insight
工程技術，地產投資，信仰家園，時尚生活
正文
If you are comfortable with the uncertainty and new challenges and enjoy experiencing new cultures and meeting new people on a daily basis, while holidaying around the world, this maybe the life style for you, provided you have a fully-paid off nice house to cash out.
簡單說，我們是高級吉普賽人。2011年初，我們賣掉了在加利福尼亞的房子，把我們想留下的幾樣東西搬進一個10英尺*15英尺的儲存間。從那時起，我們住過墨西哥、阿根廷、佛羅裏達、土耳其、法國、意大利和英國的帶家具公寓和房子。在接下來幾個月中，我們將住在愛爾蘭和摩洛哥，之後將短暫返回美國度假。
我寫這篇文章時，我們已經住進了離泰晤士河(River Thames)100碼的一間可愛的一居室公寓，這裏距倫敦心髒地帶隻有25分鍾火車車程。我們有個搬家訣竅。花了幾分鍾在新住所放下我們的東西之後，這裏就變成了我們自己的家：鬧鍾放在床的旁邊；我最愛的蔬菜削皮器和即時讀數溫度計在廚房裏；我們的筆記本電腦已經插好電，開始工作。我們一起開始學習如何利用房中的各種器具。
鑒於這一切，我認為最好將我們比作喜歡到處紮根的吉普賽人。至少在一、兩個月中是如此。
我們這樣做的原因很簡單：在有次去墨西哥旅行途中的一次交心談話中，我丈夫和我意識到，我們倆都是在旅行時更快樂。我們身體很好，而且都希望能在比三周假期更充裕的時間裏好好看看世界。像當地人那樣住在其他國家的想法讓我們興奮不已，“四海為家”生活了近18個月後，我們仍然很滿意我們的選擇。在巴黎或伊斯坦布爾，即使“宅”上一天也很有趣。
至於我們如何做到的，則要複雜一些。但我們認為我們的計劃適合許多身體健康的退休老人。旅行預算──就像對穩定的生活做預算一樣──取決於一個人的支出優先順序，以及他想追求什麽樣的生活方式。需要一大堆華服或舉行奢華晚宴派對的人不會認為我們的生活有吸引力。（租來的地方很少提供誘人的餐具）。
我們當然也有質疑自己理智的時候。當我們在伊斯坦布爾的暴雨中完全迷路，水沒過膝蓋，或者發現自己被鎖在巴黎的三層陽台上時，都會讓我們產生猶豫。
但我們學會了三件事。第一，應對新情況，即使在路上也要製定複雜的旅行計劃，這讓我們變得很敏銳。
第二，我們並不孤單。我們經常遇見退休的旅伴，有些人正在度長假，有些人過著和我們類似的生活，還有些人已經永久定居在海外。我在旅行之初遇到的一個人告訴我，“我們有好多人已經活明白了。”
第三，也是最重要的一點，回報遠遠大於風險。當我們從“我們”的起居室窗戶望向佛羅倫薩(Florence)的天際線時，或者拐過“我們”社區的某個街角，看到埃菲爾鐵塔閃閃發光的頂端時，都讓我們覺得那些困難時刻是值得的。
冒險一試
成為國際遊民聽起來很有吸引力，但是我們首先必須找到一種方法來負擔這種生活方式。認真的數字計算表明，把我們在加利福尼亞的房子賣掉，可以讓我們舒適地生活在世界上幾乎任何地方。不用交房產稅，也不用修葺屋頂，省下來的錢可以買很多火車票。
下麵說說一些關於錢的細節。我們的財務顧問每月給我們寄大約6,000美元，這筆錢來自於投資。我們還能領取到社會保險和一小筆養老金。我們有一筆大約20,000美元的“改善生活基金”，這讓我們可以提前訂購房間、郵輪、機票、酒店等等──而不影響我們的現金流。
我們采用一些簡單的策略來保持預算平衡。有住在巴黎或倫敦等物價較貴地方的時候，就有住在墨西哥、土耳其或葡萄牙等物價較便宜國家的時候，以此來平衡。我們每周出去吃幾頓飯，但多數時間是在家吃。我喜歡烹飪，購買食物是了解一個國家的好方法（在布宜諾斯艾利斯找到小蘇打並不像聽上去那麽簡單。）
