While Erica Chua liked her job with the city of Plymouth’s parks and recreation department, she knew it was time for a change. She and new husband Matt, both 29, decided right after Christmas 2010 that this might be the last opportunity they’d have to enjoy the ultimate traveler’s experience.
The couple saved up—living off of just one income for more than a year—sold their possessions and bought two one-way tickets to Vietnam, then Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, southern Thailand and Myanmar. And they won’t stop there, as they plan to keep this jet-setting up for two more years.
“We both love traveling,” says Erica Chua, “and we wanted more or less to travel at our leisure.” The duo had fancied the idea for about three years, and now the former recreation supervisor feels a great sense of freedom. “Every minute of every day is ours to choose what we want to do,” she says.
Plans for future destinations rely heavily on how long travel visas last. The Chuas say they hope to stay in each country for about a month and also volunteer while there. In Cambodia, they helped teach English to children through the Khmer New Generation Organization. They learned about the opportunity from research on travel forums.
Currently the Chuas are in Hong Kong, and where to next will be news to them, too!
&
In Four Words
Erica Chua sums up the trip thus far:
Exhilarating: “Wow, we’ve finally done this!”
Exchange: “People trying to understand me, I’m trying to understand them.”
Exhausting: “It’s a lot of work to schlep all your stuff, get a room and order food.”
Eye-opening.
Check back in subsequent months, as Erica and Matt Chua become our regular travel contributors to Plymouth Magazine. Can’t wait? Check out their blog.
