IT ALL STARTED IN JAPAN.
Disoriented and jet lagged, we stepped off the bullet train and into the streets of Tokyo. It was our first time abroad, and the next three weeks of backpacking opened our eyes to so many new things – the cultural practices of the Japanese people, bowls of ramen with flavourful umami broth, how to bathe in an onsen, how NOT to eat noodles, and how to navigate public transportation in a foreign country.
This is where our travel obsession started. The bug hit us hard.
FROM DESK TO GLORY
At the time we were working at desk jobs (Ashley: Paralegal, Richard: Mechanical Engineering Technologist).
Every year we pushed for as much vacation time as possible and used the time off to jet off to Cuba, South East Asia, Turkey, Jordan and Isreal.
Each time we travelled to these faraway lands so different from our own, we dreaded coming home. Combine this love for travel with feeling so-so about where our careers were headed, then add on a side job for each of us (Ashley: Registered Holistic Nutritionist, Richard: Wedding Photographer) and the perfect storm was created. We were burnt out and yearning for a change. A big change.