Gee the year is flying by so fast! And the weeks are all rolling into one – actually I am glad we have a regular Monday Featured Travel Blogger post because it’s the only way I know what day of the week it is! And its the only way I can keep track of what we are doing each week 🙂
Today we are sharing “Travels With A Nine Year Old” – some of you (actually most of you!) would know Theodora who is the writer and inspiration behind the blog, but I am hoping that you will get to know more about who is who behind the scenes of the blog, and how courageous they are to be travelling together (her and her son!)
Actually it was a whole lotta of fun reading Travels with A Nine Year Old “About Page”- and working out what you would like to know more of……
Monday Featured Travel Blogger :: Travels With A Nine Year Old
Q:- Was there one event that inspired you to start travelling with your Nine Year old son, and what year did you head off on your adventures?
We set off in January 2010. 2009 had been the year from hell for me, and so 2010 seemed to be the year to make the change and do something we’d always dreamed of.
 (That I so can relate to…..maybe that is what most travellers find – that there is a year of hell, before there is adventure?)
Q:- You had planned on only travelling for 12 months, but yet you are still exploring. Do you have a bucket list of places that you would like to see?
Yes, and it keeps on growing by the second. Right now, I have a yen for Armenia, Namibia, Nepal, Antarctica, Bolivia, Madagascar and to return to Italy, although I’m in Lebanon, en route to Egypt, Turkey and Greece. I would love to see Syria, Libya and the ancient sites of Iraq, but Syria and Libya are unsafe right now, as are the parts of Iraq I’d be most interested in visiting.
 (GEE – that is a massive list of places of wanting to see, and heaps of interesting places you have been to! I love the idea of visiting Italy – as well as Greece! Actually the Greek Islands would be ideal right now somewhere nice and warm!)
The Two of Us at Mount Sinai ~
Gosh What A View!
Q:-Â What has so far been the best part of travelling for you and your son?
The constant whirl of new experiences, the cultural insights, the togetherness, the sense of connectedness to the world as a whole, and being at home in most parts of the world — pretty much anything.
 (What a great way for a kid to grow up…..travelling, seeing, doing, experiencing and forming a great relationship with all those that he meets! Gosh, can I join you guys!)
Q:-Â You are homeschooling on the road, are you using a certain program?
No. We unschool as we go — we’re in the Middle East at the moment, where the history and culture dates back for as long as mankind, so that’s educational in itself. Z also has a tutor to do maths and physics with him over Skype, because he’s into physics, and I am not a scientist.
 (I like the idea of Unschool – I have even heard the term “World School” which I think is the best way for kids to learn. A tutor over skype sounds like it works for you and your son. Sure beats a classroom boring old text-book learning any day!)
Z Learning To Scuba Dive ~
Love the idea of life learning!
Q:- If you could plan your next country to visit, where would it be and why?
As in, if I had a blank line in the budget? I would be fascinated to see Antarctica, which isn’t technically a country. I think my son would probably go with the US, though.
 (I am not sure I would want to see Antarctica……too COLD! But I like the idea of blank Line in the Budget – imagine the places you could see with unlimited money…oh now I am going to be dreaming tonight!)
Q:- Where do you stay while you are travelling? Do you explore out-of-the-way places as well as the tourist places?
We’ve stayed everywhere from houses and apartments to shelters built by tribal people, Bedouin tents, hammocks, and, obviously, guesthouses and hotels, slept everywhere from sleeper trains to the roof of a boat. And, yes, we tend to head to out-of-the-way places: in East Indonesia, we’ve been in villages where we were the first non-Indonesians people had ever seen.
(OH yeah – I am so dreaming! Sleeping in a Hammock, or Bedouin Tents sounds like such an adventure. Gee not many nine-year olds could say they have such a great lifestyle! Wouldnt you like to join Travels with A Nine Year Old? I sure wood would!)
About The Author ::
Theodora Sutcliffe is a freelance writer. She’s been travelling the world with her no-longer nine-year-old son since January 2010, and blogging at Travels With A Nine Year Old about everything from diving undersea volcanoes to hanging with hunter-gathering nomads or coping with a Chinese supermarket.
You can read Z’s take on things at Kid Venturere , and check Theodora’s food writing at World Foodist.Â
Want to connect in other ways online with Theodora? You can connect and see what wonerful adventures they are up to on Facebook and Twitter!
What Do You Think Would Be So Cool About Travelling With Them?
Cheers
Lisa
PS:- Here are the Previous Monday Featured Travel Bloggers….
Monday Featured Travel Blogger :: Road Trip For Families – Sherri and other travellers from Road Trip For Families.
Monday Featured Travel Blogger :: Ytravel Blog – Caz and Craig from Ytravel blog!
Monday Featured Travel Blogger :: Bohemian Travlers – Mary from Bohemian Travelers
Monday Featured Travel Blogger Travel Mamas – Colleen from Travel Mamas
Monday Featured Travel Blogger Special Needs Travel Mom – Karin from Special Needs Mom
Monday Featured Travel Blogger 1 Dad 1 Kid – Windwalker Duo from 1 Dad, 1 Kid
Featured Travel Blogger Travel Experta – Marina from Travel Experta
Featured Travel Blogger – Rachel from Our Wee Trip
Monday Featured Travelling Blogger Revealed – Natalie from Family in a Van
Monday Travelling Blogger Featured – Tracey from Life Changing Year
Travel Blogger – Jess from With 2 kids in Tow
Featured Travel Blogger – Jan from Budget Travel Talk
Featured Travel Blogger At New Life on the Road – Lisa From Gone With The Family
This Week Featured Travel Blogger – Keryn from Walking On Travels
Monday Featured Travelling Blogger Journey – Jeremy from Living The Dream
Featured Travel Blogger Monday – Suzi from Two and A Half Travellers
I was happy to see you have featured one of my favourite bloggers. I only recently realized Z has a blog as well. Good questions and answers!
jan recently posted..Townsville 400 V8 Supercar Race
I love the idea of interviewing other travel writers an bloggers. I now need to work my way through all of our other interviews.
You mentioned that she was a freelance writer? This is on of the things I am thinking about doing when we hit the road next year. It would be nice to bring in some extra cash so we can afford to stay on the road for longer
Daddy recently posted..Is It Possible To Change Your Life In Just 10 Months
The idea of interviewing other travellers was something that came to me last year! At first I started with asking people to share their magical photos – now I am finding other inspirational travellers and asking them questions about their travel journey. Its so much fun and I love to read what others are doing!
I like the idea of writing and getting paid for it.
Cheers
Lisa