Some people have dreams of living a nomadic life, maybe even from a young(er) age. Wanderlust…A restless heart… It comes in many forms and has many names. We have known many couples (and solo travelers) who worked, saved, and had steady jobs, and they focused all their efforts on retiring early. There’s even an acronym for folks like that: F.I.R.E. which stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early.
Where’s the Fire??!!
Most that we meet are in their fifties, a few are in their forties, and it’s a very rare breed that hit their financial goals in their thirties. For me, personally, I would have to ask myself, “now what?” if I was contemplating “retiring” in my thirties. HOW would I spend the rest of my many decades to come? For those in their sixties, it’s an easier choice because many have “climbed the corporate ladder,” and were/ are ready to bail. Some were business owners and did well enough to sell the business, or sometimes, run it from the road. The limiting factor over 60 is age…the fact that we/ you are not as young “as you used to be.” Truth is, none of us are!
Hitting the road in your forties and fifties seems to be an attainable goal, especially for couples who probably married early, had kids early, and now they can launch their kids through college, marriage, etc… without the financial pressure. BUT, along with that comes the possible grandkids connection which may show up, and that can cause many to think twice about leaving their home countries. And then there’s the reality of supporting the lifestyle for decades! In my twenties I DID have a restless spirit, left my hometown in Pennsylvania at age 21, drove cross country—first time west of PA!—and did a lot of things for the first time, including camping. Everything was new, and what was planned to be a three week vacation turned out to be a one way trip to California. Flying home, quitting my job, and explaining to my MOTHER what I was doing was quite a scene!
This 1961 Chevy truck took me across the country twice in 18 months. Not stylish, but very functional!
Over the next few years I traveled across the US twice more, but I was not compelled to travel internationally—even though my Hungarian born mother begged me for years to visit her homeland…Lost opportunities.
In 1996 my ex-wife and I chaperoned our daughter’s class trip to Italy, and that was my first international trip—at age 42. I loved Italy and we visited all the major sites, and was I fascinated by the history. But it took another 20 years until I left the country again, and that was a brief trip to Jamaica for a week. Foreign, yes, but not a big stretch.
Jamaica was very cool and I would love to return
Most of my career was in real estate, and for three decades I rode the ups and downs of the volatile and exciting California real estate market, both as a homeowner and agent. The problem was that when the real estate market was GOOD, I made good money, but when recessions came along, they kicked my ass, and my income dropped.
But the “Great Recession” of 2008-2012 was the deal breaker which destroyed me, humbled me, and caused me to lose everything, but yet, enabled me to reinvent myself at age 59. Into what? I had no idea! Not to go into all the details, but since I had no desire to venture back into real estate I accidentally stumbled into a niche industry that allowed me to write, speak—and travel overseas. A three week speaking tour to six different countries in the summer of 2016 truly opened my eyes and offered an insight and appreciation of how Europeans “live.”
Slowly. With passion. They enjoy their extended coffee breaks for several hours and they took their six weeks holiday. Without fear of losing their jobs. I asked a young Millennial friend I worked with how she traveled internationally several times a year, so I followed her advice. Over the next year I planned (and did) several overseas trips, and then, in November 2017, I met my (now) wife, Kathleen.
This nightime view from our bedroom in Barcelona REALLY opened my eyes.
Within six weeks of our first date we flew to Barcelona and Nice, France, and though it wasn’t a disaster, it wasn’t a total success either. We worked through the issues and in the summer of 2018 the seed of being a nomad was planted. Six weeks of travel throughout Spain and Portugal answered the question of, “Can We Do This?” and by the time we returned to California we decided we could.
Nice was nice, and amazingly affordable
Five months later we were on our way. I was 65, she was 66.
For those of you who live life on the road or desire to, just know that it is an amazing lifestyle, but not without challenges! Many of them have been addressed in other newsletters like this (or this), but she and I both agree we will not return to the US, and we will travel freely as long as we are healthy and enjoy it.
If we can help you decide, or if you have questions, hit us up. We exist to inspire and motivate others to live life to the fullest.
