Norm Bour

I remember about a decade ago I was watching a TV show with my (then) wife in my very comfortable living room, in my very comfortable chair, in very comfortable Orange County, CA. A TV commercial came on advertising the country of Turkey, possibly from their visitor’s bureau. I recall thinking, maybe even aloud, “Who the hell wants to visit Turkey?” A few years later a friend of mine, Sara, told m

Part of the adventure and fun of traveling is meeting new people and there are many reasons to stay OPEN and inviting to strangers that may become friends. A few days ago while walking in the street I heard a couple speaking English, not that common here in Tivoli. We had a brief conversation and decided to meet for coffee the following morning, which was followed by a few other meals. Chad and Ei

In March I rode our new BMW bike down from Bucharest to Antalya, about 1600 km, 1000 miles. One of the stops on the way was in Ephesus, which is not the name of the city, but the names of the ancient ruins. Those ruins are at the top of my Best Ruins list as I reflected upon others I have visited. In the past four years I have been to 26 countries and collectively I’m at 39 over my lifetime. Most

I never knew how much I liked trains (and train travel) until I started using them more than ever before. As a matter of fact, trains are now my primary means of transportation. As a American, and Southern Californian for decades, train travel was rarely a topic of conversation. There it’s all about cars. Cars here, cars there, along with the hassle of owning a car and commuting for business or fo

Or so the song says and it really is true. Traveling has been a learning experience on SO many levels, and currency is one of them. The US dollar rules America, and the Euro rules MUCH of Europe, but not all. Converting dollars to euros is not much of a struggle since it is usually within about 15% of each other and uses similar coinage. It came as no surprise when I encountered kunas in Croatia,

After 67 days my wife and I left Albania and traveled to the Middle East. It has been an amazing stay and Albania stood out from the 27 countries we have lived in since 2019. Kathleen and I are full-time nomads since leaving the US in Feb 2019 and we have never looked back or regretted our decision. At ages 68 and 70, she and I decided that the rest of the world was much too enticing and beautiful—plus more affordable—and we have no plans to stop. 

Eurail passes have almost a mystical history behind them. They been around for, hell, almost as long as me, and just celebrated 60 years since they were launched. For decades it was “the way” to visit Europe via train and yes, it certainly does that. For those “of a certain age” that maybe traveled Europe via the train in the “good old days” of the sixties and seventies (you know who you are), the

Of the 35 countries I have been to over the last few years, a new one has replaced my old number one as the most magnificent place I have ever visited. It is a country that I knew little about and was not overly excited to go to, and that is the impressive country of Ecuador . In February 2019 I left my old hometown of Newport Beach (CA) and became a traveling nomad. I started in Spain, followed b

The other day I was “stuck” at the Tunis, Tunisia ferry port for almost seven (7) hours, and I started thinking about how often we try to “control” things. I certainly did that in my career, my marriage and within my role as a stepfather, but about 2013, when my life changed, I changed as well and let go of a lot of control. I learned to live in Faith and allow the Universe to do its thing. Grante

If you have done any amount of traveling you have probably met Travel Angels . You don’t need to be religious or even spiritual, but if you keep yourself open to them, they will show up when you need them. We have met many and have even been travel angels ourselves! It takes no training or preparation, you just need to be there to help someone in need. Recently Kathleen was in need as she realized

Whether you are 25 or 65, many of you will agree that this past year of 2020 was probably the most challenging of our lives. Though we may have lived through recessions and wars, we have never had a health crisis like this; certainly not on a global scale. And it is not over yet… Will we have another pandemic when this is “over?” Unfortunately, that may be more likely than not… With that the case,

You don’t have to be a “digital nomad” to extend your 3 month visa in many European countries; you just need to provide income. And, if you qualify, your 90 day stay can be extended to one year. This is the new rule and regulation that seems to be building up momentum worldwide. Croatia was on the forefront of this movement and used the new digital nomad definition to identify someone who: 1) work

Welcome to the second quarter of the (still) challenging travel year of 2021. One year ago, when COVID really took hold, we had no idea that 12 months later we’d still be dealing with it. But…here we are. We are still living in Mexico and itching to move on and will, as soon as we are able. Which brings up the question: Is It Time to Start Traveling Again? That question is a personal one, but here

As the COVID pandemic enters its second year, we all look back at how travel has changed and lament over the “Good Olde Days.” As a permanent traveler for several years after leaving the US (for good) in 2019, I do the same thing, so I am offering you a preview of what Airplane Travel v3.0 might look like going forward. I’ll begin about 60 years ago, just about when I was born, and call it Version

Over the past year, my girlfriend Kathleen and I have traveled to Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and now, Croatia. We have rented motorcycles in many of those locations and will share why a bike makes so much sense. I never had any “respect” for scooters since I was a motorcycle rider since 1974. Scooters used to be small, not very powerful and truthfully, looked wimpy. Vespa was the big brand tha

Sometimes I feel a bit like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, who had to escape south of the border to escape the law. In my case, the law was not on my heels, and I didn’t have to go all the way to Argentina, but that damn COVID virus was definitely breathing down our necks. And it messed up all our plans, just like many of you. My girlfriend, Kathleen and I, permanently left the US in February