Best Foods of the Trip

1. Babi Guling (Suckling Pig): Warung Ibu Oka - Ubud, Bali
2. Sweet Bambi & Big Al: Fergburger - Queenstown, New Zealand
3. Pork Dumplings: Street Stall - Luang Prabang, Laos
4. Meat Feast: Mac Dario - Panzano, Italy
5. Pastries: Le Boulanger de Monge - Paris, France
6. Kokoda: Nadi Beach Resort - Nadi, Fiji & Foodgame - Nelson, NZ
7. Pancetta-Ricotta Pasta: Le Mani in Pasta - Rome, Italy
8. Shrimp Wontons: Lan An Street Stall- Hoi An, Vietnam
9. Mango Sticky Rice: Sailomjoy - Chiang Mai, Thailand
10. Roast Pig: Roadside Restaurant - Ribnik, Croatia
11. BBQ Chicken and Beef Liver: Various street stalls - Bangkok, Thailand
12. Green Curry with Sticky Rice: Sailomjoy - Chiang Mai, Thailand
13. Chicken Tikka: Wee Curry House - Glasgow, Scotland
14. Grilled Alpaca Tenderloin: 2 Nations - Cusco, Peru
15. Pad Thai: Any Street Stall - Thailand
16. Tapas: Madmonk - Fremantle, Australia
17. Korean Pancakes: Corner Pancake - Auckland, New Zealand
18. White Bratwurst: Any Market - Bavaria, Germany
19. Fish Cake: The Fishmonger - Auckland, New Zealand
20. NZ Green Mussels: Various locations - New Zealand
21. Chinese Jerky: Chinatown Market - Singapore
22. Yak Cheese: Namche Grocery - Namche Bazar, Nepal
999. Vegemite: Australia & New Zealand

Around the World in 418 Days

We've been home for just over a month now. Although it took awhile, we're slowly adjusting to life back in the good old USA. After being about as close to perfectly healthy as you can get for the past year, we both promptly got sick with colds/flus as soon as we got home. Minor health issues aside, it’s been nice to spend some time in Minnesota.

In between searching for jobs and visiting family/friends we've been trying to reflect on the past 14 months of traveling as much as we can....

Some of our favorites:

• Best Scenery: Nepal & Switzerland
• Best Surfing: Morocco
• Best Fishing: New Zealand
• Best Food: Thailand
• Best Beer: Belgium
• Best Wine: Chile
  

Other Random Thoughts:

• Most like the US: Australia
• Least like the US: Nepal & Tanzania
• Most Overrated Places: Dubrovnik, Croatia & Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany
• Most Underrated Places: Slovenia & Laos
• Best Places You’ve Never Heard of: Luang Prabang, Laos; Piran, Slovenia; Namche Bazar, Nepal; Amed, Bali; Mostar, Bosnia-Herzogovina; Nera River Valley, Italy

The Rest of the Numbers:

• Total Days Gone: 418
• Countries visited: 39
• Most Time in one Country: 71 days (New Zealand)
• Times across the equator: 8
• Number of Pictures Taken: 5,029
• Number of Flights: 30
• Miles Flown: 52,269
• Miles Driven: 26,786
• Miles of Gravel Roads Driven in Patagonia: 1,452
• Surf Sessions: 54
• Number of Countries Surfed: 11
• Broken Surfboards: 2
• Fishing Sessions: 100
• Fish caught: 443
• Fish caught & ate: 39
• Most days without a shower: 12
• Lions seen on safari: 57
• Feet above sea level for Kili: 19,344
• Miles walked in one day: 25
• Regrets: 0

Six Months in a Van…..

Total Days Gone: 418

Total Days Living in a Van: 188
Free, “Renegade” Van Camping: 173
Paid, Van Camping: 15

Days in Hotels: 102
“Cheap” Hotels: 91
“Nice” Hotels: 8
Hostels: 3

Free Accommodations: 83
Staying at Friends & Strangers Houses: 67
Hotels w/ Family & Friends: 16

Days Tent/Hut Camping: 33
Paid, Hut Camping: 17
Paid, Tent Camping: 13
Free, “Renegade” Tent Camping: 3

Overnight Traveling: 10
Overnight Flights: 7
Overnight Bus Trips: 2
Overnight Boat Rides: 1

Gear We Love

After spending 14 months circling the globe, living out of our backpacks for the entire year, we've developed a deep appreciation for reliable, quality gear. From the mountains of Nepal to the jungles of SE Asia, from the deserts of Africa to the cosmopolitan streets of Europe, the clothes and gear we brought with us were put through every test you could imagine.

Here are a few of our favorite items, those indispensable things we would've been lost without...

Patagonia R1 Flash Pullovers:

Warm, comfortable, and stylish, great on it's own or under an outer layer...it's the perfect travel shirt.

Sporting our R1's at the top of Gokyo Ri in Nepal, with Mt. Everest in the background:

Patagonia Morning Glory Dress:

As Patagonia says, "When onshore winds blow out your morning surf session, pull this irrepressible dress out of your pack and head to town"....or do as we did and head out fishing.

Searching for dinner off the coast of Zuljana, Croatia:

Petzel Tikka Plus Headlamps:

Small, light, indestructible, bright, and a super-long battery life. Enough said.

Exploring the caves north of Chiang Mai, Thailand:

Custom Patagonia Capilene Sleeping Bag Liner:

A little extra warmth with our down sleeping bags in the cold, great on it's own in the warm weather, and perfect for keeping those nasty bed bugs and who-knows-what-else away in cheap Asian hotels.

Buck X-Tract Knife:

A great, sharp blade for everything from filleting fish to slicing cheese plus screw drivers, pliers and a can opener....all you'll ever need, and nothing you don't need, right in the palm of your hand.

Cleaning a kahawai caught from the empty surf on the west coast of New Zealand's South Island:

Patagonia Continental Pants and Shorts (for him):

Two weeks trekking in Nepal, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, touring Paris, or to cover up in the Muslim countries...these pants went through it all and look exactly like the day we bought (okay, got them for free) from Patagonia.

When Dustin wasn't wearing his continental pants, there was a very good chance he was in the continental shorts. A durable, quick drying do-it-all pair of shorts that don't look too "backpackerish".

Covered up while exploring the shorts-aren't-appropriate streets of Marrakesh, Morocco:

Trying not to freeze at the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro:

Surf fishing in New Zealand while sporting the perfect travel shorts:

Enjoying an ice cold Beer Lao Dark on the streets of Luang Prabang: