Free AI web copilot to create summaries, insights and extended knowledge, download it at here

Abstract

 <div><h3>Stick a fork in me, I’m done</h3></div>
            <div><p>medium.com</p></div>
          </div>
          <div>
            <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*nzU7ByS2fCMmVPmf)"></div>
          </div>
        </div>
      </a>
    </div><div id="c1ba" class="link-block">
      <a href="https://readmedium.com/new-life-what-can-you-learn-from-being-appropriately-concerned-caa485badb82">
        <div>
          <div>
            <h2>New Life — What Can You Learn From Being ‘Appropriately Concerned?’</h2>
            <div><h3>Why worry?</h3></div>
            <div><p>medium.com</p></div>
          </div>
          <div>
            <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*CqEDbYt-HLxq99YA)"></div>
          </div>
        </div>
      </a>
    </div><p id="f51c" type="7">Now, after lots of thoughts about what’s next — and almost no details secured — I’m moving to Europe.</p><p id="9eec">I do have a wonderful travel partner. We’ll be fine.</p><p id="f54d">Meeting “Mighty Qin — my now girlfriend — and developing a stellar relationship with her, has been one of the most incredibly pleasant and fortuitous events of 2022.</p><p id="2799">Mighty Q has a long involved story she may share someday on Medium — in English and 普通話— but she’s always wanted to live in Europe. Now we’ll do that together. We’re a team.</p><p id="c6b9">Our overarching ideal involves long-term slow travel.</p><p id="7cde">This will <b>not</b> be a vacation, especially not in the way most Americans sorrowfully vacation, spending lots of money, isolating in fancy hotels, eating and drinking too much, and arriving home badly in need of a true vacation, from their vacation.</p><p id="cb7f" type="7">Rather, we’ll be living as close to “local” as possible, lingering when it’s right to linger and moving on only as the spirit, or the next great adventure, moves us.</p><p id="c425">We’ll start in Dubrovnik and see what happens. As mentioned, we have only arranged lodging for our first six days. After that, it’s a crap shoot.</p><p id="b88f">In January 2023, we’ll return to California, for about a month, to celebrate the birth of my son’s and girlfriend’s first baby, my first grand-baby. Grandfather-gray hair and a bald spot graced me just in time. I’m well prepared, paunch to follow</p><p id="6ac4">In February we’ll leave again, not returning to California until late Early June 2023, for a graduation.</p><p id="241c">During Summer of 2023 we’ll perform all the US-based circus tricks required to obtain a long-stay visa in a European country.</p><p id="9d30">After that, it’s all wide open.</p><p id="9604">The “list” of “to-dos”, none of which are being meaningfully addressed currently, include:</p><ul><li>Where, if anywhere, will we establish residency?</li><li>Will Mighty Q work? Will I?</li><li>Where will we go and when?</li></ul><p id="c6f1">All similar conundrums, and many more I’m undoubtedly forgetting, and many more to come, will work themselves out along the way. We’re a strong team and great solution finders.</p><p id="31b9">Please come along for the ride. There will be plenty of thrills, spills and chills, all about:</p><ul><li>Travel in Croatia</li><li>Our “how-to’s” of long-term travel</li><li>Working abroad</li><li>Visa acquisition joys and sorrows</li><li>Stuff I can’t even imagine at this point</li><li>Useful tips and tricks for long-term travel</li></ul><p id="1da9">I promise not to bore you with too many travel photos.</p><h2 id="30f1">Update March 4, 2023</h2><blockquote id="6c7f"><p>In Cork, Ireland at the moment. Will be in Ireland until March 21, then it’s off to Portugal for two months. We’ve settled on Portugal as the place to get our long-stay visa and European residency. W

Options

hile in Portugal we’ll complete the parts of the application required there.</p></blockquote><h2 id="61d4">Interested to know more about the Croatian journey?</h2><p id="7a34">Tune in here.</p><div id="2319" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/this-californian-is-now-living-in-croatia-bcc0a13f3563"> <div> <div> <h2>This Californian is Now “Living” in Croatia</h2> <div><h3>Chapter #2 … of many</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*Qv_GR-hgnT2oj37VA6EaIg.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="d712" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/our-private-paradise-makarska-croatia-in-the-fall-15824927c775"> <div> <div> <h2>Our Private Paradise — Makarska, Croatia in the Fall</h2> <div><h3>It can easily be your private paradise too</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*ZNzs6L-_gl_zwri5)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="3368" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/globetrotters/island-bra%C4%8D-croatia-the-pearl-of-the-adriatic-21df3874c1cd"> <div> <div> <h2>Island Brač, Croatia — The Pearl of the Adriatic</h2> <div><h3>Home of The Golden Horn, one of the world’s most beautiful beaches</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*dP_cPU2Pp7FlZ0Yc)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="4e61" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/croatian-adventuring-lopud-island-19d09bfab9a0"> <div> <div> <h2>Croatian Adventuring — Lopud Island</h2> <div><h3>A few hundred inhabitants, 1.8 square miles, zero cars, 2 happy wanderers</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*TPVKHiEzoDf7qkpy)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="2053" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/krka-national-park-and-skradin-croatia-eb096e5421ab"> <div> <div> <h2>Krka National Park and Skradin, Croatia</h2> <div><h3>You can’t take enough pictures here</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*fmxypea4TbyhyvWu)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="ebc2" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/long-slow-travel-in-croatia-some-of-what-weve-learned-730fe44e564d"> <div> <div> <h2>Long Slow Travel in Croatia. Some of What We’ve Learned.</h2> <div><h3>Love the one(s) you’re with. Love the time and place you’re in.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*ijb3iAUWVVktAsSF)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

FIRST STOP … DUBROVNIK

Moving to Europe, the Countdown

Chapter #1 … of many

**Dubrovnik. Looks fairly pleasant, no?** * * * Photo by Ivan Ivankovic on Unsplash

Roughly three weeks from this writing, my girlfriend, Qin M, and I, will be landing in the city pictured above.

