It’s now less than two months before we fly out and reality is starting to set in! Renting out the house, the amount of stuff we need to pack up 😱 and only six more weeks of work 🎉

I am on a HUUUGE clear out and my local Buy Nothing group* is getting flooded. Clearing out the kids’ shoes for example, I moved on 15 pairs of shoes that either don’t fit them or they don’t wear (& won’t fit when we get back that’s for sure!). My aim is to get rid of one third of the stuff in every drawer/cupboard. It sounds like a lot but when you actually look it’s pretty easy. Which is kinda awful when you think about all that stuff that used to be money, not to mention the environmental cost… 😬 I am so glad that I have a Buy Nothing group to gift to so things are going to someone who actually wants them, rather than going to an op shop (which we still do when the BNG option doesn’t work).

We will talk to the kids’ teachers next week – hopefully the schools have already let them know the plan! – and see what they think about home schooling on the road. I am hoping for some minimal maths and maybe science, but we shall see – the less the better really. We are trying to plan in time to have rest days but, of course, the reality may be quite different to what we think!

For Japan, we have one week in Osaka, then a week across to Hiroshima, bunny island, art island, hopefully catching the Hello Kitty shinkansen in there. Kyoto for a week, Mt Fuji area for a few days and then Tokyo for a week. It feels like we are barely scratching the surface with Japan but it’s a good start and we can always go back 😁 (yeah I know, already planning the next trip and we’ve not even started this one! 🤣)

Next, we fly to Java for four weeks, then to Paris in early June. Java itinerary is less organised than Japan, which is deliberate as I am hoping that the flexibility will be good for us. We’ve often had the best experiences by going with what other travelers or locals have suggested, rather than having everything locked in before you even step off the plane.

Oh, and did I mention only six more weeks of work? 🤭

*Buy Nothing groups are hyper local, community focused groups aiming to create community and reduce waste. You might well have one in your area, check Facebook or the website.