Hi! We are Frank & Lissette from Canada. We used to travel the way most other people do; fitting 2 to 4 week trips around our busy lives. We left Canada in 2014 and have been full-time travellers ever since.
We travel “slow”, often staying in one location 1-2 months and using it as a base to explore a region. A few of the bases we’ve had over the last 6 years: Prague, Budapest, Cape Town, Kyoto, Brasov, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Lisbon, Seville, Padova, Krakow, Kiev, Lviv and Split (where we lived for a year). Travelling this way keeps costs down and gives us a chance to really get to know a place (more here on how and why we slow travel ).
In all we’ve visited about 50 countries during our travels.
I’m Frank, otherwise known as BBQboy. I do most of the writing on the blog. I was born outside Quebec City, lived in Africa for a few years as a kid, then moved around between Vancouver, Ottawa, and Montreal. I’ve had the travel bug since my mid-teens and have always tried to fit in at least one trip a year. I enjoy the exotic and adventurous; travel highlights to date include backpacking through Colombia, riding a motorbike across the Dominican Republic, and hiking through the mountains of northern Thailand. I was scammed for $3,000 in Bangkok, shot at in Sumatra, and attacked by an angry toucan in Brazil. My face seems to get me in trouble everywhere I go.
Lissette (Spanky) is my wife. Originally from New York, of Puerto Rican descent, she has a wonderful sense of humor and a great smile. I met her in 2005 on Lavalife with a handle of “BBQboy” (I have pretty good skills on the barbecue) and a tagline of “Got the meat, need the buns”. She thought it was funny. She enjoys the cultural and spiritual aspects of travel. Yoga, meditation, and enjoying European architecture and history are some of her favorite things. She’s also a great photographer – most of the photos on this site are hers.
I’ve set up this website to document our travels. We write the good and the bad of the places we visit; we think it’s important both for ourselves (and our own memories) as well as for readers of this blog. We’ve met a lot of people who aspire to the same lifestyle. You’ll find a bit of everything: stories, photos, and lots of information and tips on the many places we’ve visited. We enjoy the cultural aspect of travel and connecting with locals. It’s what we love about travel.
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We hope our blog helps and inspires, in turn we appreciate any feedback or ideas!
Some posts related to how we travel:
Finances: How we can afford to travel full-time
Our Best and Worst “Slow Travel” Bases over 5 years of Full-time Travel
When People tell us that “we’re lucky” to Travel Full-time…
Going from travelling full-time to having a base. Memories of the Good, the Bad and the Complicated
Is it safe to Travel? The weird and scary from 6 years of full-time travel
What is Slow Travel? And why it’s how we travel
See all our Latest Posts on the Blog
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Contact info: (English, French, or Spanish)
Email: [email protected]
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Thank you for sharing your experiences with us, really helpful info. We are moving from Montreal to Estepona and are debating on moving some of our belongings. In your experience is it worth the expense? ☺️
Thank you Mirella. We’ve gone back and forth on that question. We originally did it (we actually shipped our stuff from Montreal to Split in Croatia) because we had some nice, very authentic furniture. Stuff we paid a lot for. I wrote about that here.
If you’re asking us now, we think it’s not worth it. Because it’s just stuff and stuff ties you down. Also, shipping rates would be a lot more now than they were in 2017. So I would advise against it.
Actually, this was our thought process at the time: https://bbqboy.net/every-nomads-dilemma-sell-or-store-your-belongings/
Looking forward to gaining insights to Costa Del Sol area. I’m a life-long Washington, DC native. My SO, who has traveled the world, is originally from Tunisia. He’s been retired for two years and travels back and forth from DC and Alexandria, Egypt. We are looking at Costa Del Sol because its centrally located to his family living in France and Tunisia, and I hope a good fit for me to relocate overseas.
There are a lot of ugly places on the Costa del Sol with the line of apartment blocks that often define this region. But between you see some very pretty places like Nerja and Estepona. We’re still discovering the region ourselves. Have a look at our Spain-only blog Mapping Spain and check out the “Ask an Expat” series we have. It might give you ideas on places that might interest you.
