Moving Abroad in 2017 Changed Us (a lot)
Moving to Ecuador in 2017 transformed our lives. In more ways than one.
These pictures are from our exploratory trip in March 2017. We don’t have many photos from that trip because we were both so self conscious about our appearance that we didn’t like having our pictures taken.
We’ve changed a lot since then.
But when we landed in Quito and exited the airport, we wanted to commemorate our first time in Ecuador with a selfie in front of the Quito sign.
The second picture was taken by Xavier at Apartamentos Otorongo. He took us on a tour to Cojitambo to see the Inca ruins and the view from the mountain.
It was a cloudy, rainy day, but still incredibly beautiful. And we saw an indigenous music group filming a music video up on that mountain! So cool!
The final picture shows Amelia at the Guayaquil airport after we flew from Cuenca on our way back to Denver. They still had daily flights between Cuenca and Guayaquil back then.
Hard to believe that was us.
Since those pics were taken, Amelia lost 20 pounds and I lost 30 pounds. The higher quality of life and lower amount of stress from living abroad, combined with more nutritious Ecuadorian food, really had a positive impact on us.
We arrived back in Denver in the middle of a snowstorm and immediately started making plans to move back to Cuenca.
In many ways, we feel like Cuenca was a lucky guess for us. We did a lot of research before we chose a place to visit for our exploratory trip so we were pretty confident in our choice, but Amelia only had enough vacation days for one trip, and we only had enough money for one trip.
The quality of information back then was lacking, to say the least, so any place we chose to visit was a gamble.
Fortunately, we fell in love with the city despite some of the negative perceptions other expats had posted online and on YouTube because we didn’t have the option of taking another exploratory trip.
That was a major driver behind us launching our YouTube channel and blog. Our goal was to provide a more balanced view of Cuenca and other parts of Ecuador so anyone who wanted to follow in our footsteps would have a better idea of what to expect.
Based on feedback we’ve received from those who appreciate what we’re doing, we think we’ve achieved that goal.
Now, our goal has expanded. There are lots of other countries that interest our viewers besides Ecuador, so we’re taking the show on the road.
We’ve already shared Amelia And JP style videos from our trips to Mexico, Colombia, Portugal and Spain. We’re in our third European country now, and will head to the fourth in a few more days. Those videos will be out in January after the holiday season.
Part of our time each year will be spent in Ecuador, but most of our time for the foreseeable future will be spent making the most out of the world’s tourist visas.
After we speak at a conference in Malaysia in September 2024, and host our own Real-Life 3-Day Event in October 2024, we’re going to spend several months filming videos in Mexico, as well as Central and South America.
If you’re considering a move to a country, we’re going to explore it to help you decide if it’s a good fit BEFORE you book an expensive trip.
And once you officially decide that you want to live abroad, we’re here to help you with all the tasks and challenges you’ll face, including the best place to live based on what’s important to you.
Hola todos! Welcome to my author bio page! Let's see. Where to begin... I grew up in the country on a lake outside a small Kansas farm town. As soon as I could, I got the hell outta there! Since then, I've lived and/or worked in Kansas City, Washington D.C., Denver, San Francisco, and Ecuador. I started and sold a dotcom, wrote a book about it, started a YouTube channel, and now I write a lot. Amelia and I have embraced the Unconventional Life and we want to help you do it, too!
Hi Amelia and JP!
I’m planning to move to Cuenca in 1 year. Thank you so much for your videos–I can’t afford to make a prior trip, but I’ve read, watched, and Googled so much that I think it’s going to be ok. I’m not worried.
I hope you two go back to Cuenca sometime, I’d love to meet you!
Thanks again
Paula
Great! Keep us posted!