People Along the Way...

Originally this post was designed to capture all the family & friends we connect with during our travels. We didn't originally include people we met newly along the way. The truth of the matter is that those people we met newly as we went, enriched our travels as much as family & people we already knew! People that started as strangers in different countries came to be friends that we are still in touch with today.

So we've rejigged this page. It's now a celebration of all the special people - whether family, longtime friends or completely new friends - we've connected with along our journey & who have enriched our time on the road.

The Williams & Locaria Crew (Sarah's parents and Sarah's sister & fam). Kicking off our travels with this incredibly special crew! They had schemed to have this RTW (Round the World) sign made for us as a surprise. West Harwich, Cape Cod, MA; July 2019.

The Zeiger family. We (S&D) went to Northwestern with Ryan & Megan and have been buds ever since. Our girls and their boys (Anderson, Griffin & Calvin) hit it off immediately. Super fun times! Denver and Winter Park, Colorado; July 2019.

New friends Amy & Vivi. Thanks for the intro, Meena! Boulder, CO; July 2019.

The Heller Family. Doug & Andrew are first cousins and had loads of family stories to share! We had a blast spending time with Andrew, Kaity, Henry & Olivia. Seattle, WA; July 2019.

Sam & Melinda. Melinda & Doug's Dad are first cousins. Was great to spend some quality time with them in their beautiful Seattle surroundings. We can see why they love it there so much! Seattle, WA; July 2019.

McClintock family. Super fun to finally meet Nan's daughter, Addie, and her family! We had a blast all together. Addie, Brett, Phoebe & Piper, we hope to be back in Seattle again soon! Seattle, WA; July 2019.

Dinner with Tyler & Megan. Tyler & Doug worked at Mimeo a while back, and have stayed in touch since. Funny enough we (S&D) ran into Tyler & Megan while in Iceland on vacation (without the girls) in May 2018! Seattle, WA; July 2019.

Tim & Ken. Tim is one of Sarah's Mom's closest and oldest friends. We made a daytrip out from Seattle to visit with Tim & Ken and had a lovely time! Whidbey Island, WA; July 2019.

The Jasik Family. Doug & Benji grew up together in Palo Alto and are tennis buds. Always fun to have an SF sleepover with Benji, Carolyn, Emma & Sophie! San Francisco, CA; July 2019.

Papa & Nan. Super happy to get quality time with grandparents! San Francisco, CA; July 2019.

CA family crew! Always lovely times with Doug's sister, Kasey, and family. Quality time with Kasey, Bill, Kaitlyn & Maddie. Burlingame, CA; July 2019.

Hike with one of Doug's closest childhood friends, Jason, and his son Orion. Fun in the outdoors with good friends! Pescadero, CA; July 2019.

Happy 75th birthday, Papa! A special family dinner celebration, worthy of its own picture on this blog post! Burlingame, CA; July 2019.

Nguey & Nina. Nguey & Doug are long time Bay Area tennis buds. No trip into the city is complete without a hello to Nguey & Nina and some time at their amazing bar, Fig & Thistle. San Francisco, CA; July 2019.

Payam (far left) is another Bay Area tennis bud of Doug's! Getting together with buddies like this, who have known each other for decades, is the best. San Francisco, CA; July 2019.

Dan & Sarah have been the best of buds since we met studying abroad in Seville, Spain (1997/98) during our Junior year at Northwestern. Montreal, Canada; July 2019.

Kicking off the international portion of our travels in Montreal with Dan & his partner, Bryan, was the best! Special times with people very special to us. I love that the girls have known these guys for years (and Doug/Dan since our college days too). Montreal, Canada; July 2019.

The Teles Family! Paige & Tereza were classmates back in NYC and our families became friends. What a gift to spend time with this lovely family on their home turf of Brazil! Nuno, Patricia, Madalena, Maria, Ines & Tereza - beijos! Lisbon, Portugal; August 2019.

Hilka & Schoko. Hilkka is Mom to one of Doug's best friends, Alex. We had a fantastic two weeks with them in Austria, exploring the gorgeous scenery, mountains and tasty food! St. Lorenzen, Austria; Aug/Sept 2019.

The Witt family! Alex (Hilka's) son and Doug were college teammates on the Northwestern tennis team & roommates. Alex, Alyssa, Emil & Andreas joined for a few days, which made for extra fun and memory making! Look forward to a repeat. St. Lorenzen, Austria; August 2019.

Reunited with the Sagan Family. We met in NYC when Paige & Henry were at the same home care as infants, and we hit it off quickly! These guys kindly took care of Paige when we were at the hospital during Sadie's birth. We were sad when they moved back to their native Germany, but visited them there in 2014. Amazing to rejoin forces & fun with Tobias, Mira, Henry & Lotta! Lofer, Austria; September 2019.

