same external hard drive you suggested a while back from western digital for my travel computer and couldn’t be happier. As part of my trip, I did the Camino de Santiago. You’d love it. Tiny little villages with no more than 50 people living in some of them. The northern countryside of Spain is wonderful, the food is great, the livin’ is easy, and the scenery is great. I’m thinking South America is next… Maybe central America on the way down to stretch things out a bit and enjoy my time. Be well. And namaste.
Hey AJ – Great stuff and I’ve always wanted to do the Camino…I’ll get to it at some point I know for sure. Central/South America is a good call for your next adventures…and don’t forget about Mexico, one of my favorites 🙂
Looks like you are gonna be a busy bee with your travels soon. Our plan is to backpack South America from the south to the north in 6-7 months and live in Peru for a while:).
How you torture us with your secrecy, Earl! This all sounds very exciting. I’m especially keen to hear how you find the switch over to Mac. Could be a controversial topic…? We’ll see, I guess.
Hey Sam – I have no doubt it is controversial as I’m already hearing plenty of opinions…but so far, I’m loving the Mac I must say.
Natalie McMillan
April 12, 2013 at 10:01 pm - Reply
Hey Earl! Hmm, maybe you’re going to Iceland? If so, it rocks. Like seriously, lots of rocks. And lava. And ice. Definitely the most amazing country I’ve ever been to.
I’m really looking forward to hearing about where you’re going to end up!
That is one of the reasons why I would love to have a job that has something to do with travel. Leisure and work at the same time. You are one lucky traveler! 😉
Three weeks from today my husband and I are heading to France, Belgium, The Netherlands and England for the month of May. Cant wait to start exploring the world ourselves (instead of always living vicariously through your travel adventures)!
Hey Kim – Much better to get out there and travel yourselves…I agree with that! Nice lineup of countries you’ll be visiting…you’ll have no shortage of amazing destinations to visit on that trip.
After completing my first trip to Istanbul with you, I will visit NYC for a bike tour in September. I would like to return to another visit to India in the fall, and Germany in late December with a side trip to Morocco. Next spring I hope to vacation down in the ABC islands in the Carib. I will celebrate a class reunion in Sept 2014 in Cali, and would love to jump off to Australia afterwards.
Hey Julie – You are certainly going to be busy 🙂 I’ve yet to make it over to Morocco so I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts, but of course, first we have Istanbul to enjoy!
My plans are to finish up my USA tour in May. Apply for my TWIC card and get a job on a cruise line before my funds officially run out. In the mean time I’ll keep writing with my travel partner.
you’ve piqued my curiosity! can’t wait to hear where you’re going next.
my plans…just got to quito after 2+ months in colombia. heading south to peru, bolivia, then to the states for a week, antigua and barbados for a week, then off to europe for the summer!
Hey Steve – Not a bad plan you have…I’ll be curious to see how it goes as I have yet to travel to Peru or Bolivia myself. Perhaps I shall see you in Europe over the summer!
Hey Dyanne – That’s a great question…the answer is that these days, I’m not just traveling and using my laptop for basic things. I need a laptop that is more powerful and capable for the projects I’m currently working on. If I just used my laptop for blogging, email and internet, and basic photo editing, then I would definitely choose an Acer again. But with the way things have grown, it was time for a more professional machine.
Sounds like a bunch of great traveling ahead of you! We leave for our RTW in 78 days and still debating on the computer, dont think we can spend the $1100 on the MacAir and when you compare it too some Acer & Asus models that are around $500 and they have more memory & options….any suggestions on what we should do? Also since we are a couple and our blog is growing quite fast (which is awesome) do you suggest one computer or two? Thanks again and hopefully we can meet on the road!
Hey Hannah – It’s a tough call but I think it depends on what you are using the computer for. If it’s just for blogging and email, then you don’t really need to spend a lot of money. I do love Acer’s line of 11.6 inch and 13.3 inch laptops…they are great value in my opinion. I just need something more powerful these days for the projects I’m working on which is why I switched but they were perfect for me over the past 5 years.
Sounds like very good plans Earl! Well, since you asked, my plans for the near future is continue being in Egypt and saving up some more money before traveling again in the not very near future 😀 Sounds like a good plan! 😛
Going to Eastern Europe at the end of June for 4-5 days. Other than that, unless it’s extremely cheap, not going anywhere until at least some of this debt is paid off. 😐
Sounds exciting, hope you have a great time wherever you are. We’re in Australia for only another 12 days, then we fly to Jakarta, and stay in Indonesia for 2 months…
Sounds super fun Earl! looks like your going to have a wonderful year ahead of you! Wish I could make it out to one of your tours at some point!
