January 2025 – NorthAmericanDarrell

Vietnam railways – HCMC to Da Nang, Vietnam

Vietnam Railways – HCMC to Da Nang was a 17-hour trip!

We started at the downtown station at 6 AM and worked our way South, traversing the Oceanside and rice field, arriving in Da Nang at 11 PM. It was neat to see the Countryside through a window, most of the trip.

It would have been about the same price to fly with an advanced ticket, but I’m glad I did this trip once. It also gave me a pretty good idea of what it will be like using my Europass.

I put together the below trip, but thinking about it for 17 hours may change the aggressive but inexpensive plan:

If I do stick with the plan, I will make shorter trips. I initially thought I would see the countryside via train which still may be the case in Switzerland and colder countries in the Northern part of the map. I have ten legs for 60 days available to use so trying to get the biggest bang for the buck was going far but that thought process will not work for me again.

Here are some more videos from the train trip:

There were plenty of rice farms. It was amazing to see how each farmer had their land set up. Water sources and flags were indicating the readiness of each separate patch of land.

A lot of the trip was along the Oceanside which was neat to see. Most locals were out there fishing.

I was in car three of over twenty cars on the train. Being it was New Year’s holiday, the train was relatively full. We probably made 10-12 stops along the way, picking up and dropping off passengers as well, but it appears most of us were there for the full 17-hour trip. I also booked a one-way trip as I was unsure how long I was going to stay in Da Nang and then Nha Trang on the way home.

I just checked the tickets, and there is an 80% surcharge on the tickets due to the holiday!

How about that BS? The actual train ticket is 16% or $8.39 of the entire $52.42 cost of the ticket without fees. That is only my halfway point home, too, so another $50+ to get back, which is more expensive than flying!

The overall shitty experience gave me no hesitation to cancel my Euro-rail pass this morning:

I knew there was a chance I would need to cancel so I bought the $8 cancellation insurance. I am sad that I will not see that part of the world via train but thankfully it was the only money lost. Ultimately, it sounded like a great idea and the price was phenomenal price for a ten-day pass.

I can still hit some of the cities with my Wizz Air all-you-can-fly pass as detailed in this blog.

Vung Tau, Vietnam – Ferry road trip!!⛴️

January 2025 – I had been itching to get out of the big city of HCMC/Saigon for a few days. The problem is that it is New Year’s week, and everything is super busy and crowded.

No problem, I found a way, as I always seem to when traveling, and took a fun two-hour ferry ride to Vung Tao.

I noticed a lot of Lunar New Year displays in HCMC, but Vung Tao goes all in, as it was incredible to see.

Chinese New Year 2025 is also called Spring Festival or the Chinese Lunar New Year. In Mandarin, it’s called Guonian or Chunjie. 2025 is the Year of the Snake.

Chunjie starts on Wednesday, January 29th, and goes on until the Lantern Festival on February 12th. It’s also the first Spring Festival after it was successfully added to the cultural heritage list. People in China get an 8-day holiday for the Chinese New Year 2025.

During this holiday, they gather with their families and watch the wonderful Spring Festival Gala while enjoying a delicious reunion dinner. A series of celebrations will continue until the 15th day of the lunar calendar, the Lantern Festival.”

I hope the pictures and video do it justice, as a lot of hard work and passion go into all of these displays.

I only stayed for a couple of days, but I enjoyed my stay!

I will always remember Chinese New Year 2025, also known as Tết 2025, in Vung Tau, Vietnam!

Thank you for the memories!

If you’re superstitious, you can click the above YouTube videos for more information on the year of the Snake traditions!

Hammock camping – St Croix BVI 🏝️🏕️

This was an adventure for the ages—
outdoor camping, rain, wind, and cold-soaked everything.

The kind of trip that’s miserable in the moment… and legendary forever.

I headed to beautiful St. Croix and camped through a tropical storm.

It was Wednesday, October 4th, 2023…

And it was the very first flight I ever took using my Frontier Airlines All-You-Can-Fly pass—which immediately set the tone by becoming one of the biggest (and possibly craziest) adventures I’ve done.

I’ve traveled with my hammock all over the place. It’s compact, lightweight, and all I need are two trees to be comfortable. This trip was no different. I packed my hammock, a rain fly, and the bare-bones camping essentials and figured I’d let the island handle the rest.

What I didn’t plan on was a tropical storm.

Wind.
Rain.
THUNDER and lightning.
More rain.

Still, there’s something oddly satisfying about riding out nature with a plan for the next night. I hunkered down in the fort and never saw another drop of rain or wind for the rest of the trip.

It wasn’t glamorous, but it was unforgettable—and that’s the point.

I had all the base-camp essentials dialed in—running water, a flushable toilet, a beer fridge, and a perfectly chosen setup spot.

This wasn’t roughing it… this was Living Life to the Fullest with a side of regret …

Everything was in place for an amazing few days exploring the island of St. Croix. I had the gear, the location, and the mindset. All that was left was to let the island do what islands do best—surprise you.

There was a tropical storm in the islands that first night—which, for the record, is technically less intense than a full-blown hurricane.

I had convinced myself it meant “a little rain.”

I was buckled in, hammock tight, rain fly secured, feeling smugly prepared…

LMAO. 🌪️

What I actually got was wind, sideways rain, and Mother Nature reminding me who really runs the campground.

If I’d used proper tent pegs that first night, everything would have worked out just fine. Instead, I spent the evening soaked and shivering, with my rain fly snapping like a flag in a hurricane—every gust reminding me that optimism is not a weatherproofing strategy.

But after that brutal first night, everything changed.

Once the storm passed and I fixed my setup, it transformed from the worst night of rest into the absolute best. I slept peacefully, wrapped in my hammock, listening to the forest breathe—leaves rustling, insects humming—while a gentle breeze from my little ceiling fan kept things cool.

From survival mode to pure bliss in one night.

It was about a 30-minute walk to the beach, which was another reason the camping was so inexpensive—just far enough to save on accommodations and justify the next beer. The beach bar had an unreal view too. 😎

Nothing like earning your sunset with a walk, then immediately undoing it with a cold drink and a front-row seat to the horizon.

Lesson learned—and filed under experience beats theory.

Next time, I’ll bring proper tent pegs.

And yes…
I will absolutely be hammock camping in the islands again.

Riding the chicken bus around beautiful Guatemala!!🚌🐔🍗

I used my all-you-can-fly pass to get from Phoenix to Los Angeles for about $15. Once I was in Los Angeles, I tapped into my Volaris all-you-can-fly pass and flew to Guatemala for roughly $60 in taxes and fees.

