What Traveling Has Taught Me About Money

on 3-04-2010 in Travel Lifestyle

Today’s guest post is from Kyle at OnOurOwnPath, who has been traveling with his wife for over 2 years with no plans of stopping.  If you wonder how they do it, read on…

Our Own Path, money, finance, frugal, around the world travel

Before my wife and I started being nomads, we weren’t really budget people. For instance, my idea of a budget would be looking at my checking account to make sure that it was above $0. Money came in, money went out. I didn’t really know where my money was going to half the time, I just new that I was being paid twice a month and that covered just about everything.

All of this changed, though, when we decided that we wanted to do extended world travel. Obviously, we would need the funds to start doing this, so we started saving money to be able to travel the world. And once we had this money saved, we didn’t want to go about blowing it on every thing that seemed like a good idea. If we did that, our trip would only last a few months.

So, we started being one of those people who keeps a meticulous budget. You know the type. We write down everything and then record it in a special budget spreadsheet complete with pie charts. Even when we pay 10 cents to use the toilet in Ecuador, we write it down. We then play with the numbers to see how much money we have left and what we could possibly do with it. Yes, we play with spreadsheets for fun.

The funny thing is that this is not a natural part of our personalities. Truthfully, I don’t think we could have done this if it weren’t for traveling. One of the unexpected side effects of being on the road has been what we’ve learned about our money.

Comfort is not expensive

We’re not the kind of super cheap travelers who sleep in a cockroach-infested hotel. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve stayed in places that I wouldn’t recommend to my parents, but we try to sleep in places that at least try to appear nice. What we’ve found, though, is that a little extra money goes a long way, whether it’s so we can enjoy a private room or to take advantage of the included activities and amenities available at many timeshares and resorts. For instance in Copacabana, Bolivia we stayed in an immaculate room overlooking Lake Titicaca that we would normally find out of our price range. To compensate for the extra cost while we were there, we decided to spend less money on doing “tourist” activities such as tours and more time just walking around and getting to know the area. As a result, we felt like we got to know the town better and had a wonderful time in the process. Of course, it also doesn’t hurt to wake up to the views of Lake Titicaca every morning.

On the contrary, we’ve also stayed in name-brand plush hotels which cost about 2-3 times a decent mid-range option. And what have we gotten for the extra price? So far, the only advantage that I can find for staying in plush hotels is that they give away better quality shampoo.

Spending should match priorities

Having a budget is all about making decisions. With only a limited amount of money to spent, we can’t do everything we want to do all the time. This makes us evaluate what our priorities are and spend our money according to these priorities. One of our priorities while traveling is to understand different cultures and interact with people in those cultures. So, accordingly, we try to spend our money on things that meet this priority instead of spending it on doing things like adventure activities, like white water rafting. We enjoy those activities as well, but it doesn’t compare to the 3 weeks of learning Spanish and living with a local family in Xela, Guatemala. Having the human connections with our host family and the ongoing connections that we made by speaking Spanish have far outweighed any eye candy that we’ve come across.

A Little Dose of Perspective Helps

If we’ve learned nothing else from traveling, it’s a sense of perspective. It’s hard for us to justify buying anything expensive when we know that the average Nicaraguan family could live off of that money for months. Just the fact that we can afford to even go to these places to see how other people live indicates that we’re not exactly strapped for cash.

So, when we do buy things, we try to buy them with our needs in mind. In the Andes of Ecuador, I needed to buy some long sleeves. Instead of trying to find a North Face store, for instance, I opted to get a locally made sweater less for than $10. Sure, the bright green fabric clashed with the rest of my clothes, but it served me well during my time in the high altitude.

Over the past 2 years on the road I can now say that being a budget-minded person is second nature for us. No matter where our path takes us, this habit will stick. It’s now apart of the fabric of who we are.

When it comes down to it, budgeting is truly not that hard when you can see the truly wonderful things that a little money can do. And we have travel to thank for allowing us to see that.

