• Backpack issues

    Meanwhile in Arnhem … We can hardly wait, the travel virus rages through our bloodstream, but unfortunately there is nothing left to do but countdown and patiently wait. Because we really want to prepare something, anything… we decide to pack our bags, see if everything fits. Big fun! We happily put all our stuff on the bed to get a good picture of what we have collected. We distribute the electronics and roll all our clothes neatly in a packing cubes. (more about that later) Then we put everything in our backpack. Or so I try. Arnhem we have a problem, I want to take too much stuff or my backpack is too small backpack. Shit. My bag is an Osprey Farpoint 40, fantastic thing, but 6 liters smaller than Jos’ pack. 6 milk cartons! That’s a lot. We critically…

  • For the love of layers

    It may be a little early, but we are already thinking about what we will take with us on our long journey. That seems very complicated, and yes, I can tell you… it is. We have a target weight of 9 kilos and don’t want to take too much unnecessary ‘what if’ junk. We do not want to be cold, want to be able to hike ánd take beautiful pictures. Warm clothing, walking shoes and a good camera are certainly included. How are we going to take warm sweaters? They are thick and take a lot of our precious space… During our holidays we often take no more than 6.5 kilos, so now 9 kilos is already luxury. We leave the warm clothing at home for most holidays, swimsuit and creditcard are usually sufficient, ghehehe 😉 Merino sheep with one…

  • Gimme some shots

    Here they are, 408 Malarone tablets for a Malaria free worldtrip. Well in time, you could say… we just couldn’t wait 😉 Last week we received our vaccinations and decided to also order the Malaria tablets as well. After I finally found our yellow vaccination books we made an appointment with ‘Thuisvaccinatie’ (vaccination at home) for Friday afternoon between 14:00 and 18:00. Very convenient in your own home, but that time in the week is asking for trouble. And yes our prayers were answered, the needle lady calls us at six after a long afternoon of waiting that she is in a traffic jam. Sigh… well, wait some more. When she finally arrives at a quarter to seven she does not seem to have all the vaccines with her. Although we never had problems with ‘Thuisvaccinatie’ before, this was a…

  • A passport for free

    Checking off something on our list of preparations; Jos has a new passport! A straight face for the picture and then with a big smile to the town hall. The lady at the desk had questionmarks all over the place, your passport is still valid for one and a half year mister. Oh really?! It was hardly a dilemma. We don’t want any trouble with a different passport number on our flight booking or visa, so we’ve decided to replace the passport now. The new passport will be valid for 10 years, so we can continue traveling for a long time. And, because there’ll be many stamps *smirk* we need enough space, so Jos now has a big fat thick business passport just like me with 64 virgin pages for no more than a Euro a piece. Nah, bargain for…