Recently, we discussed the steps needed to prepare for our move to Spain in a post called “How to Dissolve Material Karma?” Now I’d like to share some of the lessons from our epic road trip through Mexico and the United States while waiting for Spain to open to tourism. What did we learn as digital nomads?

What is a digital nomad?

In the old days, a person who wandered from place to place without a fixed home or job was called a vagabond or a tramp. Nowadays a person who is constantly traveling but makes a living online is called a digital nomad. There are several types of nomads, according to BecomeNomad:

• Digital nomad: This person is free to explore the world, because their online work is location independent. They depend on technology (e.g. laptop, internet connection) to make a living often as a freelancer.
• Corporate remote work nomad: These people work for a corporation, but are free to work from remote locations around the country (or home during a pandemic).
• Corporate quick time out nomad: These people take frequent short breaks from corporate work to travel (e.g. one week off every 2 months). A sweet deal, if you can get it!
• Half-and-half nomad: These people do seasonal work (e.g. ski or scuba diving instructor) to sustain travel the rest of the year.
• House-sitting nomad or volunteer: These people go on vacation to house-sit for an owner in exchange for room and board in a new location they want to explore.
• Rich nomad: This person has enough money (e.g. inheritance, lottery, investments) to be free to travel as they please without working.
• Retired nomad: These people get a pension, so they don’t have to work while they travel in their later years.
• Home nomad: These people go on “staycations” at their own home or town. They aspire to find something new about their environment or interactions with others.
• Classic nomad (offline): This person moves from place to place to work in one or more types of jobs to make a living (e.g. migrant farm worker, holiday store clerk, etc.).
• Spiritual nomad: This person is seeking inspiration, insights and new interactions with new people in new places (e.g. “Eat Pray Love” movie). Some may teach their insights to others (e.g. Jesus, zen monks, etc.). But chances are even Jesus might have a hard time traveling and living off the charity of others these days.

In our case, we sold our house in California and became digital nomads to wait for Spain to open. That started a huge decision tree that was branching in unexpected ways throughout our travels. As John Lennon said: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” Here are some of the major decision points and subsequent event streams we had to consider:

• We could drive around the U.S. or go to Mexico. We could fly or drive to Mexico. We could stay in one place or travel to several places. We could rent a car in Mexico or drive our own car across the border. We could sell our car in Texas, Florida or the East Coast. We could visit friends and family along the way. We could fly to Spain or Portugal whichever opened earlier.
• When we left, our plans were not solid at all. Nevertheless, we packed our car with just two suitcases and a carrier for our 13-year-old dog (who hates car rides) and started our epic 7,000 mile road trip (below). My husband was the driver and I was the navigator. Let’s go! Vamonos!

What did we learn as digital nomads?

Here is a summary of some lessons we learned from our two month stint as digital nomads:

1. People: Our friends and family were divided into two camps: the cheerleaders (who were excited for us) and the naysayers (who thought we were crazy, because Mexico is “unsafe”). Yet the kindness of strangers in Mexico was absolutely heart warming (e.g. offering to buy us water when we ran out of pesos on toll roads). They affirmed our faith in humanity.
2. Accommodations: We had planned to stay in airbnb’s, but they turned out to be “airbnbusts” that were either double booked or not as shown in photos. Often we had to scramble to find another pet friendly place with parking and internet to stay the night. Stressful? Yes.
3. Daily routines: These go out the window, when you’re constantly traveling. At home, we were used to daily exercise and fasting (eating one home cooked meal a day). On the road, we ate mostly fast food and had little time for exercise (no endorphins). We all lost weight as nomads.
4. Illness: We had been fully vaccinated before our trip, so we felt safe traveling in Mexico. They took measures to prevent Covid (masks, hand sanitizer, temperature checks to enter shops, etc.). But one day I got sick with fever and flu like symptoms. My sister-in-law had just died of Covid that week. Scary moment! I rested and recruited my friends to send me distance healing. Miraculously I recovered in a day or so. In hindsight, it was probably acute food poisoning.
5. Unexpected issues: Our dog needed an international health certificate from a USDA accredited veterinarian within 10 days of our flight. That proved to be complicated because we were traveling. We found a vet in Raleigh, NC who did the exam but didn’t fill out the proper paperwork until days later. The USDA official refused to endorse the certificate after multiple resubmissions. By this time, we had changed our flight three times. We were homeless and carless. We even considered euthanizing our dog (a hellish scenario!) before we decided to fill out the form ourselves. The vet signed it remotely the day before our flight to Spain.
6. Power: One of the biggest lessons was about power — personal vs. institutional power. We paid people to do their job (vet/USDA), but had to take our power back by doing things ourselves and dealing with the consequences. We were ready to bang tables or pull out our diplomas as needed. But the officials in Spain smiled, barely looked at the papers and waved us through. All that drama for nothing!?
7. Perseverance: This was another lesson for us — not giving up when the going gets tough, finding ways around obstacles or obstinate people or governmental structures. There are several ways to solve a problem, and our job is to find another way to do it. Don’t give up!
8. Reconnecting: Our decision to drive through the U.S. allowed us to reconnect with old friends and family that we hadn’t seen in years. They were there to help and support us at our time of need. These interactions provide us with various ways to give and receive from each other.
9. Environment: On this road trip we went through all kinds of landscapes (deserts, beaches, farmland, mountains) and places to live (dirt poor towns, tourist spots, mega cities). In Mexico I was immersed in a Spanish speaking culture in preparation for Spain, which was helpful. And now my husband knows what a truck driver feels like after weeks of driving and more driving. 😉

Final Comments

In hindsight, what could we have done differently? Just about everything, if we had known what’s around the corner. As souls, we are here to experience, learn and evolve from everything we encounter. We certainly did that during our nomad phase, which made us long for a more permanent place (e.g. desk with a comfy chair, desktop computer, reliable internet, home made meals, etc.).

It’s interesting to know that this is what our souls will do in a life review when we transition back to the energetic side. The path we took is but one of many possible paths that are being explored by our parallel selves. I have a feeling that we probably did one of the most hellish paths possible with all the dog drama!? It reminds me of the story of Jesus in the desert for 40 days, where he was fasting the whole time and tempted by the devil with various trials and tribulations. That’s what it felt like to us!

Oh well, now that we’re getting settled in Costa del Sol in Spain, life is looking up again! We’re supposed to get our internet service turned on tomorrow! Yay!