The Send-Off

We've arrived in Spain. We're on a two-week scouting trip, during which we'll learn the lay of the land and make plans for our permanent return in early Spring.

This will be Amy's first trip to Madrid, and my third over the last year. We're staying in a little flat on Paseo Pintor de Rosales with a fellow we met through Air BNB, and we'll spend some very full days seeing the sights, meeting with business associates, researching health insurance, applying for foreigner registration cards, and searching for an flat where we'll live for the next several years. We're on a huge adventure, and we know it every day. We're having a great time.

The region we're traversing is small right now, with our forays extending only as far as the neighborhoods where we hope to find a flat. But we got a real eyeful of the rolling Iberian plateau -- and imagined some rambling walks across the countryside -- on the approach into Madrid Barajas Airport. We'll reach out into the provinces soon enough, but first we have to find a place to live.

-- Chris

Leap of Faith

You never know what's possible until you're faced with the world. You can always try a thing small-time, hoping it works out, while saving an option to retreat if it doesn't. But we haven't done that this time -- we've chosen instead to go long and move to the Iberian Peninsula. 

The move to Iberia will sweep us up over the next few months. We'll guide the process with a committed deliberation, to be sure. But the plan, and its requirements, have taken on a life of their own around our house. It's refreshing to have such purpose as we unfold our big happy scheme.

I initiated this move by building a business partnership with colleagues in Spain. Amy Jo responded in kind by landing work in Europe with a U.S. eco-tourism company. With this work in hand, we have no reason to stay put -- and so we're going mobile. We'll move to Madrid, rent a little flat downtown, and commit to spending two or three years. I'll work out of an office shared with my Spanish colleagues. Amy Jo will help lead tour groups across Europe. We'll visit the U.S. as needed to maintain our existing businesses. We'll build an international lifestyle that is lean and efficient. And I think we're going to have a very fun and productive time of it. Stay tuned.

-- Chris