Around the world in 15 months

32 countries visited

  1. USA

  2. Canada

  3. French Polynesia (read about my parents $3.30 camping adventure)

  4. New Zealand (Great Walks and getting breathless on mountainsides and my Top 10, including some of the best Sri Lankan food we had on the trip—outside of Sri Lanka)

  5. Australia (I had initially refused to camp here—bugs! Spiders! poisonous things!—but a free van re-route changed my mind)

  6. Germany (figuring out grief while traveling)

  7. Czech Republic (the beer capital of the world)

  8. Austria (our first hut to hut hike in Europe)

  9. Slovenia (getting scammed and falling in love)

  10. Croatia (getting our car searched and rocky beaches)

  11. Italy (lessons learned and a perfect day in Tuscany)

  12. San Marino

  13. Vatican City

  14. Monaco

  15. France (my parents truly absurd trip to Paris in the 80s and a jazz cave where I danced with a new man)

  16. Switzerland (getting to Switzerland by house sitting in France—as one does, right…?)

  17. Netherlands

  18. Spain (a bit of Spain and some of Portugal and my dad visiting Spain under Franco)

  19. Portugal

  20. Morocco (the passage of time as shown by haircuts)

  21. Egypt (a sleepless sleeper train and my first cruise)

  22. Jordan (deserts and police)

  23. Sri Lanka (overdosing on yogurt, the best food, and book recs)

  24. Malaysia (not your typical romcom)

  25. Indonesia (a crumpled heap at sunrise)

  26. Philippines (11 stitches)

  27. Thailand (our favorite place?)

  28. United Kingdom

  29. Peru (a stabbing)

  30. Bolivia

  31. Argentina

  32. Chile (friends at a hostel and a cheaper way to do the W)

  • 4 months camping

  • 2 hospital visits

  • 11 stitches

  • 2 birthdays

  • 1 very fancy hotel (on the Dead Sea, booked with points!)

  • 1 9-year anniversary

  • 3 tattoos

  • 4 run-ins with the police