Another NU tennis teammate! Doug & Richard played college tennis together. He & his wife (also an NU grad) and daughters now live back in Richard's native Austria. We only got to see half the fam (Richard & Veronika), but had a great BBQ visit together. Linz, Austria; September 2019.

Italian friends of good NYC friends (Franklin, Rachel & Ivan) and now our new friends! Connecting with friends-of-friends on the road continues to be such fun! Paola, Andrea, Celeste & Camilla. Vicenza, Italy; September 2019.

Papa (Doug's Dad) joined us in Italy for about 2 weeks. We enjoyed a wonderful time together, using Amelia as our home base, and exploring the Umbria region from there. Fantastic company & fantastic food together! Amelia, Italy; September 2019.

We surprised Doug with an early birthday gift ... a visit to a nearby organic farm called Aziende Agricole Poggio Brico. Lovely Italians Silvia & Valerio showed us all around their farm, crops & animals. Then we enjoyed a delicious multi-course lunch al fresco. Wow, what a birthday treat to remember! Todi, Italy; September 2019.

2nd meet-up with Ryan & Megan Zeiger! First in Colorado in July and now in Rome, Italy (without their kids). Awesome day together! Rome, Italy; September 2019.

Grammy & Gramps (Sarah's parents) joined us for about 2.5 weeks and three countries, all of which were new to all of us! First country: Croatia. Dubrovnik, Croatia; October 2019.

Next country with Grammy & Gramps: Greece! We spent time in both Mykonos and Athens. Pantheon, Athens, Greece. October 2019.

We rented an apartment on the property of this lovely Greek couple, Maria & Vasilis. They spoke not a lick of English. Maria adeptly used Google Translate, which helped us have surprisingly many conversations! They oozed generosity and kindness. Nafplio, Greece; October 2019.

Final country with Grammy & Gramps was Egypt. Amazing to experience together a Wonder of the World. The family camel ride was a hoot! A fantastic 2+ weeks full of new, special experiences for us all to cherish! Cairo, Egypt; October 2019.

Sherif (top) and Ayman (bottom) were our fearless partners through Egypt. Sherif guided us through the iconic wonders, sharing so much knowledge & insight of Egypt's rich history & culture. Ayman, aka "the pilot", was incredibly adept at navigating us through the chaotic streets of Cairo & beyond. We are beyond grateful for their companionship through this special country. Cairo, Egypt; October 2019.

We met up with the brother & family of NYC friends while in Tel Avi. Nir (far right) is brothers with Guy, whose son & Paige were classmates back in NYC! Funny enough we first met Guy & Merav while on a flight from NYC to Rome back in May 2017; Omri & Paige recognized each other on the plane! Fun when our worlds connect, miles away from home! Tel Aviv, Israel; October 2019.

Alona Jasik from Palo Alto, sister of good friend Benji (featured above during our SF stint in July) showing us around Jerusalem. So great to get insider perspective. Jerusalem, Israel; October 2019.

We had the unique opportunity to connect with a few shop keepers in the Old Quarter of Jerusalem. Sarah's cousin, Joey, and his family lived in Jerusalem for a year or so, and connected us with some of their close friends. We had the pleasure of meeting Shaban & his son Omar, who run a no-bargain souvenir shop & currency exchange, as well as Steve, who runs a shop selling handicrafts made from dried olive wood. They were all supremely welcoming and offered warm advice. A neat opportunity to connect with people that Sarah's cousin & family hold dear. Jerusalem, Israel; October 2019.

Yasser was our driver for five days of highlights through Jordan: Wadi Rum, the Dea Sea and Amman. He always had a smile on his face; a happy-go-lucky go who also made us smile. Yay Yasser! Amman, Jordan; October 2019.

Apte family in Pune, India. Friends from NYC (Kaveri, Vishal, Tarini & Kabir) who moved back to India. Kaveri & Sarah met in a Moms group for 2nd time Moms. We're beyond grateful for their hospitality and letting us shadow them in their day-to-day life during our visit. So fun to be with locals! Pune, India; November 2019.

Kinley (far right) was the owner of the travel agency (Breathe Bhutan) that we used during our time in Bhutan. We stayed in a duplex unit adjacent to his home for two nights. He kindly invited us over the first night for dinner, including some of their friends. The Bhutan generous spirit in full force. Such a treat to spend time with Kinley & co. and get to know life in Bhutan better. Thimpu, Bhutan; November 2019.

These gentleman - Jamyang (left) and Tashi (right) - were amazing & by our side throughout our time in Bhutan. Jamyang was guide extraordinaire and Tashi expertly & safely navigated us through the harrowing roads of the country. They both made our time in Bhutan incredibly special, memorable & fun! Bhutan, November 2019.

