Over ons/onze reis

About half-way through our busy carreers, and after having seen our sons grow up to big boys, an opportunity to take a sabbatical year presented itself. We did not have to think long to seize this opportunity! After much debate, and trying out different routes around the world and different ways of travelling, we finally came up with plan that we are now about to execute. Travelling with a round-the-world-ticket, we will start in Amsterdam and travel to: Cape Town - Bangkok - Singapore - Christchurch - Auckland - Raratonga - Los Angeles - San Francisco. We will enjoy long stays in the southern part of Africa (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Mocambique), South-East Asia (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Maleisia, Singapore) and New Zealand.

Ongeveer halverwege onze drukke carriere, en nadat we onze zoons tot flinke knapen zagen opgroeien, deed zich een kans voor om een jaar met sabbatical te gaan. We hoefden niet lang na te denken om deze kans te grijpen! Na veel overleg, en uitproberen van verschillende routes en manieren van reizen, zijn we uiteindelijk gekomen op het plan dat we nu zullen gaan uitvoeren. We reizen met een rond-de-wereld-vliegticket en doen na Amsterdam de volgende steden aan: Kaapstad - Bangkok - Singapore - Christchurch - Auckland - Raratonga - Los Angeles - San Francisco. We blijven lange perioden in zuidelijk Afrika (Zuid Afrika, Namibië, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique), Zuid-oost Azie (Thailand, Laos, Cambodja, Vietnam, Maleisië, Singapore) en Nieuw Zeeland.

Claudia - Er zijn - be there - im hier und jetzt sein

I worked hard the last years and I always enjoyed it. But there are so many more things in life than just working: doing nothing, reading good books, enjoying a glass of wine with friends, spending time the kids, travelling, following the news, getting engaged in one of the big problems of this world, yoga, cooking, helping others, catching up with family - well, the list could be much longer. The art is to combine a good mixture of all these nice things in your daily life ;-)

That's to come - now I chose together with Peter to step outside the nice comfort zone at home and to discover the world. That is discovering the different cultures on this globe and the different ways of life other people lead. It's exciting; sometimes confronting and surely I will learn more about myself. I am looking to helping Lasse and Sil to understand that "different doesn't mean better or worse". Travelling together as family is as well enjoying special time together because at home there are too many things attracting attention from all of us. Now we spend 4 months together in a jeep (tiny space what I see of it) and the rest of the year in guesthouses. Respect the other and learn how to retreat and relax!

For me it is all about having an open mind and "er zijn" - to be in the moment, with my mind, my body and my emotions. Sounds easy, but can be quite difficult, especially when the situation is a bit awkward or boring. Something to be learned this year. And of course it is about living a wonderful year in another world!

Peter (pehe65@gmail.com) - half of my life is still in front of me; time to reconsider my goals in life. Doing this, whilst discovering part of the world together with my family, is my purpose on this journey. Just living our lives in other - beautiful - places in this world, nothing more, nothing less. Mijn halve leven ligt nog voor mij; tijd om na te denken over wat ik wil in dit leven. Hiermee bezig zijn, en samen met mijn gezin een deel van de wereld ontdekken, is mijn doel deze reis. Gewoon een jaar ons leven leven op andere - mooie - plaatsen op deze wereld. Niet meer, niet minder.

Lasse - I will be travelling around the world because my parents want to see the world. I like it myself because I will discover a lot of the world. Ik ga op wereldreis omdat mijn ouders de wereld willen zien. Zelf vindt ik het leuk  omdat ik dan veel ga ontdekken van de wereld.

Sil - has no choice and has to follow his parents. Heeft geen keus en moet z'n ouders volgen.