1. Why did you decide to do a 6-month trip?

We love to travel and we try to visit a new country every year. Last year we went to Tonga and met several couples around our age and in similar situations who were on a round the world trip (RTW). We talked about doing a RTW of our own but just left it at the thinking stage.

Then, in March, I sent Pearse a link to the BootsnAll RTW trip builder webpage just for fun and we started playing around with it. It’s terribly addictive and the thought of seeing all those amazing places got our travel juices flowing. We quickly decided that this was a thing we wanted to do, could do, and that really it made sense to do it now instead of waiting for some mythical retirement. The next step was to decide how long to go and 6 months made the most sense if we wanted to keep our jobs – which we did. The final step was to decide which region to explore because 6 months is way too short to attempt a true RTW trip. We decided on Southeast Asia because we had been to Thailand before and loved it. The region is also well traveled so it’s easier to get around in.

2. How do you afford to travel for 6 months?

Well, first, we’ve made travel a priority in our lives and have devoted our resources to make it happen. Second, expense is determined by how and where you travel. If you expect to stay in 5 star hotels and take tours everywhere in Western Europe then yes, it is expensive. We travel with one backpack each, not 3 suitcases. We stay in perfectly adequate accommodation but do not need to be pampered. We eat in local restaurants, not at the Hard Rock Cafe. We travel like the locals do - on buses, pick up trucks, boats and various farm animals when necessary. We are also going to one of the cheapest places in the world. Had we chosen Europe instead, we would only be able to afford to go for 2 months.

3. So what's the plan?

Actually, the plan is to plan less. Although we've been known to be flexible we're both more comfortable when we have specific plans, but for different reasons: Pearse is an action junkie and likes to know something new is on the horizon; I am what is known in some circles as "a control freak." I just like to plan. We're trying to get out of these patterns - Pearse has promised to slow down a bit and I have promised to be a bit more spontaneous. We're sure that we're going to revert to type at times, but the goal is to relax and let the journey take us where we're supposed to go. Of course we've been devouring guidebooks and websites for months now and have some idea of what we want to see/do, but we're going to remain flexible. The things we would really like to experience on this trip are: visit Angkor Wat, chill in some villages and UNESCO sites in Laos, learn to dive, trek in some national parks, see wild animals, climb some mountains, taste the national beers, and spend massive amounts of time in hammocks on the beach. The only definites are that we leave Portland on January 9 and fly back on June 22, 2005.

4. What about your jobs?

We have great employers who understand how important this is to us and appear to value us as much as we value them. Once we got through the bureaucracy, everyone was incredibly supportive of us. We should be back to work a few days after we fly in from Bali and we plan to completely bore our co-workers with pictures and stories for at least a month after we get back.

5. Don't you have a house and a dog? What are you doing with them?

Well, paying the mortgage while we're gone was part of our savings goal. Finding someone to take care of Jake was a more difficult issue. We found a couple that will live at the house and take care of Jake while we're gone. They seem nice. In fact, they seem nicer than us. Hopefully Jake will accept us back when we get home.