We met Carol (left) and Davida (right) during our overnight on a lake in Khao Sok National Park. They are childhood friends (who met at Summer camp around Paige's age), both studying abroad during their Junior year of college (Carol in Dunedin, NZ and Davida in Brisbane, Australia). Turns out Carol is an undergrad at Northwestern (go Cats!), much to our delight. They made our time extra fun, silly and special. A super example to the girls of friendship that lasts for the long haul & that goes the distance! Thailand, November 2019.

We hit the jackpot when we did a 2-day slow boat cruise along the Mekong River in Laos, and got matched up with this crew of awesome people. It was such a treat to connect with engaging, kind people and strike new friendships. A fantastic experience on the Laos, made even more special by time spent with this group of people from the US, England and India. Mekong River, Laos; December 2019.

Our Laotian guide, NAME, was quite the entertaining guy. He made us all laugh with his countless jokes & stories (only half of which we could understand through his thick accent). He also kept the girls mesmerized by his talent for making creatures out of beer bottle wrappers, like the spider seen here in Sadie's hands. Thank you, Kae! Mekong River, Laos; December 2019.

Khamla (left) guided us through the labor-intensive process of planting & harvesting sticky rice out in the rice paddy. He wore a proud smile on his face the whole time, and enjoyed immensely his work at the Living Land Farm. It was a treat to spend the day with a happy, hard working soul like Khamla. Luang Prabang, Laos; December 2019.

Dah took us out to explore the surrounding area of Puloung village & rice terraces by foot one afternoon. He is from the local village and knew every single person we passed, and greeted them with a smile and conversation. His English was very limited, but he happily used Google Translate on his phone to communicate with us, which made for a really fun, insightful trek with him. Our last stretch was through a particularly gorgeous rice terrace. Both girls ended up falling into the muddy rice terraces. Dah was so apologetic, but we were laughing, saying that it made any already fun day, even more memorable! It continues to be such a treat to connect with & learn from locals throughout our travels. Puloung, Vietnam; December 2019.

Zoom and her darling daughter, Jade, were amazing hosts at Puloung Tree House. Zoom lived in the USA for a few years, so we had great chats with her about travels, life in Vietnam and the challenges & joys of building the tree house accommodations from scratch and running her business. Puloung Tree House was an incredibly unique, beautiful spot; one we genuinely hope to return to! Puloung, Vietnam; December 2019.

Our gracious host, Caroline, runs the amazing Le Domaine Tam Hai resort. From England, she's literally the only non-Vietnam living on the small island of Tam Hai. She impressively speaks Vietnamese and was kind enough to let us tag along with her to the local market one morning, to get fresh fish for their New Year's Eve seafood spread. Caroline pointed us in the direction of many incredibly authentic, special experiences on Tam Hai, helped nurse Sadie's nasty red ant bike to health, and made ringing in New Years 2020 an extra special one to cherish. Caroline's special resort is another place that we vow to return to, with friends & family in tow. Tam Hai island, Vietnam; December 2019.

Minh Le and Doug grew up playing Junior tennis against each other in California. We got to see Minh & his family in both Hoi An & Ho Chi Minh City (where they live). Vietnam; January 2020.

Phat (aka "Tom") was our spectacular guide through the Mekong River Delta in Southern Vietnam. You've never met someone so incredibly proud of where he's from, so generous with his time, helpful hints and wide, warm smile. We loved every moment with him across three days. As icing on the cake, he arranged a surprise birthday cake for Sadie's birthday! Video below is us "enjoying" a local liquor with him, haha. Mekong River Delta, Vietnam; December 2019.

Another Mimiac! Anthony & Doug worked together at Mimeo in NYC ages ago. Anthony happened to be on holiday in Ho Chi Minh City, the same time we passed through. Great to reconnect! Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam; January 2020.

Pia was our incredible chef on the island of Langkawi. Paige actually found her through some online searches. We took a private family cooking class at their restaurant. The girls ended up doing most of the cooking and learning a ton from Pia; she treated them like legit chefs, capable of learning real kitchen & cooking skills. It was awesome! Pia made the cooking informational and fun, and absolutely delicious! We also enjoyed chatting with her husband & oldest daughter. Can't wait to make some of these recipes in the future. Langkawi, Malaysia; January 2020.

Reunited with NU friend, Will, and his awesome family, Sachiyo & Billy! Singapore; January 2020.

Fun "family blind playdate" with Americans (living in Singapore) Krista, Mike, Lauren & Brooke. Sarah's and Krista's parents are neighbors in Cape Cod. Singapore; January 2020.

