When I wrote this, we were in an apartment in Minneapolis watching snow fall slowly outside our window. It was December and we were back in our hometown after 14 months of full-time travel. We were looking forward to leaving the U.S. again in a few weeks to travel for another year.

Coming home was bittersweet; nice to be back in the U.S., to speak English, to see our family and friends but already we were missing traveling together through Latin America.

The last 14 months have been amazing—the best year of our lives. Not only because of our travel but also because we accepted the challenge of giving up our Minnesota lives, moving out of our comfort zones and embarking on an adventure together.

For those of you who have been following us, thank you so very much. We have enjoyed everyone’s comments and support.

Some people have asked us “what has been the favorite moment of your trip?”. This is a hard question to answer because the year was filled with great moments and amazing memories. But looking back, I would have to say that our favorite moment was when we left the U.S. for Medellin, Colombia. The anticipation of an entire year outside of the United States as a traveling couple was an incredible moment.

Here are a few memories:

October 2017-March 2018, Medellin, Colombia

Medellin was where I adjusted to the culture shock of South America and where Marc enjoyed the adventure of getting lost, navigating busy streets, and speaking Spanish. We learned how to be together every moment of every day. I look back on those first few weeks with fondness. We were so excited, so new to traveling, so naïve. Simple things like shopping at a market became an adventure and buying food from vendors speaking rapid-fire Spanish was a challenge.

We loved seeing the beautiful green mountains around Medellin with its perfect year-round climate while drinking world-class Colombian coffee. I would go back and relive those first few weeks over again in a heartbeat. We met Angela, a wonderful woman who invited us to her family events and showed us a side of Colombia that we never would have been able to experience on our own.

Nowhere else was a city so intent on moving forward rapidly into the future in a way that benefited all its residents including the poor. Spending Christmas in Colombia was eye-opening for us because Colombia celebrates Christmas for a month starting with Little Candles Day until after New Year’s Day. There were many more lights and events than in the U.S. and we enjoyed every minute of our Christmas abroad.

March-July, 2018, Quito and Cuenca, Ecuador

We lived in Ecuador for three months. We stayed in the capital city of Quito for two weeks and enjoyed the many historical sites and churches in this high-altitude city. We visited Otavalo, the largest market in South America, to see miles of handmade Alpaca wool sweaters, hats and other goods. We saw many indigenous people wearing their traditional clothes while they went about their duties.

We were interested in seeing Cuenca because it is the #2 American ex-pat retirement destination in the world. Cuenca is beautiful and a UNESCO site and we loved walking all around this compact city. The ex-pats were extremely welcoming and invited us into their circle and we were relieved to be able to speak English with them. We could imagine ourselves settling here and enjoying a low-cost retirement with many, many friends.

The weeklong Easter celebration was spectacular with processions through the streets and with special foods and sweets.

July-September 2019, Lima and Cusco, Peru

In Lima, we ate our meals while perched on a cliff listening to the waves and watching surfers. The food in Lima was extraordinary and we indulged in two food tours around the city. We didn’t want to miss a single Peruvian dish and enjoyed sampling the delicacies and Pisco Sours (the national drink).

In Cusco, we learned so much about the Inca people (and earlier cultures) that we didn’t think we could stuff our brains with any more facts. It seemed that the entire Sacred Valley was filled with Inca ruins. The sites were quiet and often there were no other tourists wandering through them, and we enjoyed many quiet, hauntingly beautiful ruins.

Machu Pichu was a lifelong bucket list destination and it was as beautiful and interesting as we expected. However, it was less peaceful than other sites because 2,500 tourists visit the site each day. Getting to Machu Pichu required a two-day car, train, and bus ride but we wouldn’t have dared to visit South America without experiencing this wonder of the world.

September-November 2019, Guadalajara, Mexico

Mexico felt a little like coming home to the U.S. because the lifestyle, grocery stores, and products were more similar to the U.S. than any other country we visited. We felt relaxed and safe while walking because motorists usually gave pedestrians the right of way. The food was fantastic, and we ate hundreds of different types of tacos during our three-month stay. We ate from street stalls and markets without worry and never had a bad meal. We enjoyed the low cost of living (about 1/3 of costs in the U.S.) and ate out almost every day. We learned about Tequila and Mezcal which we drank to wash down our tacos.

November-December 2019, Back in the USA

Before we knew it, we were flying back to the USA. By that time, we had traveled for 14^th months and discussed whether we were all done. In the end, we decided to return to our traveling lifestyle for another year after visiting our families. We felt that we had more to see in South America, more Spanish to learn and that we would be sad to see our trip end.

What did we learn?

The main thing we learned is that the world is a safer place than media leads us to believe. Of course, we were not traveling through places like Syria or Iraq, but for the most part, the countries we visited were as safe as the United States. The main threats to our safety were not people but unsafe drinking water, ill-prepared food, and mosquitos (we didn’t succumb to any of these dangers).

We also learned that things that seem so simple, like clean drinking water from the tap, is unavailable in other parts of the world. Many Latin Americans live in a level of poverty not seen in the U.S. and it is hard to believe it until you see it with your own eyes.

How have we changed?

We now have more appreciation for the things that we once took for granted like a government that works, the many conveniences of life in the U.S., clean drinking water, power that doesn’t fail after a rainstorm and the financial opportunities provided in the U.S. to achieve the American dream.

Most importantly, travel has taught us to quickly adapt to new surrounding and situations.

Interesting things we noticed while in South America and Mexico

Things you can find in Latin America: McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken, homes with satellite TV with American cable TV and movies, Oreo Cookies, Heinz Ketchup, hamburgers, and french fries.

Things we could never find and learned to live without: Diet Coke that tastes the same as U.S. Coke (I now drink water), size 9- or 10-women’s shoes (men’s sneakers would do in a pinch), and Miracle Whip Salad Dressing.

Our First Year in Review