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Passions and Places

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Our 6th & 7th Years of (Getting Back to) Travel: The Highs & Lows

March 10, 2024 By Jen Ambrose 2 Comments

The last two years were a breath of fresh air compared to the two that came before them. From the highs of getting back to “normal” to the lows of AI taking over, plus bucket list items and complete travel disasters, this recap of our sixth and seventh years covers it all.

Filed Under: Reflections Tagged With: annual review

Our 4th & 5th Years of (Not Really) Traveling: Making the Best of Unprecedented Times

May 1, 2022 By Jen Ambrose Leave a Comment

Two-lane highway curving between mountains, with a yellow 45MPH sign pointing around the corner.

The last two years have been…nothing like the three that preceded them. But we’ve done our best to find the silver linings, and are so grateful that we’ve stayed healthy and still managed to find some adventures.

Filed Under: Long-Term Travel, Reflections Tagged With: annual review

The Third Year on the Road: Reflecting on the Highs and Lows

April 21, 2020 By Jen Ambrose 4 Comments

View of blue water and a blue sky with clouds, with lush greenery and red-roofed buildings in the foreground.

We’ve (somehow!) been traveling full-time and living as digital nomads for three full years now. From diving with sea turtles in Indonesia to having an unexpected surgery in Thailand, this recap covers all our highs and lows of the past year.

Filed Under: Long-Term Travel, Reflections Tagged With: annual review, digital nomad, housesitting, meditation, retreat, Southeast Asia, work exchange

12 Inspiring Travel Memoirs to Fuel Your Wanderlust

December 14, 2019 By Jen Ambrose 27 Comments

Collage of covers of eight books about travel - The Yellow Envelope, Turn Right at Machu Picchu, All Over the Map, Adventures of a Continental Drifter, Free Country, Cruising Attitude, It's Only the Himalayas, and Kinky Gazpacho. A white rectangle in the middle has black cursive text reading Inspiring Travel Memoirs.

Looking for travel inspiration, laugh-out-loud entertainment, or a deep dive into cultures around the world? Pick up one of these memoirs!

Filed Under: Reflections Tagged With: travel writing

Our Second Year on the Road: Reflecting on the Highs and Lows

February 26, 2019 By Jen Ambrose Leave a Comment

Tip of a yellow kayak on the water, with pine trees, mountains, and hazy blue sky in the background.

It’s hard to believe, but we’ve been traveling for two whole years! In honor of this milestone, we’re looking back at where we’ve been in the past twelve months and reflecting on the highest highs and lowest lows.

Filed Under: Long-Term Travel, Reflections Tagged With: annual review, digital nomad, housesitting, retreat, Southeast Asia, work exchange

A Year on the Road: Reflecting on the Highs and Lows

February 11, 2018 By Jen Ambrose 12 Comments

We’ve officially been on the road for a whole year! Today, we’re looking back on the highs and lows of the past twelve months, including our most exciting adventures and the biggest challenges of working while traveling.

Filed Under: Long-Term Travel, Reflections Tagged With: annual review, digital nomad, Southeast Asia

Why We Didn’t Love Ao Nang + Its Redeeming Qualities

November 3, 2017 By Ryan Victor 12 Comments

After a change of plans, we ended up visiting Ao Nang in the popular province of Krabi. It was…not our favorite place in Thailand. But we did find some things to appreciate there, so here’s the good and the bad.

Filed Under: Asia, Reflections, Thailand Tagged With: Southeast Asia

Reflections on a Yoga Retreat in Thailand

September 18, 2017 By Jen Ambrose 20 Comments

The Whole & Happy Yoga Retreat in Thailand was an amazing week of self-exploration, adventure, and relaxation all in one. Attending a yoga and meditation retreat while you travel is a truly unique experience, and you can find affordable yoga retreats all over Thailand and throughout Southeast Asia.

If you’re an avid yogi, or even just a curious beginner, maybe you’ve thought about doing a yoga retreat. Jen’s reliving her time at the Whole & Happy Retreat in southeastern Thailand, a magical week full of yoga classes, relaxation, introspection, and wonderful community.

Filed Under: Asia, Reflections, Thailand, Yoga Tagged With: meditation, retreat, Southeast Asia

Looking Back on Three Months of Travel in Southeast Asia

June 26, 2017 By Jen Ambrose 14 Comments

You could spend years traveling around Southeast Asia, but this post covers slow travel as digital nomads over three months. We’ve traveled to destinations in Thailand, Cambodia, and Malaysia, including Bangkok, Krabi, Kampot, and Georgetown, Penang. Some highlights so far? Scuba diving, housesitting, a yoga retreat, and lots of delicious food!

After our first three months of traveling in Southeast Asia and working from the road, we’re looking back on our experiences so far. Our travels have taken us to Thailand, Cambodia, and Malaysia, with highlights like housesitting, a yoga retreat, and a little-visited Thai island.

Filed Under: Asia, Cambodia, Long-Term Travel, Malaysia, Reflections, Thailand Tagged With: Bangkok, digital nomad, housesitting, Kampot, Southeast Asia, work exchange

Becoming “Digital Nomads:” Why We Quit Our Jobs to Travel

March 25, 2017 By Jen Ambrose 15 Comments

We finally quit our jobs in Boston to travel the world as digital nomads! Now we're in Thailand, engaging in long-term travel and working online for ourselves as travel bloggers and freelance writers. This is the story of our lifestyle design choices and why we're planning to travel in Southeast Asia.

We finally took the leap and left our jobs, apartment, and life in the U.S. to travel abroad and work as freelancers. Here’s the story of why we made this lifestyle change and how we’re starting our new lives as digital nomads in Thailand.

Filed Under: Long-Term Travel, Reflections Tagged With: digital nomad, Southeast Asia

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Close-up of a white man and woman both wearing black with trees in the background, and an overlaying green banner that says "Welcome!"

Hi! We’re Jen and Ryan, an American couple on a journey to travel the world while working from the road. We’re passionate about outdoor adventure, responsible travel, and getting off the beaten path. Passions and Places is a space for us to share our stories and tips with you, but most importantly, we hope to inspire you to seek your own adventure.

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