This is no Mickey Mouse trip.
The four members of MacDougall family of Stratford are setting out on a busy adventure far removed from a routine vacation.
They plan to visit between 20 and 26 countries in 10 months in an ambitious – and costly – outing aimed at giving the family a chance to reconnect while opening the clan’s eyes to the ways of the world.
Julie and Shawn MacDougall, both 39, had an “awakening moment’’ when they examined how to become the best parents possible, concluding their collective goal is to raise good global citizens.
Julie hopes her children – nine-year-old Eve and 12-year-old Luke – will “develop a love for travel and an empathy for people’’ as a result of what has the potential to be a trip of a lifetime.
Shawn says the trip will help his children develop life skills, like adjusting to change and becoming more savvy travellers.
The couple is confident they can provide good home-schooling (make that global-schooling) as Eve and Luke miss out on attending Grade 5 and Grade 7 respectively in Island classrooms.
Education will also be delivered through hands-on learning as the children are immersed in history and geography during their travels.
Luke, who is interested in archeology, is most looking forward to visiting Easter Island, a remote volcanic island in Polynesia.
“I expect to learn a lot of stuff about other places in the world,’’ he adds.
Eve has her eye set on Paris but anticipates that doing a great deal of travelling overall will be “really cool”.
Flying out of Halifax’s Stanfield International Airport on Sept. 5, the MacDougalls will certainly be getting around.
They plan to visit 10 countries in Europe in 10 weeks, soaking up plenty of First World War and Second World War history along the way.
The family will fly from Rome to Thailand, spending more than two months in Southeast Asia, taking in intriguing places like Cambodia and Vietnam.
“We really want to go to places you wouldn’t go to on a typical March break,’’ says Shawn.
The itinerary also includes spending six to eight weeks in Cook Islands, a nation in the South Pacific.
Shawn estimates the family will see roughly three per cent of the world during the trip.
This multi-country journey, expected to cost about $100,000, has been in the works for a few years.
Julie and Shawn, both professionals working in the public sector, expect the expensive trip may necessitate the pair working longer than originally planned.
They also sold a larger home to move into their smaller location in Stratford.
“We made life decisions that enabled this to happen,’’ says Julie.
“We made some sacrifices.’’
Many have told the couple they would love to go on such an exciting, lengthy trip but noted it is not possible.
Julie quotes motivational speaker and author Jack Canfield to explain the mindset behind how her family was willing to dive into this major undertaking.
“Everything you want is on the other side of fear,’’ she says.
The family plans to return to P.E.I. in late June 2019 with Julie and Shawn returning to work the following month. Luke and Eve hope to get in the second half of baseball season after forgoing a season of hockey and ringette respectively in lieu of the big trip.
Shawn describes himself as a true Islander who likes to get home.
In this case, however, a return to native soil will happen only after enjoying a prolonged time away from Prince Edward Island with his family.
“It’s a nice break,’’ he says.
Hitch a ride
Click on the blog, Lostintherightplaces.com, to follow the exploits of the MacDougall family of Stratford, P.E.I., as they travel to more than 20 countries over the next 10 months.
