Living the Liminal Lifestyle

Liminality: the condition of being on a threshold or at the beginning of a process.

We’ve been in a long-lasting liminal state--couchsurfing with friends and family, shopping for last minute supplies, packing and re-packing and saying lots of good-byes--for more than two weeks. At this point, I think both Tyler and I are officially ready to be on the road. Instead of saying to each other, “Imagine when we’re in Tasmania and…” or “Can you wait for the ceviche in Lima?” we’ll soon be in these locations, actually experiencing things instead of imagining them. Plus, we’ve started to outwear our welcome. As Tyler mentioned previously, it unnerves people to see you after you’ve had your official farewell. Anytime we run into anyone we know, they look at us quizzically and ask, “Aren’t you supposed to be in Africa or something?”

Much of the past week has involved shopping. Lots of shopping and lots of money being spent (we can look forward to next year’s REI dividend!), all in preparation for seven months on the move. At this point, we’ve both got packs that weigh about 35 pounds. Probably a little more than we would ideally like, but I think at this point we’ll just figure out what’s really essential while we’re on the road. (Click on the picture to enlarge.)



For any dreaming travelers out there, here’s our packing list. If you’re really interested, check back when we return, and we’ll tell you what we end up with….

Tyler may fit in one final “pre-trip” entry in the next 36 hours, but I’ll look forward to writing my next blog from abroad!