Wet camping

Camping in the rain is quite a miserable endeavor... especially when you drove over 5 hours to go to the sea. Cape Ann (Gloucester, Massachusetts) is gorgeous under grey threatening skies, but we didn't come there to admire its dramatic side...

We were glad we decided to leave on Thursday night and drive late, because Friday was the only sunny day. We spent the other 3 days there in the rain and everything was wet... very wet. 

Weekend (and long weekend) camping is much more work than living on the road where camping was our norm. I truly miss this lifestyle. When I think about future travels, I dream about more time on the road, camping in the wild, hiking with my family, not visiting museums in Europe, temples in Asia or ruins in Peru. Not that I am against this type of traveling, but it is not what speaks to me at the moment. I long to live in nature. Simply. With less. And at the same time, I see how paradoxal it is to wish for that when my girls need stuff, stuff to create, to read and to learn, and room to put all those things and their beloved treasures, to put their precious dolls and toys...

 

 

The more we stay, the more I wonder how we can all thrive away from a "home"... The girls have asked to start some music lessons (violin for Mara, piano for Aisha and recorder for Mathilde), I see them develop friendships and I see myself really enjoying my tribe, a precious network of friends that we don't have in our day-to-day life when we travel... I also see more and more traveling families that have inspired me deciding to buy a house or rent long term and settle down for that very reason.

I know what you think : why not leave for half of the year only? Well, that's an option... but we find that owning a house (even if we rent it when we are away) AND traveling requires a lot of money, especially if you want to travel slowly. First, having to fly back or drive back home every six months is expensive, and having to maintain a house (especially when you rent it long term...) is also not cheap. This is why most long-term traveling families opt to sell their house and possessions before leaving. We are not particularly attached to our house or our things, but it is a big decision to sell everything and leave for good... It's one thing when you are only two adults, but it's another thing when you have children...

When you live a marginal life and make different choices, I think it is twice as important to ponder the consequences of those choices on your children. Of course, there is no guarantee. And of course, traveling is incredibly rich and full of learning opportunies. And yes, I am confident that my girls will do great in life. However, I also know that the decisions we are making now will affect the persons they will become (in part, of course!), the activities they will pursue or not (if we are never in cold climate it's unlikely they will learn to ski, for instance...) and the relationships they will build. And so, we are taking our time (for once, some might say!) before making a decision about what the future will hold for our little family. It is hard for me to not see around the next corner just yet, but I know for a fact that it will be joyful and incredible!