I know it’s been a minute since we updated the blog. Winter got to us both. Winter in the Pacific Northwest is definitely a challenge: shorter days, darker days, colder days. But spring is here and we are 5 weeks away from our next adventure. We are going on a 35-day, 7-country trip to Europe.
Part of this trip includes a longish hike. We’re hiking around the Isle of Man. Never heard of the Isle of Man? It’s a small island west of Liverpool. I’ve tried to work out if it’s a separate country, but still part of the UK. But I don’t feel clear on this. Wikipedia says it’s a self-governing Crown dependency. The Isle of Man has been controlled by the Vikings, the Scots, and the English. There are only about 84,000 people on the island, almost half of the population of Maui. The hike we are doing is called Raad Ny Foillan, or the Way of the Gull, and is about 100 miles.
That was the initial reason for the trip. But after I (Lisa) made my 50X50 list and I took a skillshare course on points and miles, I convinced Will we should go on a longer adventure with points and miles. And we successfully booked flights to 7 countries and back with points. We did pay some taxes and fees, so our total flight costs were $142.96. We also booked multiple hotels with points so 18 nights so far cost a total of $86. We went with a tour company to book our 8 nights on the Isle of Man and to handle luggage transfer and some meals. We also have several nights in Italy with friends. We have 4 nights left to book and we are hoping to cover those with points as well.
50 Things To Do Before 50
Some of the things we will be checking off the list include:
Putting my feet in every Ocean (Atlantic)
Eating pasta in Italy
Greek food in Greece
Hike the Isle of Man
See Lady Liberty in the Louvre
Iceland Lagoon
I think it will be too late in the year to see the Northern Lights in Iceland.
Have you visited any of the places listed above? Do you have any recommendations? We’d love to hear them in the comments!