Let me know if you have any questions 🙂
Hi Frank, just spent 2 hours here reading posts and comments. Very nice, informative, wise and good energy. From what I get, you value local people over world famous sights. You might actually like Uruguay. (I am a German living there since 2004) Greetings and thank you for all your contributions, Peer
Thank you Peer. We like famous sights, I think the trouble we have is with mass tourism. We won’t go somewhere just because it’s popular, we’d rather try places that are going to be a bit of a surprise to us.
We want to do more South America travel so we’ll probably get to Uruguay one day 😉
F&L, I just stumbled across your web site – will be reading it in its entirety. You two are my heroes!! My wife and I are 61 – born in Toronto, and moved to the San Francisco Bay Area 28 years ago. We retired a few years back. Upon retirement, when my wife asked me what I wanted to do, I replied: “I want to walk the earth – like Cain from Kung Fu (the 70’s TV show). She almost fainted. For now, the compromise is we are living in upstate New York near her family (which is in Ontario) – and go away for at least 4 months in the winter. Last year, we spent the season in a home in the Cotswolds as home base, and circumnavigated England, Scotland and Wales in the process.
Alas, home this winter, for obvious reasons. This coming winter, I am planning 5 months – comprising of Morocco, Spain/Portugal (not too much time here, as we have been here several times) – with most of the time spent in Croatia, Albania, Montenegro, Slovenia, and to be decided… Your post about Peles Castle and Sighosaura has me wanting to visit Romania. I rent cars – so we are always very mobile. Am I biting off too much for 5 months? One last thing: My son – an 8 year old 1/2 australian shepherd, 1/2 border collie named Maupassant (Moe), goes EVERYWHERE with us.
Looking forward to connecting with you!
Warren (aka Wardell)
Hi Wardell, Thank you for your comment, we LOVE hearing from fellow Canadians!
Isn’t it horrible to retire and then not be able to get out of the house? I feel bad for anyone who planned their retirement thinking they’d set off on worldwide travels only to be in lockdown…Anyway, I’m sure by the end of the year we’ll all get to some degree of “normal”.
Everyone has a different way of travel. we’ve travelled “slow” for different reasons, the main one to save money (I wrote about that here). Travelling faster is definitely more expensive and going hard for 5 months you might find yourself burning out. But really that depends on the individual. One thing I would recommend is to leave things flexible, that way if you end up somewhere you really like you can stay longer, enjoy the place and just relax. I see too many people pre-planning every single thing and being locking in. The biggest thing we learned is to stay flexible. And in the Balkans you can because you’ll be able to find a lot of inexpensive lodging options even a few days before (especially off season).
I love that you travel with your dog. I wonder how a dog feels moving around and being in a totally different setting surrounded by different smells and sensations. Must be exciting.
Your plans sound great, we’ve done a lot of travelling in the Balkans and look forward to getting back. Albania is the one Balkan country we haven’t been and really want to see it. Some spectacular geography.
Keep in touch!
Frank
BQboy,
What a great blog! I’m going (solo) to Italy in May or October or whenever Italy is ready for me🇮🇹But I wanted a small taste of Croatia, so I’m planning a week in Rovinj. And from your post, I have to rent a car to see neighboring living or abandoned towns. Question: will I be able to rent a car in Rovinj and will the agent speak english? I thoroughly enjoyed all the information you provided. Thanks again!
Hello to Lisette, and continued buon viaggio to both of you.
Adrian
Hi Adrian,
Thanks for the nice message. Yes, no problem with English. All Croatians (unless older) speak English in varying degrees. Anyone professional will speak.
Don’t hesitate if you have any other questions 🙂
Great blog! I’ve really enjoyed reading your perspective on various places in Europe as I plan my young family’s first 6 week trip to Europe next summer. We want to stay in one city so we can really explore it (slow travel as you call it). With so many places to visit, I’m having trouble narrowing down the list to just one city. My family and yours will have different desires in traveling, but I’m still curious, is there one place in Europe that is your favorite for a summer travel? Thanks! Keep up the great blog.
Hi Justin,
That is a really tough question because we’re generally not fans of summer travel. We’re holed up right now in quiet Lviv, Ukraine which suits us perfectly in the summer months. I’d normally say Prague or Split. But both will be crowded. It also depends, as you say, on your objectives. If you have kids you’ll probably want to be close to the beach. Why not a place like Makarska or Omis in Croatia? But really it all depends what kind of vacation you’re looking for and the age of the family members…
Fantastic blog and so great to know there are others who travel the same way we do! My partner and I have been traveling around for almost two years. We are just coming off 6 months in Buenos Aires [where I have posted almost zero on our blog]. Soon headed to Mexico for 6 months. I love reading your posts and think your point of view and comments are spot on. Most importantly, you have given me inspiration to pick back up the writing on our site and beef it up a bit. Still trying to figure out the whole deal but love coming across pages like yours to help push me along.