That’s the real power of these passes when you stack them correctly—cheap positioning flights unlock much bigger opportunities together.

To be clear, you do need to purchase the airline passes to use this strategy. Each one has its own rules, quirks, and limitations, which I break down in the blogs linked below for each airline’s pass.

It’s not effortless.

But if you’re flexible and understand how the passes work, the travel opportunities can get very interesting very quickly.

Frontier All You Can Fly Blog

Volaris all you can fly blog

I have always heard the term “Chicken bus,” but I never really understood it until I visited Guatemala!

It does not take a big imagination to understand the term, as almost everyone uses the chicken bus as their main source of transportation within Guatemala. If you ever wondered what happened to the school bus you took as a kid, there is a good chance it ended there.

I visited Guatemala twice (San Jose and Antigua) on my Volaris All-you-can-fly pass (AYCF).

.There are direct flights out of Los Angeles, and in some cases the same plane continues on to San José—so I took advantage of that as well. Using my all-you-can-fly pass, the flight came out to around $60 in taxes and fees.

Once there, you can easily find an Airbnb in either city for $20–$30 a night. If you’re able to stay a full month, it gets even better—around $600 a month for a simple, clean place isn’t hard to find.

That’s the sweet spot where cheap flights meet slow travel.
Stay longer, spend less, and actually enjoy where you are instead of rushing through it.

My first-ever ride on a chicken bus was from San José up to Antigua—a loud, colorful, slightly chaotic introduction to Central America that immediately reminded me why slow travel beats convenience every time. It wasn’t fast. It wasn’t polished. But it was unforgettable—and exactly the point.

My first experience riding the chicken bus was from the capital of San Jose to the amazing city of Antigua.

It was a great way to start the crazy mode of transportation, as the road was relatively straight with no cliffs, LOL. Although nothing would prepare me for the trip to Lake Atitlan was a start.

Lake Atitlán is the deepest lake in Central America—and getting there from Antigua requires a three–chicken bus transfer.

I am not exaggerating when I say I was chicken-shit scared.

These drivers are absolutely fearless, and I swear everyone on the bus was hanging on for dear life as we carved along roads with cliffs on both sides—no guardrails, no mercy, just vibes.

And yes…
I’m fairly certain some of these buses are still running on the same tires they had when we were kids riding them to school.

I plan to write individual blogs about each of the cities I visited in Guatemala, but I wanted to start with the chicken bus—because it perfectly sets the tone for what traveling here is really like.

And somehow… absolutely worth it.

Here are a few videos from inside the chicken bus—
so you can experience the chaos, the cliffs, and the questionable life choices…

from the safety of your couch. 🚌🎢😄

No seatbelt.
No guardrails.
No problem (for you).

Guatemala has a way of pulling you in quietly. The pace, the people, the landscapes—it all feels grounded and real. But Antigua in particular stuck with me. Cobblestone streets, colorful facades, volcanoes looming in the background, and a rhythm that practically forces you to slow down and look around.

Here are a few moments from beautiful Antigua, Guatemala—one of those places that doesn’t need hype to be unforgettable.

One thing that really stood out to me was how Americanized parts of it have become.

Walking through Antigua, I passed a massive McDonald’s, Taco Bell, and Burger King—all with outdoor seating, blending almost seamlessly into the colonial streetscape. There was even a Little Caesars that seemed to have a line ten people deep every single time I walked by.

It wasn’t necessarily good or bad—just noticeable. A reminder of how globalized even historic, culturally rich cities have become. The contrast was striking: centuries-old cobblestones and volcano views on one side, dollar pizza and combo meals on the other.

What surprised me most wasn’t that the chains were there—it was how busy they were. It really drove home how travel isn’t just about discovering new places anymore; it’s also about watching cultures overlap, adapt, and evolve in real time.

I normally only get McD for coffee but needed to try breakfast and had a Big Mac attack!

(The breakfast was under $5, and the Big Mac meal was $6ish)

I never once ate at Burger King, Taco Bell, or Little Caesars—because the local food was incredible and ridiculously inexpensive. 🤑

When amazing meals cost less than fast food back home, the choice makes itself.
Eat local.
Spend less.
Enjoy way more.

My favorite part of my experiences in Guatemala was going to Lake Titicaca, which is a hell of a ride from Antigua, as I already mentioned.

The lake has a maximum depth of about 340 metres (1,120 ft)^[1] and an average depth of 154 metres (505 ft).^[4] Its surface area is 130.1 km² (50.2 sq mi).^[1] It is approximately 18 km × 8 km (11.2 mi × 5.0 mi) with around 20 km³ (4.8 cu mi) of water. Atitlán is an endorheic lake, fed by two nearby rivers and not draining into the ocean. It is shaped by deep surrounding escarpments and three volcanoes on its southern flank. The lake basin is volcanic in origin, filling an enormous caldera formed by a supervolcanic eruption 79,500 years ago.^[5] The culture of the towns and villages surrounding Lake Atitlán is influenced by the Maya people. The lake is about 50 kilometres (31 mi) west-northwest of Antigua. It should not be confused with the smaller Lake Amatitlán.

Here are some amazing pictures of the water taxi visiting the cities around the lake that are all surrounded by volcanoes.

Here is my $15 a night Airbnb in Panajachel, Guatemala, which is the biggest town on Lake Atitlan.

I met a local in Antigua that gave me a tour of some of the streets, attractions, parks and Churches.

This Church is over 200 years old! So amazing to set foot in there and imagine all the people before me who did the same.

See you again soon, Guatemala, as you are very top on my inexpensive travel list!

Panglao Island – The Philipines

I took a five-week trip to the Philippines at the end of 2024. I rented a a condo in Cebu City for the entire time and made several road trips to neighboring islands including the beautiful island of Panglao.

The trip included a two-hour ferry ride from Cebu City to the port of Tagbilaran, a bus ride and then a short tuk tuk ride to the beach. This was an amazing stop and one of my favorites on my trip. You could say I was relaxed!

Hot shave and a massage a day! Vietnam!!

Each time I have visited Asia (Taiwan, Thailand, the Philippines, and now Vietnam), I get a hot shave every Monday morning.

Since the cost is pennies on the dollar, I also treat myself!

USD $5 for a hot shave with the same crew, too!

Each experience has been fantastic and well worth the money each time.

Most legit massage parlors are down an alley with someone advertising at the entrance.

Imagine a lifestyle where you can casually rack up hundreds of dollars’ worth of massages a week for literal pennies on the dollar.

