Certainly not a "normal" winter for us. Sherman the motorhome remains parked up here at our daughter's house where he has been since last October. And he'll be sitting here for a while yet because we have no plans to move him until October of this year!
And, we have now visited 33 different countries. We've been in 12 different countries in the last six months alone! Wow!
Among the many reasons that we like to visit different countries rather than going back to the same place time after time is that we like to wonder of we could live in a different country. Most of you know that we love Mexico and could easily live there. And we probably will some day, at least part time.
But, what if there is something better? You won't know if you don't explore. And we like exploring, so it works out well for us.
Romania
We spent most of the month of November exploring Romania. We saw enough of it during that time that we came to the decision that we could easily live there. Romania has reasonable prices, fantastic scenery, friendly people, castles, great hiking, and is close enough to a lot of other countries for trips to explore.
Somewhere in Romania.
And quite a few people in Romania speak at least some English. While we see that as a benefit, it's not really that important because we think it would be pretty easy for us to pick up the Romanian language if we spent any length of time there.
Only one problem with Romania.
It has winter!
So, we could easily live there for eight months of the year. Maybe Romania could share us with Mexico. :-)
Moldova
We spent two full weeks in the least visited country in Europe. While we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Moldova, it's not a country we would choose to live in. Besides the fact that it also has winter, it doesn't have the scenery that Romania offers. However, we would like to visit Moldova again during the early fall some year so that we can experience the grape harvest.
The Curchi Monastery in Moldova.
Spain
Yep, we could easily live in Spain. It has liveable weather all year round, and we can get by with the language no problem. But as with Mexico, we would stay away from the tourist areas.
And Spain has a lot to see. As one of our friends told us, "you don't need to travel very far between attractions". And that's totally true. We spent six weeks in Spain and didn't even see everything we wanted to in the southern coast area. We've heard that the northern coast would be even more to our liking, so we will return to Spain another year, but during the warmer period.
Ruth, and the town of Casares, Spain.
Italy
We enjoyed Italy, but it's busier and more expensive than Spain. I should qualify that though, because we only spent three weeks in Italy, and it was all in the northern area. Perhaps it is different in other areas, and one day we will return. We are certainly interested in returning to those parts of Italy that we haven't seen yet, But to live there? No, for us there are better choices.
Hiking near Bergamo, Italy.
We did however really enjoy the area near Bergamo. That area we could live in for the hiking and scenery alone. But it's so close to the Switzerland border that it's a little more expensive than we would like. And it's still pretty busy.
France
We didn't see enough of France to be able to come to an informed decision about being able to live there. The weather is decent enough, and there would certainly be enough to see. But we would have to explore the countryside for some time to be able to learn a bit more about the culture and the people and the prices to know what it would be like to spend a long time there.
Morocco
We know right away that we couldn't live there. It is a different country, that's for sure. But the visit itself was fantastic, despite the variety of interesting issues that you encounter. We want to go back there with a motorhome and spend a couple of months seeing it our way. There is a lot worth seeing, that's for sure.
Doorway in Morocco.
Ultimately, we've decided that what we need to do is some more long term motorhoming in Europe and surrounding countries. It's not that easy to do because of visa restrictions, but where there's a will, there's a way. So sometime in the next couple of years we think we might buy a motorhome in Europe and spend a little more time over there.
But in the meantime, we hear Mexico calling us (loudly), and so that's where we're going to spend three months next winter in Sherman!
What about you? Have you found another country you would like to live in?
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We like the lifestyle that we have, works for us, Canada, US, and just getting away from to cold snowy winters, hope to someday explore Europe and Australia .
ReplyDeleteWe love traveling by RV and have decided that if you want to see Europe then doing it in an RV is the best way. I think the same would go for Australia and New Zealand. RVing is definitely our favourite method of travel. :-)
DeleteWe love the UK, France, Portugal and Spain, but doubt we could live anywhere (Canada included) for 12 LONG months at a stretch! While we're mobile and healthy we're much happier being transient and exploring new and different regions and locals. Not even sure we have a favourite, and in our way of thinking that's not a bad thing either. The world is our home and at this stage of our lives that's good enough for us.
ReplyDeleteWe couldn't and don't want to settle in one place for 12 months either, especially at the moment! We love getting out there and exploring everywhere that we can but we also know that one day this will eventually have to come to an end ((hopefully not for a very long time) and that is why we are always on the lookout for somewhere that we would want to live that would check all or at least most of our boxes.
DeleteGlad that you love the life of travel just like us! :-)
I have followed every blog, although don't always comment. Enjoyed this recap, and also share your ultimate love of Mexico - warm winters, proximity, easy lifestyle. Looking forward to your next winter's travels with Sherman!
ReplyDeleteThank you Carol for following along with us. Yes, Mexico is still hands down our favourite country and we are looking forward to getting back there next winter.
