You want to live differently!

Let’s start with why you are here. It’s because you want to live differently! Whether that be to scoop up your family and travel the world, throw in the towel at work and start a travel blog, move to a different country, or maybe it’s to take your kids out of school for an extended period of time and go on an adventure!

Whichever it is, you have come to the right place.

Hello! I’m Liz.

I have been travelling and exploring the world with Brian since 1989. We like to think we are pretty dab hands at it now. If you haven’t already visited, you can read all about our history over on our about us page here.

Had I known about computers and travel blogs back in the early 90’s, I would have loved to have documented our journeys. However, me being a bit of a technophobe would have cried if someone had tried to show me how to use a computer so you will only hear about our travels from mid-life onwards!

It’s a Drama is a travel blog about family, adventure and wine (there always has to be wine. And usually drama). It is here to encourage and inspire you to get out of your comfort zone and do those things you have always wanted to do, be that to travel the world, start your own business, move to a different part of the world or perhaps just change the way you parent.

I say inspire because I know how hard it is to implement any kind of change in life. Lucky for you, I seem to be addicted to change and adventure and am here to let you into a few secrets.

You may feel as though it would be selfish to live out your dream right now. Or scary.  Perhaps you are putting those plans off because now isn’t the right time. (Just so you know, there is never a right time. There is just time.)

Maybe people are giving you the wrong advice? (Their heart is in the right place, it really is, but most people wouldn’t dare do what you’re dreaming about doing and so can’t encourage you). When we told people that we were going to pack our bags, start a travel blog and leave everything behind for a year to travel the world with the kids, about 80% of them said we were mad and that the kids would hate it. Wrong.

Here is a list of some of the best excuses you might be telling yourself as to why is not a good time to live the life you dream of right now. I know all about these excuses. I have used them often.

• Let’s wait until we have sold the house.
• We’ll go when you retire.
• We will travel the world when the kids have finished university.
• Or after the kids have left home.
• We’ll think about it when we’ve saved ten grand.
• Let’s leave it until the mortgage is paid off.
• Maybe when things have calmed down.
• Definitely. When the children are bigger.
• We’ll think about it after Christmas
• I’ll work for one more summer season
• Perhaps when the dog has had her pups.

That last one was a bit of a joke! But does it sound familiar? On and on it goes. Every time a different excuse to stay put, choosing not to live life differently at all but just put your dreams on the back burner. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Hurrah!

Change can be terrifying in thought, but in practice, it’s pretty easy. Take it from us. We are the kings of change. Once you make one tiny little change that will bring you closer to your goal, the rest will effortlessly follow. In fact, you will ask yourself why you didn’t do this years ago.

We have spent our lives looking for ways to do things live differently, sometimes they didn’t work out and that’s fine, we tried, but mostly things have worked out brilliantly!

Over the past three decades, we have had masses of adventures. Forced ourselves through one change after the other only to reap the benefits on the other side. Sometimes, these changes were a breeze, other times they were uncomfortable, but they were always adventures, and that’s what living is all about.

Otherwise, what else is there to talk about when you sit down as a family around the dinner table?!

 

Here are a few examples of our adventures:

 

• At one time we had over 8 credit cards all run up to the max. We were allowed to pay them off at a set amount each week and so rented rooms out in our newly acquired run-down house to students. It took 2 years of living with a sheet hung across our bedroom door for privacy. We didn’t have any money to buy a door!

 

• Brian and I worked 12 hours a day renovating the same house. Having paid off the debt, we felt trapped and weighed down by the responsibility of a lovely home, so rented it out to three school teachers. We made enough profit per week to buy a tent, put diesel in our car and go camping around France for 2 years.

 

• Where we worked in a Greek Taverna serving cocktails while the owner slept all day in the wood store.

 

• And we lived under a willow tree on the island of Paros, Greece for 5 months.

 

• Drove our little red car home and sold her for 100 pounds more than we paid for her!