How’s the mac going Earl? I would love a retina display but budget is very low right now!
It’s looking increasingly like we are going to move to Budapest and use that as our base. Hopefully we’ll explore Europe from there.
Hey Forest – I absolutely love my mac. It’s changed my work completely, made it more efficient and more enjoyable. Definitely a good move for me.
Let me know once you’re in Budapest!
Your plans sounds really exciting and I’m looking forward to hearing all about them. I’ll be leaving for a year (at least) to teach English in Spain, and then see what the world has in store for me. I’m looking at buying a MacBook before I leave too as my current 7 year old Dell is near dead.
Well, I’ve got London in May, Versailles in May or June, Portugal in June/July, Los Angeles and San Diego in August/September and Barcelona in October:)
Can’t wait to see where you go!!! Key lime pie is the best!
I might be interested in your next Mexico tour. I start a 3-month vacation in November, so it will depend greatly on the dates you choose. Could you add me to your list of interested people? Thanks!!!
Hey Pamela – I have added you to the list and have sent you an email as well with more details about the tour. If you don’t receive it for some reason, let me know and I’ll try to send it again!
Have fun Earl! Next month I’m leaving for Brussels and Amsterdam. After that I fly to Ljubljana and I’m taking 3 weeks to make my way over to Budapest before I head back to the States. Any tips between LJU and Budapest?
Hey Neil – Oooooh, Ljubljana! I love that city! Unfortunately I don’t have any recommendations between there and Budapest though, for the simple reason that I got stuck in Ljubljana because I enjoyed it so much that I didn’t end having time to explore the region more.
I just returned yesterday from my 4 month backpacking trip across 26 countries. So far, Thailand is my favorite country and Locarno, Switzerland is my favorite city. I’m about 2 months behind on writing about my experiences so I will catch up these next couple weeks as I figure out what comes next. I made the mac-switch about 4 years when I started my design studio and haven’t looked back since. I use the 11″ macbook air with the same external hard drive you suggested a while back from western digital for my travel computer and couldn’t be happier. As part of my trip, I did the Camino de Santiago. You’d love it. Tiny little villages with no more than 50 people living in some of them. The northern countryside of Spain is wonderful, the food is great, the livin’ is easy, and the scenery is great. I’m thinking South America is next… Maybe central America on the way down to stretch things out a bit and enjoy my time. Be well. And namaste.
Hey AJ – Great stuff and I’ve always wanted to do the Camino…I’ll get to it at some point I know for sure. Central/South America is a good call for your next adventures…and don’t forget about Mexico, one of my favorites 🙂
Looks like you are gonna be a busy bee with your travels soon. Our plan is to backpack South America from the south to the north in 6-7 months and live in Peru for a while:).
Hey Agness – That’s another great plan and 6-7 months will sure allow you to move at a nice, comfortable pace instead of having to rush through.
Key lime pie and palolem beach. My two favourite things:)
Hey Sharan – In that case, you certainly have your priorities straight!
How you torture us with your secrecy, Earl! This all sounds very exciting. I’m especially keen to hear how you find the switch over to Mac. Could be a controversial topic…? We’ll see, I guess.
Hey Sam – I have no doubt it is controversial as I’m already hearing plenty of opinions…but so far, I’m loving the Mac I must say.
Hey Earl! Hmm, maybe you’re going to Iceland? If so, it rocks. Like seriously, lots of rocks. And lava. And ice. Definitely the most amazing country I’ve ever been to.
I’m really looking forward to hearing about where you’re going to end up!
Hey Natalie – While I agree with Iceland being an amazing country, which I’ve visited a couple of times before, it won’t be Iceland this time around 🙂
That is one of the reasons why I would love to have a job that has something to do with travel. Leisure and work at the same time. You are one lucky traveler! 😉
Just a wild guess – is North Korea the secret destination? 😉
Hey Mateusz – Nope…it’s not North Korea.
You have me at the edge of my seat with anticipation!
Hey Maria – Ha…well, the secret will be revealed soon enough.
What an awesome few months! It’s so great that your tours are going well.
I literally just booked flights to the U.S. in June too!
Hey Jade – Well, if your flight passes through NYC, do let me know!
Three weeks from today my husband and I are heading to France, Belgium, The Netherlands and England for the month of May. Cant wait to start exploring the world ourselves (instead of always living vicariously through your travel adventures)!