About the Author

Kyle and his wife can be found writing about their global lives at OnOurOwnPath.  They’ve traveled extensively throughout Latin America and have nearly completed a year stint as kindergarten teachers in South Korea.  Up next: Southeast Asia where they will try to continue their globetrotting as location independent professionals.

Pic: Tobanblack

Introducing… Cole Isaac Gilbert

on 3-04-2010 in Travel Lifestyle

baby, parenting, announcement, traveling with kids, travel inspiration

The baby is here!  Thanks to everyone who has helped out in the past few weeks, especially those guest posters.  I’ll continue to be on semi-maternity leave over the next few weeks, but I wanted to share the good news and my birth story (for those interested).  Cheers!  Christine

Cole Isaac Gilbert

Born: 3/5/10 9:50 PM

8 lbs 12 oz

21 inches long

“The Cure”

I had breezed past my due date and by Friday my midwife wanted me to get an ultrasound to make sure the baby was still thriving in his post-40-week world.  We were planning a homebirth, a carefully weighed decision based in part on the nearly perfect health I had been experiencing throughout the pregnancy and my strong desire to avoid a c-section, especially since we would be birthing in the US, where c-section rates top 30%. It’s not a choice for everyone, but we were well-educated about the options and it felt right.

That afternoon, I ate lunch and headed over to the ultrasound appointment.  Drew and I sat in  silence as the tech tried to jiggle our baby into movement.  The bio physical scan scored the baby based on 4 types of movement, from rolling over to “practice breathing”.  Our score?  Zero.  I drank some juice.  I poked the baby and wiggled my abs.  After 30 minutes, our midwife transferred us to the hospital for more tests.  The baby wasn’t moving.

Remember that perfectly healthy pregnancy I talked about?  Well apparently on Week 40, Day 4 I developed pregnancy induced hypertension.  Normally you’d see this after the six month point, when the women’s blood pressure starts to creep up and her kidneys begin dropping protein into the urine and her feet and hands might get really swollen.  According to the blood work, I had moved past that first stage of just hypertension, beyond mild pre-eclampsia and was now looking at some of the scarier effects like my kidneys not working correctly, blood clotting issues and potential seizures (when blood pressure in a pregnant women gets too high they don’t stroke out, they have a seizure… fun fact).

The cure?  The doctor sat down and tried to couch it as nicely as possible.  “The only cure is to have this baby.”

We didn’t freak out, in fact we were very calm about the matter.  We spent about 30 minutes quizzing the doctor on the relative merits of induction verses cesarean, the likelihood of success based on cervical favorably, bishop score and methods used, and ultimately what did he think was the safest for everyone involved?  “If it was my wife or daughter? A c-section”.

I think everyone (the doctor, nurses and midwife included) were a bit surprised when we said, “Okay.”  Maybe they expected us to  fight it, to try to come up with some way to birth at home or to take the insane risk of disregarding the medical advice we had been given.   But to us, a home birth was about safety, not about some ego-driven one upmanship over our child-bearing peers.  A low risk, healthy birth is safest when left alone… but all of that goes out of the window once there is complications.  If you are sick, if your baby is at risk, you want a doctor there.  That’s why we did the tests and ultrasounds… to rule out anything that would cause us problems down the road.  Well, it worked.  I signed the paperwork and they prepped me for surgery.

I won’t go into too much detail about the actual surgery, as it’s not pleasant.  You wouldn’t expect it to be, I’m sure, but I might have of had a slightly harder time than other women as the spinal made me extremely sick.  There is one moment I’ll always remember though, and it’s the single bright spot in the experience.  I was gasping for breath from beneath the sickly plasticy smelling oxygen mask, with my own vomit drying on my face and in my hair, trying to not succumb again and I heard my baby’s first cry.  I couldn’t have been further from the moment, forgetting completely why I was subjecting myself to this and his piercing scream pulled me right back.  I burst into tears and felt this clear, indescribable  joy.