DeleteSpain is my number 1 favorite in our 8 months of travelling Europe for a winter place. Like you spanish is easier for us and Costa del Sol is beautiful and warm. Plus lots of places to visit inland to for hiking :) Lyd
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear we are the only ones that think Spain is an almost perfect place to live. Have to say though that the Costa del Sol doesn't thrill us, it is far too busy and touristy for us.
DeleteI love Mexico and we likely will spend part of our winters there down the road, not fulltime because we love living on Vancouver Island which is lovely from April to October and even then usually just rainy (except this past winter which was cold and snowy, the worst winter in many many years). I could also easily live in Spain (Cordoba area appealed to me and was so much warmer, didn't like Madrid at all) and Portugal (all of it!). Those would be my top 3 outside of Canada
ReplyDeleteSounds like us as well! Mexico is certainly our top pick but as you say I think we would have a hard time living there in the summer, even if we were in the mountains. As for living somewhere else in the summer we can think of a number of different countries, such as Portugal, Spain, Romania, Czech Republic or Slovakia and then there are still all the places that we haven't even been to yet that could possibilities. There are so many options out there! :-)
DeleteWe only have been to Mexico once and it was not a pleasant experience however looking forward to your adventures there next winter. We have heard a lot of people say they love Mexico so maybe we need to take another look at it. Enjoy Canada for now and looking forward to meeting you guys sometime soon!
ReplyDeleteSorry that you had an unpleasant experience in Mexico. We have has so many good experiences and love just about everything about Mexico but perhaps it has to do with how we travel and where we travel. I hope that after our travels next winter in Mexico, it will change your mind. :-)
DeleteOther then a trip to the British Isles in 92 the US and Canada are our ports of interest.
ReplyDeleteBe Safe and Enjoy!
It's about time.
As long as you enjoy the way you travel then that is all that matters, there is definitely lots to see in both Canada and the USA. For us we just love seeing what else is out there. :-)
DeletePlaces we could spend a lot of time would include Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, and New Zealand. In that where we live has pretty perfect year round temps (SoCal) I don't see us moving out of country, but if we had to choose our number one it would be New Zealand. Similar language and culture, weak dollar compared to USD, and endless outdoor pursuits amid amazing beauty. We're headed there again in Early 2018. ☺
ReplyDeleteYep, we could definitely spend lots of time in those countries as well, even though we haven't been to Germany and the little bit of France was just enough to tease us.
DeleteYou do live in a wonderful area of California and I can understand you not wanting to move out of the country, mind you we didn't like the traffic around the LA area. For us though it isn't just about the weather or the location but about the cost of living that would be an important factor and that is why we probably wouldn't end up living in Canada or the United States.
We haven't been to New Zealand yet but can't wait to go, it sounds like another place that could be a possibility. Glad to hear that you are heading back to New Zealand, we are just a little jealous. ;-)
I love home and it will always be home....I can visit and live temporarily somewhere else but not permanently.
ReplyDeleteGlad you love home, many people do. The weather and the cost of living for us in Canada would be the two main reasons that we would most likely live else where, at least for part of the year.
DeleteWe were thinking Ecuador might be a place to escape to from our chilly, wet winters in NorCal. To that end, we plan on scoping it out soon. Otherwise, we'll hang around the good ol' US of A. :-)
ReplyDeleteWe have never been to Ecuador but we have heard that it is a popular spot for people from the US. Our problem would be that Ecuador uses the US dollar so that would make things more expensive for us unless the Canadian dollar is strong. We would most likely pick a country that doesn't us the US dollar.
DeleteWe love our home in PA for 8 months of the year and our DE beach cottage for the other 4. Could never move out of the country. Would miss our family too much especially our grandkids. Thanks to you two, we get to see the world!!
ReplyDeleteTraveling isn't for everyone, especially foreign travel. We are glad that you enjoy your time in both Pennsylvania and Delaware, we know how much you love each of them. And, we are glad that we can show you some of the other amazing places in the world, virtually. :-)
DeleteI usually get bronchitis, and last time I flew I got pnuemonia. I would love to go all over the world, but as far as living somewhere, US or Mexico would have to be my choice. The U.S., has such a variety of climates and landscapes, it's perfect for our full-time RV lifestyle. There are many cultural enclaves all over the U.S.
ReplyDeleteI'm envious of your last trip, I'd love to be able experience it. Being mobile however, allows me to experience so much with each areas optimal weather.
Thanks for your blog, it lets me live vicariously through your eyes.
We love hearing all these different reasons and nobody is right or wrong, as long as everyone is happy with their choice and their reason that is all that matters.
DeleteYes, both USA and Mexico have lots to offer and a huge area to cover and for many this is enough to keep them traveling for their entire lives. It is nice to see that you love to also travel outside of this area, even if it is only to go somewhere for a visit. I think for us, Canada also has lots to offer and there is still so much of it that we haven't seen and still want to see but the two biggest factors for us wanting to live somewhere else eventually (not for a long, long time yet!) is the weather and the high cost of living.
So glad that you have been enjoying our adventures! :-)