A basic massage? $12.
Every day for a week? $84 total.

That’s the price of one massage back home in North America—before tip, taxes, and the awkward upsell.

Same hands. Same quality. Zero guilt.
At that point, it’s not indulgence… it’s just good math.

Good morning, Vietnam!🎙️

Good morning, Vietnam! 🎙️

Good morning, Vietnam was made by one of my favorite actors, Robin Williams, and released in 1987, which would have made me 15 years old at the time.

There is zero chance I even dreamed of visiting Vietnam when I was that age.

In January 2025, I visited the Vietnam War Remnants Museum, which had a lot of aircraft and artifacts from the war.

The torture the Vietnamese people endured!

Made in Vietnam! Inexpensive knock-offs!!🤑

I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on January 14, 2025.

I expected the street food to be good. I did not expect it to dethrone Thailand in my personal rankings.

Vietnam didn’t just meet the hype—it recalibrated my standards. The flavors are sharper, the broths deeper, the herbs brighter, and somehow everything still lands at prices that feel like a clerical error. Every block is a menu. Every sidewalk is a kitchen. And every meal makes you wonder how you ever paid $18 for lunch back home.

I ended up writing a full breakdown of Vietnamese street food—the dishes, the prices, the daily rhythm of eating your way through a city. You can read it by clicking

HERE.

I knew, in a vague “fun fact” way, that most clothes and shoes are made in Vietnam.

What I did not fully appreciate was how quickly that information would turn me into a shopper.

I swore that I would never own Crocs. Which is still technically true. I just forgot to clarify that I wouldn’t own two pairs of Crocs. Language matters.

I also grabbed a Nike jacket made from the same moisture-wicking fabric as the real thing. Same feel.

You can’t buy one of the items in North America for what I paid for all five in Vietnam.

I didn’t go shopping.
I hacked the supply chain.

Ben Thanh Market was wild — tons of stalls selling every kind of knock-off brand you can imagine. If it exists in fashion, someone there is selling a version of it (and usually with excellent negotiation skills).

Here are some YouTube videos of the market in action — they give a great sense of the chaos, the colors, the haggling, and the creative branding:
👉 Click the link to explore more videos and info

YouTube definitely captures the vibe better than I ever could with words — and honestly, watching people barter for “authentically–authentic” sneakers in a crowded stall might be the closest travel gets to performance art.

Ben Thanh market:

The North Face, Patagonia, Nike, and Crocs all looked authentic to me—which, at this point in my life, is the only certification I require. 😎

If it keeps me dry, comfortable, and unbothered while I’m wandering through a new country, it’s doing the job. Brand purity is a luxury tax. I’m optimizing for function, not corporate approval.

Ho Chi Mihn! Scooter mayhem!!🛵

I’ve been to a few countries in Asia—Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, and now Vietnam—and the dominant mode of transportation is almost always the scooter.

Every time, I’m completely blown away by how the traffic actually works.

On paper, it looks like chaos. In reality, it flows. No rage. No honking wars. Just constant motion. I always describe it the same way:

It’s like ants marching.

Everyone knows the rhythm. Everyone adapts. Instead of fighting for space, they share it—moving together in a strangely efficient, self-organizing system.

From the outside, it looks insane.
From the inside, it somehow makes perfect sense.

Everyone gives way to everyone else—constantly adjusting, flowing, and somehow still getting exactly where they need to go.

That’s what makes crossing the road such an adventure.

You don’t wait for traffic to stop.
You don’t sprint.
You just… commit.

Step out slowly, stay predictable, and trust that the moving swarm will bend around you—like water around a rock. It feels insane the first time, mildly terrifying the second, and oddly empowering after that.

As you’ll see in the video below, it looks like chaos…
but it’s actually cooperation in motion.

This was my Airbnb neighborhood—the loop I walked every day. What I loved most were the familiar faces and friendly waves. After a while, it stopped feeling like a place I was staying and started feeling like a place I belonged.

That’s the whole point of slow travel for me.

By the end of the month, I had my coffee shop, my barber, and a short list of favorite restaurants that recognized me and welcomed me back like a regular. Small routines, simple connections—nothing flashy, but deeply grounding.

It’s amazing how quickly a neighborhood becomes home when you give it time.

This is an amazing temple in my neighborhood—one I walked through often as part of my daily routine.

At some point, I noticed something funny: I always end up facing the camera in the same direction I’m looking. Not sure if that’s good or bad, but it definitely gives away where my focus is as I walk—eyes forward, mind wandering.

I tried not to catch the lady praying in the shot… and to be fair, I mostly succeeded.
She did ask for my number afterward though—after she finished praying.

Dreams really can come true.
Just kidding. I’ve still got jokes. 😁

If you take the time to watch any of the videos, you’ll notice something pretty consistent—almost everyone smiles and says hello to me.

That’s always the first thing I pick up on in a new country. It tells me a lot about the place… and exactly how much I can lean on my charming personality to get into (and out of) trouble.

When smiles come easily, travel gets easier.
And when they don’t, you adjust.

Either way, it’s one of the quickest ways to read a place—and decide how much fun you’re about to have.

Rocky Point, Mexico – Foodie!!

Did I mention that I have rented here since June 2017 for $USD 150 a month 🤑

It is not fancy, but I always have a fun and inexpensive trip, and I blogged about my pad here:

Here is a clip Facebook put together that includes my first trip to Rocky Point in 2017 until January 2024!

I am going to try to keep adding to this post with inexpensive and home cooked meals around town.

I keep my Blackstone grill and an air fryer in Rocky Point, as it is perfect for whipping up tacos! 🍖🌮🌯

Rocky Point, Mexico – FB mashup!

Here is a clip Facebook put together that includes my first trip to Rocky Point in 2017 until January 2024!

Hawaii ~$99 one-way? $35 a night Airbnb!

I’ve also flown to Hawaii for as little as $5.60—using free points from my Hawaiian Airlines credit card.

There’s no minimum spend to earn the 70,000-mile signup bonus, which immediately puts Hawaii on the table. I’ve seen one-way flights as low as 12,500 points, though 17,500 points is a more realistic expectation. That still works out to four free one-way trips—with taxes being the only thing coming out of pocket.

This is what I mean by leverage: keep fixed costs low, stack points, and let geography stop being a constraint.

Apply here:

If you are not interested in free flights with the card.

