World-schooling: Life Abroad with Kids
We’re on the move again after many years. We wanted to pursue a new way of life with our kids for a while. We wanted to see if we could be happy and healthy in a Central-American country with our little ones, while I work remotely for Granular and Becca educates them. We are able to do this with the help of our friend Adriana and Chris, they wanted their kids to have the chance to see more of the world and experience life in other cultures too. Our children all get along really well, so last year we began planning and searching for the right place to go together.
In early January we first traveled to Valladolid, Mexico where a wonderful couple set up and hosted a great world-school program for 2 weeks. The whole thing went so fast. And gave us a great introduction to this lifestyle. We experienced families living together in intense community - we learned about Mayan culture and traditions, we explored ruins, cenotes, beaches and caves.
The kids grew a ton through this experience - I’m not at all worried about them missing out on important educational content. We’re taking their 6 and 8 year-old minds to places that will make them better people along so many dimensions. Becca and Adriana work hard to give them some school-like structure and to keep them focused each morning.
Now we’ve arrived in Costa Rica, and we are staying in a mountain town here for at least a month. I took time off while we were in the Yucatan peninsula, but now am back to a daily working schedule. I find that I’m way happier to wake up and start work in the morning during the last week or so. The days go quickly, and I can hop in the pool or lounge on the hammock when I need to take a break.
It’s pretty hot in Costa Rica compared to Mexico this time of year. But a strong breeze comes through in the evenings and mornings to cool things off, and tonight it’s actually very comfortable.
The cicadas are loud. Really loud.
I’m excited about exploring a new country, driving around and seeing new places, just getting to know a place and the cool things to eat here. Our hope is that we and the kids will get a big boost in our Spanish language learning here from a tutor we’ve hired. And I really hope this trip gives us energy and excitement to keep traveling and seeing more of the world. We don’t know what is in store, but I’m not going to miss this because of fear of the unknown. Also, it’s really freaking cold in Colorado. 🥶
The internet has been … kinda meh everywhere. I have to use a cellular hotspot pretty regularly. Pre-paid data in Costa Rica is about $4 USD for 10 gigs. The GlocalMe Duo Turbo is the hotspot I chose.
I brought along a few work gadgets to make my office more comfortable. Unfortunately it’s not practical to pack my office chair and standing desk, but I have this compact laptop stand from ElfAnt and I packed a Logitech MX Keys Mini Keyboard and Logitech MX Anywhere 3 For Mac Mouse. I use my Surface Headphones 2 with noise cancelling. I forgot to bring my trackpad for my left hand — and I miss it a lot.
I also have a few backup batteries that can provide USB-C PD strong enough to give my laptop a little extra time, or run a router here in the rental house if power goes out. That may have been over-kill. Power has not been a problem at all yet.
I’m excited to learn more, to see how my perspective and priorities change, and to see what we want to do as a family when our current itinerary runs out in March. Will we immediately have more to do, or will we want to go back home then?