Queventure.com

Family of Five Traveling the World

Archives for July 2017

Why Not Have It All?

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I’ve been a size 2 and a size 16 waist, loved my marriage and hated it. Same goes for motherhood. It hasn’t always suited me. Motherhood and marriage challenge my greatest weakness everyday: impatience. And yet this impatience is the reason why I meet goals. I meet pretty huge ones because I am always impatient enough not to. I have it all even within the limitations of my so-called weakness.
Calderitas, Quintano Roo, Mexico
Today, my family is  truly a work in progress and no matter the hills or the valleys, because there have been plenty of both, we’ve always had it all, always.
When my husband and I were so broke that we experienced eviction and car repossession in a six-month period, we still had it all. We had our love though it was tested a lot. We had our health though we neglected making healthy choices. We also had our family. At the time, our only son was 2-3 years old and he was the center of our world regardless of all the apparent brokenness that defined us. Looking back, we had it all then, and we sure as day have it all now.

Ambergris Caye, Belize
At present, we are traveling halfway across the world and though it’s assumed we’ve won some lottery or some other extreme logic that people need to believe what we are doing is possible, truth be told, what is happening today, the complete and utter blessing to have this lifestyle, is possible because no matter the circumstances we’ve experienced, we’ve always had it all. We’ve shared a mutual travel dream and worked relentlessly to see it realized. We fought ‘tooth and nail’ even when we literally fought each other. We worked to see our intense passions breakthrough and become something as real as the cool Caribbean breeze that surrounds us now.
San Ignacio, Belize
Because we’ve struggled, we’ve succeeded and can have it all; and, having it all starts with believing it’s possible while working your tail off to make it happen! You feel me?!? 

The People of Belize

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On July 11th 2017, we landed in Belize City, Belize. Belize was the country I missed over a decade ago backpacking through all of Central America, so naturally, it’s the country I chose to begin our family’s adventure through Latin America. 

As we wrapped up this short leg of our trip, I felt so grateful for the small towns we called home: San Ignacio (Inland) and Corozal (Bayside Caribbean). 

These were two towns so uniquely their own and definitely not the tourist draws many think of when they think Belize. That’s reserved for the tourist island attractions: Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker. We visited Ambergris Caye of course, but for a short turnaround trip. After all,  it is one of those “1,000 places to see below you die” listings from the famous travel book. It was no doubt worth seeing and we will surely return. Our Ambergris Caye highlights were clearly documented on our ‘queventure.abroad’ Instragram page. Make sure you’re following to see those breathtaking pics.

San Ignacio, Belize is also featured on “1,000 places…” and after having been there I see why. It’s got it all… breathtaking nature, Mayan history (countless Mayan Ruins to visit), a vibrantly diverse population (i.e. Creole, Mayan, Mennonites), wildlife (visiting the Belize Zoo is a must), and a vibrant town nucleus. It’s centrally located to so many varied interests: horseback-riding, cave-tubing (we loved), waterfall excursions, high-end fine dinning (The Blancaneaux Lodge owned by Francis Ford Coppola was superb),  and so much more.

We arrived in San Ignacio on a rainy Tuesday. We traversed the Western Highway to end up in the center of town. There we soon discovered our cabin community was on the city’s outskirts. We made our way down the bumpiest of dirt roads well into the countryside. Our little cabin and its surroundings was a jolt to everything our children had just left behind in Puerto Rico. This by no means was an Airbnb accommodation and proved to be exactly what we needed.

In San Ignacio, the five of us shared a small cabin and used an outhouse for showers and other private dealings, lol. It was simple and completely remote. Plopped down in the middle of a large property surrounded by trees, beautiful birds, and a starlit sky. It also entailed going without running water or electricity at times and showering without hot water. We embraced this and encouraged our children to find value in what was available without comparing to other places or experiences. 

