Our first overseas trip with 2 kids…then…..
Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu, Santiago, Valparaiso, Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Samana, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Portland, Chicago, Calgary, Vancouver, Toronto, St. Johns, Dublin(5x), Belfast, Connemara, Giant’s Causeway, London, Lake District(11x), Manchester, Lancaster, Birmingham, Watford, Gloustershire, Scotland, Wales, Amsterdam, Haarlem, Lisbon, Porto, Lagos, Douro Valley, Munich, Augsberg, Stuttgart, Berlin, Heideburg, Frankfurt, Paris, Versailles, Rome, Venice, Florence, Napoli, Brugges, Brussels, Athens, Rhodes, Patmos, Ho Chi Minh City, Mekong Delta, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Seoul, Taipei, Taiwan, Singapore, Perth, Sydney, Tokyo, Hiroshima…
and 15 years later with 5 kids!
We love to travel. What better way to learn about cultures and ask questions than to spend 4 weeks at a time traveling out of 1 carry-on suitcase? Indie traveling can be done very cheaply when one does all their own bookings on public transport, hostels, campgrounds, and Airbnb. It can be challenging with 5 children, but it takes a bit of planning and living on only what is absolutely necessary to bring.
Food can be acquired through grocery stores and vendor stalls. We have a lot of picnics and treat ourselves to lunch at restaurants. We carry a refillable water bottle everywhere and boil our own water in places that do not have clean water advisories.
Traveling also comes with responsibilities – we want to protect the environment, sustain the community and patronize the businesses, shops, and local restaurants where-ever we stay. As much as possible, we stay where the locals live and avoid the main tourist areas for comfort and safety. By staying at least 5 days in one location, we have time to explore and learn as much as we can from talking to people, observing daily life, and visiting historical monuments and museums. We minimize our impact by leaving behind as least as possible – garbage and destruction and maximizing what we can so to support the local communities. After 5 days, we find global friends. And there is no better language than the common language of parenting all over the world.
The reward is having children who grow into global citizens, care about the environment and it’s sustainability, and are comfortable learning and exploring on their own.
Unschooling is a natural fit for Worldschooling.
Unschooling To University (And College Too) 