The Story So Far
If you’ve just arrived and want to know the backstory to this adventure, check out the posts we link to below. Or you can skip ahead to Quito using the link in the upper right hand corner of this post.
Since this blog first launched in November 2007, subscribers to this site have:
- Met the James family.
- Learned how they decided to take this trip.
- Listened as Craig confronted rational and irrational fears.
- Heard Dani, Caroline and Conor’s hopes and fears about traveling the world for a year.
- Discovered their reluctance to tell anyone about their adventure.
- Found out their initial and final plans for roadschooling their kids.
- Applauded the launch of Caroline and Conor’s blog offering their unique (and unedited) perspective.
- Laughed at Dani’s meditation on travel underwear.
- Identified all the ways a person could follow the James family journey on the web.
- And finally, learned about the ambitious itinerary planned for the year ahead.
Read these posts and you’ll have a pretty good understanding of what led us to this point. Or, skip the backstory and just enjoy the travelogue. Either way, we’re glad you stopped by.
Last night I was doing some final packing, shuffling favorites on my iPod. Just as I was about to call it quits for the evening, a Bruce Springsteen song put the trip in perspective for me:
Now all that’s sure on the boulevard
Is that life is just a house of cards
As fragile as each and every breath
Of this child sleeping in our bed.
.
Tonight let’s lie beneath the eaves
Just a close band of happy thieves
And when that train comes we’ll get on board
And steal what we can from the treasures of the Lord.
.
Next stop: Quito.
11 comments
Good luck and godspeed. I hope the trip gets off to an excellent start. Can’t wait to hear about the adventures from the road.
All The Best.
I’ve got butterflies in my tummy for you!
good luck in quito and I look forward to a meet up in bangkok!!
Best wishes for your trip!! Looking forward to reading about your adventures.
Dear Craig and family…best of luck on your adventure.
I will be checking in regularly to read and look at great shots.
By the way Craig, you’re getting pretty good with that camera.
Coffee table book maybe?
Bon Voyage!
Wa-hoo! Have fun and don’t look back!!!
Not that you don’t already have tonnes (that’s metric) of stuph on your plate, but I heartily encourage you to set up a “friends” blog. That way, the all important link with friends and family back in North America is a valuable two way street rather than disjointed comments on your individual posts. Ours was rather poorly contributed to considering the talkative e-mails we received individually. (http://friends.jamesworld.ca ) It was still nice to just pop in their every few days or so and check when there wasn’t enough time to make a post of our own.
In the interests of putting $ where my mouth spouts, I’ll even be happy to volunteer to co-moderate it for ya, and keep track of spam posters and such…
In the summer we have Adventure Saturdays, when the kids and I are contractually obligated to do one thing we’ve never done before. It keeps me from sliding into an entirely custodial role. And every Friday it takes me forever to choose our adventure and every Saturday evening I’m exhausted and half the Saturdays at least someone is unhappy with the experience. So I marvel and admire that you have undertaken an entire Adventure Year.
Usually for me there is a moment on a successful Saturday when I think, There it is, the point at which it was worth the trouble (Noah spots six frogs on a log; Jesse whispers to me that the play is “awesome”). I wish for you moments like that every single day. And I look forward to reading about them.
Bon Voyage, James family – have an excellent adventure! 🙂
Thanks for all the help & inspiration you’ve given us – we’ll be eagerly awaiting updates!
hi guys! are you in quito yet? how long were you in miami for? have fun!
Kinky Friedman once said that all great novels have one of two plots: A man goes on a journey –a stranger comes to town.
You hardy band of wanderers have set out on an adventure that will cover both –so keep good notes and have strong memories.
Travel safe and full of fun —I’m both jealous and eager to read about every minute.
All the best —
Ken
Hello James Family,
Found your site tonight… and realized that you are on your way as I type this! Amazing… As I look around I see links to site that I have followed for a long time, and references to A map for Saturday – My favorite Docu. The timing is impeccable!
I ‘m so excited to be following along, I also have two kids(5) and a wife, and dream about RTW travel like this all the time. I will be very interested to hear how it goes with the kids.
I have so many questions… but I’ll save those for later…
My Best wishes for a wonderful journey… and just have fun!
Cheers, Skip