2022
I retired at the end of 2021, and shortly thereafter set off to travel the world. 10 months later, I returned to Austin, Texas, after stops along the way in Portugal, Spain, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Turkey, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. My first stop was Porto, PT in January, and I loved it so much that Holly and I rendezvoused there again in May.
2023
Holly and I spent most of February in Ecuador, loving the mountain-top life in Cuenca, and the beach front life in Puerto Lopez. Then I returned to South East Asia in mid-June, with big plans but little success as three previously-quiet ruptured discs in my back went on a rampage that all but crippled me. I returned home in August and, and ultimately had seven hours of surgery in early December to repair my back and get me on my feet again.
2024
After six months of recovery, I was more than ready to hit the road again. I returned to Asia in mid-May, and then spent the next seven months seeing old friends and favorite places in Chiang Mai, Da Nang, and Hanoi, and finding new favorite places throughout Thailand, and in Luang Prebang, Laos, and Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia. Holly joined me for almost a month of fantastic stops in Thailand and Laos, and my back remained utterly painless all year long. I returned to the USA, in all of its post-election hell glory in mid-December, and immediately started plotting a semi-permanent return to Thailand with Holly for 2025.
2025
I returned to Chiang Mai in early May, and set to work obtaining my Thai retirement visa which will allow me to stay in the country indefinitely, and finding a home in Chiang Mai. As of Memorial Day, both efforts are proceeding well: I’ve rented a lovely house on a quiet street close to the Old City that I’ll move into on July 1st, and I should have my retirement visa in hand the same month. After which, I’ll just sit back and wait for Holly to join me in August or September, paving the way for what we hope will be years of happy ex-pat life.