Category: Tips and Tricks

Just the juicy bits here, thank you very much! Wouldn’t it be nice if I could save you some of the stupid mistakes I made by passing on travel tips and wisdom? That’s why we read these things right?

How do I travel so much?

How do I travel so much?

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Here’s a hint: it’s not because I make a fortune. I don’t have a trust fund or a secret sugar daddy (though I’m sure my mom is still waiting for me to get one of those). I don’t “know someone” in the industry to get great deals. So my great secret? I’ve learned to make travel a priority and I know that the first step out the door is always the hardest.

This wasn’t always who I was. When I was eight, budding artist that I was, I drew tons of pictures of exactly how I envisioned my future self: an awkwardly busty blonde in a slinky red dress, taking my fancy friends to Paris and London and New York (which was equally exotic at that point) in limos, probably by 17, at which point I’d have two kids and live in a yacht by 22.

Well, firstly, I’m a brunette and maybe I don’t prioritize limo rides nearly as often as I should. As for busty: well … at least I can buy those at Victoria Secret when I need to, am I right?
But I am wearing a pair of pants I love from Spain, a copper bracelet from London, and comfortable sweater from Paris. I have friends all over the world and I know any time I put a few hundred bucks aside, I can hop on a plane and go pretty much anywhere. I know that I can go to any cafe on the planet and figure out how to order a coffee the way I like it. I know that if something happens in a country halfway around the world, I can ask someone nearby for their perspective.

However, this didn’t happen for me at 17. It didn’t even happen at 22. I was deep into my twenties before I started reading and studying and understanding what was out there, before technology caught up in a big way to make travel easier, faster, and cheaper. I had a suspicion that something wasn’t right in how I was arranging my life, that this couldn’t be all there was. After falling down the rabbit hole of “The Four Hour Workweek” and discovering the wide world of lifestyle hackers, I found my tribe. Even after all that, however, I still had to work up the courage to step out the door.

Now, as my life becomes more flexible and digital and as I meet more of the thousands of digital nomads and long-term travelers around the planet, it becomes easier and easier to call myself a citizen of the world. People are totally amazed when I show them just how cheap and simple travel really can be!

The more you travel, the more you travel. All it takes is that first step with itchy feet- Maybe you start by exploring your own city, then take a day trip to the larger city nearby. Next, you explore the state, the neighboring states, the country – (or you can just skip this, and go further. Some people need baby steps!) But remember, if you can figure out how to get around in Boston, you can figure out New York. If you can figure out L.A. and Chicago, you can understand London or Sydney. Paris and Hong Kong aren’t much more difficult. All cities, to some extent, are alike, and once you learn to “play charades” in a language you don’t know and the basics of protecting yourself in urban touristic areas (both of which I will be writing about) you’re all out of excuses.

So where have you always wanted to go? What has made you put it off? If someone gave you a free ticket tomorrow to your dream destination, what would you do there? Tell me in a comment!

 

-M
So who are we?

So who are we?

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We are Brian and Mary, two world wanderers and adventure-seekers who are always looking for the way to live a better, more fulfilling life, whether that’s through mindfulness, better efficiency practices, or new technology. Our unusual lifestyle has lead us through twenty years of freelancing and project management, a 9200-mile road trip around the US (with a two-year-old), two and a half months backpacking Europe, and many other wacky adventures. The people we’ve met, places we’ve been, experiences we’ve had, and things we’ve learned have transformed us into who we are today.

We are so excited, so inspired by the things we discover that make our lives richer and more interesting, that we want to share them with others. After fielding hundreds of questions, we’ve  decided to start a blog to share with all of you and to show you how easy it is to completely transform your life.

One Thousand Golden Highways

One Thousand Golden Highways

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It’s not easy being thirty these days.

Late twenties into early midlife is when the people in our lives begin to make deep shifts– some are living with parents and never really left college life, some are heavily focused on career and going out every night, some are overwhelmed by new families, some are starting over, and some have found themselves going to bed early and telling kids to get off their lawns.

It seems like the market is shifting beneath our feet, as though the world we grew up in of bleeping modems and corded telephones, of stable vocations, predictable career paths and pensions, is gone forever. As those older than us start calling it quits and those younger than us get hired as cheaper, faster labor, we have to start asking ourselves:

Are we getting left behind? Can we ever actually catch up? How can we save for retirement, something our parents told us to start doing when we were twenty, when we’re barely getting by now? How can we start a family when we can’t afford to buy a house? How can we make a million dollars when the only way to negotiate a real raise these days is to quit and get a new job?

I am here to tell you there is a better way. After seeing the suffering of those around me and questioning myself and my own struggles, I found the truth:

The world we live in has changed. By putting blinders on and ignoring it, by faithfully using the same tools and following the same paths our parents did, we will never get beyond the treadmill. The game has changed and there are new rules. I am here to find them out, to show you the people who are discovering the new rules and how to use them to your own advantage. The key here is not “keeping up with the Joneses” but to have the Joneses spend all their time speculating on how you can possibly afford to always be in Tahiti anyway. You could tell them, but would they really believe you?

-M & B