Hi Allan. Nice meeting you. Thanks for leaving me the link of your site, always like to read about other people who travel like us.
We haven’t been to South America since we started travelling full-time. Our last travels there date back to 2008, so curious about Argentina. Planning to see South America when we have a base in Spain (planning on that next year). Mexico I know very well, I visit my mom there almost every year. Love Mexico, I think you’ll enjoy it. If you have any questions don’t be shy. Stay in touch 🙂
Love your blog, you two.
A FB friend posted the Vancouver Sun article describing your adventures and we can relate. Six years ago we sold everything in Kelowna, BC and moved to a community just outside of Playa del Carmen, Mexico. We recently sold everything again and are about 2 1//2 months into our homeless wanderings. We spent a month in Mexico, then 2 weeks in Canada to visit family and friends, then spent a month (Airbnb) in Budapest. We are currently staying a month in Brasov, Romania, after which we will get some beach time for 2 weeks in Varna, Bulgaria before spending a month in Istanbul.
We enjoy the slow travel because we get to live where we are, instead of running around like headless chickens, exhausting ourselves. Also it helps with the travel budget and we get a very nice Airbnb discount for the longer stays, as you are well aware of.
We will settle somewhere eventually but I don’t see that happening anytime soon. Having Canadian passports and permanent residency in Mexico gives us options. My dear wife does not like winter, period, so we may settle somewhere in S.E. Asia down the road but time will tell.
We look forward to following you and learning from your experiences, good and bad.
We have a FB group, should you be interested. Just something to let friends know where we are. Hasta luego
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2105854636165215/
Hi Pete. Thank you so much. Always love hearing from people who travel the same way, even more so when they’re fellow Canadians. I see we’ve overlapped in a few destinations – we’ve been to Budapest a few times and also spent a month in Brasov (which we had mixed feelings about).
I think my wife the opposite of yours – she can’t handle the heat. For this winter I’ve had to concede to a cold-weather destination (I don’t like cold weather).
Have joined your FB group, always like to get ideas on new places and how people feel about them.
Blog is great! Read your trip to lake Toba! Hopefully one day we can also travel and partial retire in different country when we are older!
Thank you for the kind comment Cay 🙂
What about your carbon footprint?
Don’t worry about that, we teleport.
Thank you so much for the wealth of information you are providing to fellow travelers- I’m in southern Italy now -where I’ve lived and used as a base of travel throughout Italy for several months- but I want to escape the summer hordes of tourists. I’m thinking of coming to Cpe Town and using it as a base for 3 months or so. Any suggestions on resources to locate a 3 month rental and suggested locations? Thank you soooo much.
Aldo
Hi Aldo,
We do the same in the summer months 🙂 This year we’re “parking”ourselves for 2 months in Ukraine.
Cape Town is fantastic. We stayed there for 3 months a few years ago. It will be their winter if you go in summer and its not ideal (anywhere else in SA ok, but the Cape has its own particular climate and might be cold and windy). You might like this post.
We stayed in 2 places while in Cape Town, including this place for a month: https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/3902089?guests=1&adults=1 It was good but not ideal for a longer term (fine for 1, tight for 2). We liked this place even more https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/7324397?guests=1&adults=1 but it doesn’t seem to be on the market anymore.
What you have to know is that Cape Town is expensive. We paid more for rent there than any other place. But we loved Cape Town.
I would look at different options on Airbnb, see if there’s something you like. Then write the owner, maybe you can get a good long term deal (don’t ever book “as is”. contact the host and try to negotiate).
Good luck, let me know if you have any other questions.
Love your website and photos of both of you, especially Lissette whose photos I don’t see that often. Best couple ever:-)
You’re so sweet Ivana. You have to convince Lissette to let me post more photos of her on the blog. She’s always fighting me. Who the heck wants to see my face, right?
