We have news! Yesterday we booked one-way airline tickets. We are leaving Panama on December 6. But don’t let that fool you into thinking we are done with our international adventures. We are headed to Cancun, Mexico!
We don’t know many people who have stuck to the original plan they laid out for themselves. Things happen, you have new experiences, you meet people who tell you about different things. And somehow a new plan just unfolds in front of you. Our original plan was to live in Panama for 2 years and then return to the USA in time for Haley to enter high school. Yeah, not happening.
It wasn’t long after we got here that our conversations started to change. Instead of saying “When we return to the USA…” it became “IF we return to the USA…”. When Dan discovered that we pay no state or federal income taxes when we remain out of the USA for 335 days of the year, he was sold! Oh, and we were having much too good of a time to go back to the comforts of home. We started reading about other families who travel and pretty soon our “let’s go there” list grew very long.
So we’ve decided to travel for awhile. At this point our plan is to go to the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. We’ll stay for at least 4 months – long enough for a visit from some of our family/friends: Dan’s sister, my mom, my sister and kids, etc. This area of Mexico is also a great launching pad for exploring the nearby areas: Belize, Guatemala, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Cuba, Turks and Caicos, etc. There’s a long list of places we want to see.
Once we are done in Mexico we will explore more of Central and South America. Our plan is to stay in Spanish speaking countries for awhile longer in order for the girls to continue their Spanish language learning. We will enroll them in language schools wherever we go and perhaps public schools if the situation is right. We’ll continue to educate them at home and on the go. It’s called “Worldschooling”. It’s a thing, really! Look it up.
After Central and South America we have plans to head to Europe. Then Asia and Africa. Then maybe we’ll return to the USA? Or not. Or maybe we’ll grow tired of the schedule and come back earlier. Or maybe we’ll find a favorite spot outside of the USA that we want to call home. Who knows! Haley has no interest in returning to public school. Zoe might enjoy traditional high school, which will start in 2020 for her. So we’ve got lots of time to decide what we want to do and where we want to do it.
But for now it’s time to enjoy, but close out, our last 3 months in Panama. We need to pare down our stuff we have acquired here, pare down our storage units in the USA, and begin planning for an indefinite future as nomads.