🌍 Travel: The 2026 Silk Road Pivot: Moving Three Humans and One Giant Dog Across the Map
Our visit to Athens Greece July 13, 2024. It was 100 degrees Farenheit / 37.77 degrees Celsius this day.
February 16, 2026
If you’ve been following our journey, you know I don’t do "simple." I do "soul-searching with luggage." Currently, I’m sitting in Athens with a humongous to-do list, a dog who thinks he’s a lap cat, and flight-booking and ferry-booking deadlines that are staring me down.
Here is how the next few months are shaping up—and more importantly, how I’m putting this puzzle together.
🧠 The Method: How I Plan
My planning method is a mix of "Splurge on the View, Save on the System." I’m currently deep in the trenches of ferry tickets, airline tickets, Google Hotels vs Booking.com vs AirBnB, plus our car transfers.
The Current Choices: Kaş vs. Kalkan
We are looking for sea-view apartments in Turkey for a 2.5-month stay.
Kaş: Known for its "boho-chic" vibe and incredible diving.
Kalkan: More upscale, famous for those "infinity pool" villas.
The Hack: While I’m looking at Airbnb for inspiration, I’m feeling the "Airbnb Fatigue." The prices are eating into our "pretty place" budget. My one possible strategy? Book the first week from Athens to secure a base, then hit the pavement. I’m looking into local sites like Sahibinden or just walking into local Emlak (real estate) offices. In Turkey, you get the "real" price when you show up with a smile and a long-term commitment.
🐾 The Midnight Factor (The 85lb Reality)
Traveling with a large tripawd dog isn't just a choice; it's a logistical lifestyle. Because Midnight is 85lbs, we have to make sure he’s accepted where we’re going.
The Plan:
1. Turkey: We’re taking the ferry from Athens to Rhodes or to Kastellorizo, Greece and then the last ferry would be to Kaş, Turkey.
2. The "Epic" Route: After visiting Georgia, maybe, we’re heavily considering the Caspian Sea crossing. Taking a cargo ferry from Baku to Kazakhstan and then a 2.5-day train across the steppe sounds wild, but it’s likely the only time in our lives we’ll be in this corner of the world. It’s "Slow Travel" in its truest form. So far there are 3 beautiful sites I’m interested in seeing in Kazakhstan.
👨👦👦 The Family Reunion
My 23-year-old might be joining us from California for a week or 10 days in Turkey!
The Deadline: If he’s coming March 4th/5th, I have to book his flight tomorrow (Feb 17) to catch the best fare deals.
The Goal: Have him arrive in Athens just in time to take the ferries to Turkey with us. There is something poetic about crossing the Mediterranean as a family before we head into the rugged landscapes of the Silk Road.
🏦 The "Side Quests": Banking & Visas
Travel isn't just about sunsets; it's about the "Boring but Vital" admin.
Georgia Banking: Between Turkey and Kazakhstan, I want to possibly check out Batumi. Americans get to stay up to 1 year visa-free. The longest anywhere I’ve found so far. Turns out non-resident Americans can open a bank account. It’s one of the few places left where non-residents can easily hold multiple currencies. I’ve been in search of this since 2020. Is it safe? Generally, yes—but for my fellow Americans, remember we still have to report these to the IRS (FATCA/FBAR)!
South Korea DNV: I’m prepping for the Digital Nomad Visa (DNV) AGAIN! I’ve got one month to get my FBI background check and—the most annoying part—the Apostille. First visit (split into two visits really because we traveled down to Bali and Thailand in the fall/winter 2024) I ran out of time waiting for this to be processed. I did it online but the long way. Third visit I finally made it to my appointment after going to the wrong office twice in another region only to find out my background check was only good for 6 months and had expired 3 days before I arrived. Aaaarggghh! 🤯 Winter was coming. I wasn’t staying for the cold. Hence, currently in Greece.
Passport Renewal: My youngest son is heading to the Embassy tomorrow (Feb 17) to renew his passport. He’s lost it twice and the last replacement is like a probational one for only 1 year (punishment to make sure he’s not a criminal, I guess). Just realized we’re cutting it close, as usual. Without a renewal the entry to South Korea is too close to his passport expiry! But guess what? We left his original birth certificate with his brother in California to get it apostilled for his University application. He was born in California like my oldest and that’s the state we have to deal with. Thankfully and not a coincidence because the Universe bends to my will (just like it does to yours), his brother in California can take care of the Apostille and bring it with him to Turkey! Which was just decided last week!
📍 What’s Next?
We are deciding between staying put in the "pretty places" of Turkey or taking the "hard way" through Georgia, then Kazakhstan. One thing is for sure: we are increasing our savings stash by leveraging the lower cost of living in Turkey, so when we finally hit Seoul and Busan, we can splurge on the things that matter—like a great apartment for Midnight and the Art University in Busan for my son.
The clock is ticking. Tomorrow, we will book the flights. Wish us luck!
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