We've Finally Found Our Ideal Mix of Home and Travel—For Now

Plus a new podcast interview about life after financial independence

Back when we settled into a home in Ontario a few years ago, we didn’t know how all the pieces of our life would fit together. We’d been traveling full time for over four years but we knew that our lifestyle was no longer sustainable. We lived in a new city basically every month, and the amount of planning that 12 months of the year required had become just plain exhausting.

Sure, we had ticked through an impressive number of aspirational destinations and world-famous sights during our years of nomading. But we had also logged more time on customer service calls with airlines and scrolled through more Airbnb listings than we cared to think about. Traveling with our two dogs has also layered additional complexity and worry over top of every flight, hotel stay, and apartment rental.

During our downtime in Medellin or Budapest or wherever we might be, we idly imagined what the concept of “home” might look like for us and, more practically, where in the world it might be located. Certainly after spending more than a decade overseas, first working in Singapore and then traveling the world, we were keen to reconnect with family, friends, and rebuild a sense of community back in Canada. This was especially important to us after years of passing through city after city as anonymous travellers with most of our important relationships all being maintained virtually.

Ready for a home again

Buying a house sight unseen

Much to our surprise, while winding down a month-long stay in Lisbon, our online search netted us the perfect little house in the perfect little village in Canada. Within a few weeks, we were suddenly the owners of a house that we had yet to even see in person. A few weeks after that, we were suddenly re-accumulating all the necessities of a household after having proudly streamlined our previous lives into a couple of suitcases and backpacks.

But just as we settled into our new life as homeowners, that’s when the debate about travel began. Gillian was properly burnt out from our nomadic lifestyle and looking forward to finally having a garden of her own for the first time. I knew I wanted to settle in my new community but also somehow keep exploring the world. Our highly-spirited discussions kicked off a multi-year experiment of trying to find just the right balance between home, adventure, and travel.

The experiment begins

In year one, much to my surprise, Gillian agreed to a springtime hike to Machu Picchu shortly after we set up our new home. Then we had an autumn trip to revisit our favourite parts of Thailand followed by a couple months in our favourite cities in Mexico to wait out the winter. As we returned to Ontario in March and were met with bitter ice storms and record-high piles of snow, we both concluded that future winter getaways would need to be longer than 8 weeks. Fortunately, we were able to escape the final blast of winter by popping over to England for a beautiful hike through the Cotswolds.

A perfect spring in the Cotswolds

The second year as homeowners saw us exploring the country of Georgia and then eventually heading off to the Canary Islands for 11 weeks which almost—but not quite—carried us through the fiercest part of the Canadian winter. Fortunately springtime had already arrived in Japan just in time for our hike across Shikoku Island.

In between these shorter adventures and lengthier travels, we’ve spent the other months of the year rediscovering what it means to have a home. Gillian is at work in her garden most days while I busy myself with volunteer work, including fostering for the local humane society (we’re at one dog, 19 kittens, and a mama cat by last count). We’re also entertaining friends and family on a regular basis and discovering the amazing number of events and festivals that crop up in a village of just 1,000 people. These are all activities that were out of reach to us back when we were traveling full time.

Our latest kitten crew

The winning formula

With almost three years of trial and error out of the way, we’ve finally agreed on the formula that works for us. Summers and autumns are when we want to be at home—at least most of the time. Both seasons are a delight in the countryside and it’s when our village is the most lively.

While winter in Ontario is stunningly beautiful for the first couple of snowfalls, it then becomes a fight against the elements for the subsequent four to five months. This is when we want to be off slow traveling the world with our two dogs, exploring a new destination each year. Meanwhile, the multi-day hiking trips that we love so much slot nicely into springtime and late summer.

Small-town summer

We’ve finally found a rhythm that suits both of us. Now the next challenge is to see how long the current balance between home and travel lasts. We seem to have a talent for completely upending our lives every few years or so…

A conversation about financial independence

I always enjoy sharing the story of our journey from expat life to financial independence to world travel. Most recently, I had a great discussion with Kornel Szrejber of Build Wealth Canada about what happens after you reach your financial goals. We explored the transition from accumulating wealth to spending with confidence, and how Gillian and I structure our finances to support the lifestyle we’ve built. Have a listen to the podcast here. More generally, Kornel’s podcast is a great resource for DIY investors looking to achieve their own financial freedom.

See you on the road,

Stephanie & Gillian