We had the privilege & joy of visiting Ms. Selvie and her 3rd grade classroom at the American School in Singapore. Billy had Ms. Selvie as a teacher; through that connection we had the opportunity to visit their classroom for an hour and talk about our year of travel, and take questions. What a special opportunity! Singapore, January 2020.

We got connected to Dede through Doug's CA buddy, Payam, who had met Dede years ago in Bali. Dede was our driver & guide for a few days through different parts of the island, best of all a visit to a salt farm and to his family's warung (roadside restaurant). Bali, Indonesia; January 2020.

The girls found some friends to play with during our time at the resort in Bali! So fun to connect with this family (Charlie, Layla, Sian and Jonno) from Perth, Australia. Made for great kiddo playtime and adult laughs. Bali, Indonesia; January 2020.

We employed the help of Stuart, founder of the amazing travel website www.travelfish.org that specializes in Southeast Asia. He helped us map out & optimize our 7 weeks through the region, for which we are eternally grateful! He lives in Bali, so we met for one afternoon to say hello & thank him in person. Bali, Indonesia; January 2020.

With Aussie pals, Trisha & Ben, Down Under! Kicking off our awesome Aussie days with a long coastal walk to Manly Beach. Sydney, Australia; February 2020.

Trisha & I met as colleagues at RB back in 2006. We started as unstoppable colleagues, and then grew to be dear friends. Being on the same continent & getting to spend loads of quality time together this trip has been tremendous. Australia, February 2020.

Yet another Mimiac connection abroad! Super Bowl Sunday at Bondi Beach with Lonnie, a former Mimeo work colleague of Doug's. Bondi Beach, Australia; February 2020.

Curringa Farm goes down as one of our absolute favorite accommodations of our travels. Owners/farmers Jane & Tim have a gorgeous sheep farm and run an impeccable farm stay business. Sophie showed us around the ins & outs of the farm as well. Curringa, we'll be back! Outside Hamilton, Tasmania, Australia; February 2020.

We met this lovely "Tassie" (from Tasmania) family while staying at a Big4 camper facility in Bay of Fires, Tasmania. P&S met Chloe & Mia while on the "jumping pillow" play space and were inseparable the rest of our time there. We also enjoyed the chance to meet their parents, Tina & Luke. It's always great to meet & socialize with a local family! Bay of Fires, Tasmania, Australia; February 2020.

Repeat meet up with Davida! We met in remote Thailand and had a blast seeing her again outside Brisbane, where she's studying abroad. Her smile & spirit are bright, no matter the country! Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia; February 2020.

Farmers Robyn & Paul of Greenlee Cottages. They were hosts with the most and showed us all around their special macadamia nut farm property and even let the girls help plant herbs & veggies for future guests to enjoy. Hope we're some of them down the road! Byron Bay area, Australia; February 2020.

Sunday fun with Nicole, Glen, Caleb & Darcy. Nicole & Sarah worked together at RB in NJ back in 2005/06. 12+ years later, and friendships still strong! Sydney, Australia; February 2020.

Reunited with Mark, a buddy from the ATP tennis tour. Doug & Mark played many matches together as double's partners, and against one another in singles, across several countries. Mark now runs a tennis clinic in Auckland called Smash Tennis. Great to get these guys back out on the court together. The girls especially loved being their doubles partners! Auckland, NZ; March 2020.

Reunited with another tennis buddy of Doug's. We last saw the Shortall family (James, Rachelle, Zoey & Lucy) when they were traveling the world & passed through NYC back in 2015. Auckland, NZ; March 2020.

Our closest neighbors in Dalefield, NZ - Paulie and Jayne. They live in an amazing tiny home on the lettuce farm property. We do weekly family dinners which are a blast & have enriched our time in NZ! Dalefield, NZ; May 2020.

Jayne & Paulie's girls, Lani & Mika. These four are thick as thieves. Most days after school (weekends too) they come find each other and play for hours. So fun to have friends as neighbors! Dalefield, NZ; May 2020.

British couple Eophen & Rachel stopped by more some morning tea & biscuits. Doug & Sarah met Eoghan & Rach during a hike at nearby Moke Lake. We got to talking and swapped stories of travel through NZ. We also loved checking out their self-contained van. It was super fun to get them over & connect again before they headed out of the area. Dalefield, NZ; May 2020.

Our wonderful AirBnb hosts on the Otago Peninsula, Lynne and Bill. Our stay in their Panorama Bus goes down as one of our faves! Otago Peninsula, NZ; June 2020.

Fellow American family traveling the world that we met at a playground in Queenstown, NZ! We immediately hit it off with Liz, Hans, Liam, Anna and Maia. What fun to swap stories & experiences with another family experiencing this unique adventure as well! Queenstown, NZ; June 2020.