Here are some of the latest flights on sale that I was emailed on 01/07/24:

This is the $34-a-night, single-occupancy Airbnb I’ve stayed in three separate times in Honolulu, which should tell you everything you need to know. I’ve written about it in more detail on the blog here: Honolulu, as blogged here:

If you need double occupancy, there are other rooms available in the same house. Just keep in mind this is a shared kitchen and shared bathroom setup—no illusions, no surprises.

Montevideo, Uruguay ferry trip from BA⛴️

I had a few days to kill when I was in Buenos Aires, so I took a side trip to Montevideo, Uruguay.

I am glad that I took a chance, as I stayed in one of the nicest Airbnbs I have ever experienced!

I avoid using “eclectic” because it sounds similar to “expensive,” but you can see by the video what I mean!

There is no other way to describe my Airbnb experience in Montevideo, Uruguay. It was the most amazing Airbnb I have ever stayed in, and it was $35 a night. The owners are lawyers from Argentina, and they put all of their love of travel, music, antiques, and heart into this stay.

It even had a record player in each room! Three of the four pictures are in the lobby when you walk up the stairs. From the lobby, you can access four different rooms by small ladders to slightly different floors.

Music is played during the day, and there is a couch to look at the wall antiques. My room, pictured now, was directly across from the wall unit of antiques, so I often left my door open, looking at them.

The bed and desk were in the loft area with about ten steps, and it felt like a different room.

Montevideo is a rather small town, and the Airbnb was right down from the walking street in one direction and the ocean in the other direction, with the best view to top things off. They use a fancy filter, but I can promise you that the view was amazing from my room in every single direction.

OK, I will settle my eclectic ass down and tell you about getting there, and the travel is half of the adventure. I grabbed an Uber from my Airbnb in BA to the ferry terminal. Once arriving, I bought a one-way ticket as I was unsure how long I would stay.

I need to take the ferry to Colonia and then a bus ride totaling five hours to get to Montevideo.

I only spent two nights in Uruguay to get a feel for the landscape. Beautiful, but nothing made it stand out to me. The food was basic and on the expensive side, and it is so small that I have no reason to go back. Here are a few pictures of the architecture:

As I said, I only stayed two nights, and here are my two dinners, which were borderline gross. I could count on McDonald’s for breakfast, and I even had lunch there once, too, due to my dinner experience:

The meal on the left was a cheese-covered sandwich with probably two pounds of cheese, and I couldn’t even chase it down with a beer.

The middle was $65, and it was not cooked at all, so I left it and called my credit card company, as that is bullshit!

If you’re from Uruguay, I apologize; the world can see the passion of the people from their football team and their fans!

It just didn’t do anything for me other than the awesome Airbnb where I spent most of my time relaxing, counting down the hours to leave.

Mira Flores, Peru – cliff side pad!

When I bought my Volaris AYCF pass, the very first thing I noticed was that I could get to Lima for under $100.

Naturally, I went twice in the first six months—because when the universe hands you a cheap flight, you don’t ask questions.

The first trip? I stayed in downtown Lima, which—how do I put this politely—is not recommended. It’s extremely crowded, and I was repeatedly told it’s not exactly the place you want to be wandering around at night unless you enjoy unnecessary stress and poor decision-making.

The second trip, however, was the charm.

I found an incredible Airbnb with a cliffside ocean view in Miraflores, and it was everything. These were my daily views for less than $20 a night—or about $480 a month on a long-term stay, which feels borderline illegal in a good way.

It was pretty easy to get my 10K steps here! What a beautiful place to walk!

The historic area of Lima is amazing!

The cost of living in Lima is surprisingly reasonable for a major city—and yes, it still caters to your occasional North American comfort-food relapse.

If you absolutely need a fix, Lima has familiar places like TGI Fridays and Chili’s—at roughly half the price you’d pay back home. Same questionable menu decisions, far less financial regret.

That said, you’d be doing yourself a serious disservice if you stopped there. Peruvian ceviche, locally roasted coffee, and local beer are on an entirely different level. Easily some of the best you’ll find anywhere in the world—and at prices that make you wonder why you ever paid $18 for disappointment on a plate in North America.

In Miraflores, the cost of most things runs about 50–75% less than North American prices, which is where the lifestyle math really starts working in your favor.

$2–3 for a daily coffee and a small treat—with a cliffside ocean view, because apparently that’s normal here

$2 for weekly laundry, washed and folded (yes, really)

$20 for any meal at TGI Fridays or Chili’s, including two beers

$30 for a 90-minute massage—and yes, I got two a week, because self-care is cheaper than therapy

There’s also a large mall nearby with all the familiar global brands. Prices there aren’t dramatically cheaper, which makes sense—the products come from the same factories as everywhere else. But it’s comforting to know that if you suddenly need a North American retail fix, it’s right there.

The changing of the guards at the Presidential Palace and traditional Peruvian dancers! 😍

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico! 😎

A great hostel in Centro PV with both dorms and private rooms—clean, social, and exactly what you want when location actually matters.

I’ll be back.
(Read in a Schwarzenegger voice. Non-negotiable.)

I’ve been traveling to Mexico since my teens, and somehow my favorite place here is always changing.

That’s part of the magic.

Most recently, I stayed at the Airbnb below in the Bay of Banderas—and once again, Mexico made a very strong case for rearranging my internal favorites list.

Your trip overview – Airbnb

I went to Puerto Vallarta four to five trips in a row flying free on points using my Southwest Airlines credit card. I’ve been playing the travel credit-card game for most of my adult life, and honestly, I couldn’t even tell you how many cards I’ve opened, closed, reopened, and closed again.

Yes, it can affect your credit score—but I rarely miss payments, and I hover around 750+, so it’s never been an issue for me. At the moment, I carry Frontier, Southwest, and Hawaiian Airlines cards. In the past, I’ve cycled through Spirit (three times), American Airlines (twice), and Delta, usually rotating every couple of years to take advantage of signup bonuses.

One of my favorite Southwest hacks: Costco. They sell $500 Southwest gift cards for about $430. At one point, I bought $2,000 worth to help hit the minimum spend on my Southwest card and unlock the bonus miles. Between Rapid Rewards points and Southwest flight credits, I’m stacked—but I rarely fly SWA these days, so the coupons are sitting there waiting.

Once I landed in PV, I’d grab the local bus—cheap, easy, and reliable—either into downtown or out toward Nuevo Vallarta.

That said, Centro has always been my favorite. Everything you need is within walking distance: food, beaches, bars, markets, and that laid-back PV rhythm that makes staying longer feel effortless.

Hurricanes can be a real issue in Puerto Vallarta, and I happened to arrive the week after a devastating storm in 2021.

