These are collected stories and photos of our nomadic journey. We did this not only to share with you, but also to act as a virtual scrapbook for us and our possibly failing memories someday.
The Great Escape
from the original blog post of May 13, 2013
(did you see all those 13s?)
dateline: November 2012. The stars aligned, the servers crashed, and my hard drives decided to do the limbo dance - upside down with their legs in the air. Cue the melodramatic music, because RAID 5 transformed into Raid The Fabulous Bug Killer, wiping out all my precious data faster than you can say “backup, anyone?”
As if that wasn’t enough excitement for one lifetime, my appliances staged their own rebellion. First, it was the washing machine throwing a tantrum, then the refrigerator decided to chill out permanently, and don’t even get me started on the car and air conditioner. It was like a scene straight out of the “Appliance Spring Revolution” - one broke, two more followed suit. Suddenly, my life became a never-ending cycle of fixing, fixing, and you guessed it, more fixing.
And let’s not forget the cherry on top of this chaotic cake: the political circus unfolding in the background. While I was knee-deep in chores and appliance wars, the powers that be seemed intent on dismantling the very fabric of democracy. The Bill of Rights? More like the Bill of Wrongs, am I right?
In the midst of this madness, it dawned on me: the United States was starting to feel more like a Third World Country, minus the bargain prices. Call me crazy, but paying First World fees for Third World vibes wasn’t exactly my idea of a good time, especially with retirement looming on the horizon.
Enter Deena, my partner in crime and chaos. We embarked on a quest to find our slice of paradise. Latin America? Maybe. Chiang Mai, Thailand? It had its perks. But then, amidst our internet browsing extravaganza, Deena stumbled upon a revelation: a group of nomadic expats living life on the move, with no fixed address and no strings attached.
And just like that, the lightbulb flickered to life above our heads. We didn’t need a destination; we needed a journey. So, armed with a sense of adventure and a world map, we set sail into the great unknown. From one foreign land to the next, with no agenda except to keep moving forward, our globe-trotting escapade had begun. Who needs stability when you have spontaneity?
So, here we are, dear reader, ready to share our tales of triumphs, trials, and everything in between. Join us on this wild ride as we navigate the unpredictable waters of life, one adventure at a time. Who knows where the wind may take us next?
Who Are These Nomads?
Deena studied mechanical engineering in Toronto and Israel. She did a stint working oil fields in the tundra as a geological engineer. Then she spent most of the rest of her life in the construction industry.
Ivan studied biomedical engineering and medicine in upstate New York. He spent the first part of his career in his field, and then careened off into technological marketing and finally into a freelance software engineer.
When they met, Deena was dressed as a WW I aviator and Ivan was dressed as a bee. They don costumes occasionally.
In 2012, Deena and Ivan sold or gave away everything they owned. They “slow travel”, which means they stay in one location for some time to allow the culture of a place to color their souls.
At first, they squeezed everything they needed into 2 suitcases, 2 carry-ons, and 2 computers. With only that, they went around the world for 5 years, usually staying in one country for three months.
In 2017, upon arriving in Florida from Panama, they purchased a used Mercedes Sprinter van conversion. Since then, they’ve been living full-time with everything they own, of course, in their Sprinter.
The “slow travel” style hasn’t changed by living in the van, except maybe it became even slower during the pandemic. Most of the pandemic was spent in various places in Mexico and the United States.
Our New Website Design
Please enjoy this new blog website. The recent posts are listed below. Anything before 2023 has been archived: If you’re looking for older stories, visit the archive.
Why did we do this to our blog? In the beginning, WordPress software served us well. Over time, though, their software became bloated and very slow to load in your browser. It annoyed Ivan.
We’re now using Pelican, a static-site generator, which means the pages are delivered much, much faster to you, even from our own server in the cloud.