I mentioned costs a few times on the blog but I have not directly addressed the topic of money. This post outlines my expenses and how I saved and planned for a year of travel. A future post will highlight what I do while traveling to manage my money. First, the numbers: $20,282 – Food, transport…
Category: Planning
Paraty 5.24.17
After 9 months away, it seems like a good opportunity to assess some travel gear choices I made prior to departure. Most important to me, I did not overpack. Every few weeks I meet other travelers who compliment me on the size of my 40L, 11kg pack. This compliment is quickly followed by a statement like, “My bag is…
Bangkok 2.9.17
My month of travel in Thailand included visitors from Minnesota who planned their vacations to coincide with my trip. It was a gift to spend time with close friends. Meeting my first friend, Justin, showed me I am no longer the structured, organized, planned person who left Minnesota! We both found the following mistakes hilarious. Oops #1 I confused Justin’s…
Kochi & Day Trips 1.16.17
A slice of daily life in India and my reflections: Joost and I departed the Rainforest Retreat via tuk-tuk. We hoped to leave at 11:00am. For unknown reasons our tuk-tuk arrived around 1:00pm. We chatted and rested while waiting. It is rarely possible to rush others in India. After a 45-minute ride, we arrived at…
100 Days, 100 Places 11.12.16
Via the wonders of technology, family and friends plus people I do not know are journeying with me. I appreciate your companionship on Facebook, Instagram, this blog, Face Time, email, and text message. Starting from a few days before I left home and continuing through today, here is a video of one place I visited each day. I am happy…
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 10.19.16
In South East Asia (SEA) the cost structures for health care and telecommunications services are different from the United States. Here are two stories highlighting the differences. For data and internet access while traveling it is less money to buy a local SIM card than to maintain a US-based plan with international add-ons. When I enter…
Beijing & Xi’an 8.22.16
The part of travel where I move between cities is underway! One of my goals for this year is to live life with less structure. Pre-departure, I planned enough to set myself up with the right gear, tools, and paperwork and I chose not to spend time planning smaller details like activities, transit, accommodations or total time in…
Gear for a Year 8.1.16
I am traveling with a 40L backpack, 18L daypack, and a cross-body bag.
The 5Ps 7.22.16
They say Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance, so planning is what I’m doing. Let’s be honest though, even without that adage I’d be doing just as much planning! In my first three weeks of unemployment I checked off big items, shopping purchases, learning opportunities, and can’t avoid tasks from the spreadsheet of pre-departure to-dos. Big Items Ticket…
To Infinity & Beyond 7.1.16
This week I moved out of the apartment I lived in for more than four years;
The Act of Craigslisting 6.21.16
This is my definition of Craigslist: An online environment that connects me with strangers in the physical world who give me cash to move my things, resulting in mutual benefit. In short, Craigslist is fabulous. Armed with helpful advice from T.C., an MBA graduate filling free time flipping big ticket items on “The CL,” I am ahead $800….
Spreadsheets Upon Spreadsheets 5.22.16
As a liberal arts undergraduate, working in spreadsheets was foreign. My allegiances were to MS Word and only MS Word. After three years in an MBA program and four years advising MBA students, I admit, business folks know how to design and select their tools. For The Year of Sarah Joy I use a master…
The Year of Sarah Joy 