Seeing the aftermath firsthand was sobering. Entire areas were damaged, cleanup was still underway, and the mood was noticeably different from the PV most people imagine. One story in particular stuck with me—a woman had been swept away in her car during the flooding. Search efforts were still ongoing while I was there, and tragically, her body was never found.

Just to lighten things up a bit—the first time I ever had my nose and ear hair waxed was in Puerto Vallarta.

Bold choice for a first-timer.

I’ve since done it a few more times, now that I know what to expect—both physically and emotionally. Character-building stuff, really.

You’re welcome for sharing the laughter, as that is what I try to do around here.

Rocky Point – Monday coffee! ☕🌅

Mondays suck.
They always have.
They always will.

These days, my biggest Monday stress isn’t meetings or emails—it’s watching the New York Stock Exchange and hoping it doesn’t crater and blow up my budget. Once that hurdle is cleared (or emotionally ignored), I kick off the day properly—with coffee and a breakfast sandwich at Coffee Point, located inside Las Palomas Golf Club & Resort.

Las Palomas is easily the nicest condo complex in Rocky Point—which makes sense, since it’s five-star. Three phases, three pools, and more importantly, three swim-up bars, all with ridiculous ocean views. Priorities.

I keep my golf clubs here, though I’ve yet to actually play the course—despite the weekly events and scrambles, which are perfect for my aggressively mediocre golf game. There’s also another solid course at Isla Del Mar, so at some point I really need to get my act together and start swinging.

And yes—I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that coffee sometimes turns into a margarita… or five if I’m still there in the afternoon. I operate on a simple system:

Market green? Stay.

Market red? Leave.

It’s a flawless strategy.

Below is a walking tour of two of the phases, including the newest phase in the top right, which is just finishing up. If you’re going to survive Mondays, you might as well do it with ocean views and questionable decision-making.

Las Palomas even has an amazing golf course—Las Palomas Golf Club—with ocean views, palm-lined fairways, and just enough wind to keep your ego in check. It’s one of those courses where you can play a terrible round and still walk away happy… especially knowing a swim-up bar is waiting afterward. 🏌️‍♂️🍹

If golf were more like hockey, I’d play a lot more—mainly because you could legally drop the guy next to you for chirping your swing.

“Nice drive.”
Gloves off.

And just to make the day even better: the Edmonton Oilers eliminated the Vegas Golden Knights from the NHL playoffs today.

Varna, Bulgaria – The black sea!

My first flight on my Wizz all-you-can-fly pass was from London, Gatwick, to Varna, Bulgaria.

I found a one-way flight for USD $109 so I could start using my pass!

If you want to know more about the Wizz Pass, you can check my blog here.

Once I landed and cleared Customs in London, I went straight to the Wizz app to see what was available. l knew the Varna flight left a few hours after I landed, having done prior research.

It was still available, so the first flight was booked on my pass!

If you want to know more about the Wizz Pass, you can check my blog here.

Once I arrived in Varna, I got the familiar feeling that I was back in Ukraine. It has been over 20 years, but Eastern Europe is not as developed. The language felt familiar even though I failed Ukrainian 10 in high school, LOL!

Being Ukrainian, the prices were right up my alley! I paid under $5 for some awesome cabbage soup with a roll and a drink.

This was one of the most beautiful Churches I have visited!

My Point, Mexico casita! 🛖

The drive takes about four hours door-to-door from my condo in Mesa.

I leave my truck there often enough that it just makes sense to shuttle in from downtown Phoenix instead—$60, no parking stress, no airport traffic roulette.

Sometimes, convenience is worth more than saving a few bucks since I go back and forth so often.

I’ve been renting a small room in Puerto Peñasco—aka Rocky Point—for almost seven years now.
Time really does fly when you can’t remember half the things you did while you were there. 😂

I first stayed here as an Airbnb on June 24, 2017, and somehow… never left.

I talked with the owners—amazing people—and asked if I could rent monthly. They said yes, and I never looked back. I’m paying less per month than my HOA in Arizona, so it doesn’t bother me at all that I’m not here constantly.

It’s become a second home, anchored by my Mexican family:
Fortunado (El Jefe) and Lupe—absolute legends.

Some places you visit.
Others quietly claim you as home. 🙋🏻‍♂️🙌🏻

Lupe is posing with her legendary pozole—made for guests during the Rocky Point rally. I shared the full story and details earlier because this soup deserves documentation.

El Jefe (literally “the boss” in Spanish) is pictured with an old promotional photo they once used in movie theater advertising credits in Phoenix. I call him El Jefe because that’s exactly what he is—the boss man of the Airbnb operation. Between him and Lupe, they run a tight ship.

And honestly? I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Like most things in life, my visits to Puerto Peñasco have evolved over the years.

When I first started renting, I was working five days a week and hoping to make it down once a month. A couple of years later, I dropped to four days a week and came more often. There were stretches where I was here every weekend—and other times when months passed between visits.

But I always knew something important:
I had a pad in Mexico.

That alone was enough. I didn’t need to jump on a plane to get my fix. Sometimes it was almost too convenient to escape to Mexico for playtime.

Fast forward to 2024, and I had what I thought was a solid plan—to work part-time from Rocky Point.

I’d just spent four months working remotely in Hawaii, quietly and successfully, so I figured: Why not Mexico?

I went all in.

I set up a proper office.
Installed backup power.
Bought Starlink for internet redundancy.
Covered every possible failure point.

Every base covered—except one.

A backup job.

I finished setting everything up around Christmas 2023, ready to roll in January.

Then, on February 1st, 2024, I received an email inviting me to a mandatory meeting. Conveniently, this was the same week the media announced layoffs.

It didn’t take much analysis to realize I was toast.

My first thought?
Thank God I have a place to stay.

My Airbnb back in Mesa was rented out for another three months, so at least housing wasn’t a problem.

Sure, I was annoyed I’d invested money in the office—but honestly?
I hated the job anyway. I was just hanging on for healthcare and needed maybe two or three more years.

Instead, I got a decent severance package and six months of healthcare to figure out my next move.

And my next move was the same as it’s always been:

Travel, I just did not need a return ticket this time!

I mounted a 50-inch TV, added a kickass Sonos speaker, and had my laptop and tablet dialed in. Electrically speaking, I was fully operational.

Around the room, I hung my paddleboard on the wall, parked a fat-tire bike, and lined up the golf clubs, snorkel, and fishing gear—all untouched so far. Honestly, just having them there makes me feel younger… and theoretically athletic, if I ever step away from the computer.

