The Chamborres Expedition

The circle is now complete. We have made our way fully around the world: from the USA to Europe to Asia to Australia & New Zealand to South America. We are now on the last segment of our round-the-world trip. The time difference between home and our current location is now only a few hours. We are fully settled into our life as nomads. So now what?

When we set off on this expedition on January 16^th, 2012, our initial plan was to travel for one year. We are happy to report that we are running behind schedule and will be able to extend our travels for a few more months, which is a good thing as it will give us at least four months in the Americas. It does feel a bit like the beginning of the end, but we are trying with every fiber in our bodies to resist that sensation.

Last week we boarded a flight from Auckland, New Zealand to Santiago, Chile. It was a first-hand experience in time travel. We left at 4:00pm, spent 11 hours in the air, yet landed in Chile on the same day but around 11:00am. Meaning that we arrived before we even took off from New Zealand! That was pretty awesome. For us November 12^th, 2012 will go down as the longest day in history.

This continent jump, unlike the previous two, is a step back into a familiar place. We have both been to South America before, and the first country on our itinerary this time around is Chile, where Mike studied abroad in 2005. We have been in Chile for just over a week now, and despite the changes that naturally occur over seven years, Mike still feels quite at home. We would love comments from any readers who have been exchange students, as it helped shape our outlook on travel and what it means to be part of an international community. In February, we visited Amy’s host family in Denmark (which you can read about here, if you haven’t already).

While we still have stories to share from New Zealand, which we will post down the road, we are happy to be back to a region that offers us a little more excitement. The natural wonders of New Zealand are truly beautiful beyond words, but being an English speaking tourist there seems to be just too easy. We have enjoyed sharing our voyage thus far, and although home no longer seems so far away, we still have plenty of places to see and adventures to come. So don’t stop reading just yet, The Chamborres Expedition marches onwards!