No Home to a Travel Adventure

How we went from selling our home to a travel adventure on the Iberian peninsula

 

 

We went from restoring a large Victorian with English Gardens to traveling around the Iberian Peninsula for 74 Days.
To many, this may seem like a drastic decision, but this journey started many years ago.

Here is where the journey began.

It all started when we were living in Baltimore. We dreamed of one day traveling around the world. The plan was to retire, put everything in storage and travel for a year. We would talk about where we would go, do we stay in one place for a month and take day trips or do we stay in one place for 4-5 days and keep moving around. The questions were endless and the answers where exciting.

Just when we were ready to start our adventure, the world closed its doors, and we were in a major city during a pandemic. Well, no one knew anything at the time, but we thought that it might be safer to be around less people. Basic math.

On one of our many trips to the Eastern Shore of Maryland, we fell in love with a lovely and forlorn Victorian, in a small town, that was in need of a lot of love, and it had a for sale sign on it. We didn’t give it a lot of thought at the time, because we still thought we would be traveling soon. Then, I got a notice that the price had been reduced. I got excited, Dudley was lukewarm, but decided that we should go look at it so that we (meaning me) could stop thinking about it.

 

 

That is not what happened. We could not stop thinking about it. It just felt right, and we are all about opportunities presenting themselves for a reason. So, we wrote an offer, and it was accepted. We now had a new project and were over the top excited about it. We got it for a ridiculous price because it was in foreclosure. No house in the whole 5 years we lived there sold for less. It was a steal. As luck would have it, the pandemic was still new and the bank holding it panicked and just wanted it off their books.

The other reason we bought this house was the yard. Before moving to the city, I had always had a garden. Growing up I gardened with my grandfather. As an adult I could always find a place for a small vegetable garden, some flowers or plants on a patio. I started to get concerned when food was starting to be difficult to get due to the shipping issues in the city, so growing our own organic food was foremost in my mind.

We closed quickly and then put our home in Baltimore on the market. At this point in the pandemic, buyers were starting to flood the market for larger properties so that they had room to work from home. Our home sold in 4 days for full price. Timing is everything!

Now a new project!! This one was off the charts and would test our limits as designers, planners, project managers, gardeners and as a couple.

After 5 years of devoting ourselves to the preservation of this lovely home, we started to have conversations about what we should do next.

The projects were all done, but there was high maintenance. The yard needed tending, the vegetables needed harvesting and preserving, the lawn needed mowing (what was left of it), and small projects were always popping up. We had little time to do anything other than working around the house. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of satisfaction in a job well done. We loved our home, and I would do it all again, but what about the dreams we had for traveling?

The pandemic fear had abated a couple of years earlier, although it was still at the back of everyone’s minds and would sometimes rear its ugly head. But people were traveling, and we were starting to wonder how we would ever be able to travel with so much work to be done at home.

By then, we were realizing that moving from Baltimore had created some issues. The primary of those was being away from family. We thought that they would come visit, but they have their own lives, and we were also busy. The other reasons were that it was difficult for me to find fresh organic food. In the city we lived close to a MOM’s organic market, a great weekly, year-round, farmer’s market, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. Oh how I miss them!!

Once spoken aloud, it all seemed to make sense. We didn’t leave Baltimore because we didn’t like living there, we loved it. We just wanted a quieter and safer location to ride out the pandemic. So, the search was on.

Meanwhile, the market was getting worse. Everyone was waiting to see if the interest rates would come down and no one wanted to put their house on the market.

Not liking to follow trends, we put our house on the market. Oh, and it was December. No beautiful, blooming flowers to enhance our gardens. And it snowed…twice. The Eastern Shore rarely gets snow and if it does, it is a dusting that is gone the next day. We got almost a foot of snow the first week it was on the market and about the same the second week.

Everything seemed to be against us, but we were not deterred. We decided that this was the time. There was no competition in our price range and if there was anyone out there that was thinking about moving to the area, they were serious, and we stood a good chance of selling it.

Once the professional pictures were taken, the floor plans completed, and the 360 tours ready, we listed the house as Coming Soon for 10days. That meant that no one could view the house but, during that time it would hopefully stir up some interest so that when we listed, agents would have buyers lined up to see it.

Once it changed to For Sale, agents were calling to make appointments. Our agent also had an open house every weekend for 3 weeks with a dozen people each time. And 2 contacts came in together for a bidding war. Yea!!

But, we still don’t have a house to buy.

Now what? This is our chance!! We are going to Europe!! We put everything in storage, signed the papers, and booked a one-way ticket from Baltimore to Lisbon, Portugal. We had no idea where we would go from there, or when we would come back but we knew that it would be an adventure of a lifetime!

We had an agent in Baltimore who was looking for a place for us and 16 days into our trip a house finally came on the market. He toured with us while we were both on WhatsApp, which allowed us to both see each other and tour the home together. Dudley’s daughter went a day later and agreed that this is what we were looking for. So, we wrote an offer, it was accepted and closing set.

At this point, we could go home, but that meant staying at an Airbnb in Baltimore for 66 days! The cost of rentals in Baltimore is much higher than just continuing on our journey. And, when would we every get this chance again. So, we continued on, traveling the Iberian Peninsula for a total of 74 days.

We started our journey in Sintra, Portugal, then Lisbon, then on to Marrakech, Morocco. Then we flew to Madrid, next Frigiliana, and Nerja, in Spain. Then back to Frigiliana for 2 weeks where we are now. It is by far our favorite place, and we needed a break from packing, unpacking, figuring out where we can get what we need and then repeating every few days. Next, we will be going to Malaga, Spain, Cordoba, Seville then back to Madrid where we will fly back to Baltimore and the next phase of our lives as we settle into a home we have never actually seen and make it our own.

I have learned a lot from my experiences but the thing that repeatedly is obvious is that if a plan is not working, it is the wrong plan. So, if I think a move to one area is right but nothing becomes available, maybe I need to rethink the plan. If we are holding off selling waiting for the right house, maybe we should sell now and go to Europe. Who knows! We have learned that a fulfilled journey means taking calculated risks. We consider all the options that might work and even some that may not, but sound interesting. We then think them all through no matter how crazy they may seem then just pick one and go for it. If not now, when!

For us it was simple. No mortgage, no car payments, no utility bills, what better time to travel!

Typical day in Frigiliana, Spain. The street musician with the guitar sings Spanish ballads outside our little cottage everyday and his friends stop to eat their lunch and enjoy. Donkeys are still used to get stone up and down the mountain, through the village.

I don’t want to look back on my life and think of opportunities that I never explored. I would rather make a mistake and gain an experience than to not experience at all. Think of all the lovely sights, the fabulous food, and the amazing memories you may be missing.

Whenever we are stuck trying to decide whether or not we should do something, Dudley always says,” What is the worst that can happen?” You would be surprised how often the answer to that question will free you.

 

So, what opportunities are out there for you? Write them all down. What is the worst that can happen?

Enjoy your journey,

Marion