I also upgraded the essentials:
a comfy mattress,
a beer fridge (priorities),
an air fryer, microwave, BBQ, and a Keurig.

Small space.
Fully loaded.
Adventure-ready… eventually.

People tell me all the time that nobody wants to travel the way I do.

I take it as a compliment—usually from someone saying it while standing barefoot at an airport security line, looking deeply unhappy. LOL.

What really sticks with me, though, is when people say I remind them of my mom.

She was a simple Ukrainian woman who lived much the same way in retirement. She spent her later years in a small trailer in Yuma, did most things herself, and answered criticism with a philosophy she perfected over time:

“If they don’t like it, they can kiss my ass.”

Mom was lucky enough to live the snowbird life for over 15 years, and she made it to 84 doing things her way. That seems like a pretty solid blueprint to me—so yes, I take the comparison as a compliment.

I miss you every day, Mom.
And just to be clear—I’m bragging, not complaining.

Cebu, Philippines! Just awesome!!

I spent five weeks in the Philippines in the fall of 2024. It reminded me of the importance of slow travel as I was able to immerse myself in the Philippines’ culture with a home base the entire time.

I rented an Airbnb studio condo for the full five weeks in Cebu City:

It reminded me of the awesome feeling of learning a new city and not having to rush.

I was able to live like a local and able to take advantage of the inexpensive lifestyle.

I was bringing American dollars, and everything was in Philippine pesos, making everything super inexpensive. I had a local barber that I used every Monday for a $5 hot shave, drop-off laundry service was $4 a week, and a fast-food meal was a few dollars a week to give you an idea.

Everything you would do was so much cheaper, too! I would get a chair massage almost daily for $5, including a great tip. Going out to eat was amazing, too, as Cebu is a call center hub. Since they worked the overnight shift to support the Americas, everything was always open to keep the city moving.

I would see people going to work at 8 PM with McDonald’s breakfast and coffee, for example.

I could get my favorite Korean BBQ or noodle fix 24/7/365 at a fraction of the cost of back home. The next time you check your credit card bill or warranty and get to the Philippines, just know they are eating well, LOL.

Abu Dabhi and Dubai, United Arab Emirates

I flew from Budapest, Hungary, to Abu Dhabi, but the following illustration shows how far from home I was on this trip.

I have always seen the Emirates football (soccer) jerseys and Emirates Airlines’ amazing first-class service on social media. An Uber driver once told me it was not expensive, and I have been intrigued ever since.

When I bought the Wizz Air all-you-can-fly pass, Abu Dhabi and Dubai were at the top of the list. When I planned my European trip in the fall of 2024, I kept checking the standby availability and accommodation options. I was able to make it happen after Austria with a little logistics. I took a Flix bus from Vienna to downtown Budapest, Hungary, and an Uber to the airport. Once I arrived (hungover AF), I had a few hours to spare for my six-hour direct flight. Holy shit, it was happening!

I was still fired up from the reality that I was actually in Abu Dhabi and got to visit Dubai too. Once I arrived at my hostel, I went outside as they had a nice courtyard to relax. The first person I met was who we all called Bahrain, as that is where he was from, and that was easy to remember, and what an absolute GEM.

He was wearing a traditional men’s abaya, smoking cigarettes, and drinking a beer.

Over the next several days, Baharan (left), Syria (right), and I would spend a good amount of time talking about life.

Baharan (left) could not speak English, so a lot needed interpreting, but his body language and animation made it pretty clear what was going on most times. I was constantly laughing at him, and he knew it, so he kept up the entertainment.

We were visiting the Presidential Palace and then had lunch at a Yemeni restaurant!

The manager sat with us and sent me home with some tea from Yehman that they use with their tea. Yummy!!

After lunch, Bahrain dropped me off at the airport and gave me one of these traditional headscarves.

I was headed back to London on my way back to America, as I was at the end of my trip after visiting Varna, Bulgaria, Vienna, Austria, Budapest, Hungary, and both London Gatwick and Heathrow areas of London.

I wrote a post on a day trip to a camel farm, and here are a few more pictures from my visit!

The amazing architecture in Abu Dhabi is almost impossible to share, so I added a Google link here to help share what I saw in the five days I was there. I also made a day trip to Dubai, but I will post about that amazing trip.

Bohol, Philippines – What a beauty!

This was my first ferry road trip after spending my first week in Cebu in January 2024—because nothing says “welcome to Southeast Asia” like committing to multi-modal transportation before your body knows what time it is.

I’d taken ferries before while island-hopping in Thailand, so I figured I was prepared. Plus, almost everyone speaks English, which immediately lowers the chaos level by at least 40%. Still, jet lag had other plans. I woke up at 3:00 a.m., wide awake, courtesy of the brutal 13-hour time difference and my brain’s refusal to cooperate.

By then, resistance was pointless. I packed a knapsack, took a shower, and headed out like a responsible adult who definitely wasn’t questioning their life choices. I caught the 3:30 bus, arrived at the terminal at 4:30, and bought a ticket for the 5:10 a.m. ferry to Tagbilaran—the first stop, and hopefully not the last.

After that, they transferred all of us onto a bus for the rest of the trip, which is when it became clear that this was less a ferry ride and more a transportation sampler platter.

Once I got off the bus after the ferry ride, I needed to take a 20-minute tuk-tuk ride. I had been

Once I got off the bus after the ferry ride, there was only one final hurdle left: a 20-minute tuk-tuk ride. I’d taken plenty of tuk-tuks in Thailand, so the concept wasn’t new—but this was my first one in the Philippines, carrying me toward Alona Beach and whatever level of consciousness I still had left.

By this point, I was running almost entirely on fumes. The lack of sleep had me a little on edge, which you can probably detect in the video. That said, I generally felt safe—just mildly disoriented, under-caffeinated, and questioning whether time was even real anymore.

n many tuk-tuks in the past in Thailand, but this was my first in the Philippines to get to Alona Beach.

I was a little on edge due to the lack of sleep, as you might be able to tell from the video, but I normally feel safe.

Mission accomplished! 😎

Once I got settled in my $15-a-night Airbnb, it was time to check out the amazing beach!

The kids thought I was crazy, too, but loved the great TIPs!

Prisons Jerry, manmade prisons!!

Comedy always has some truth that keep people laughing!

Honolulu, HI – incognito office!

I have stayed in the same Honolulu Airbnb three times, and I love it! I stayed there for two months to start 2023 working incognito. My AZ condo was rented on Airbnb, so it was like an awesome house swap while living in Hawaii.

