Anybody Travel Around Looking for Perfect Place?

[Electron]

Originally Posted by Sharon R.

I have really learned a lot reading these forums for the various states. I have learned there are a lot of great places that I'd love to see. I'm very picky about where I want to stay. Smallish, walkable city, safe but inexpensive. NE PA sounds great except for the weather. I'm OK with some cold and snow, but I need sunshine! Definitely don't like the suburban sprawl that has taken over much of the South.

So I'm thinking about putting everything into storage, getting a camper and traveling. By myself, except for my doggie. Splitting with the long-term boyfriend and starting over at 50. Has anybody done this? Can you tell me something about the experience -- how long, what you found, where you landed?

Sharon

Oh, Honey. You absolutely have to visit the Allegheny Highlands of Virginia.
Highland, Bath, and Allegheny counties are absolute heaven. Small, really country towns, sunshine and snow.Check it out.

[Sharon R.]

Electron, I know the area you mean. My mother is from NW NC, up in the mountains, and my cousin still owns about 100 acres there. Heaven on earth. In fact, that's probably one of the places I'll park the RV for a period, until I get the urge to move on.

I do agree that happiness is not necessarily dependent on where you live, that you have to make an effort and find a life for yourself wherever you land. However, it is not the same from one place to another. I hate suburban sprawl because sitting in traffic is very stressful. They have built these cutesy little subdivisions without sidewalks and nobody can walk anywhere. Sure, I can take the dog for a walk around the block, but I can't really go anywhere. Have to get in the car and plan all my errands so I'm not going out of the way, wasting gas. All the houses are the same, nobody is outside unless they're out mowing the yard. The kids don't walk to school because either mommy or daddy is driving them, so there's a traffic jam near every school, or a few of them are actually riding the bus. Especially here in the South, we've become a very fat population. Folks are obsessed with all the bells and whistles that their new 4000 square foot home has, but they don't know their neighbors. HOAs telling us we can't even HAVE an RV parked at the house! I like a tidy home with a clean yard and I'd like my neighbors to have the same, but I don't want somebody else having that control over my home. Everybody is so stressed from their hour commute each way to work, but they had to move so far away so they could have the big house in what used to be farmland.

As for my travel plans, I've driven across country a few times, but always on a schedule. Had to go straight from Point A to Point B. I used to have a small pickup with a camper shell, and me and the dog slept in the back in rest stops. I like staying in hotels, but I'd really rather not do the packing and unpacking, and I might not always find a place where my dog is welcome. I travel locally to dog shows, and lots of dog show folks travel in RVs, and it's really great to wake up in the morning, step outside and be where you need to be. Also, I'm quite cautious and stay very aware of my surroundings. My dog is very friendly, but he's also big enough to be a deterrent.

I'm really looking for that place I can call home, but I know that first impressions can be very misleading, and you have to stay in a place, maybe for a couple of seasons, before getting a true picture of whether it feels like home. In addition, most of my travels have been South and West. I love Wyoming, had a long distance romance with a guy I met there so went back a couple of times. I loved Malibu, and San Francisco, but don't know about living there. Had brief visits to New York, Philly & Boston, and I would love a place like that, but on a much smaller and cleaner scale. I love Washington DC, that is truly home. But I also love my NC mountains. So we'll see! Still in the research stages, doubt I'll go anywhere before Spring, so keep those ideas coming.

[sunrico90]

Originally Posted by Sharon R.

I have really learned a lot reading these forums for the various states. I have learned there are a lot of great places that I'd love to see. I'm very picky about where I want to stay. Smallish, walkable city, safe but inexpensive. NE PA sounds great except for the weather. I'm OK with some cold and snow, but I need sunshine! Definitely don't like the suburban sprawl that has taken over much of the South.

So I'm thinking about putting everything into storage, getting a camper and traveling. By myself, except for my doggie. Splitting with the long-term boyfriend and starting over at 50. Has anybody done this? Can you tell me something about the experience -- how long, what you found, where you landed?

Sharon

Sharon,

We moved 7 times in 22 years to Utah, Rep Panama, Florida, Texas, North Dakota and Iceland due to military assigments. Every state and country that we stayed/visited had good and bad things. But is all what you make of it. My suggestion pack, store, fill up the tank and go.

Drive the old roads, visit the small towns, don't stop at a fast food rest, go to the old cafeteria. Every down has something to offer. Post on the forum your experiences Good Luck!!!!!

[Sonnenwende]

Good luck!

I took a road trip though IN, IL, WI, MO, SD, MN, CO, KS, and WY for awhile when I was in college. I really didn't see anything I was too interested in. Some of the places were VERY pretty and the people were nice, but I really couldn't picture myself living there (but I did this for fun, not really to find a new place to live). I hope you find something good though. Sounds like a cool adventure in any case.