I won’t lie and say the husband and I didn’t feel a bit out of our element at first. Soon enough as we learned to navigate town we came to enjoy our routine in San Ignacio. Whether it was dancing with fireflies at night, basking in the sporadic thunderstorms, listening to the sprawling solitude while marveling at the miles from green, or simply making new friends among so many lovely people.

In the end, my favorite part of Belize was the people and in San Ignacio/Corozal they were especially insightful, hardworking, and kind.

– Thelma and James, the owners of our cabin community treated us so warmly with a thorough attention that made us feel at home. They operated their little community with so much heart and for two retirees I admire just how hard they continue to work while in service to others. The kids wrote them a sweet thank you note when we left and surely filled the place with love and laughter while we were there…


– The lovely couple/managers of the Rain Forest Haven Inn who invited us to a free tasting as a pre-grand opening of their Travellers Maya Juice tasting room. This place was amazing. Swings dangled from the ceilings to keep the kids entertained while the hubby and I tasted drink after drink including tropical mojitos, cosmos, and mai-tais. These people were so welcoming and kind. We experienced so much joy for an entire afternoon and all thanks to their generosity. 


– The young woman who operated the in-the-middle-of-nowhere Coze Grill. She made the best saldutes and was truly patient with our hungry kids. Her brother even drove us back to our cabin after she shared her ideal business dreams with us and prepared an amazing meal for five.
– The military man we met on our usual $1.50 travels across the Mopan River. This gentleman gave us an impromptu tutorial on the Belizean military and let Diego carry the 50 lbs. pack he carries under the punishing sun every single day. 


– Our Mayan guide who took us into the dark caves of Belize via tubes. This sweet man was clearly a pro who showed our children so many wonders throughout the jungle. He spoke Spanish, English, Mayan and Creole which led to a crash course in Creole and Mayan lingo.

– Our Mayan chocolate maker who was like a child-whisper quickly learning each of our children’s names and connecting with them through interactive chocolate making and tasting! 

– Our conservationist pals including the gentleman at the butterfly sanctuary Green Hill Ranch or the young man at the Iguana Conservation Project. Their love for the animals they protected was clear and overflowed unto our children every step of the (educational) way. 

– Rosita, the hotel owner of 37 years in Corozal who gave us a complete history of a Mayan Princess and Spanish conquistador that were loved in the region and still honored to this day.

Noah Crossing the Mopan River

I can go on and on and on about the people of Belize who each loved their country deeply and worked hard everyday to see it shine. Thank you to the people of San Ignacio and Corozal for welcoming us with your hearts even if only for a slither of time. The time you shared with us meant so much.

Puerto Rico Vibes

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About a year ago our entire Quevedo family sat around the table discussing the possibility of a family vacation. For one reason or another, passports were a barrier. Just then I blurted out, “What about Puerto Rico?” Once interests were clearly peaked, my quick fingers went to one of my favorite online sites: google.com/flights to do a couple of varied searches. I landed on cheap flights over Fourth of July week and it was settled. 

Since we knew money was often a challenge for getting a large group to get plans moving, my hubby set up a monthly savings plan encouraging all to save a certain amount over 6+ months to fund an Airbnb and flights to PR! We all stuck to the plan and ended up on our first extended family vacation since 1998.

What our extended family didn’t know during the planning was that we were well into mapping out a months-long adventure through Central and South America. This PR stop would become the kick-off of a whirlwind adventure from LA to Latin America. An adventure we’d come to refer to as QUEVENTURE!

Our Puerto Rico trip had it all… a huge pool house, family van to shuffle 11, and a whole lot of great vibes. Our extended family is a close-knit fun-loving bunch, so the good times prevailed. We spent 9 days in PR and wouldn’t change a thing. From the great company to beautiful beaches and days spent lounging poolside; we all had a great time.

One highlight had to be the beach closest to our pool house in Luquillo: Playa Azul…


An added perk was how close we ended up to the ferry company that takes visitors to one of the best beaches in the world: Flamenco Beach, Culebra Island…

To visit Culebra Island you’ll need to buy tickets (about $5 dollars per adult r/t) at 4am for the 9am departure which doesn’t leave on time. It’s a process, but well worth it.