Hey Kim – Much better to get out there and travel yourselves…I agree with that! Nice lineup of countries you’ll be visiting…you’ll have no shortage of amazing destinations to visit on that trip.
That is one sweet itinerary! Hope you can make it out to SoCal in June; it would be awesome to hang out for a bit. Happy travels my friend.
Hey Andy – Absolutely and it’s still in the works for as soon as I can make it happen! I’ll get there and I am looking forward to it.
After completing my first trip to Istanbul with you, I will visit NYC for a bike tour in September. I would like to return to another visit to India in the fall, and Germany in late December with a side trip to Morocco. Next spring I hope to vacation down in the ABC islands in the Carib. I will celebrate a class reunion in Sept 2014 in Cali, and would love to jump off to Australia afterwards.
Hey Julie – You are certainly going to be busy 🙂 I’ve yet to make it over to Morocco so I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts, but of course, first we have Istanbul to enjoy!
My plans are to finish up my USA tour in May. Apply for my TWIC card and get a job on a cruise line before my funds officially run out. In the mean time I’ll keep writing with my travel partner.
Hey David – Solid plan there…looking forward to hearing about your adventures on cruise ships, definitely a good option.
Enjoy the MBPr Earl!!
My plans are to head to Nepal in September for some trekking and then off to northern India.
Hey Ben – Hope to catch up with you at some point over in that part of the world!
Nooo! Not a Mac, they got you too 🙁 Sounds like you have a busy year. I feel tired just thinking about it.
Hey Tyrhone – They got me indeed and so far so good 🙂
Can’t wait to see where you’re off to and you will LOVE the MacBook Pro!! I just got on myself! Safe Journeys!
Hey Darrell – I’m loving the Macbook so far as well…such a difference.
you’ve piqued my curiosity! can’t wait to hear where you’re going next.
my plans…just got to quito after 2+ months in colombia. heading south to peru, bolivia, then to the states for a week, antigua and barbados for a week, then off to europe for the summer!
Hey Steve – Not a bad plan you have…I’ll be curious to see how it goes as I have yet to travel to Peru or Bolivia myself. Perhaps I shall see you in Europe over the summer!
Are you going to… Groenland ? I’m very curious of your next stop ! Cant wait !!
For me, I’m heading to the north : Tallinn is waiting for me 🙂
Hey Jeremy – Nope, that’s not it 🙂 Enjoy Tallinn…I love that place myself!
you’re Awesome! Keep it up 🙂
Quick question – if “…Acer offers some of the best travel computers out there.”, then…
Why on earth did you switch to a MacBook Pro?
Hey Dyanne – That’s a great question…the answer is that these days, I’m not just traveling and using my laptop for basic things. I need a laptop that is more powerful and capable for the projects I’m currently working on. If I just used my laptop for blogging, email and internet, and basic photo editing, then I would definitely choose an Acer again. But with the way things have grown, it was time for a more professional machine.
you need to try frozen key lime pie, enrobed in chocolate on a stick…Yum!
Hey Scott – I have a feeling I would like that very much.
Sounds like a bunch of great traveling ahead of you! We leave for our RTW in 78 days and still debating on the computer, dont think we can spend the $1100 on the MacAir and when you compare it too some Acer & Asus models that are around $500 and they have more memory & options….any suggestions on what we should do? Also since we are a couple and our blog is growing quite fast (which is awesome) do you suggest one computer or two? Thanks again and hopefully we can meet on the road!
Hey Hannah – It’s a tough call but I think it depends on what you are using the computer for. If it’s just for blogging and email, then you don’t really need to spend a lot of money. I do love Acer’s line of 11.6 inch and 13.3 inch laptops…they are great value in my opinion. I just need something more powerful these days for the projects I’m working on which is why I switched but they were perfect for me over the past 5 years.
Sounds like very good plans Earl! Well, since you asked, my plans for the near future is continue being in Egypt and saving up some more money before traveling again in the not very near future 😀 Sounds like a good plan! 😛
Hey Mina – That’s a plan and at least you are working towards your goal…you can’t ask for more than that!
Once you go Mac… 🙂
Going to Eastern Europe at the end of June for 4-5 days. Other than that, unless it’s extremely cheap, not going anywhere until at least some of this debt is paid off. 😐
@Spinster – We shall see 🙂 Eastern Europe in June should be quite ideal…and get to work on that debt so that you can explore some more!
Have a fantastic time!