Words by Nita Breibish // Photography by Nita Breibish

Its been nearly 4 years since Issa and I first began discussing the idea of world travel. Casual reoccurrences of playful banter that typically began with, “What if we could…? “

Little did we know at the time, that this idea would grow and change just as we had been through the years. As of 2010, we weren’t just talking about weekenders or places we’d hoped to visit throughout the course of a lifetime anymore, but rather, a lifetime filled with travel. Not as a break from work, but the possibility of travel as work itself. What an idea – an impossible idea born from one single simple question, served up seriously along-side a bevvie over looking Monterey Bay, in early 2011. A question that had been asked and taken as light fare, many times before.

“…but, what do you want to do”?

We were in flux, intuitive and thankfully inventive. We were in redesign mode you might say and just hoping to land somwhere between passion, purpose and play. Me, “How do we begin to live our dream?” Issa, “How do we dare to believe that we can?”.

It was from then-on that these questions seemed to linger, longer than usual and with a voice that was speaking louder than ever. The only voice that seemed to matter. It had taken shape, developed a face and a wise pair of eyes, staring us down, right into the heart of us, eager with a sense of urgency, demanding consideration and a healthy dosage of honesty.

The consideration part came easy as over-thinking was an innate gift that we both possessed. With some subtle prying from both inside and outside forces, the honesty part always follows. How soon did you start crying the first time you saw the animated movie UP back in 2009? I can guarantee we beat you to the punch. There, hiding beneath our 3D glasses, wondering why someone would want to tear our hearts out and throw them to the ground that way, kicking them repeatedly and pointing. So mean! It was evident, seeing the world together had always been a topic we held close to our hearts and is still something we look back at now for confirmation.

Since we had met back in 2006, our passions had always seemed to be in line with one another. But to simply answer such questions now with, “lets just ride motorcycles” wasn’t going to cut it here in grown-up land. If we were even considering things of this nature, at this point in our lives, we knew it had to mean much more, we had to dig deeper. What more can we offer as travellers? With passion firmly in place and play the obvious instigator, it was time to uncover the purpose that would take this idea to the next level.

Nukusp, BC. I can still smell the damp campfire. That evening, during our 10 day Western Canada route last Summer, I felt we had truly made the decision to go for the first time. There was just something about the way Issa said, “lets do it!”, that set it off. This time, there were no question marks following behind. There was simply something in his voice that said he believed we could, and that was enough for me. It all became very clear that night, if we weren’t going to believe in ourselves, then who would. The truth is, we were getting a wee bit tired of looking for reasons not to. It was that very moment I felt that our hearts had finally made up our minds.

So here we are, 4 weeks from the launch of our Trans-world Motorcycle Adventure, continuing to work through the questions and obliterate any previously coddled misconceptions about what we thought we could or couldn’t accomplish. Continuing to want and will our way through new ideas and what we expect of ourselves, of this life. We are ready to take the plunge, in hopes to come out on the other end with a huge smile on our faces and a world PhD in hand, prepared to pass on the knowledge and advice to others looking for exploration, adventure and much more.

After spending months and months caught up in prep, this past couple of weeks have left us with some time to sit and reflect on the many stages of our lives over the last 411 days since Monterey Bay. In case you missed the previous post we decided on a corporate lease with our house rather than listing it for sale. The market is still up and down here in Calgary and we felt we needed a way to help subsidize the journey ahead. We wanted to be sure we were taking the time to do it the way it was meant to be done, slowly and purpose-filled.

This amazing opportunity that, in the beginning, we hadn’t realized was available to us, fell into our laps. The catch: a four year lease. The answer: “Of Course!” If ever there was a question whether or not we were doing the right thing, it was long gone. The universe had introduced itself to us personally throughout this pre-launch prepping period. We are on a first name basis at this point. Our presto manifesto charm was in check! Knock on wood. :)

April into May has been our busiest time yet. We Kijiji’d, stored and donated everything we could in order to empty the house, listed and showed our place, rented our place, moved out, moved my parents out and set them up at their newly built house, inhale, prepped the bikes, sold Issa’s car, bought Issa’s Mum a new car, finalized sponsorships, planned a fundraiser, threw a fundraiser and made time for friends and family.

Sleep, eat, run, repeat! And now onto the final stage of paper work, finances and packing.

Our good friend Lindsey Baker said it best, “Happy travels, and I hope you guys get the ring to Mordor in time!”

Now that the emotional and physical trials of the prep are over and the lightness of the adventure has set back in, we’re looking forward to the big slow down. Once we are on the road, time will literally seem to stand still. It will be us, just the two, in the calm serene silence of our helmets, moving almost daily through changing terrain, shifting climates and unexpected situations. At some point, after we’ve surpassed any length of time we’d previously spent on the road, we will truly understand the grandness of this journey. There we will be, back in front of a campfire somewhere, with many kilometers behind us, and years to go.

So, in the name of two little hobbits from the shire, we promise many new beginnings and repeat endings to a very long tale and even longer journey. Thanks for staying with us and joining in on the adventure. Now, onto the next four years!