The Hamori family sold off their life in White Rock, Canada, down sized to 2 suitcases each and flew across the Ocean to Budapest, Hungary. From there they bought a Mercedes Viano Camper Van with a pop top sleeper, and planned to travel around Europe looking for a B&B, to start living a life based on Time Currency. A new life that focuses on their children, learning a new language as a family, and adapting to a new culture. Looking for months online for a place in South France, here they are three months into their family adventure and what have they learned?
1.Happiness Comes from Within
No matter where we are in the world, each day we decide to be happy or not. It is a choice to either wake up ready for the day’s adventure or let the thought of the unknown bog you down. We all have our days, and on a life style change as big as this one, even one as fun as this, we will have our ‘not so shiny’ moments. I remind myself to keep an eye on the prize.
2. Kids Don’t Care How Much Things Cost
At least my kids don’t have a clear understanding of the prices of things, and if you take them to the beach or to an expensive Marineland amusement park, they will have the same amount of fun. It is the time we spend together and the little things that matter most to children.
3. Our Family Needs their Down Time
Not matter where we are in the world, as exciting a place may be, our family needs rest. And the travel time in the van doesn’t count. For us, the time on the road is exhausting, and uncomfortable. We like to rest once we get to a new location, and really absorb the area, have a good night’s sleep or better yet two night’s sleep before moving onward. Recharging your battery, getting comfortable in a new bed, getting their toys out to play, taking a few moments to return the hundreds of email we receive each day, are all very important during downtown.
4. Healthy Living is a Must
There is nothing worse than feeling sick on the road. Keeping our health up, eating right and exercising daily is just as important as it was at home. Long-term travel doesn’t mean a vacation from health. Grabbing the healthy alternative is always what we teach our children, giving a good example to what a healthy lifestyle looks like.
5. Your Child’s Nature Doesn’t Change on Vacation
Our children didn’t miraculously change into fearless adventures, where we all love to travel. No, our ideas of adventure are very different. I love to learn about the next area before we get there, a little history, and know where all the ancient ruins and churches are located. Alfonz loves to explore, less prepared and discover things more organically, by feeling and touching and learning hands on. Angelina likes to play in playgrounds and play with children younger than her, and make new friends. Daniel loves to jump into the Ocean or River, turn over each rock and explore the area, looking for what insects and animals live there. I don’t feel good unless we are prepared for the adventure, where the others don’t care if they don’t have a towel after swimming, or a change of clean clothes. I am constantly reminded of the biggest obstacle on this journey, my own nature! I can wish I was more spontaneous, but I like to feel organized. No amounts of travel or change will ever shake my core nature. I need to embrace all our differences while we explore.
I can only hope someone might find these lessons helpful along their own journey! Alfonz keeps reminding me that we are not on vacation, we are on a journey to find something. It won’t always be easy, and sometimes exhausting and we are changing during this process while we learn so many new and wonderful things.
Gabi, Great to meet you! Panama wow! The first thing my husband Alfonz said while reading this, is our money would go a lot farther in Colombia! We will visit your site today, and I encourage our 3000 readers to do the same! So many amazing families out there, travelling with kids, thinking outside the box. Love it!
hey guys. i love this post. marvelous. i must say your five insights perfectly fit our family as well. We’re now entering month 9 on the road and we’re just arrived last night in Taganga, Colombia. Today, I really wanted to go explore this fisherman town; but, no. The kids unanimously announced that they just wanted a day to rest, to hang out in the new house and breathe. They took out their toys from the car (which they haven’t seen a couple of weeks (because we shipped the car from Panama to Colombia) and happily played for hours.
I’d love to interview you when you have the chance! Come visit our site at thenomadicfamily.com. We’re similar in many marvelous ways.
enjoy friends
gabi
Laura, I wish everyone would share their experiences with us. It is very helpful, thank you!
It is always nice to know we are on the right track with our kids.
🙂
I love observation #5! I lived in London with my son and travelled a lot with him and his father. When he was 3 he was dragged to Venice, Budapest, Paris, Tuscany and Rome. At that age, it would often upset his father, but I knew he couldn’t handle adult museums all the time. I’d make sure we found local playgrounds or botanical gardens where he could turn over rocks, look for snails and meet other kids. It’s essential to cater to the children’s needs too when traveling. An added bonus to this, is that you typically get emerged in the culture so much more and meet other families. Between the ages of 4 and 6 my son and I travelled to Paris again, Spain, south of France, Milan, Switzerland and the best times with him were when we took time outs from all the hectic museums and sight seeing. It’s only fair to take their needs into consideration.
Best of luck to you and your family!
Laura
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