你完全可以做到比我們更節省。在住宿方麵著手省錢是個很好的開始，國外的租房成本因房間大小、季節、地點和便利設施的差異而有很大差別。
當其他方麵沒法省錢的時候，步行和發呆總是免費的，在任何地方都是如此。
大把的機會
盡管我們搭過飛機、火車、公共汽車、出租車、汽車和渡輪，但現在我們最喜歡的交通方式是跨大西洋換季航行。
當郵輪換季轉場時，會有很高的折扣。能夠在淡季時花幾周時間穿越大洋的人並不多。但這對於我們來說很完美，因為我們每次不僅到了目的地，還解決了兩周多時間的住宿、吃飯和玩樂。搭船旅行讓我們無需倒時差，並能快速遊覽我們在深度旅行中可能不會選擇的有趣地方。
我們沒有成為哪家郵輪公司的固定客戶。蒂姆會購買他能找到的最劃算又適合我們時間表的船票，隻是我們有時要根據郵輪安排時間。票價不盡相同。5月，我們兩人的穿越大西洋之旅──16晚的海景房──價格約為2,500美元。這包括所有餐費和我的葡萄酒套餐。11月，我們搭同一家郵輪公司的船從巴塞羅那到邁阿密的回程費用大致相同。
我們已經預定了從現在到2014年的多趟換季轉場郵輪的船票，這成了我們今後旅行計劃的基礎。目前，我們已經訂好明年在葡萄牙、西班牙、法國、德國、荷蘭和俄羅斯的住處。我們已經確認了2014年6月至7月在巴黎要住的公寓。
根據我們的經驗，vrbo.com和homeaway.com是最可靠的短期租房網站。它們提供幾乎適合任何預算的房子，因為我們通常在每個地方至少待一個月，因此有時我們可以談成更便宜點的價格。
定居
我們運氣最好時，能租到當地人的房子。他們會提供關於交通和購物的信息，滿足合理的特殊要求，而且通常會很快改正任何的不足之處。當我向我們在巴黎公寓的房東提出鍋碗瓢盆都有點舊了時，她第二天就拿來了一套新炊具和兩個很棒的不鏽鋼煎鍋。
當然，每個目的地都有挑戰等待著我們，包括：學會如何與雜貨店討價還價；使用當地交通工具；連接互聯網；剪個得體的發型；操作暖氣和製冷設施；破解異國的DVD機，等等。
在陌生的廚房做飯通常是個特別的挑戰。法國和土耳其的微波爐說明會很耽誤做飯，而我們遇到的每台洗衣機/烘幹機都有一堆全新的神秘設置按鈕。
美妙的遠方
與我們日常生活中從未遇到的人交流是我們的生活方式中最激動人心的部分。
在巴黎我最喜歡的那家社區奶酪店中，店主給我選擇了一片布裏幹酪(Brie)，他保證它會恰好在我們的客人到達時完全融化，事實的確如此；在一個俯瞰佛羅倫薩的露台上舉行的一場晚宴中，我們遇到了兩位才華橫溢的塞爾維亞年輕老師和一位國際知名的意大利詩人；我們在土耳其庫薩達斯(Kusadasi)住的那家華麗的建於16世紀的酒店的老板和我玩了一下午快速激烈的西洋雙陸棋。這些經曆讓煩心時刻──比如仍在學習駕駛換檔在左麵的汽車時被堵在倫敦路上──也顯得非常值得。
我們還享有不被“瑣事”所累的自由。實際上，四海為家的好處之一是，我們在路上遇到的人感興趣的我們這兩個人本身，而並不關心我們的房子、古董、藝術品或其他財產。這是一種非常坦誠的交友方式。
多數日子，我們早上八點起床，邊喝咖啡邊閱讀網絡報紙。如果這是“旅遊”日，我們就盡量在遊人擠滿博物館、曆史景點或我們要參加的活動之前出門。有時我們隻是過著簡單的生活：逛逛雜貨店，買買衣服，或者把該洗的衣服洗了，把該讀的書讀了。
在去理發的路上漫步於泰晤士河畔令一件平凡瑣事變得意趣盎然，許多次，我們都與路上遇到的有趣陌生人聊得很高興。我丈夫每天花一些時間來製定未來的旅行計劃並寫一本小說，而我則盡量定期更新我的博客，homefreeadventures.com。許多個晚上，我們都一起看從網上租來的我們喜歡的電視節目或電影，我們通常會熬夜到很晚，就像我們在家時那樣。
網絡聯接