Hi there! Found your site while looking for fellow full-time travellers like my husband and I. We are also from Canada, sold our home and are now slow travelling. 🙂 Currently in Chiang Mai (almost 2 months now) and will be headed to Vietnam shortly. Thanks for all the great info on your blog! — Alicia thewanderingasiancouple.com
Thanks for the comment Alicia. Nice to meet other Canadian full-time travellers 🙂
Your site is very good and well-informed. I have liked a lot and I am also setting my program, to see such beautiful views.
Thank you Sheedi.
Hello,
We are planning a trip to hike the Copper Canyon (with a guide) and I came across your blog while doing a bit of reading. I look forward to taking some time to read your posts about the area. Not many people know about Copper Canyon, I have family that rode the train in the 50’s and 60’s and it has been a destination on my travel list forever! Thanks for sharing your adventures! Cheers!
I think you’ll love it Tammy. It’s very impressive. Let me know if you have any questions.
Hello Frank,
Found your site as I am planning a short (16 day) trip with my husband in Thailand ( Dec 27- Jan 12). I wasn’t sure about going to Sukhothai but your info changed my mind. Thanks for the info on how to get there from Chiang Mai by train. We would like to go to the south as well but as it’s a short trip we don’t want to hop around while there. Is there any place in the south that you’d recommend to relax and enjoy the natural beauty. We’re in our 50s and have no interest in the party scene. This is my husband’s first “backpacking” type trip and I’m hoping he will enjoy this mode of travel so we can do it again!
Thanks in advance
Patti
Hi Patti
Glad it helped! I’m not sure how far south you want to go (we haven’t gone far south in a long time because it tends to be younger, full of tourists and more expensive).
But if you want to go mid-way down the coast to a place not many tourists know about I would suggest Prachuap Khiri Khan.https://bbqboy.net/our-new-favorite-town-in-thailand-why-we-love-prachuap-khiri-khan-in-photos/
I’ll warn you – it’s quiet. But if you want geography and to relax I think it’s great. We just discovered it earlier this year. And you can get there by train from Bangkok in about 4 hrs if my memory serves me well. No plane required (going further south you’d probably be taking the plane).
Great about Sukhothai. I guess you’ll be doing the Chiang Mai – Sukhothai – Ayutthaya – Bangkok route? We did it all by train and quite enjoyed the trip.
Let me know if you have any questions 🙂
Hi,
Hope you are doing great!
I am Alishba, works for an online digital marketing agency Futuristic Artists
I came across your site bbqboy.net and got impressed with the frequent updates on it
Wondering if you accept sponsored blog posts on your blog?Kindly let me know price per post
Also, let me know price per in-content text link placement on an existing blog post of your site
Regards,
Alishba
Thanks for the enquiry Alishba. I’ll send you a private message 😉
Frank
Hello Frank & Lissette from Canada
I bookmarked your site even before going through it. We also like to travel and it is always good to see where other people go and what their experiences are.
We went in the opposite direction from you (from Europe to Canada) and we are amazed by the beauty of Canadian Rockies. They are one of the world’s wonders and we can not get enough of it. Every year we see more and more people from all over the world coming to enjoy Canadian wilderness. How come you missed it?
The same about USA and Mexico. You didn’t even touch it??? Utah, northern Arizona, Yosemite, Colorado … just to mention some of the amazing world class places that are “must to see”.
Thanks Drago.
Of course the Canadian Rockies beautiful. I lived out there a few years as a kid and have revisited many times. The West Coast is the most beautiful part of Canada. But haven’t been back since I started the blog..it’s also a very expensive place if you want to travel the way we do.
Tons on Mexico on this blog, it’s a place I visit every year, one of my favorite countries. My mom lives there.
USA? Lissette spent half her life there (born in NY) and we’ve visited together. One day (maybe) we’ll see more. But that would be when Trump is out and things change. Canadians considered a national security threat right now….
I guess the point is that we haven’t “missed it”. We’ve just wanted to visit parts of the world that we are less familiar with. The same way you’ve gone the opposite direction.
Great blog Frank. Just in Split and did the Mostor hike today thanks to your write up. We are a family of four (two girls 13&11) from Australia traveling through Europe for 6 months. With all the Turkey drama we think we will avoid that, so what is your tip for up to 10 weeks outside the Schengen Zone? We finish in Greece in early October and need to be in the French Alps on 15 Dec. thanks Chris
Hi Chris!
