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Questions and Answers We love receiving questions from people -- whether they are armchair travelers or world explorers. We’ve even had questions from our own parents! Please be aware that these questions and responses were from the year 2006. In some cases, we have changed the way we do things. If you have questions of us, please send them to mail@TwoGypsies.com. Q&A Q: You are moving your headquarters? What’s the deal? Q: Do you have any actual plans for new Expedition adventures? Q: Hey, you guys. For a long time you were in jungles in the world’s far reaches. Now you are living a comfortable life in the USA. Are your foreign travels over? A: Good question, W.J. -- one we’ve been asking ourselves. Actually, the Expedition slowed a bit last year with the death of Don’s father, and extensive surgery on Don’s spine. Then along came Don’s former boss, Senator Al Simpson of Wyoming (retired), who asked Don to write his biography. Initially reluctant, he decided to take on that huge project, and has been writing daily for six months. Even though more than 600 pages are in draft, many months of intense research and writing remain. Our relocation to Red Lodge, Montana will give us a quiet life in a beautiful location to finish the draft, and help Don’s ailing mother in nearby Livingston as he can. Then, to answer your question, we’ll be refocusing on new destinations. We purchased a place in Montana that will be easy to leave for months at a time, since all maintenance is provided. Currently we are considering more travels in southeast Asia, where we have already spent a great deal of time, or in South America. Thanks again for your question. We’ll be posting updates, and we solicit suggestions as to future Expedition adventures. Q: According to your website, you two have been traveling six and a half years. Yet, you don’t have jobs. How can you suggest that the average person do what you are doing, if you are rich and they aren’t? A: We have always contended it doesn’t take that much money to travel, although it depends where you are traveling. You’ll notice that other than Portugal, we have spent no time in Europe. That’s because of the expense. We have, however, spent many months all over SE Asia. Not only is it much less expensive there, it’s an area we continue to be fascinated with. But you are right. You can’t do what we do without money. We are lucky in that Don worked in the Senate long enough to qualify for an early retirement. That monthly pension isn’t huge, but it’s enough to make ends meet. We also have income from investments made during decades of hard work. Right now, Don is working hard on the draft of his biography of Senator Alan K. Simpson, for whom he worked eighteen years. He has uncovered some fascinating information and believes there is a chance we’ll make some money on book sales. That is at least a year away. If nothing else, it ought to get people’s attention. There aren’t many biographies about famous people that begin with their blowing up buildings. In terms of what it costs to travel and live in foreign countries, the biggest expense is getting there. We have made numerous trips to Asia in business class, since we never knew when the next medical emergency with Don’s parents would require a swift return. With business class, it’s possible to catch a flight quickly, and at no additional expense. When we lived in Mexico early in our adventures, we rented an apartment in La Penita for $260 per month. In Thailand, we leased a large townhouse in a gated community in Kanchanaburi (near the famous bridge over the River Kwai) for $160 per month, plus electricity. While traveling in Canada’s Yukon and all over Alaska, we lived in a small camper that we pulled everywhere, and then sold to a dealer in Salt Lake City for a very good price. We have made decisions in life that free up both time and money. For example, we decided not to have children. Some people think we’re nuts for that. Others recognize how nice it is to not be tied down. We can go anywhere we want, any time, without worrying about children or pets. Still, we know we are very fortunate to have a steady income, and the prospect of book sales. We have stretched ourselves thin buying a home on the golf course in Red Lodge, Montana, but we did it in a way that will still allow us to travel to distant places for long periods of time. Q: I stumbled on your website tonight (6-25-06) and spent hours reading, with wonder and admiration, all you have accomplished starting with your time in LaPenita. My granddaughter is the only gringa in the LaPenita school system. She lives in Rincon with her parents who sold everything in Sedona, Arizona and moved to the beach last year. I live in San Miguel de Allende in the state of Guanajuato in the summer and move to my house in Rincon for the winter. Your work in Thailand reduced me to tears. I spent 2 months there in 2000. I cannot tell you how grateful I am to know there are people like you in this world. I was aware of the situation in Burma but not to the extent you wrote of. I would be happy to contribute whatever money I can to anything you are involved in and will check your site often. Direct Contributions: Thank you, P.S. for offering to help. We hope many others follow your lead. Q: You are moving your headquarters? What’s the deal? A: Indeed. After Don’s father died we slowed our pace to help his mother and brothers with things. While in Arizona liquidating property, we came to appreciate the advantages of operating the Expedition from a static location. We began looking for our own headquarters, and fell in love with Red Lodge, Montana. We bought a home/headquarters there and began collecting personal items we had left in storage in numerous locations throughout the USA. As 2006 ends, we are just about ready to announce permanent residence in Montana. However, this does not mean our travels are over. Q: Do you have any actual plans for new Expedition adventures? A: Indeed we do. Knowing that Don would be needing another back operation, we decided to undertake a whirlwind visit to Asia -- two months visiting the best of everything we had seen before. We figured it best to do that soon, in case of surgery problems. Unfortunately, Don encountered a new (but related) back problem and after several days in two different emergency rooms, new surgery was performed on Sunday, December 17, in Bozeman, Montana. He is working hard to recover, in order that we can still depart for Asia on January 21, 2007. Our plans for that trip include southern Thailand, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, north-central Laos along the Mekong River in Laos, and Kathmandu, Nepal. We have spent months working on arrangements and very much hope they don’t have to be canceled. |
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