It was perfect for me as I was only home to sleep and work; otherwise, I was touring the island or fishing in Kona, and I wrote a post about the amazing fishing here.

It is a studio with a single bed in a complex that has five units with a shared bathroom and kitchen. There is occupancy, a nd it is not in the best area near Chinatown, but I have never had an issue, as I am normally home by dark or soon after.

I was working incognito in Hawaii for three months, which was awesome as I only worked a four-day week.

I spent the first six weeks in Kona and the second six weeks here in Honolulu. I normally like to pack light but, I brought two container of crap this time. Just to be fair, one was my home office, and stuff that was needed day-to-day work. Thanks, Southwest Airlines, for the two free bags/containers so I could work seamlessly under the radar in paradise.

As you can see, I even brought the Keurig and watched sports the whole day while working! Thanks Phil!!

I also brought my slow cooker as I knew I would be eating at home four days a week. I would go to the grocery store down the street and get different flavors of fresh ahi tuna. I would eat it with rice and then eat the leftovers almost every single day! So fresh, affordable and awesome with a local beer.

The walk to the bus stop is five minutes with buses going directly to Waikiki in 30 minutes or the North Shore in two hours.

I have taken both buses many times for $2.50, packing a cooler, hammock, and lawn chair. Both beaches are spectacular for different reasons. Waikiki is famous for Duke’s, but there are always thousands of people packing the beach.

Here is the North Shore experience, which is incredible!

Surfin’ U.S.A.

🏄🏻‍♂️🏄🏻‍♀️🏄🏻🏄🏽‍♀️🏄‍♂️

At Waimea Bay (inside, outside)
Everybody’s gone surfin’

🏄🏻‍♂️🏄🏻‍♀️🏄🏻🏄🏽‍♀️🏄‍♂️
Surfin’ U.S.A.

Grabbing some fresh ahi and a couple of local seltzers between naps is amazing, too!

Here is the Waikiki experience!

My favorite thing to do in Waikiki is catch happy hour at the Yard House, which is 2-5:30 Monday to Friday. Waikiki is not the cheapest place, so grabbing an early dinner and beer is affordable. The pole and poke nachos and a Coconut porter brewed in Hawaii are my favorite, as shown below:

After dinner, I stroll down main street and sit at the Mai Tai beach bar or Dukes and listen to live music and the waves.

There is a fun catamaran that will take you out to make it makes for a perfect day! Check Groupon for different sailing adventures or cut a cash deal with them if you want to go a few times!

Vienna, Austria! Schnitzel!! 😋

I flew to Vienna from Varna, Bulgaria, on my all-you-can-fly pass on Wizz Air.

The flight was delayed six hours, and we sat in the Varna airport. The good thing is that European law states we need to be compensated. I made $300 for a $20 flight, hell yeah!

Make sure you understand the laws, so you do not miss out on compensation. It is available in Canada, the USA, and Europe, and I wrote a post here to explain the parameters.

Essentially, it has to be outside the airline’s control, so weather will not work, which is most of the delays.

Just familiarize yourself with them and do not use a third party to collect, as they will take a cut for simply filling in an online form. I will get paid to sit in an airport bar any day, LOL!

I finally arrived in Vienna well after midnight and checked into my Airbnb. It was an overpriced bedroom that only fit the bed and nightstand. I did not mind and slept like a dog for 12 hours.

The problem is that when I woke up, it was time to check out, and the owner wanted $200 for another night, as it was a holiday. There was zero chance that was happening, so I found an amazing hostel down the road.

Europe is known for its hostels, and people from all age groups use them, but this one was beyond recommendation. It had over a hundred rooms of all types and prices. I spent the first night in a studio for $75, which was over budget. That’s USD 2300 a month for anyone who feels that they need to judge me from first class while I am back here in coach.

The next two nights, I spent in a dorm room for $35 a night, and here is a tour of the hostel:

There were so many cool things packed into Vienna, and I barely scratched the surface. Between the architecture, the streets, and the overall vibe, it’s one of those cities where you constantly feel like you’re walking past something important—even if you have no idea what it is yet.

Here are a few more shots of Vienna before I quietly exited with my tail between my legs.

I’ll be back—guaranteed—but next time I’m heading north to the mountains, pacing myself, and seriously rethinking my strategy of trying to keep up with crazy Austrians and their drinking culture.

Lesson learned.

Vienna won this round, but I will have schnitzel there again someday!

Retiring early – bucket method!💰🪣

People often wonder how I can take a run at retirement at 52.

I call it taking a run at retirement, as I honestly don’t know how things are going to work out. Some days feel great, others not so much, watching the stock market go up and down almost a percent daily.

I just know that I do not want to wait to travel with compression socks and flip-flops!

I will share how I was able to make it happen. Proceed at your own risk!

First and foremost, I never got married or had any kids. I also jokingly say that I got divorced three times before getting married. We both dodged bullets is the way I see it!

It is sometimes hard watching friends and family get married and have kids, living the life we were taught to live by generations. Watching their kids play sports was the hardest part.

I can live without the getting married part based on my history and statistics.

I can recall so many instances that would have had me stuck in a shitty situation, keeping it real for me.

Here are some options for residual income, and I bolded those I used:

– Real estate investing, such as leasing or renting out a property,

– Stocks and bonds that pay dividends or interest in my buckets are explained below

– Royalties from intellectual properties, such as books, websites, music, movies, or patents,

(I always said I was going to write a book or blog) “NAD – A legend in my mind!”

– Donations or royalties from advertisements on a blog or website (buy me a beer! LOL)

– Compound interest paid on investment accounts, or what I call buckets below.

I have used all of these over my lifetime, with some working and others tanking.

Let’s talk about the bad before getting to the good stuff.

I worked for a company for 18 years that had a problem with cooking the books. I would put ~10% of my pay towards my RRSP/401K, and the company would match 6% for a lot of those years, which worked out.

The problem was that I would put more money into the company stock throughout the years. I also received stock bonuses along the way, making this account grow really fast on paper, I thought!

“At its height, Nortel accounted for more than a third of the total valuation of all the companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), employing 94,500 worldwide, with 25,900 in Canada alone. Nortel’s market capitalization fell from C$398 billion in September 2000 to less than C$5 billion in August 2002, as Nortel’s stock price plunged from C$124 to C$0.47.

When Nortel’s stock crashed, it took with it a wide swath of Canadian investors and pension funds and left 60,000 Nortel employees unemployed. Roth was criticized after it was revealed that he cashed in his stock options for a personal gain of C$135 million in 2000 alone.”