I’m very happy that the post helped you out. Did you actually get all the way up to the top or did you just go to the mountain house? (I know you Aussies are tough and can probably handle August heat in the Balkans!).
We have a trip to Turkey planned in the new year and are also wondering about the situation. But we have lots of time.
How are you travelling? By car? By train?
Non-Schengen huh?
Here’s what I would do. Take the train north to Thessaloniki. From there you can take the train to Skopje which is an unusual, interesting and very inexpensive city. See Seat 61, he’s the guru of train travel.
After some time in Skopje, go to Lake Ohrid by bus. We haven’t been but everyone is unanimous that it is fantastic.
Come back to Skopje.
From there you could go to Prishtina (Kosovo) or Sofia (Bulgaria) by train. Again, we haven’t been to either but hear good things. From Sofia you can go to Plovdiv if you wish (it all depends on how much time you like to spend in different places).
Take the train up to Belgrade. We really like Belgrade, interesting city and you can spend a good 5 days – week.
Again, you have choices. Sarajevo is interesting. You would need to take the bus. I would have said you could go to Romania and see Timisoara, Sibiu and Brasov but it seems that there is some sort of dispute over the train management and latest I hear there are no longer any trains between the two countries. So forget that.
So go to Sarajevo. Then Mostar, then back into Croatia crossing into Schengen at the Slovenian border.Get to Venice and from there travel to French Alps easy.
Again, depends how quickly you guys get around. Going to Bulgaria requires a bit of backtracking. But it also gives you another option – going up to Bucharest instead of going to Belgrade. Then you could go to Brasov, Sibiu, Timisoara…and then on to Budapest (back in Schengen)
Many possibilities! All interesting places though.
That’s great. Thanks. We have a car so getting around is a breeze. Using the French car lease system which is awesome if you don’t know about it. https://www.ideamerge.com/car-lease-europe-renault-citroen-short-term-tax-free-france.html
I really enjoyed your Skopje post. We have an apartment there through some mates in Oz.
We only made it to the mountain house today (which was closed) as there was a big storm brewing after 40-odd days above 30 deg.
I was also looking at Cyprus. Non Schengen. Any tips or good blogs you’ve read about it?
Also if you ever need any tips on Australia then you’ve got my email.
Thanks Chris
Thanks for the link to the car lease Chris. We’ll be spending some time in France next year so will be of use.
Sorry about Cyprus, don’t have any resources on it. It’s not a place that gets blogged about a lot for some reason. Might want to refer to Rough Guides Cyprus section though – I usually use RR for preliminary research on a place.
Thanks for the Australia offer, we’ll get there one day!
Let me know if you have additional questions. Enjoy your trip and let me know what you think!
Frank
Hi Bbqboy,
I’m John, Marketing manager at Penelopes Promise.
I’ve been a long time lurker around your blog, but recently came across, Blog and really enjoyed it. and was wondering if you’d be interested in me writing a guest post about couples gifting.
I’d like to submit a well-researched and focused article for your blog, something that will help your blog flourish and also include a link back to our site.
Let me know if you’re interested.
Thanks,
John
Hi John. Thanks for email but I just don’t think it’s consistent with this blog. Best of luck!
Frank
Frank,
I would love to get your feedback on the differences in living longer term (1-6 months) in Thailand versus Split. I have been to Thailand and many places in Europe. I am at the stage of my life where extended visits and potential apartment rentals will come into play. I really enjoy Thai/Asian food and also the culture in most of Asia. I am wondering why a portion of my mind thinks I might struggle just a bit to fully enjoy a longer-term stay in a place like Thailand versus Split? Even when I read your blogs, I can feel your passion for both places, but you seem to detail more things (easy side trips and adventures) to do in Europe versus in Thailand where you mainly talk about visiting Temples and joining martial arts classes and of course massages (which are cheap and awesome of course). I know for sure I will want to visit and live in a few Asian cities for 1-3 months but my mind is thinking I would love a European city such as Split a lot more in terms of going back to it and having just a few more everyday adventures that satisfy the desire to explore a bit from time to time.
Regards,
Eddie (just retired and starting to envision a blog website. I have secured http://www.IdealJourney.com and am still trying to figure out how the final product and content will look. Thanks for the inspiration!).
Hi Eddie,
Tough question, like comparing apples to oranges.