 

• After which we both trained as ski guides and chefs in Canada and America.

 

• Then came back to the UK and bought 2 cafes and transformed them into gold mines through blood tears and hard graft.

 

• Had two children ( that’s my biggest achievement!)

 

• Bought and sold 12 houses- everyone a renovation- including one in France.

 

• Travelled throughout Canada with our small children.

 

• Imported an American fifth wheel,  filled it with our family and towed it around Europe (well, Brian did, the kids and I just sat with our eyes covered up as we went through steep, narrow gorges, fearing for our lives).

 

• Started 9 business up from scratch (and counting) Ranging from gym instructors, a Theatre company. and most recently this travel blog. All fruitful and profitable.

 

• Emigrated to New Zealand.

 

• Built our own house.

 

• Lost over $100,000 by gambling on the currency market. (Don’t do it. Ever)

 

• Homeschooled both children for the past 7 years.

 

• Took the family to California. Saw lots of naked men riding bikes in San Fransisco. Drove through the Nevada desert. Spent three days in a hospital in Vegas after Tessa smashed her tooth against a window in a swanky hotel. Get good insurance people.

 

• Thought we were going to die when we were hiking in the New Zealand bush and got lost, (still here though, so phew)

 

• Made ourselves redundant in 2018 by selling our business and setting off to travel around the world with our two teenagers for a year. EXCITING!!

 

All of these things made us feel as though we were live differently. Really living. And if we can do it, anyone can do it!

This website is here to show you that I am just an average mum, married to a pretty extraordinary man, living with two wonderful, but typical, teenagers. An ordinary family who simply love to live life differently. If we can do it, my friend, ANYONE can do it.

Sometimes you just need a little push and inspiration, and you’ll be on your way. We are right behind you!

Click on any of the images above or below, and it will take you to all of the posts I’ve written that are related to that category.

There you will find different posts for whatever you are interested in.

You will also see a section labelled the Bog Post Diaries. These were never really meant for readers eyes. They were more an open letter to my mum. But, I published the first one and got a huge response so I share them with you from time to time – just so you that can really see what it looks like for a 47-year-old woman to travel the world with her two teenagers and not enough wine. It’s not all a bed of roses!

There is also a destinations page in the toolbar above. Here we will tell you everything you need to know about what we thought of each country.

We have been to some pretty incredible places. Including Sri Lanka – which was nothing as I imagined it to be, India, which was probably the best experience I have ever had in my life and Thailand, where the food and the people melted our hearts.

We aim to try and find places that are cultural are not going to cost a fortune and that can serve a good glass of wine and incredible food. That’s why we thought we had died and gone to heaven when we backpacked around Vietnam. THE place for a budget traveller who loves food and wine.

And talking of culture. You must go to Japan. Don’t be fooled into thinking that Japan is an extortionate travel destination. It is not. Yes, things aren’t as affordable as some other places in Asia but in comparison to say, Italy, there isn’t much in it. There are lots of ways and means to see Japan without spending a fortune. we know, we did it.

There is also a resource tab at the top of the page. This is where we will be giving you all of our best tips on how to budget and plan for a trip and what you might take and use while travelling. Bear with me though. I have only just started this travel blog and am learning as I go. Things might look a bit odd sometimes. That means I’m working on it. A grown-up term for getting myself into a tizzy and running around with my knickers on my head.

And lastly! Please, don’t forget that I would love you to connect with me on this journey. To receive my free list of tips on how to implement change in your life and start to live differently, drop your email in the box and subscribe. That way you’ll get every post delivered straight to your inbox. We don’t spam, and you can unsubscribe at any time. (I might have to come looking for you if you do though).

Remember that you can reach out to me through social media too, just click on the pretty icons. If there’s anything at all you’d like to ask or chat about, please leave a comment, and I’ll contact you- if I’m not there I’ll be out catching my sheep or trying to hide my son’s phone.

 

Now go! Start planning your next adventure!