Empty Nesters on a Green Global Trek

Well, amazingly, it has been a full YEAR since we last posted here on our Greenglobaltrek blog!

If you are reading us, welcome back and thanks for your patience while we were “missing in action”.

Many of you have followed us onto instagram (IG @greenglobaltrek) where we do regular postings and updates with photos and videos. Instagram is a good place to go if you are interested in seeing where we are and what’s happening with us, real time. (There is a link on the left hand side of this post).

Our last blog post was from Kenya in March 2022, during our participation with Airbnb for a year of living anywhere in the world staying exclusively at Airbnb. And what a whirlwind of a year it was! Nine countries, 25 flights, 9 road trips and 26 airbnbs. (Thankfully only 1 visit to a hospital in Arusha, Tanzania which was for Ben to get an MRI of his back).

2022 was a once in a lifetime opportunity and we used it primarily to get ourselves to Africa which had been a goal of ours for quite some time. We spent a month each of the 5 African countries we visited. (One of our regrets was not being able to spend time in Ethiopia as at that point in time, the country was experiencing major conflict.)

This gives you a little bit of insight as to why we slipped up and fell behind on our blog updates which we started doing in 2009. (Those of you who write blogs know just how time consuming writing a blog can be!)

We have been fully nomadic (with no home base) for 18 months now, since we left home base in Mexico in September 2021. After the Live Anywhere on Airbnb program completed, we were perhaps so used to living in a country for a month at a time, that the trend has continued..

Here is the condensed version of that incredible period in our lives.

To recap, after leaving the coast of Oaxaca (Zipolite beach town), we headed to Oaxaca, Mexico followed by Mexico City. Then Chicago for a month, before launching into the real adventure.

First stop in Africa!

Our first country, Tunisia, Northern Africa was a great way to kick things off with a new country which we knew little about and was rich with culture and learning about Islam. The picturesque white and blue hilltop town of Sidi Bou Said on the Mediterranean was our base for further in country explorations. A road trip took us to the ancient holy city of Kerouan, which is one of the most venerated holy cities in Islam. Exploring the tiny alleyways of the Medina and talking to very friendly locals was eye opening. Tunisia was and remains in the throws of political realignment having launched ten years ago, the Arab Spring, a move toward democracy. Lots of conversations with passionate locals about the transition their country was going through.

From Tunisia, we took a short flight to Sicily, Italy where we stayed in the walled city of Ortigia after a short stop in the mountain town of Taormina. This was our first time in Southern Italy and even though winter was starting to creep in, we thoroughly enjoyed living within minutes of the local market which was brimming with wonderful produce, exploring the region (olive fields, hill towns, rivers) all at the slopes of Mt Etna. The food in this region is much lighter than in North, and was quite spectacular and by the time we left we had gorged aplenty on fresh mussels and pasta.

Boomerang back to Mexico, then back to Sub Saharan Africa!

From Sicily, we headed back to Zipolite, Mexico for a month for a family reunion. A logistical head scrather, heading from Europe back to Mexico knowing we were then heading right back out to Africa but this was the first time we had ever managed to arrange a reunion with 3 out of our 4 sons, which had been in the making months before we were selected for the Airbnb collaboration.

After the sweet family reunion, we were off to Africa again. This time Sub-Saharan Africa. Huge excitement mixed with a little trepidation about the Covid situation, not knowing what to expect on the continent of Africa, and we were finally off to Tanzania.

Our Airbnb glamping style tent, was nestled in an Acacia forest, full of macaque monkeys and in a small African village, outside of the city of Arusha. Interaction with the villagers every day, children roaming freely, was a very unique experience and one of the outstanding highlights of this trip. We took motorbike taxis into town every so often to go to the market and were blown away each time by the beauty and bold fashion of Tanzanian women.

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Arusha was the starting point for multiple safaris. It was the first time for Ben to see African elephants, giraffe, zebra, baboons in the bush. Our lodging was an Airbnb tented camp right in the Serengeti, which meant waking up before dawn to head out in a jeep for a once in a lifetime experience, the annual Great Migration of the wildebeest and the birthing of the young (wildebeest and zebras) in the stunning landscape of the Serengeti. Honestly, if we just had this one month in Tanzania, 2022 would have been a resounding success from a travel perspective….

From Tanzania we drove across the border to Kenya.

That in and of itself was epic to say the least, as we found ourselves at the border between the two countries with the wrong date on our paperwork. Let’s just say that our driver did what needed to be done to get us through. The drive itself was hot and muggy in a car without any A.C. but the highway wove through a national park where animals could be seen roaming on the plains. We spent time at two coastal towns in Kenya, Kalifi en route to Watamu, which was a small Swahili settlement. The Swahili culture established a network of coastal towns that acted as trading centers for goods collected from Central Africa and bartered against goods brought in from the Middle East and Asia. The culture and language was a convergence of Bantu (African language and culture) and Persian.