For us, Europe more a place to live and Thailand more a place to visit. Lissette for sure would NEVER want to live is SE Asia – too humid, too much nature (stray dogs, cockroaches, rats, monkeys). I think it also depends if you’re single or in a couple. If you’re single SE Asia is a pretty good place to be for whatever you’re looking for.
We love Europe as far as culture, and food, but as you’ve pointed out, there’s so much more cultural/geographical/historic variety. You can get on a train and within hours be in another country or beautiful town/city (in SE Asia you don’t have that variety, a modern town/city is similar to every other modern town/city). In Split you’ve got the Mediterranean climate which is a perfect climate, much easier to take than the constant heat/humidity. But of course winter will be cooler. The geography in the Split area is fantastic and if you like outdoor sports it’s a great place. I personally found Split boring in off season. It’s like a Florida beach town in the winter. It’s surprising that it would get so dead in the off season because it’s Croatia’s 2nd largest city…if you don’t mind that and enjoy feeling like you’re living off the grid somewhere it might suit you. Others may feel that they’re in Hickvilles and be bored to dead during that time. Of course if you’re living in a bigger European city you won’t feel the same but you’ll still have to live with grey European winters.
Really it depends on what you like/don’t like, how you entertain yourself etc.
In a perfect world I would live in Europe in the summer (maybe not Split but Europe) and be somewhere tropical in the winter. There’s components of being in SEA that I enjoy but I wouldn’t really want to live there. It would be different if: 1) I was single and enjoyed the girlie action 2) money was a factor (SEA so much more affordable)
Hope that helps somewhat 🙂
Frank,
Thanks. It does. I looked on and off again for about six years for the perfect place to live in the US (with the weather being the # 1 factor). Other then Southern California there is always compromises to be had. It sounds like Europe would have the same thing because of the winters in most places. My original plan was Florida for half the year and everywhere/anywhere else for the other/hotter half of the year. For now, that plan will probably stick. Would like to spend a few months living in places such as the Lauterbrunnen Valley, Croatia, Italy and most SEA countries. If our travel paths ever meet up I would love to buy you a beer and talk travel.
Weather is a big factor for us as well. Neither of us like heat/humidity and the Mediterranean climate is perfect most of the year. This year wasn’t great in Split but the previous year it was cool but sunny with daytime temps usually around 10-12 C even in Jan/Feb. This year there was snow and it was unusually grey. But generally anywhere along the Mediterranean is, as Tony says, temperate.
Would be a pleasure to meet you one day Eddie 🙂
Hi,
Hope you are doing good!
I just reviewed your site bbqboy.net and impressed with the quality work on your site.
I was wondering if you allow some Sponsor Posts with do-follow links.
Could you please send me the Pricing/Details?
Looking forward to hear from you.
Regards!
Nageen
Hello Nageen,
Thanks for you comment. I will write you back on the email about this query.
Regards,
Frank
Dear Frank and Lissette,
Christmas fills the world with the magic of believing. Wishing you a joyous Christmas and a bright and beautiful New Year!
Thank you so much Victor. All the best for 2018, please continue taking those wonderful photos! 🙂
Hey, so sorry, didn’t see this comment until now. I’m situated in Zagreb, but can move around over weekends, so next time (this time I’ll read your response for sure!) I’ll meet you guys for sure! Until then, enjoy your adventures 🙂
Once again, super wonderful blog. I’m envious of your travels and next time you’re in Croatia let me know so I can greet you and cook you something. 😀
Hi Tea! Thank you for the very kind words.
We are in Split Croatia right now!! When should we come over for dinner? 😉
Hey! So nice to read your blog. I enjoy your pics and the relationship you and Lissette seem to have. We are moving, with our 3 sons, to Mexico this summer. We are taking a preliminary trip next week to check out 4 cities that made it to our final list. Guanajuato, Queretaro, Puebla, and Cuernavaca. I love reading about your travels, keep it up!
Thanks so much for the nice message Christy. That’s exciting, I think you’ll enjoy it. I’ve never heard of Cuernavaca actually – but I can vouch for Guanajuato and Puebla, both great places (Queretaro not as pretty and it has gotten big and sprawling…). I think to live Puebla would be my choice, but to visit Guanajuato quite spectacular. In any event, that’s a big move and very exciting!
PS I know what I’ve said about San Miguel de Allende on the blog – but it really is very nice and almost perfect for the expat (at least as a first step into Mexico). No interest there?