既然我們已經賣掉了房子，就沒什麽賬單要付。我們使用一項網絡付賬服務，用信用卡買幾乎每件東西，因此我們可以累積裏程獎勵。我們的一個女兒幫我們收取郵寄來的信件，不過這類信件幾乎已經沒有了。
良好的網絡連接很重要。電腦將我們與家人和朋友聯係起來，幫助我們計劃未來的旅行，而且是我們在看不到英語電影和電視的地方時的娛樂活動來源。我們每人都有一台筆記本電腦和一部iPhone，Kindle裏裝著我們的圖書館和旅遊書籍。
我們有醫療保險和補充醫保，當我們回到美國時，會去看醫生，接受年度體檢。我們還有覆蓋急診和醫療轉運的國際醫療保險。該計劃有很高的扣除額，有助於降低我們的開銷，因為我們在國外醫療機構的治療效果很令人滿意。例如，一天早上在墨西哥，蒂姆醒來時出現了嚴重的流感症狀。一個小時內，一位醫生就出現在他床邊，給他打了一針，並開了一張方子。他收了50美元，蒂姆很快就痊愈了。
當然，我們很想念家人和朋友，但他們原諒我們的離開，並當我們租下他們附近的房子前去做客時也會熱烈歡迎我們。甚至我們的財務顧問也很不情願地承認，我們的計劃效果很好。
對我們來說，放棄2,500平方英尺（約265平方米）的加利福尼亞州優裕住宅，換取巴黎或伊斯坦布爾的500平方英尺公寓不僅是個合算的取舍。代替我們耐用的煤氣爐、名牌鍋碗瓢盆和巨大冰箱的是我們現在用的小洗碗槽、冰吧和一些可愛的簡單炊具。我們共用有一個洗手池的浴室，並在一台13英寸屏幕的電腦上看電影。
同時，我們享用著如同來自天堂的美味鵝肝午餐，駕車穿過風景如畫的法國鄉村──那裏甚至連牛都那麽美麗──並在飯後徜徉在意大利的阿諾河(Arno River)畔。
隻要還走得動，我們就不會停止這種旅行。
LYNNE MARTIN
2012年 11月 16日， 《WSJ》
我
今年70歲。我丈夫蒂姆（Tim）66歲。我們生命中的大部分時候都在加利福尼亞生活和工作。現在，我們和我們的30英寸手提箱在哪裏，我們的家就在哪裏。Martin Family
我寫這篇文章時，我們已經住進了離泰晤士河(River Thames)100碼的一間可愛的一居室公寓，這裏距倫敦心髒地帶隻有25分鍾火車車程。我們有個搬家訣竅。花了幾分鍾在新住所放下我們的東西之後，這裏就變成了我們自己的家：鬧鍾放在床的旁邊；我最愛的蔬菜削皮器和即時讀數溫度計在廚房裏；我們的筆記本電腦已經插好電，開始工作。我們一起開始學習如何利用房中的各種器具。
Martin Family
馬丁斯夫婦（Martins ）在巴黎聖母院
我們這樣做的原因很簡單：在有次去墨西哥旅行途中的一次交心談話中，我丈夫和我意識到，我們倆都是在旅行時更快樂。我們身體很好，而且都希望能在比三周假期更充裕的時間裏好好看看世界。像當地人那樣住在其他國家的想法讓我們興奮不已，“四海為家”生活了近18個月後，我們仍然很滿意我們的選擇。在巴黎或伊斯坦布爾，即使“宅”上一天也很有趣。
至於我們如何做到的，則要複雜一些。但我們認為我們的計劃適合許多身體健康的退休老人。旅行預算──就像對穩定的生活做預算一樣──取決於一個人的支出優先順序，以及他想追求什麽樣的生活方式。需要一大堆華服或舉行奢華晚宴派對的人不會認為我們的生活有吸引力。（租來的地方很少提供誘人的餐具）。
我們當然也有質疑自己理智的時候。當我們在伊斯坦布爾的暴雨中完全迷路，水沒過膝蓋，或者發現自己被鎖在巴黎的三層陽台上時，都會讓我們產生猶豫。
但我們學會了三件事。第一，應對新情況，即使在路上也要製定複雜的旅行計劃，這讓我們變得很敏銳。
第二，我們並不孤單。我們經常遇見退休的旅伴，有些人正在度長假，有些人過著和我們類似的生活，還有些人已經永久定居在海外。我在旅行之初遇到的一個人告訴我，“我們有好多人已經活明白了。”
第三，也是最重要的一點，回報遠遠大於風險。當我們從“我們”的起居室窗戶望向佛羅倫薩(Florence)的天際線時，或者拐過“我們”社區的某個街角，看到埃菲爾鐵塔閃閃發光的頂端時，都讓我們覺得那些困難時刻是值得的。
