Location independence isn’t a vacation, it’s a lifestyle… we use this to remind others as much as ourselves. Living perpetually on the road may seem from the outside to be one long sight-seeing excursion, and while the arrangement does have movement and sight-seeing built into it, there will necessarily be a lot of homemade meals and lazy nights on the couch.
I guess it depends on your budget, but for somebody who is living on a tighter budget, as we are, it’s important to find some way to entertain yourself without a constant parade of events and tours and side-trips. It’s unrealistic to think that just because you’re in a new, interesting place that you should relax and let loose as you do on vacation.
You’ve got to stick to your budget, or your plan will be unsustainable.
I really enjoy reading, but after a day of Eva being out capturing and editing her digital photography, she’s been begging me to entertain her. We’ve tried to avoid the television (exception: NFL), which is how we spent a lot of our time when we had an apartment. So far, we’ve taken to playing cards: Golf, Shitter, Speed, Tonk & Uno… picking up new games every stop along the way.
So far, we’ve spent a lot of time with family, but for us, a big challenge will be to become more social, to try to integrate into the community and truly experience what it’s like to live locally, not as a tourist. There are expat communities, but why would you plan to travel to another country to hang out with Americans?
I’m thinking that shopping fresh will put us out in the environment more with the added benefit of cutting back on single-use plastics and encouraging us to eat better. It’ll also be necessary cuz I think many of the places we’ll stay may only have a mini-fridge.
Watching for free events posted locally or online is a great way to delve into the local happenings. But we’re still developing our strategy here and I’m talking about something we haven’t experienced yet. More to come.
Back to the original point: it’s important to keep your expectations grounded in the reality of your budget. Be prepared for less eventful evenings. Speaking for ourselves, we’ve got to remain serious about my job and I won’t be working on the beach with a bucket of beer by my side. I might be sitting on my bed with the laptop on an end-table for a month, eating a baguette for lunch every day, anxious to clock out, kick back on the porch and read some Charles Bukowski or chat with a neighbor. And that’s a preferred lifestyle for me.
Tips:
- If you don’t stick to your budget, you probably won’t be able to maintain your location independence very long. Plan and stick to it if you want to keep going.
- Keep an eye out for free events and new, interesting experiences.
- Some of the best experiences, at least for us, is the people you meet and in sharing stories.
- Cards are cheap, light and the variety of games you can play with a 52 card deck is nearly endless.