Home Sweet Home

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After six trips around the world in just over two years, Elise and I finally chose a home. How did we decide? Where did we end up?

Well, lets start with the master list -- over the last year we have considered:

Vancouver, Canada
London, England
Bali, Indonesia
Las Vegas, USA
Los Angeles, USA
Cape Town, South Africa
Singapore, Singapore
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos

Vancouver -- I have lived in Vancouver before and it is one of my favorite cities in the world. The rain is a bit much for me. Another consideration was that Elise, who is English, wanted to have the option to work, particularly if I would still be traveling and speaking around the world from time to time. Visa requirements made this challenging.

London -- Wow. Never again, I think. I love England, and I enjoyed my ten years there but we neither of us wanted to live with semi-permanent clouds and constant rain. When you add the traffic and other cultural considerations, London was a no go. London remains one of my favorite places to visit, however.

Bali -- Now this was a close one -- when it came down to the final two, Bali was one of them. We both love Bali a great deal and expect that we will still spend a fair bit of time there over the coming years. Primary considerations here had to do with proximity to the first world and the stability (or not) of the government in Indonesia. You can not, for instance, own land in Indonesia without a local partner which means you really cant own land at all.

Los Angeles/Las Vegas -- These are both good options except that they are in America and America, when we were considering where to live, was just at the start of what appeared at the time (and certainly appears now) of a long economic winter. Add to this visa complexities and the lack of stability with our business partners in the US, we decided against moving in with Uncle Sam. (Update: We have a number of entertainment-related projects underway that might have us spending an increase amount of time in LA.)

Cape Town -- Another one of our favorite places on the planet. Cape Town really is one of the most gorgeous cities in the world and South Africa might -- for all its troubles -- be the most stunning country on the planet. As you probably know, I love to spend time in the bush with my cameras and my family is still, largely, based in South Africa. There were lots of reasons to make the move. On the other hand, there is the razor wire to consider. And the car jackings. And the fact that the pigs are walking.

Singapore -- When we first landed in Singapore we were not impressed. We very much wanted to get in, deliver my talk and get out. By our third visit in as many months we were hooked. We love Singapore seriously considered it as an alternative to Bali. Changi is our favorite airport in the world and while we didn't end up moving there, we will always find reasons to go back. (Go for sushi in Suntek Plaza!!)

Providenciales -- Since my early 20's I have been in love with the Caribbean. I have entertained, over the last 20 years, moves to Grand Cayman and The Bahamas. I love the clear, clean blue water -- the consistent weather, the people and gorgeous beaches.

My first visit to Turks and Caicos reignited my desire to live in the Caribbean some six years ago. When Elise and I came for a visit two years ago, we both loved it. Last year, while we climbed Kilimanjaro again, we had a total moment of clarity about how and where we wanted to live. Together, and separately, we arrived at the conclusion that Turks and Caicos was our choice.

So now we live in a cottage style house on the canal in a place called Discovery Bay. Despite the name, TCI is a largely undiscovered and undeveloped island retreat. It boasts (truthfully) some of the most gorgeous beaches in the world and 300+ days of sun each year. We have tropical fish and crabs living under our doc including 'Barry', our resident juvenile barracuda.

Our days are more productive than ever - starting and ending with beach walks and swims. I used to swim at the pool near my office -- now I swim with coral, fish and turtles.

Life is too short not to love every day. Our decision to live in the islands was a decision not to postpone our lives.

This will be my last blog on this blogging site because I have moved to my own site here -- please join me there and continue the adventure.

My new Blog is at www.EricEdmeades.net

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