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From the coast we flew to the capital of Nairobi and had 3 short stays in different areas… One of the Airbnbs we stayed at, was on the estate of the author Karen Blixon, author of “Out of Africa”. We delighted in visiting Nairobi’s famed giraffe sanctuary, where we got to meet giraffe eye to eye and to feed them. Most memorable from our stay in Nairobi was an extraordianty visit to one of the largest slums in the city, to meet the woman who started an empowerment project for young girls which entailed creating fashion from recycled trash.

Homecoming to South Africa

From Kenya we flew to Cape Town, South Africa.

This was for me a homecoming of sorts as I had not been back to my birth country of South Africa for 25 years. And for Ben it was his first time visiting my home country. Considering I have been to France over a dozen times, it was long overdue. We were both very clear that we did not want to experience South Africa without other countries in Africa as precursors and in fact this is probably why we didn’t get there sooner as the expense was always rather prohibitive. It was important for us to experience the contrast of other African countries and not just go to South Africa where we would inevitably as whites experience a “warped” view of Africa.

We selected the most extraordinary Airbnb in Kalk Bay, where we splurged with our Airbnb budget for a luxurious ocean view apartment, knowing that this many areas of Cape Town remain largely impacted by vestiges of segregation. That said, we were ready for a dose of luxury and a month of incorporating some fine dining, vineyard visits, beach day trips and enjoying the downtime of a comfy home. Being back in Cape Town after decades triggered memories on three different levels for me. First there were my childhood memories, then my memories of being a teenager in Cape Town and Plett. And finally, the trip I took with my sons when they were young, to show them my home country.

Cape Town was even more beautiful than I remembered it. Some aspects were very different… such as how built up it is now so many years later, this is not surprising but still quite a shock to see, and other aspects which have remained the same. The sand dunes behind Sandy bay beach, are still there and still preserved and Kirstenbosch gardens. I think the best part though was the experiences we had together which became an additional layer for me of memories to add to the pot. Finding beaches I had never seen before, going hiking behind table mountain and enjoying some of the finest food in the world.

Our time in Cape Town, was followed by a road trip through the gorgeous Garden Route, stopping along the way at a string of unique airbnbs, ending up in Plettenberg bay and then flying to Johannesburg.

In Johannesburg we went to the hill I had grown up on, to see it one last time and to show it to Ben. This was a hard day for me. Our house that my dad had designed and helped build so lovingly over the years into the hillside where I spent the formative years of my childhood, with its pool which took him a year with one helper to complete, was completely gone! Replaced by a mega mansion. The only things which remained, were the stunning view and the nature reserve right next to the property, (where we had spent many years playing freely as children.)

And on to Mozambique. A country I have always wanted to visit… I had memories of my parents going there for romantic escapades from raising four children. The romantic notion I had of sultry African beats and huge prawns was not quite realized. Mozambique was hit hard by covid and was already struggling economically before the pandemic. When we were there, in May 2022, Covid was still very much impacting the country. It was an interesting month, which was highlighted by yes the African beats, the people and reuniting with my nephew who was living there at the time. We met up at a gorgeous wild beach where we spent a weekend away from the bustling city of Maputo. Still, we had a very spacious airbnb, found a good yoga studio, some art galleries and a nice dose of East African and local food and did a guided tour (rare for us) of the slum area in Maputo.

Stopping in Europe before going back “home” (to Mexico)

From Mozambique we played a round of “global domino”. Seeing as Mozambique was a former Portuguese colony, we went from there, to base ourselves in Portugal. We spent a glorious month in the charming surfing town of Ericeira, a short drive away from Lisbon, which was great fun to revisit as well. Arriving in Ericeira with its charming pristine and colorful architecture after a rather run down Maputo, was visually uplifting. In Lisbon we reconnected with a good friend and had outstanding food and were thrilled to be there for the annual sardine festival, where every restaurant serves grilled sardines and the whole city turns into one big party.

Upon departing from Portugal we squeezed in a last two week stop in June 2022 in Amsterdam, one of our favorite cities in the world and ate our weight in herring and eel.

That concluded our epic year as global nomads with Airbnb!

Not a day went by that we were not appreciative of this amazing opportunity. It was very surreal to be booking all these fabulous Airbnbs anywhere in the world and at no cost to us! It was also fun to follow the other participants in this social experiment to push the envelope of Airbnb, living at a time when the pandemic made many reconsider traveling at all, or conversely made many recognize that they could work online without going in to a physical office. 2022 was a year when traditional assumptions about work and home were shattered. We were enthused to be able to contribute in some way to shaping a model for living nomadically. This indeed was the intent of the Airbnb program and a perfect fit for us seeing as we had already been living a nomadic lifestyle for quite some time.

Our Airbnb adventure is over – Going back to Mexico for our son’s wedding!

The next few months were spent bouncing between Chicago and Oaxaca Mexico, culminating in our oldest son, Josh and his fiance Ana’s wedding in Oaxaca City. It was a joyous love filled weekend which celebrated the mingling of Ana’s Mexican heritage and Josh’s Jewish heritage. One of the highlights was the parade in the street after the beautiful ceremony, with the mariachi band leading the way, pedestrians lining the streets cheering us all on as we danced our way to the main Cathedral. At the Cathedral we danced the hora, with the mariachi band creating a new hora Mexico style!

