see ya later, U.S.A!

Steve and I have always loved to travel. Ever since the very first road trip we took together back in July 2011, we knew we traveled well together and we couldn’t wait to do more exploring! Then, we took our first trip to Europe in May, 2012. That was a game changer. We both fell in love with Europe. The different cultures in each city we visited, the cuisines, the architecture, the slower pace of life, what’s not to love! When you spend so much time in fast-paced Chicago, it is nice to take a step back, slow down, and experience something so much different than what you’re used to.

Shortly thereafter, after a few glasses of wine, we dreamt of someday picking up and moving abroad. We talked about London, Australia, Spain. How great would it be to actually settle down and experience life outside of the U.S., rather than just a few quick days hitting the high points? Then, those few glasses of wine wore off, our risk-averse, left brain accountant nature kicked in, and we decided we couldn’t just quit our jobs and figure it out when we got there. Too risky.

Fast forward a few more years, we were a couple months away from our wedding day, and we still had the itch to live abroad. Steve began exploring options through KPMG, since they have offices all over the world. We hoped that we could spend the beginning of our marriage doing what we love most, traveling! Now here we are, all packed up and ready to head to London for Steve’s secondment with KPMG London! We will be there between 6-12 months; we are hoping to stay for a full year, but we won’t know if that is possible for several more months. Either way, we will absolutely make the most of our time across the pond.

First, though, we will do a bit of traveling – with stops in Dubrovnik, Athens, Santorini and Mykonos. I have a feeling the next post will be reminiscing on a great trip! Stay tuned!