baby, parenting, announcement, traveling with kids, travel inspirationAfterward, I got everything I wanted.  Cole was alert and latched an hour after surgery (when they stabilized me enough to permit breastfeeding).  I stayed up with him most of the night, marveling his perfect little features, the way he pouted (my husband says he gets this from me) and the way his breathing gets excited as he gets close to me.  I had spent all this time planning the perfect birth, and I got almost none of my wishes, except one.  A healthy baby.  Later I would tell Drew that the disappointment, the anger, the sadness of having our plans dashed would take time to heal.  Really though, it  hasn’t been time.. the cure has been Cole.  Being with him has been so opposite, so perfectly wonderful, it’s redemptive.  I feel like I won the baby lottery.

Beyond Getting There: What Travel Days Show Us

on 3-04-2010 in Travel Lifestyle

Today’s guest post is by Gillian at One-Giant-Step.com sums up for me that imperceptible change that happens when you travel… you start appreciating things you never thought you would.  In that process, maybe you even learn a new way to see the world.

Guest Post, Traveling or travelling, challenges, moving forward

Who is it that said “It’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey”? Nine months of full time traveling has proven to me that this is absolutely true.

Before leaving on this trip the thought of an 8 or 10 hour bus trip was pretty daunting. The longest trips we’d taken were on planes, where they serve drinks and meals and we can pass the time watching movies. Eight hours on a bus, without the same amenities sounded like torture but we jumped in right from the start with a 22 hour ride from Lima to Cusco that, while not the most comfortable ride, got us into the swing of things pretty quickly.

Once we got a routine down…snacks packed, books prepared, podcasts ready…and had determined our favorite seats…on the drivers side, no window bar blocking the view, no children nearby…bus journeys became easy and now travel days are some of my favorite days.

Guest Post, Traveling or travelling, challenges, moving forward

They are a chance for quiet reflection, to leave behind what is past, to think about the place we are leaving and start thinking about how we will remember our experiences there…that great evening we had at the market, the interesting people we met at the cooking course, the horrible bed at the guesthouse. They are a chance to look forward, to anticipate what is coming, and to plan ahead…where will we go next, how will we get there…where will we stay. They are a chance to stare out the window and think about where we’ve been and where we’re going, about past successes and future plans…when else is there a chance to do nothing but quietly think?

Travel days let us learn a little bit about the people and culture of the places we visit. Sitting in an airport, bus station or train depot gives me a great vantage point to see how people relate to each other. Who is traveling with who? Where might they be going, and why? Are they traveling for work, or holiday, or to visit family? Who are they meeting…or leaving behind?

In a small northern Turkish town we witnessed a heart-wrenching goodbye between two young men. Turkish men are very close – it is normal to see them holding hands and embracing each other – and this couple seemed heartbroken to be leaving each other. One boy sat in the seat ahead of us, perhaps on his way to school or military service, his friend stood outside the bus. They spent their remaining time together with hands pressed against the glass, trying to talk through the window and texting each other on their phones. I don’t understand Turkish but is was clear they were going to miss each other terribly.

I like the act of traveling, the moving forward, the getting somewhere. I love watching the scenery slowly change from rolling hills to flat plains, along high twisty mountain roads or perfectly straight desert highways – there is always lots to see. One of my favorite bus rides is still that first 22 hour ride between Lima and Cusco. I will always remember dawn breaking over the altiplano, the smoke rising from the llama herder shacks and the sun glinting off the frost that covered the ground.

There are plenty of stories to be told about dodgy bus trips, or awful plane rides, or the never-ending tuk tuk/minivan/bus/boat combination…what would we do without those stories? But there are also plenty of journeys that are made perfectly lovely…the lemon spritz on Turkish buses, the meals served on Argentinean buses, or the comfy bed on the overnight Thailand train.

Travel days are an integral part of travel. They are filled with possibility and anticipation of what lies ahead. I like the optimism they have, the sense that fun and adventure lie ahead. No matter how long or short the journey they will always be my favorites.