**The happy travel team. Author’s photo. Who else’s would it be?**

We’ll arrive with one checked bag each and a small backpack. For our first six days in Dubrovnik housing is arranged. After that, we’re open to possibilities, whatever that may mean.

We have hopes and dreams, plenty of them — and scarcely a plan in sight — for all the years to come.

This is a recap of the winding journey to this point:

In February 2020, after thirty-plus years in the Emergency Department trenches, I worked the last of a full-time shift schedule. At month’s end, I flew with my son, Shawn, to Bali. We enjoyed a great nine days there, hiking, exploring, lounging on the beaches and sunning by the hotel pool.

**Father-Son photo in Bali. Author’s photo … of course.**

In early March, we parted ways. Shawn flew back to California. I continued on to Auckland, intending to spend about three months in New Zealand working as a farm laborer in exchange for room and board, traveling about the glorious countryside, and visiting friends.

I’d arranged to return to California in May, to work some ER shifts. I then planned to leave in June for two to three months in Europe. That would have taken me to August 2020.

I thought … “Let’s see how this goes, then see what’s next. Maybe I’ll simply continue roaming the Earth, working only enough to pay for my travels.”

COVID thrummed in the background, ominously.

In mid-March 2020 the pandemic hit, with a vengeance, changing the lives and plans of approximately eight billion people.

My life and plans cratered as well.

Instead of wandering idly about, loving New Zealand life, I took one of the last planes out of Auckland to Los Angeles on March 25th, 2020. I departed from the eerily vacant Auckland airport and landed in an eerily vacant LA.

**Eerily vacant Auckland International Airport, as described. Author’s photo … yet again.**

I still recall being the only Uber passenger for the only Uber driver at LAX, usually one of the world’s busiest airports.

Shortly after arriving home, and without an alternative in sight, I quit my job in Emergency Medicine. I’ve never looked back.

Life crashed to a halt.

I’ve detailed some of the intervening two-and-a-half years in these stories.

Retiring From the Practice of Emergency Medicine

Stick a fork in me, I’m done

medium.com

New Life — What Can You Learn From Being ‘Appropriately Concerned?’

Why worry?

medium.com

Now, after lots of thoughts about what’s next — and almost no details secured — I’m moving to Europe.

I do have a wonderful travel partner. We’ll be fine.

Meeting “Mighty Qin — my now girlfriend — and developing a stellar relationship with her, has been one of the most incredibly pleasant and fortuitous events of 2022.

Mighty Q has a long involved story she may share someday on Medium — in English and 普通話— but she’s always wanted to live in Europe. Now we’ll do that together. We’re a team.

Our overarching ideal involves long-term slow travel.

This will not be a vacation, especially not in the way most Americans sorrowfully vacation, spending lots of money, isolating in fancy hotels, eating and drinking too much, and arriving home badly in need of a true vacation, from their vacation.

Rather, we’ll be living as close to “local” as possible, lingering when it’s right to linger and moving on only as the spirit, or the next great adventure, moves us.

We’ll start in Dubrovnik and see what happens. As mentioned, we have only arranged lodging for our first six days. After that, it’s a crap shoot.

In January 2023, we’ll return to California, for about a month, to celebrate the birth of my son’s and girlfriend’s first baby, my first grand-baby. Grandfather-gray hair and a bald spot graced me just in time. I’m well prepared, paunch to follow

In February we’ll leave again, not returning to California until late Early June 2023, for a graduation.

During Summer of 2023 we’ll perform all the US-based circus tricks required to obtain a long-stay visa in a European country.

After that, it’s all wide open.

The “list” of “to-dos”, none of which are being meaningfully addressed currently, include:

Where, if anywhere, will we establish residency?
Will Mighty Q work? Will I?
Where will we go and when?

All similar conundrums, and many more I’m undoubtedly forgetting, and many more to come, will work themselves out along the way. We’re a strong team and great solution finders.

Please come along for the ride. There will be plenty of thrills, spills and chills, all about:

Travel in Croatia
Our “how-to’s” of long-term travel
Working abroad
Visa acquisition joys and sorrows
Stuff I can’t even imagine at this point
Useful tips and tricks for long-term travel

I promise not to bore you with too many travel photos.

Update March 4, 2023

In Cork, Ireland at the moment. Will be in Ireland until March 21, then it’s off to Portugal for two months. We’ve settled on Portugal as the place to get our long-stay visa and European residency. While in Portugal we’ll complete the parts of the application required there.