Happy New Year!

So, this was it. Our one year of travelling was over and we made it back to Seattle safely. Well, it probably was about time - these are the places we've checked off our list:

Now, the #1 question we've been getting since then is *drumroll*...

"Which place did you like the most?"

Well, of course that's pretty hard to say.

If we really had to single out let's say three places, they might be spectacular Iguazú Falls in Argentina/Brazil, Jordan's Wadi Rum desert, and New Zealand's entire South Island.

But then again, there were many other great places and it's really hard to pick. 

Also frequently asked: did anything go wrong?

Well - in hindsight, many things probably could have gone wrong. But, for most of the time, we got extremely lucky. Besides a few minor colds and one twisted ankle, no health-related issues. No traveler's diarrhea. Didn't get robbed at gunpoint anywhere. No car crashes, even made it home safely in the middle of the night in an unmarked cab in Buenos Aires. Didn't miss any busses, trains or flights (except for one missed connection at Doha, Qatar). No trouble with immigration officers, even entering Israel at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport was a breeze. No need to bribe any government official, even the on-arrival visa fee at Laos was charged correctly and with receipt. Successfully avoided most tourist traps and scams.

Probably we got ripped off by small amounts numerous times, but nothing major. Frankly, there's really no need to be mad at the Tuktuk driver in Cambodia for overcharging us $20 instead of $10 per day (however, not happy about Jetstar Airways trying to charge us $170 for a few pounds of extra luggage).

What has happened since we returned from our trip? Well, first of all we had to find a new home. So, in the meantime we crashed with friends (thanks so much, Michelle & Mike!), started our home/job search, and began our quest of digging through tens of thousands of pictures from our trip.

Out of the places we've seen, we really loved New York and thought it would be kind of a cool idea to live there for a while.

Also, all our belongings were in two suitcases and a small storage unit outside of Seattle anyways - so, if we ever wanted to try out living in another city, now could be the time to move.

Sylvia's new office building (left),
next to the Bank of America Tower (right)

So, that's what we did - mid-December, right at the peak of the holiday shopping craziness, we headed out to NYC. Max, looking for a little bit of a change after years in the corporate world, started working for Stack Exchange, an 80 person startup in downtown Manhattan run by Joel Spolsky. Sylvia resumed her position at Russell Investments and, after a short ramp-up period in Seattle, will work out of their midtown Manhattan office next to Bryant Park. 

We also found a nice apartment on the Upper East Side. Let's see when our furniture will arrive...

Alright, this is our last blog post for now. Come visit us in New York - and we'll resume this blog for our next world trip! :-)

Thanks for reading, everyone - and HAPPY NEW YEAR!