KOCHI: How long is a honeymoon trip? Depending on who you ask, the answers may range from “a few days” and “a couple of weeks” to maybe “a month”. Unless you ask Ann and Mike Howard from New York, who got married in 2012.
The couple has been on honeymoon since then, 10.5 years to be exact, visiting 64 countries and taking in everything the nations have to offer. And they are not planning to stop anytime soon, as travelling and that too on a shoestring budget – $34 per person per day (around Rs 2,700) – is now a part of their lives. Their earlier visits include those to European as well as North and South American nations. For India, their 65th country, they chose to start from Kerala.
“We flew in from Bhutan,” said Mike, 45, who met Anne, 40, in New Jersey’s Hoboken while playing two-on-two volleyball. This is their first visit to India as a couple. “We came individually earlier, around 15 years ago while we were in college,” said Anne. The couple said anyone planning a trip to India should start from Kerala.
“Kerala serves as India’s gateway for tourists. It is more mellow than other places while also being a melting pot of cultures from across the globe,” said Mike, who has co-authored with Anne two books, Ultimate Journeys for Two, which is a travel guide for couples, and Comfortably Wild: The Best Glamping Destinations in North America.
They said they were impressed by the variety of dishes made from vegetables that are available in Kerala. “As vegetarians, we were amazed by the various ways vegetables were used for cooking,” said Mike. The couple will be here for two-and-a-half weeks.
It’s Goa and Mumbai, then off to Croatia
“We never plan anything when it comes to travelling. We keep our itinerary flexible and this is the mantra that clicks when going on a long trip,” said Anne. They said a bunch of two-week trips is the best way to travel. Anne and Mike refer to themselves as ‘budget travellers’ as they go for local, affordable food and accommodation options.
“We are more into travelling in local buses, eating food in local eateries and interacting with residents. This not only helps reduce expenses but also allows us to connect with people. It is also a great way to understand the ground reality instead of believing what social media says about a place,” said Anne.
Mike explained: “We have been to countries that were portrayed as a strict no-no on social media, but were extremely different in reality.” The books and the couple’s blog ‘HoneyTrek’ are its main sources of income. In European countries, they did house sitting – looking after houses while the owners are away for a specified period of time.
Sometimes, they also work in the travel industry and provide suggestions to tourism boards of the countries they have visited. Goa and Mumbai are Anne and Mike’s next destinations in India. From there, they will fly to Croatia, their 66th country.