Can we take a break and settle down now? ~ Not so fast!

As 2022 started winding down, after the wedding, it would be reasonable to think we would slow down a bit, and process the past year of non stop travel. Ahh, wouldn’t that have been nice!!

But no, we knew that we would need to be heading back to Asia at the start of 2023, for Ben’s job, which he was still doing full time while we were participating in the Airbnb program.

Some countries were harder hit by Covid restrictions and the Philippines was one of the countries that was not allowing any foreign visitors until almost the end of 2022. This worked very much in our favor, as we were able to indulge in our year-long adventure. Some had thought we were a bit crazy to be traveling during the height of Covid, but our perspective was that Covid was everywhere… so from a statistical point of view, we were not any more exposed by being in one or another country. As far as airports and air travel, never have we experienced such ease of movement in our lives, as terminals were often empty and planes a third full. Of course, each new country required a new covid test before entering, as well as extra documentation, proof of vaccination, and each country had different regulations to follow, but that was a small price to pay.

For example, In Tunisia we actually debarred a train as it was packed with not one person wearing a mask. Tanzania it was actually hard to believe that we were in the middle of a pandemic as people seemed to be totally oblivious. Conversely, in Sicily one could not enter a restaurant without showing proof of vaccination and of course wearing a mask.

As we were deciding where to base ourselves in Asia for 2023, to be closer to the Philippines as Ben’s job would require a more compatible time zone than that of Mexico or Europe, Japan was finally considering a reopening to international travelers after being closed for over two years.

We thought it would be worth checking the tickets to see the pricing for a flight in December as our return to Asia. Lo and behold, the tickets were a mere $300 LA to Japan one way! Of course there was still the risk that the country might not open and then we would have bought tickets that couldn’t be used. But we decided it was well worth the risk, and this would be an inexpensive and great way to get kick off this new chapter.

Japan calling

From the tropical warmth of Mexico we were choosing to go to Japan in winter! There was only one way to deal with the cold… We headed for the area famed for the highest concentration of hot springs (onsens)! We stayed in two onset towns… Yufuin and Beppu, both on the island of Kyushu. An onsen town means most guesthouses have their own private onsen baths and then in addition there are also a myriad of public onsens, often in beautiful and sometimes outdoor settings. As well, we were able to arrange a unique week long homestay in a rural village with a Zen Buddhist monk. Meditation started at 5 a.m. every cold wintry morning.

The food in Japan is of course always a highlight. In particular the food we eat made by Monk Jiho, as his main focus other than meditation turned out to be food. Each meal was a Japanese feast. We learned how to make fresh udon and how to string fresh persimmons from the trees around the temple, to dry.

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Home base in Bali

After a month in Japan, we headed to Bali, our home base destination for the next two months. Ben would do the “commute” a couple times from Bali to Philippines (which turned out to be a bigger deal than anticipated).

Bali, for us feels like home. This was our sixth time living there. The downside is that there is now a huge traffic problem, exacerbated by the overwhelming influx of Russians escaping enlistment in the war. The pros remain the same. (The plant based food, the plethora of yoga offerings, the lush beauty, the architecture and culture of the Balinese people.) We found a spot to stay out of the throngs of people in Ubud (still using Airbnb as by now we are pros at making good choices. Now of course on our own dime. We had a glorious stay in a very unique bamboo house set amongst the rice fields. Could not have been more tranquil.

The end of an era

Two months became one, when we learned that Ben’s mom had been diagnosed with acute leukemia. We immediately booked a flight to L.Aa and left Asia the next morning.

We spent the last three weeks of Madame Bell’s life with her and with Ben’s sisters, Sophie and Chantal. It was an intense, beautiful, challenging, and profound time for us. Jacqueline lived life with a lot of style and she ended her life with just as much panache, admirable courage and grace. She was a fabulous mother in law, I aways said, I won the mother in law jackpot. Loving, supportive, she had a great sense of humor and will be very much missed. Ben and Jacqueline had long held similar outlooks on death, and had many discussions on the topic. She had always made it clear that when it was her time she would choose to accelerate things so as to not end her life with gloom and doom. To illustrate, when we spoke to her for the first time after her diagnosis, (still in Bali) her question to us was ” sooo, have you heard the good news?”

Even though bedridden for her last few weeks of life, she still had her hair and nails done, her linens changed every other day, with matching nightgowns. She held a champagne and caviar and favorite French pastries, last “party” with us in her bedroom, using her finest crystal. She was intent on orchestrating her own ending and she most certainly did. Even to the point of specifying which music would be played at her Celebration of Life party after she passed.. And asking us to one by one put on the outfits we would be wearing for this occasion so that she could approve of them.

Not even a week after JB passed, and just four days after her Celebration of Life memorial, we boarded a plane back to Asia to head together to the Philippines.

Too soon, as we had not had the time to process the last intense three weeks. But it appeared there was work urgency. And life goes on… Onto a small island to be submerged in nature for tranquility and peaceful reflection.

What a jam packed year and a half this has been!!

Next post: Life on a small island in the Phillipines