Maine to Mexico

I like to entertain myself during the dismal winter months in Maine by reading books about traveling and living in the tropics. Last summer, one of my favorite reads of 2009 was Queen of the Road by Doreen Orion. Ms. Orion’s chronicling of a year spent on the road, in a huge, luxurious RV, with her polar opposite husband and pets, launched me on a travel lust that sustained me through the aforementioned hideous winter. I got to thinking about the concept of taking a year off from our regular life and doing a little traveling.

Somewhere along the way I found the word “fernwah” which is akin to wanderlust, and means farsickness; or ache for distance. Isn’t that a great word? For some time now, travel has been of focus in my life. My husband, when we were first together, gave me my “first look” at the Caribbean. Then, within a few months, turned me on to roller coasters. Between the two things, I’m always headed somewhere in my mind, either snorkeling with turtles in Akumal, or rounding the crest of the 2nd hill on Millenium Force at Cedar Point.

The concept of a sabbatical is not a new one. Academic types have been doing it for ages. The family sabbatical, though, is something that had never crossed my mind until I began thinking about taking a year off to travel with my husband and kid. Once the seed was planted and research begun, I found incredible resources both in print and online that not only documented other people’s experiences, but justified the whole thing. In the book Six Months Off: How to plan, negotiate, and take the break you need without burning bridges or going broke, by Hope Dlugozima, James Scott, and David Shard, the authors discuss the mental health benefits of a long term break, how it is know that you will return renewed and refreshed with new ideas that you can bring into your life. In Living Your Road Trip Dream by Phil and Carol White, the actual HOW part is addressed, and in The Family Sabbatical Handbook, by Elise Bernick, the HOW TO DO IT WITH KIDS part is precisely spelled out. All of these books and a few others that told tales of packing it all up and moving to an island were my winter reads.

A month or so ago, with all of this whirling around in my head, and the fact that I’d been wearing long johns and two pairs of socks still fresh, I happened upon a business acquaintance who spoke of having just returned from Cancun where he and his wife spent a month. A month! It seemed so indulgent and I was immediately envious. Never mind this wintering in Florida stuff that lots of Mainers do. Of course I couldn’t help but strike up conversation, telling him of our trips to the Riviera Maya, our passion for the place, and my recent reads. He gave me the name and email address of the person from whom he had rented an apartment for a month for cheap. Cheap is a key word in my travel lexicon.



I contacted the man in Mexico with the apartment and was told that whenever I want it it’s ready, just let him know. A month in Mexico! What an idea! While it’s not the year off traveling around the country, or settling in to learn a new language kind of sabbatical, it’s something doable for us. No selling the house. No homeschooling Nola. Although putting our lives on hold in exchange for some adventure sounds appealing, I know myself and my husband enough to know that a month away is something we can handle, both financially and mentally. But truthfully, I thought that my husband would instantly dismiss it. We’ve taken on more expenses in our new house and money’s not flowing as freely as it had in our earlier roller coaster beach frolicking years. I’m not quite sure what made me bring it up yesterday. To my surprise, as he chopped vegetables for salad, he said “I can take January off”. And in his cautious, but excited (and really cute) way, he asked me some questions about the apartment and the circumstances under which I came to know about it.



The bottom line is that this may become a reality. We may actually be able to go to Mexico next January for a month. My financial estimations indicate that we could spend a month there for about the same cost as a week at the resort we’ve loved.

I’d love to hear from anyone out there who has done this. I’d be very interested in information about the El Centro section of Cancun. What is it like on a daily basis? We’ll have to grocery shop and live for a while in a city where we don’t speak the language. How did you handle taking your kid out of school for that time? What was it like?



From Maine to Mexico and back? In the dead of winter? I’m in!



All I’ve got to say is stay tuned . . . further details to come!