A couple days late on this one, but we are back with a recap of the last month. It looks a little different this month because we are officially back in the States and it is a brand new decade. Here is what we’ve been up to the last few weeks.
Places Visited
4 countries – Germany, Belgium, Amsterdam, United States
8 States – MN, SD, WY, CO, ID, MT, ND, IA
2 National Parks – Grand Tetons, Badlands
How We Got Around
- 1 flight AMS – MSP 4,155 miles/6,687 km
- 1 bus ride from Brussels to Amsterdam
- 2 train rides
- 1 canal cruise in Amsterdam
- Multiple tram rides
- 3800 miles in the car to get around the central plains region
- The usual amount of walking to see as much as possible
Best Meal
Steph – I already know Justin is going to pick the same as me, so I won’t even try to explain.
Justin – Listen, I don’t like to make it a habit of eating at the same place in the same week and sometimes even the same month. Honestly, with the exception of leftovers I don’t really even double up on the same meal. I enjoy a variety when it comes to food, especially when traveling to new places. But every so often, my taste buds link up with the decision-making part of my brain and overpower all logic. Such was the case in Amsterdam.
Anyone who follows us on Instagram likely saw that we went to the Vegan Junk Food Bar THREE times during our four days in Amsterdam. Oops, not “went to” all three times. Unashamedly, we did order it to our hotel twice. Look, I was honestly running on fumes by the time we reached the Netherlands and was really just coasting to our flight back home. All of that said, the Tempeh Chicken Sandwich left nothing to be desired. I am not always a big proponent of substitutes for meat because it usually means so much processing. However, this sandwich was so spectacular that I would recommend it and stake my reputation that both carnivores and herbivores alike will love it.
A Meaningless Thing about Returning to the United States That’s Exciting for Us.
Steph – After months of stores with narrow aisles and translation of labels required, grocery shopping is so easy again. I can read all the ingredients, find everything I’m looking for and I don’t have to worry about getting hip checked by the hundreds of other people occupying a 3 foot wide aisle. I loved seeing all the different options in grocery stores around the world, but it was never an easy errand to run. We are so excited to cook and eat our favorite foods at home again, so the grocery store is easily at the top of my list.
Justin – So on a similar note, I was shocked to be back in a place where I can understand everything. Not just labels or signs, but conversations. I didn’t expect this to be a weird transition. Steph and I have primarily interacted with each other as foreigners for 9 months. Sure, we’ve had visitors on the road and had conversations both in English and other languages throughout that time, but when we stepped into our first restaurant back in the U.S. it was surprising how much we’ve missed fluency. Hearing conversations around us that we could understand without having to listen closely or translate was a breath of fresh air. It seems like a weird thing to be happy about, I know, but it was like reverse culture shock. And I liked it!
Our Peak
Steph – One of the biggest things we want to incorporate into our US road trip is national parks. We decided to jump right in on our holiday trip to Colorado and we stopped at two. Grand Tetons National Park is one I’ve been to a few times in my life and I love those mountains. This trip was extra special because of three reasons.
- We arrived at the park just in time to watch the sun come up and start burning off the low hanging clouds. We had the place to ourselves and it was so peaceful.
- All of the peaks made themselves visible to us at the end of our time there. It’s very common to visit and not be able to see the Grand Teton thanks to clouds and weather, so we were so excited to drive down a side road for a few minutes and have them all come into view.
- I saw my first Moose in the wild (that I’m old enough to remember). We were driving through the park when Justin spotted a shadow and seconds later a Moose crossed right in front of our car. Of course, I instantly starting crying and didn’t get any pictures. It ran along side the car for a few minutes with its chin held high in the air and it was such an incredible sight. I felt honored to be able to share a moment with that animal.
Justin – After we arrived back in the States we hit the road pretty quickly since we knew it was going to prove overwhelming to try and catch up with all of our friends and family right away. Leaving wasn’t just to avoid the madness, it was a calculated move to allow us time to adjust to being back home. When we need to regroup, we head to the mountains.
During our short road trip, we drove through the mountains of Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. This month’s high came at our first national park, The Badlands. We have been here before but never in the winter and certainly have never had it so much to ourselves. As the sun began to set over the hills we pulled over to watch it go down. It was reminiscent of sun-downers in Africa. We happened to notice we were enjoying the view with a few locals that we didn’t notice at first. There were some bighorn sheep (both rams and ewes) right down the hill from us and one friendly ewe who hung right along side us – see photo above. It was an amazing welcome back to the U.S.
Our Pit
Steph – Being back in Minnesota is amazing because so many of our favorite humans reside there. That same fact also makes it really difficult. We really focused on time with our families on our trip back and it was hard to not be able to schedule a bunch of time with all of our friends. We always underestimate the difficulty of working around work, school and activity schedules for our nieces, nephews and families. We had the best time with all of our siblings, but I hate that it means that we don’t have time to spend with friends. If only we could be in 5 places at once.
Justin – This past month’s pit isn’t one particular event. It was more of a state of mind that I am just now coming out of. For a few weeks I have been in an in-between mindset. I find that it is really hard to explain but I’ll try. I started to get into this head space in Belgium and then fell deeper into it in Amsterdam. It wasn’t really a depression but i think it had similar symptoms. Here we were in two new countries to explore and I just wasn’t feeling it. We did get out and check out the towns and do some touristy things, but my head just wasn’t in the moment. I kept thinking about having to go back to the U.S. and kind of was like “well, let’s just get on with it.” That’s not a place I’ve been in many, many months.
Then, upon returning to the U.S. I felt weird because it was like I didn’t know what to do with myself. We’ve been traveling for months and only upon returning home do I feel like a freeloader and drain on society. It was a few weeks of feeling really off but I am starting to get back to normal and I’m excited to plan our next steps this month.
Grateful to have…
Steph – Kline Nissan. When we returned, our car had some serious issues and we got it to the dealership. The plan was to leave for Colorado the next day and there was no way they were going to be able to fix our car in time. The service team got us a loaner for our full two week trip and took care of all the repairs while we were gone. They turned a situation that could have been extremely stressful into nothing, plus they didn’t charge us for anything. I will be a customer for life after being taken care of like that.
Justin – I am so grateful for our support system. The friends and family members that have encouraged us this past year without any expectation of something in return has been a blessing that I cannot convey in words. They were also so warm and welcoming to us when we arrived back in the U.S. Friends and family both helped out with lodging and even a meal or two while we were with them. So often “thank you” just doesn’t seem to be enough but I will be grateful to our community for my whole life.
Missing this…
Steph – Income. Being back in the US, we are extra aware of finances and how expensive things are. I feel more of a need to start figuring out some income to help offset the difference in cost of living. We saved for years and have enough to get us through a couple of months, but we will have to be very diligent about our budget. Having a little extra income to do some fun things wouldn’t hurt.
Justin – I am missing the planning phase of adventure. We will be picking this part back up during the month of January in anticipation of our U.S. road trip but this past month didn’t require a lot. Our four countries didn’t need a lot of research and we haven’t had to do a lot of real strategic planning since Africa. The hardest thing we’ve planned has been train routes through Europe (admittedly tougher than it should have been in some parts). So, I look forward to reengaging the planning part of my brain this month.
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What’s Next?
The next few weeks will be pretty quiet and boring. We are planning, doing healthy things and enjoying some quiet down time in a small town in Iowa. It will be a good time to catch up, get organized and start the new decade off right.