Hi Frank & Lissette,
I just re-read your Bio, although I read it over a year ago. Always worth reading something twice at least, never know what you missed the first time. I missed then how your ability to travel occurred as a result of a negative development at work. As I always believed: when something bad happens a great thing will follow (remember my mishap last year’s trip)………one door closes another opens. You and your blog have given me a tremendous “push” to fulfill my traveling dreams even as I got quiet older than you both, and I can only do it once on a yearly basis for a lengthy time . I only wish that this would have happened 10 years ago……how exciting to follow in your adventures.
HAPPY NEW YEAR…….and write about Christmas in Split.
Thanks so much Sara! All the best in 2017, I look forward to hearing about your Balkan adventures 😉
Nice to read and “meet” you guys, that’s a cool introduction. Good for you guys for shaping your lives and making travel central to your life. Great minds think alike!
Love your blog and the density of information and beautiful photographs.
Do swing by and visit us on our blog as well.
Hi Peta!
Actually I have and subscribed to your blog – enjoy it very much, you guys have become one of our favorites 🙂
Hi Frank,, Thanks for your page and the amazing job you are doing. CONGRATULATIONS!!
I lived in Vancouver, BC for 25 years and one amazing day, I got a job offer in Geneva/Switzerland. I have been living in Europe now for 15 years. I did exactly what you mentioned earlier. I worked hard, saved, invested ‘wisely’ to realize my life long dream. And that was traveling around the world without having to worry bout money and job & income!! My wife & and I, own a lovely place in Evian/ France, if ever, you and Lisette are close to this region, please come and stay with us. It will be an honor for us to host you. We are 10 minutes from Geneva, 35 minutes from Mont-Blanc / Chamonix and amazing Swiss/French Alps. Muchsisisimas gracias y mucho suerte en tu camino,,, Saludos,,
Hi Diego!
Thank you so much for your comment, it is very kind of you. You moved from one great part of the world to another! We have a few parallels: I lived in Vancouver for a few years as a kid and ended up in Montreal. A few years back our company was taken over by a Swiss company (based in Geneva). Things started great and there was talk of me moving there to take over their finances – but I ended up having a falling out with the owners (which I don’t regret, in hindsight it wouldn’t have worked out). They lived right across the border from Geneva, probably right where you are. I remember an evening out in Carouge and some exploring of Geneva which I found ridiculously expensive. But it is a beautiful area and you’ve done well!
Thank you so much for the very kind and generous offer!! Has to be one of the nicest offers we’ve ever received.
Do you still do a lot of travelling? I imagine so if you found our blog. Please keep in touch and don’t ever hesitate to comment, always enjoy other people’s take on things.
Frank
LOVE your posts and photos. We’ll be in Bacharach for few days in October after visiting Poland with daughter and 13 y.o. granddaughter. Can’t wait!
Thanks so much Elaine! Let me know how you like Bacharach 🙂
Hey there! I’ve loved reading your analysis of the Balkans. My husband and I will be traveling there this summer and you are one of the few blogs I’ve seen that has done a great analysis of the region! I’m primarily commenting to find out what your camera set up is because your photos are gorgeous! I’d love to know! Thanks and happy travels!
Hi Katelyn. Thanks for your comment – there are many reasons we love the Balkans, but one of them is that we can prolong our stay in Europe by going to countries like Croatia, Montenegro, Romania, and Bosnia and Herzegovina which are outside the Schengen zone (whith I personally wish they would abolish).
Where are you thinking of going? If you ever have any questions I’ll help you best I can.
As far as camera: nothing fancy. I have a Nikkon (about 5 years old, don’t know the model) and Lissette a Cannon Powershot. Both good. But the trick is do get an editing program and do a bit of editing because my experience with any camera is that unless you have the perfect lighting conditions the colour on a photo won’t reflect reality.
Hope that helps 🙂
Hi Frank,
Just found your blog when I did a bit of research to one of our next destinations, Cuba. I absolutely love your style of writing and are excited to read through your other articles now 🙂
All the best & safe travels from Vanuatu,
Sabine
Thank you for the very nice comment Sabine! Ah, we always love German bloggers 🙂 We are actually planning a 2-week vacation in Germany (one of our favorite countries) in late February.
Vanuatu? Very nice, not many people get there.