Well, shit, that was a couple hundred thousand stock dollars on paper, gonzo Malonzo! The amazing part is that I was able to keep my job for another 12 years and recover.

I learned so much from losing all of that money at a young age, and I needed to be aggressive to make it back.

I somehow stumbled across the bucket system:

“A time-tested strategy many investors use is called the ‘bucket’ system, which, when implemented correctly, guarantees income in the short term while setting your longer-term investments up for longer-term success”.

It essentially means, pile money in different buckets to use at different times. My buckets were based on early retirement: “bucket one 55-62”, “bucket two 62-67”, and bucket three 67-six feet under or in my case shot into space.

Someone call Elon, LOL! 🚀

I found an investment firm that would help me implement this strategy. The plan was to work until 55, but I was laid off at 52, so “taking a run at retirement,” as I already mentioned.

The hard part, filling the buckets so the power of compound interest can do its thing:

Bucket one 55-62: This was a house that I bought in 2003 when I moved to Atlanta. I left in 2010, and I was able to rent it to the same person for over ten years. He paid down the mortgage, and then he eventually bought it. I originally bought into a 15-year mortgage, so aggressively paying it down and selling it worked well.

Bucket two 62-67: I moved from Atlanta to Charlotte in 2010 and bought an acreage. It had a house in the front and a three-car garage in the back with a loft above. I was able to rent the front house to cover the mortgage. I lived in the loft and played around in the massive garage for free. I would spend a lot of money and sweat equity to prepare the property to flip, which happened when I was laid off in 2015. This also worked out well for me!

Bucket three 67-X: This was the traditional retirement fund that I cannot touch until I am sixty-two, but shooting for sixty-seven. I can access it at any time after 59 1/2, depending on how the other buckets are doing. I can also decide when to take my Social Security and Canadian pension plan, as I am eligible for both.

I plan to take Social Security at 67 to max out the return. Did you know that payday can be ~30% higher at 67?

Another source of income is the condo I bought in Arizona during the housing crash in 2008.

As mentioned, I kept my job throughout the crash and recovery, and I was able to pay cash for the amazing AZ condo I live in now. I paid $52,500 for a one-bedroom that is now worth ~ $250K+. How is that for a return on investment!

I do not plan to sell this condo, but it is another option for me to supplement my travels. It is currently on Airbnb for snowbirds, and the proceeds help me get to bucket one.

Well, there you have it! I set up my buckets based on my timeline and the money needed to retire early. Bought and sold real estate and Airbnb my condo based on this strategy.

A solo slow traveler, vlogger, geoarbitrage, and a legend in my mind.

You can read my blog on geoarbitrage by clicking HERE.

Great white north, Edmonton!

Growing up in Edmonton, I loved the familiarity of it. It was home, it was comfortable, and for a long time, it was enough. But once I started traveling, something shifted. I realized the world was far bigger—and that staying put simply because it was familiar wasn’t going to work for me.

Travel didn’t make me dislike Edmonton. It just made me curious about everything else.

My first real attempt at leaving came in my early 20s, when I moved to Calgary to work in a bar. That experience taught me something important early on: not every move is forward progress. The routine—sleep late, eat cheap, work nights—felt like drifting, not building. And that discomfort turned out to be useful. It pushed me back to school and forced me to think long-term instead of week-to-week.

That’s where my travel mindset really started to form.

I learned that movement alone isn’t the goal—intentional movement is. You don’t travel just to escape; you travel to test things. Places. Lifestyles. Versions of yourself. Some fit. Some don’t. And that’s okay.

When I later returned to Calgary in 2006 with a real career and a stable paycheck, I missed another lesson entirely. Instead of exploring the city—or taking advantage of how close I was to places like Banff—I spent most weekends driving back to Edmonton. Comfort won again. Looking back, that was a missed opportunity.

That’s when it finally clicked for me:
If you don’t intentionally experience where you are, you’re just passing time—no matter how far you’ve traveled.

That mindset is what drives how I travel now. Slow travel. Staying longer. Living locally. Paying attention. Choosing experiences over routines that feel safe but stagnant. I don’t believe in rushing through places anymore. I believe in letting them reveal whether they fit—or whether it’s time to move on.

Edmonton gave me roots. Travel taught me not to cling to them.

Here are the before-and-after photos of the guys—some of whom I’ve known for over 35 years.

Time did its thing.

And yes, I’d like to point out that I still have hair, unlike that married crew. 🤔
Make of that what you will.

We grew up watching the Edmonton Oilers win five Stanley Cups in seven years. At the time, it felt normal—almost expected.

Looking back, that early dominance absolutely screwed us.

They haven’t won a championship since, and we’ve watched almost every game along the way. That’s 35 years of mostly losing hockey, punctuated by just enough hope to keep us emotionally invested.

Then came 2006 and 2024—both trips to the Finals, both ending in Game 7 losses, just to remind us that joy is temporary and fandom is pain. Add another loss in the final in 2025 to the pain.

Honestly, it feels intentional that they’re messing with us at this point.

And yet…
Go Oilers Go!!

Since the Edmonton Oilers have sucked for so long, we’ve had to entertain ourselves in other ways over the years.

Desperation breeds creativity.

Here are the three Oilers-themed songs I created while in Mexico—because apparently that’s where peak hockey content happens now for me. The first one somehow became our goal song, which still makes me laugh every time.

Rock bottom has its perks in the other two attempts!

I spent a lot of time walking through the Edmonton River Valley in 2018–2019, during the period when I was seriously considering moving back home.

Those walks did a lot of the thinking for me.

I thought I could adapt, but then the Universe reminded me of who I had become.

I thought I was cool!

I am the only one who does!

I put in a lot of miles going up and down that river, with my longest walk clocking in at over 10 miles (16 km). Those weren’t casual strolls—they were thinking walks. The kind where decisions quietly sort themselves out one step at a time.

Below are a few of my favorite walks pulled from my Strava history—proof that sometimes the best clarity comes from just putting one foot in front of the other, over and over again.

It was cold AF some days—but also unbelievably beautiful.

The kind of cold where your body has no choice but to work overtime just to stay warm, which honestly made it a great workout. Nature plus suffering equals cardio, apparently.

Here are some of my favorite walks, all filmed in the Edmonton River Valley and posted on my YouTube channel:

NorthAmericanDarrell – YouTube

If nothing else, they’re proof that you don’t need perfect weather to get outside—you just need a decent jacket and questionable judgment, and good company.

NorthAmericanDarrell

Monthly Archives: January 2025