Our Everyday Journeys: Last Month
sharing what's working, what we're enjoying and where we've been
Photo: Les Houches, France, Louise’s iPhone, February 2024
Welcome to the March edition of Our Everyday Journeys: Last Month. This is where we take a break from our usual content, and give you more of a personal update on what life is like for us at the moment, what’s on our minds and more.
It’s a while since we’ve written one of these combined posts (hello
) and for many of you it’ll be the first you’ve received. The idea of these is more of a glimpse into what we’re getting up to in real life and how differently our minds sometimes work! If you don’t follow our YouTube or Instagram channels, you might not know that Mark is one-half of our Everyday Journeys - you might say the inspiration behind them. Where I am the planner and the organiser, Mark is the dreamer and innovator. Honestly, he’s the only reason we’ve done some of the crazy and wonderful things we’ve done over the last few years.It’s been a gentle start to our year in terms of travel. Mark took a few days out in January to walk two days of the Camino Mozarabe from Granada in southern Spain and then we took some of our (five, between us) children on a long weekend of skiing lessons in France in February. I’ll be sharing my thoughts on being a forty-something learner skier here on Substack next week, and we’re also writing a piece about Mark’s solo experience on the Camino Mozorabe that should be with you the following week.
In the meantime, here’s what we’ve been reading, listening to and finding interesting this past month!
Photo: Camino Mozorabe, Spain, Mark’s iPhone, January 2024
Mark’s everyday musings this month:
📕 He’s been reading: This has been an interesting month for my reading material, I have opted for a business book ‘Launch’ by Jeff Walker...why I hear you ask? To support our travel experiences we need to have incomes that provide us with some money towards travel/accommodation etc and we have launched a few online courses that I thought this book would help with. The jury is currently out if this book helps 🤔. I’ll let you know. If you have a business book you’d recommend I read, let me know in the comments below.
🎧 He’s been listening to: This one I am cheating a little as it is also a visual, however, I do put my pods in and listen to the talks provided by some great TED contributors whilst doing work on the side. The one that sticks in my mind is a talk by Azim Shariff (Does working hard really make you a good person?) where he touches upon working more productively rather than just working. An interesting viewpoint!
📺 He’s been watching: ‘The Chestnut Man’ on Netflix. This one surprised both Louise and I when we started watching... a little shocking in places but this Danish murder drama had us riveted immediately and we had to watch all six episodes within 24 hours! If you like a bit of the darker side of drama this is worth a watch... and with a great twist at the end!
Photo: The Wim Hof Method, Louise’s iPhone, February 2024
🎯 He’s been working on: Breathing exercises and cold showers! Yes, I have become a Wim Hof 'virtual' student. It was about time that I started looking after my health a little better and Wim Hof was the way to go for me. I have now been breathing and cold showering for the last six weeks and the effects are amazing! Give it a go...
🥳 He’s excited about: The Camino Norte! We are joining some fellow Camino friends who we met on the Camino Frances and are excited to be sharing a week of walking with them on the Camino Norte next month. We will be sharing our journey here on Substack as well as on our YouTube channel so make sure that you subscribe to get notified when they land. Buen Camino! 👣
Photo: Training on Sundays, Louise’s iPhone, Hereford, February 2024
Louise’s everyday musings this month:
📗 She’s been reading: I’m definitely the reader of the family, although I struggle to fit it in as much as I’d like and so my pile of books beside the bed is getting taller. In February I was reading ‘The Wim Hof Method’. Mark was keen to try some of his breathing and cold shower techniques as part of improving his health, and so I picked up the book to understand the how and the why of it all. It was certainly interesting to read some of the science behind the method, and whatever your opinion on the efficacy of that science, what I know for sure is that I have been feeling more energy and less anxiety since I started using the techniques.
🎧 She’s been listening to: We’ve been following
and her WorldTowning family for quite some time now and so I was excited to see them launch a podcast, The Why Matters, recently. Jessica and Will’s personal style really suits podcasting in my view and I’ve recently been enjoying their episode on pursuing your passion.📺 She’s been watching: Mark has already picked my favourite binge watch in the last month, I love a bit of Nordic noir and after we finished The Chestnut Man we moved on to The Valhalla Murders. I’ve also been reigniting my enjoyment of YouTube travel vlogs lately, and we recently discovered One Pack Wanderers, Cheveyo and Tia, and have been enjoying their travels around Scandinavia. There might be a theme emerging here, perhaps it’s time to take our vintage motorhome up to Norway?
Photo: Coffee in Geneva, Louise’s iPhone, February 2024
🎯 She’s been working on: Last time we spoke here I was working on my migraines and that’s still the case. Last September I tried an elimination diet to see if my headaches were food related and for sure they reduced after that diet since cutting out almost all meat and a lot of dairy. I was getting migraines almost weekly, now they’re closer to monthly again, sometimes less, and the breathing exercises I’m doing seem to clear my morning headaches almost without fail. Perhaps it helps that I haven’t had an alcoholic drink since the middle of January either. I don’t know quite how long this dry spell will last, but we’ll be in Spain in April and I’m not ruling out a glass of Rioja.
🥳 She’s excited about: Since Mark has already taken walking a stretch of the Camino Norte in April (so excited!) then I’ll pick our next big adventure after that, and it really is going to be a big one! Mark and I have signed up for Ragbrai this July! If you’re not familiar, Ragbrai (Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa) is the oldest, largest, and longest multi-day bicycle touring event in the world. We’ve both bought ‘vintage’ bikes to ride this eight day festival on wheels. Mark managed to find the model he grew up with, a Raleigh Equip, and I’ve just picked up a forty-year-old Raleigh Wisp on ebay for £45! These trusty steeds will hopefully be taking us from the Missouri to the Mississippi this Summer. I need to start training asap. 🚴♀️
Photo: Our new-to-us, Raleigh bikes, Hereford, UK, February 2024
Is there anything you would recommend we read, watch or listen to next month? Leave a comment below to share yours too!
Where are we now and where next?
Currently trying to balance life and work! We’ve been getting our 1994 Niesmann and Bischoff motorhome road-ready again for the Spring and so have taken her out this weekend for a run. There’s something about being out in Lilibet (that’s her name) that forces us to slow down and be a bit more mindful of every simple everyday task. Plus I sleep better in Lilibet than pretty much anywhere else in the world!
We’re counting the days now until we’re back in Spain for a five day Camino from San Sebastian to Bilbao and cannot wait for that first cafe con leche and to see our Australian friends again.
After that we’ll be getting into some serious training ready to ride Ragbrai in the Summer.
Coming soon here on Substack I’ll be sharing my thoughts on being a middle aged first time skier, and Mark’s experiences on the beautiful Camino Mozarabe.
Stay tuned as we continue to share our everyday journeys with you. Your support and engagement mean the world to us.
Buen camino! 👣
Louise and Mark
x
Wow, Iowa! That's practically our backyard (relatively speaking). I never heard of that bike tour. Sounds like a great excuse to get in tip top physical shape. Sounds like fun. Best wishes.