About the author:

Gillian believes that we are all only One Giant Step from making our dreams come true. She, and her partner Jason, left home nine months ago for a one year trip around the world. She writes about their experiences and adventures at One-Giant-Step.com

Pic: BertBeckers.
Pic2: Hoyazmeg

How Blogging Saved my Expat Life

on 3-04-2010 in Travel Lifestyle

Today’s guest post is from Alison at http://cheeseweb.eu, a very cool expat blogger.  I especially liked this post for the insight into expat life, but also a new twist on the “Why Blog?” debate.  Once you’re done reading this be sure to check out her excellent photography here.

guest post, travel sites, travel blog,

When I started blogging, I wasn’t trying to make money on-line or become famous. In fact, I never expected anyone other than my friends and family would read it. But now, I’m pretty sure that blogging saved my expat life.

I moved to Belgium five years ago as a trailing spouse. My husband and I decided together that we wanted to try living in Europe. The opportunity came up sooner than we expected, when his company offered to move us to Brussels. Legalities being what they are in Belgium, I was unable to get a work-permit as the trailing spouse, so my days were filled with getting our new life settled.

Back then, blogging wasn’t as ubiquitous as it is now, and I didn’t know much about it, but I got tired of writing the same things and answering the same questions in a dozen e-mails. I had learned basic web design and HTML in school so I decided to start a website to share stories and photos with my friends and family back home.

My blog posts were basically extended letters. I didn’t think much about grammar or structure. My posts didn’t have a topic other than what I had been up to since the last time I wrote. I never expected anyone that didn’t know me would bother much with my blog.

In those first few months, I wrote only about happy things – new places we travelled to, new discoveries we made, etc.

The shiny newness of expat life wore off pretty quickly though. The reality was I was mired in mountains of Belgian bureaucracy and red-tape. We had no support from my husband’s company; we didn’t speak the language; we knew no one and we lived in a small community with limited public transportation. I spent most of my days feeling isolated and depressed and wondering what the hell I had done.

I didn’t want to burden my family and friends with my woes. Honestly, I felt like a failure for being depressed in the first place. I mean, I was living in Europe after all. Something that is a dream for most people was my reality. Except most days it felt more like a nightmare.

I turned to the blogosphere for help. Although there weren’t many expat blogs based in Belgium at that time, I found some blogs written by expat women in other countries who were writing about the exact feelings I was having. Suddenly I didn’t feel so alone and it gave me the courage to write about what I was really experiencing.

It was scary to put my stress, struggles and depression out there, but instead of scorn for my whining, I started to get email and comments from other women in my situation. Some were already in Belgium, some were planning an expat move and all of them had similar fears and worries as me.

I was contacted by an expat news website in Belgium and asked to do a weekly column about my experiences in Belgium. Through that column, even more trailing spouses contacted me and encouraged me to keep writing and sharing.

It didn’t happen overnight, but gradually things got better. Because of my blog, I met people, I had an outlet for my stress and worry and I had a sense of purpose. Blogging and the support of my readers gave me the courage to pursue my career as a photographer.

Five years later, my blog and my life have changed dramatically. First of all, we have both moved out of isolation – me to the centre of Brussels and my blog to its own domain.

CheeseWeb is now much less focused on my day to day life and more on expat life in general. It covers a range of topics about life and travel in Belgium. I have guest posters on different topics from art to technology and I write about many different travel destinations around Europe.

Blogging opened so many doors for me in the early months of my expat life and continues to today. I honestly believe that blogging saved my expat life.

About the author:

Alison Cornford-Matheson is a garden and travel lifestyle photographer based in Brussels.  Her website, CheeseWeb has grown into a resource for expats in Belgium as well as a guide for interesting places to visit, eat and shop, but first and foremost it remains  personal journal of one expat wife, making her way in a foreign land.

Pic: lanier67