Couple sell home and everything they own to travel the world together

Katy Andrews watched the loading symbol spin on her laptop screen. She held her breath as a new page appeared. The flight was booked. Her life was about to change forever.

It took a failed round of IVF and a tragic miscarriage for her to finally take the leap of faith. Like many others, the 37-year-old had always wanted to travel. Two years later, that dream became a reality. She was boarding a plane to New Orleans with nothing but a rucksack on her back.

Katy and her husband Ciaran scrimped and saved for several years to raise the £9k needed for the trip. They sold their home in Harpurhey along with everything they owned – including Katy’s wedding dress. There was no going back. The pair were set to embark on the trip of a lifetime.

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“Before Covid, we always wanted to travel,” Katy told the Manchester Evening News. “Fast forward to Good Friday this year, I was undergoing IVF and had a miscarriage. I was going through a tough old time and I really wanted to go so I could have time to heal and reflect to push forward with plans.

“I had the challenge of getting rid of years of stuff, giving it to charity shops if I couldn’t sell it. Things that were worth selling like our furniture, freezer and washing machine went on Facebook Marketplace. We took a few bits and pieces to the tip.

“For quite some time I’d be thinking that I was just sick of stuff. It was getting to the point where we ended up with so much cr*p.

“It was quite nice at the beginning getting rid of stuff. As it got towards the end, with things like my wedding dress, it got trickier. It’s one of those things; you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I had