Thanks for coming on the page and saying Hi.
Frank
Frank looks like you are doing the thing I wanted to do ,,,Traveling the World Enjoying Life …
Please tell me How did u do it ?
Hi Chris,
I wish I could tell you that there is an easy way.
It’s something I always wanted to do and when I was in my early 20s I thought it would be through work somehow. I studied hard, got into a company, worked hard, went up higher in accounting/finance – and I got lucky getting into a great job working with good people. I also invested well. I loved my job but still always thought of travelling, the job was always a means to an end.
That finally happened last year, in our late 40’s. And Lissette still does her full time work from overseas, so we are working and travelling as we go. So for us there was no easy way, just working, saving, and planning.
The biggest advice I have for anyone who really, really wants to travel is to plan accordingly. Don’t spent money on cars or luxuries, get in a relationship with someone like-minded, plan your life always keeping your focus on the objective.
You are right ,but Trust me I work hard and try to save but in my side of the World in Amman.Jordan ,Daily life Expense & your Income never enough ,Considering have 3 daughters and a wife ..but I never gave up ,still thinking about traveling and I did visit few place between USA ,Egypt ,Turkey & Italy …
Thank you again for Kind Words …
You are Great …
I understand, no matter how hard we worked we are privileged to have lived life in North America.
All the best and I hope you get to travel much more in the future 🙂
Hey Frank,
Hope all is going well? Don’t you think it is about time you were featured in my interview series of Travel Bloggers? Would love to have you along? Check out my link if interested.
Hey The Guy,
It would interest me, I’ve been meaning to get out there a bit more but have been busy with my own content and a million other things.
Currently in Mexico but will contact you next week, sure we can set something up.
Thanks for contacting me 🙂
Thanks for the Laotian postcard. So nice to hear about your travels.
It has been a very snowy, cold winter in Maine. It’s snowing again today. This reminds me of the snowy winters growing up in rural Maine in the 1960’s and 1970’s. We’ve been able to enjoy snowshoeing on the fields near our home.
Hi Lynne – glad you received it! Hope it brings you a bit of the tropics, everyone mentions what a horrible winter its been back home. I hate snow.
Hi Frank,
I am you cousin…………today I spoke with Louise and your Dad and they told me about your blog.
Looks like you are having a nice adventure traveling around. At the moment I am visiting my parents in Texas but will return to Egypt where my wife and I have been living for the past 4 years. Let me know what your travel plans are….maybe we can meet up for a BBQ and a beer sometime.
Regards,
Mike
Hi Michael,
Nice to hear from you! I think I met you once in London when we were both kids. And now we’re both middle aged, weird isn’t it?
Egypt – that must be interesting! For work I assume?
We’re presently in Thailand where we’ll be until late March. Then back to Europe (thinking Croatia at this point), Montreal for a short visit in the summer for some admin stuff, then probably back to the Balkans in late summer/early fall. We spent 3 months in Prague last summer and are curious about Eastern Europe in general.
If we can meet up somewhere it would be a pleasure. Keep in touch; I’ve friended you back on facebook.
Frank
Nice to “e-meet” you!
Thank you Marie! I checked out your blog: very nice 🙂
Great website Frank. From your fellow blogger Steve @ AWOL Geordie.
Thanks so much Steve! You’ll see your site on my favorite links – been following you about 5 years and always enjoy your crazy stories. Keep it up! (and I don’t mean with the Thai girlfriends hehe)
Hi!
Thanks for your blog.
I have found really interesting info and would like to thank you for sharing your experiences.
We also love to travel and blend in with all kinds of people.
This time we’re going to Cuba but I’m sure to check your blog when we’ll be traveling elsewhere too.
I wish you all the very best and hope that there’s still loads and loads of beautiful stories to share ahead:)
Sincerely,
Kasia
Hi Kasia – thank you for one of the nicest comments ever! You’ll love Cuba, the people especially make it great. Don’t miss either Havana or Trinidad.
Cheers,
Frank
Hello! I’ve nominated your awesome blog for the Liebster Award!
Hope you participate and I look forward to reading your answers.
Hi Trupti. Very nice of you – yes, we will gladly participate!
Hi Frank, I really like your website, the captures are really beautiful. I like the touch you have given to the destinations. I definitely will visit it again 🙂
Thanks for dropping by Gaurab!