HI – we’re Gemma and Craig (Two Scots Abroad) and we’ve downed tools as teacher and tradesman to travel the Americas (and Europe) for 18 months. We spent a year saving for this trip of a lifetime and look forward to sharing it with you. I’m from Burntisland and teach Modern Studies at a West Fife high school and have been lucky to get the opportunity to take a career break to travel. Craig is from Rosyth and is a self-employed gas engineer; luckily his boss agreed or I’d be flying solo! In Gemma’s Our latest report is about the "bear" necessities of life, paddleboarding and homesickness.
 

Six countries in six months?! I am exhausted even thinking about it. 
Partying at South by Southwest Festival in Austin, trekking to Machu Picchu, cycling Death Road in Bolivia, exposing Colombia as a safe haven, diving in Cuba and now living in Vancouver. How did we do it? 
I have been feeling reflective over the past few weeks. We are both having pangs of missing our friends and September is a family birthday heavy month, which we are missing. 
There have been times I wished I could have reached down the phone line and given my family a much-needed hug and I can’t lie; I have felt a bit teary. 
If you ask any traveller they’ll tell you that mountains or the sunsets may attract to you to a country but family and friends pull you back home. 
With two months on the Sunshine Coast in British Colombia, we have had lots of time to appreciate Canada and get involved in the local community, a stand in family. 
We’ve lived in a busy hostel, Craig still can’t quite function before a morning coffee so questions before 9am were a challenge but the bustle has kept our spirits up at times when the head has been drifting off back home. Unfortunately we did not meet any furry friends, but they did leave some droppings in the garden. 
We’ll just have to make do with our visit with Grinder and Coola at Grouse Mountain for bear spotting. 
BC has had an unusually consistent and hot summer, according to locals, so we’ve taken advantage of that and embarked on new water sports – kayaking and paddleboarding. 
Craig isn’t completely new to kayaking, he has paddled around ‘The Meadies’ quite a few times but it was new to me. 
I loved paddling about with a mountainous backdrop and enjoyed when the boats created a wave, a bit of action! 
Paddleboarding was new to both of us, Craig took to it like duck to water, doing headstands like the yoga buffs on Instagram, I obviously I fell off the board a couple of times.
Craig has taken up fishing, he says he is in his prime at 32 but his new choice of sport may indicate otherwise! 
I went along as a cheerleader and watched the sunset. It’s this slow travel that has brought lots of opportunities. 
Whilst fishing, we spotted a whale who has been courting the coast all summer. 
I’ve also been volunteering at a local yoga studio in exchange for free classes – social capital at its best. 
A Scot who now lives on the coast invited to dinner via the! Jokes were made about us Scots looking after our own. 
You’d need to a big wallet to cover the cost of those claiming to be ‘Scottish’ in BC! 
This kindness of strangers has not stopped since we moved to, Vancouver! 
On our first day we were invited to a community potluck dinner in Kitsilano, our new hometown. 
Although it is starting to feel like we have been away for six months we have lots to look forward to – a trip to the Rockies, meeting my best friend in Toronto and visits from friends and Craig’s brother!
Check in with our daily updates via https://www.facebook.com/twoscotsabroad and at www.twoscotsabroad.com