All in all, Puerto Rico ended up being the perfect choice for our family and I’d encourage those who haven’t visited to give it a try. If your dates are flexible you can find great fares. While in PR, don’t miss a trip to explore Old San Juan…

You’ll need a car to get around, but Uber is available if looking for an alternative. The food, music, and vibes were perfect for our travels, but be warned, this island does operate on ‘island-time’ so don’t expect speedy service in restaurants and such. To that point, I’d say enjoy the slow-paced nature of it all. When on a tropical vacation it’s best to give yourself plenty of wait-time to people watch, enjoy a local beer, and make new friends!


Have you been to Puerto Rico?
Share your adventures with us in the comment section below!

What is Queventure?

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Welcome to Queventure.com.
Queventure in Spanglish translates into ‘What Venture’ and is a simple combination of two words that perfectly describe our family’s current travel lifestyle: Quevedo + Adventure = Queventure!

We hope you’ll enjoy coming along as our family of five ventures across Latin America. Our travels will take us from Mexico, through Central America, to the furthest tip of South America. 

Our ultimate goal is to spend quality family time together, experience new cultures, partake in global community service, expand our family’s use of the Spanish language, immerse ourselves in our own cultural roots, and ultimately, go on many, many adventures!

This dream to travel long term started before we were married almost 13 years ago. At that time, the plan was to marry and immediately leave to the Peace Crops. for two + years of service. We thought bridal registries and housewarming parties would remain on hold until after our travels. We were wrong.
Flash forward to late 2005 when we received the best news: we were pregnant. We like to say it was our plan that manifested in God’s timing. Soon after this life-changing baby news we shifted gears planning a “shot gun” wedding in Hawaii and buying a condo. We went on to have two more children and spent over 7 beautiful years raising them in Redondo Beach CA. This was a town that gave us everything we could have ever asked for — great schools, neighbors, weather, and easy access to our SoCal friends and family. We went on to build two successful careers anyone would be happy to settle into well into retirement. 
When we announced that we’d leave the country to travel with our children – 10, 6, and 5 – we received lots of encouraging words mixed with plenty of criticisms: Why leave the U.S.? Why go somewhere “unsafe”? Why escape and “do this” to our children? And our favorite oddball question: “Did you win the lottery?” Ha! We wish! 
Selling all of our possessions, home-schooling our children, and leaving behind two high-level and successful careers was never about escaping and always about fully living. Our dream to travel gnawed at us often, so much so that some years ago we began to save towards this goal and limited expenses. We made sacrifices along the way such as avoiding the purchase of a home or new cars. We also passed up on many family vacations all because we wanted to try our luck living abroad. Many have asked us to share the “how-to” specifics, and we will, so continue to follow our blog updates.

We are happy to have you along for the adventure!

Noah 5, Sofia 6, & Isaiah 10 in front of their mother and father’s high school in Inglewood, CA.
Tentative Travel Itinerary:
Jul. ’17: Puerto Rico and Belize
Aug. ’17: Tulum & Playa Del Carmen in Quintano Roo & San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas.
Sept. ’17: Guatemala (Lake Atitlan, La Capital, Antigua, etc.).
Oct. ’17: Granada, Nicaragua
Nov. ’17 – Dec. ’17: Costa Rica
Jan. ’18: Panama 
Feb. ’18: Colombia (Cali, Cartagena)
March ’18: Ecuador (Galapagos Islands)
April ’18: Peru (Machu Picchu)
May ’18: Chile and Argentina (Iguazu Falls)
Jun ’18: Brazil (Rio de Janeiro)

Que (what) venture will you choose today?
Add your comment below sharing your fun venture (s) with us.

P.S. don’t forget to subscribe and “come along” as we face fears and experience travel adventures!