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Today I’m excited to present Erica and Shaun of Over Yonderlust, two American funsters after my own heart, what with their pink and red hair, mohawks, piercings, and even.. black website with pink fonts! Yippie for off mainstream! Erica and Shaun are currently 5 months into an indefinite world trip, enjoying the tropical climes, jungles and beaches of Central America. Today we find out how they caught the travel bug, what they’ve learned out on the road of life thus far, and which places they love most…
Q1. When you got married in 2004, you took your first overseas trip for your honeymoon to Barbados. Why Barbados? What’s it like there?
A1. This is a sappy answer. When we were first dating, Erica mentioned that she had always wanted to go to Barbados ever since she read The Island of Blue Dolphins as a child. One day I came across a Barbadian penny and gave it to her with a promise: “If you keep this penny, I will take you to Barbados one day.” Many years later we married and since she kept her end of the bargain we spent our honeymoon there.
For us, Barbados was a lovely little island filled with relaxing Caribbean vibes. We spent our time there swimming, sailing, snorkeling, exploring and eating as many flying fish as we could get our mouths around. Experiencing something so different than our ‘normal’ lives back home sparked the wanderlust flames in us and we instantly wanted to fill our passports with stamps from around the world.
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| Erica and Shaun in Barbados |
Q2. Since your honeymoon you’ve been to Japan, London and Spain. Why those particular destinations? How long were those trips?
A2. We had always wanted to visit those countries, so as soon as it was a possibility we jumped at the opportunity. With London and Spain, we had friends that lived there so it made those 2-week-long trips really easy (picked us up from the airport, gave us guided tours, etc). However, Japan was different because we met up with a friend who was traveling around for a month at the end of his semester there. This was also our first backpacking experience and lasted over 3 weeks.
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| Erica and Shaun in Japan |
Q3. Please tell us briefly what you liked most and disliked (if anything) about Japan, London and Spain.
A3. Japan: We looooved the people and the food. In fact, we lost our sushi virginity there. However, we disliked how expensive everything is- including the food.
London: We loved the culture and how many things there are to do there. Aside from expensive prices there too, the transportation was diiirty (and not in a cue-the-funk-music kind of way).
Spain: Tapas. Amazingly wonderful tapas. Our main dislike while in Spain was that we didn’t get to leave the Madrid area.
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| Erica and Shaun in Madrid |
Q4. Aside from your current travels, have you visited other countries? If so, which ones?
A4. Only the Northern border towns of Mexico. Erica grew up in El Paso and would walk over the border into Juarez for lunch when she was a child. Obviously things are quite a bit different now as Juarez is the most dangerous city in the world. Shaun also made a few visits to Mexico before he had a passport, but only to Juarez and Tijuana.
Q5. You set off on your current long-term trip in April, 2011, to travel through Central and South America. Now that you’re out on the road, how long do you think you’ll continue traveling?
A5. Ideally, we don’t ever want to stop. We miss our families and the food from back home, but those yearnings can be satisfied with visits (lengthy if needed).
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| motorbiking around Nicaragua |
Q6. Tell us about planning for this trip. How long did you plan? How extensively did you plan in terms of itineraries, finances, activities and so on?
A6. All in all the whole “planning” process took about 4-5 years. We started paying off our college credit card debt off in massive chunks about 5 years ago. We didn’t know it yet but it set us up with the ability to leave everything behind and travel for a while. As for itineraries, we’re taking the “unplanning” route. That is how 3 weeks of “planned” time in Mexico turned into almost 3 months. It was worth every second too.
Q7. How are you funding your travels? What’s your budget? (if you don’t mind me asking)
A7. We saved up as much money as we could over the course of a year, working lots of overtime and the like. For our budget, we try to spend less than $50/day between the both of us.
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| main photo for Over Yonderlust |
Q8. Although you’re just 5 months into your current journey, your blog is obviously not new, but already very well established! You’ve been listed on several Top 100 Blog Lists for quite a while, you’ve got loads of followers on FB and Twitter, and your blog’s way up there on technical stats. Congratulations! So, how long has OverYonderLust been around?
A8. The blog was created in March of 2010 but in July of 2010 Erica left her job and began working on it full time.
Q9. Erica is the photographer and videographer of your duo. Erica, tell us about how you got started in that and what you consider to be your areas of expertise.
A9. I went to the University of Texas for a degree in Radio, TV, and Film with a focus on editing videos. I really thought I was going to be an editor for a big time Hollywood studio. Unfortunately the economy went belly up when I graduated in May of 2007 and was left with very few opportunities so I started making my own plans. I became interested in photography and over the past few years have started my own freelance photo gig along with picking up second shooter photography gigs for weddings. A few years ago I would have told you I was an editor for films. Now I’m proud to say I am a photography professional.
Q10. Where would you like to take your photography into the future?
A10. My dream would be to be a nature photographer for National Geographic. In reality, I would be happy to provide travel photography for any publication. I also wouldn’t mind doing destination weddings. Weddings definitely have their own special appeal.
Q11. Now that you’ve been on the road for 5 months, what are the most interesting, unexpected or important things you’ve learned about long-term travel?
A11. We’ve learned that we aren’t huge fans of the traveling part of traveling, but once we’ve arrived in a location we’re happy again. We have also learned that living abroad is definitely something we would love to do permanently.
Q12. What are your 3 favorite places so far? What’s the draw?
A12. In no particular order: Cuba; Sayulita, Mexico; and Xela, Guatemala. Cuba was like going back in time and the people were amazing. We also ate like kings in the casa particulars. Sayulita was the second stop of our trip and we almost didn’t leave. We met some of the nicest people ever in this little surf town and spent many a day sitting under umbrellas at the beach drinking cheap buckets of beer. Xela’s lovely weather was a wonderful change of pace from the summer heat and the scenery was incredible.
Q13. Do you have any advice for people who want to travel long-term?
A13. Less is more. Get rid of your unnecessary belongings and take as little as you possibly can on your trip. All that baggage is just going to slow you down, literally and metaphorically.
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Thanks so much Erica and Shaun for the many insights to your traveling life. Sounds like you especially enjoy different kinds of foods and soaking up local atmospheres. Enjoy your continued adventures. See you out on the road! cheers, Lash
(* all photos from Over Yonderlust *)
Follow Erica and Shaun as they continue adventuring through Central and South America:
Twitter: @OverYonderlust
Facebook: OverYonderlust
YouTube: OverYonderlust
Flickr: PiratePenPen
Hi! I'm Lash, an American nomadic world traveler who's been traveling solo since 1998. I’m passionate about traveling the world nomadically and then sharing it all with you. I hope to inspire you to travel the world, to entertain you with tales from the road, and to help you reach your travel dreams. Welcome! 
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TRAVEL INTERVIEW ROUND UP: ONE YEAR OF WEEKLY TRAVELERS' INTERVIEWS - LashWorldTour » LashWorldTour
2012/06/22 at 5:51 pm (UTC 8) Link to this comment
[…] men such as: Anil Polat of FoXnoMad and One Step 4 Ward- Johnny Ward* couples such as: Erica and Shaun of Over Yonderlust and Jess and Dani of Globetrotter Girls* and families such as: Theodora and Zac of Travels With a […]