• A beach with palm trees and thatched umbrellas
    Nomad Life

    June 2024 Recap: Tenerife, Canary Islands

    Wind and Whim contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, we will earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks! Hello! I hope you’re enjoying your summer. After three months in England, Steve and I were ready for some serious sunshine. We found it on the Island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. We…

  • The front of the Thunderbird Inn in Savannah
    Nomad Life

    Wind and Whim Update: January and February 2024

    Greetings from London, where Steve and I have spent the last seven weeks waiting for nice weather. I hope wherever you are, spring is already working its magic. We ended 2023 by spending Christmas with our daughters, Steph and Laura (aka the girls), and Steph’s roommate, Jeff, in Jacksonville, Florida. It was the first time we’ve been together at Christmas…

  • The Colosseum
    Nomad Life

    Wind and Whim’s Monthly Update: November 2023

    Hi there! Can you believe 2023 is almost over? I hope you are enjoying this festive time of year and looking forward to memorable holiday celebrations. Steve and I are anticipating Christmas with our daughters in Jacksonville, Florida. November was a most unusual month for us. We spent the first three weeks in Kotor, Montenegro, and the last week in…

  • Two churches
    Nomad Life

    Wind and Whim’s Monthly Update: October 2023

    Hi there, and happy November. Steve and I spent most of October in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, and then moved on to Kotor, Montenegro, at the end of the month. We had a low-key month in Podgorica, but Kotor should be busier since there is more to do. Even though we weren’t as active in October as usual, that’s…

  • The New Bazaar in Tirana
    Nomad Life

    Wind and Whim’s Monthly Update: September 2023

    Hi! I hope you had a great September. Ours was quiet, which is sometimes a good thing. And now, here we are in October, and it’s time for another monthly update. Steve and I spent most of September in Tirana, Albania. Since we had just come from Skopje, North Macedonia, Albania’s neighbor to the east, we couldn’t help comparing these…

  • A fountain in Skopje
    Nomad Life

    Wind and Whim’s Monthly Update: August 2023

    Hi there! Can you believe it’s September already? The summer has been flying by for us, but we’re having fun. I hope you are, too. Steve and I started August with two nights in Brasov, Romania, and spent the remainder in Skopje, North Macedonia. Check out this monthly update to see our August highlights and low points, what we did,…

  • Peles Castle, Sinaia, Romania
    Nomad Life

    Wind and Whim’s Monthly Update: July 2023

    Hi there! It’s time for another monthly update. I hope you are surviving the summer heat. Steve and I spent most of July in Bucharest, Romania, where it was hot but, thankfully, not too humid. Even so, we didn’t do as much as planned since we were lazy about getting out before the days got too hot. We enjoyed four…

  • People on a street in Florence, Italy
    Nomad Life

    Overtourism in the Places We Love

    Do you dream of riding a gondola on Venice’s Grand Canal, visiting the Game of Thrones filming locations in Dubrovnik, or getting a little wild in Amsterdam? If so, you aren’t alone. These places ignite our wanderlust. They have something else in common; they, and many others, are overtouristed. So how do we reconcile our desire to experience the places…

  • Collage of people traveling with their adult children
    Nomad Life

    9 Reasons Why Traveling with Adult Children Rocks

    Adult children. I believe that is an oxymoron. But what else can you call them? They are your children, your kids, your babies, all grown up and running their own lives. You may live with them, see them regularly, or not very often. Whatever your situation, I ask you: now that they’ve evolved into self-sufficient beings, should you travel with…

  • Water and palm trees at sunset
    Nomad Life

    Back to the U.S. (For One Month)

    More than three years. Almost 38 months. 1,146 days. That’s how long it was between our last visit to the U.S. and our recent one in March of 2023. As the months and years rolled by, Steve and I were less and less interested in returning home. Aside from our daughters being there, we had little motivation to return. Then…

  • Man and woman looking out over a plain (by Melanie Silberberg on Unsplash.com)
    Nomad Life

    The Surprising Truth About Full-Time Travel

    Come on. Admit it. I bet you’ve dreamt about chucking it all and traveling full-time. And I bet those dreams were full of jaw-dropping experiences, sunshiny beaches, and endless smiles. Like most things in life, the reality doesn’t always match the fantasy. With almost five years of full-time travel under our belts, Steve and I are here to share the…

  • A Christmas tree at the Szechenyi Baths
    Nomad Life

    December 2021 Recap: Christmas in Budapest

    Goodbye 2021, hello 2022!  I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and are ready to start the new year. Like me, I’m sure you are hoping that 2022 will bring an end to the pandemic and a return to normal.  Despite an increase in Covid cases, our December was remarkable. That is because our daughters, Stephanie and Laura, visited…

  • Hugo Boss store in Budapest decorated for Christmas
    Nomad Life

    November 2021 Recap: Lying Low in Budapest

    Hi there! I hope this finds you well as we enter the last month of 2021. If you are a regular reader, you know that Steve and I enjoyed a summer full of activity, including visiting many baths and taking several side trips from our current home base in Budapest. Then November arrived. Not only did November bring colder weather,…

  • Thousands of people walking on the road in Budapest
    Nomad Life

    July 2021 Recap: Living Life Again

    It’s been a long haul for all of us, and it isn’t over yet, but at least life has begun to return to normal. After almost eight months of lockdowns and slowdowns, we are living life again. I hope you are also returning to your pre-pandemic life. Here is what we’ve been doing this month. We Keep Getting More Legal…

  • Toy medical professionals
    Nomad Life

    Medical Care on the Road

    One of the biggest concerns people contemplating long-term travel have is handling medical care on the road. I am not going to sugarcoat it: it can be a challenge. And if the pandemic has taught us anything, it is that no matter how well-laid your plans are, something will come along to mess them up. After more than three years…

  • Flags of many nations along Panama Bay
    Nomad Life

    Too Many Languages

    Many years ago, I was picking out pastries in a bakery in Paris with my older daughter Stephanie. When the clerk pointed to a pastry, I confidently replied, “por favor.” My daughter quietly said, “Mom, that’s Spanish.” Looking back, I wondered if this error was a harbinger of things to come. Too Many Countries, Too Many Languages Steve and I…

  • Computer and note about failure and success
    Nomad Life

    Oops! Did We Do That? Our Biggest Travel Mistakes

    As Steve and I prepared to travel full-time, we knew that we would make mistakes. Fortunately, we have been able to keep them to a minimum, partly due to luck, partly due to the graciousness of others, and partly because we spent more than half a year under lockdown. Here are the biggest travel mistakes and near-misses we had during…