冒險一試
成為國際遊民聽起來很有吸引力，但是我們首先必須找到一種方法來負擔這種生活方式。認真的數字計算表明，把我們在加利福尼亞的房子賣掉，可以讓我們舒適地生活在世界上幾乎任何地方。不用交房產稅，也不用修葺屋頂，省下來的錢可以買很多火車票。
下麵說說一些關於錢的細節。我們的財務顧問每月給我們寄大約6,000美元，這筆錢來自於投資。我們還能領取到社會保險和一小筆養老金。我們有一筆大約20,000美元的“改善生活基金”，這讓我們可以提前訂購房間、郵輪、機票、酒店等等──而不影響我們的現金流。
我們采用一些簡單的策略來保持預算平衡。有住在巴黎或倫敦等物價較貴地方的時候，就有住在墨西哥、土耳其或葡萄牙等物價較便宜國家的時候，以此來平衡。我們每周出去吃幾頓飯，但多數時間是在家吃。我喜歡烹飪，購買食物是了解一個國家的好方法（在布宜諾斯艾利斯找到小蘇打並不像聽上去那麽簡單。）
你完全可以做到比我們更節省。在住宿方麵著手省錢是個很好的開始，國外的租房成本因房間大小、季節、地點和便利設施的差異而有很大差別。
當其他方麵沒法省錢的時候，步行和發呆總是免費的，在任何地方都是如此。
大把的機會
盡管我們搭過飛機、火車、公共汽車、出租車、汽車和渡輪，但現在我們最喜歡的交通方式是跨大西洋換季航行。
當郵輪換季轉場時，會有很高的折扣。能夠在淡季時花幾周時間穿越大洋的人並不多。但這對於我們來說很完美，因為我們每次不僅到了目的地，還解決了兩周多時間的住宿、吃飯和玩樂。搭船旅行讓我們無需倒時差，並能快速遊覽我們在深度旅行中可能不會選擇的有趣地方。
我們沒有成為哪家郵輪公司的固定客戶。蒂姆會購買他能找到的最劃算又適合我們時間表的船票，隻是我們有時要根據郵輪安排時間。票價不盡相同。5月，我們兩人的穿越大西洋之旅──16晚的海景房──價格約為2,500美元。這包括所有餐費和我的葡萄酒套餐。11月，我們搭同一家郵輪公司的船從巴塞羅那到邁阿密的回程費用大致相同。
我們已經預定了從現在到2014年的多趟換季轉場郵輪的船票，這成了我們今後旅行計劃的基礎。目前，我們已經訂好明年在葡萄牙、西班牙、法國、德國、荷蘭和俄羅斯的住處。我們已經確認了2014年6月至7月在巴黎要住的公寓。
根據我們的經驗，vrbo.com和homeaway.com是最可靠的短期租房網站。它們提供幾乎適合任何預算的房子，因為我們通常在每個地方至少待一個月，因此有時我們可以談成更便宜點的價格。
定居
我們運氣最好時，能租到當地人的房子。他們會提供關於交通和購物的信息，滿足合理的特殊要求，而且通常會很快改正任何的不足之處。當我向我們在巴黎公寓的房東提出鍋碗瓢盆都有點舊了時，她第二天就拿來了一套新炊具和兩個很棒的不鏽鋼煎鍋。
當然，每個目的地都有挑戰等待著我們，包括：學會如何與雜貨店討價還價；使用當地交通工具；連接互聯網；剪個得體的發型；操作暖氣和製冷設施；破解異國的DVD機，等等。
在陌生的廚房做飯通常是個特別的挑戰。法國和土耳其的微波爐說明會很耽誤做飯，而我們遇到的每台洗衣機/烘幹機都有一堆全新的神秘設置按鈕。
美妙的遠方
與我們日常生活中從未遇到的人交流是我們的生活方式中最激動人心的部分。
在巴黎我最喜歡的那家社區奶酪店中，店主給我選擇了一片布裏幹酪(Brie)，他保證它會恰好在我們的客人到達時完全融化，事實的確如此；在一個俯瞰佛羅倫薩的露台上舉行的一場晚宴中，我們遇到了兩位才華橫溢的塞爾維亞年輕老師和一位國際知名的意大利詩人；我們在土耳其庫薩達斯(Kusadasi)住的那家華麗的建於16世紀的酒店的老板和我玩了一下午快速激烈的西洋雙陸棋。這些經曆讓煩心時刻──比如仍在學習駕駛換檔在左麵的汽車時被堵在倫敦路上──也顯得非常值得。
我們還享有不被“瑣事”所累的自由。實際上，四海為家的好處之一是，我們在路上遇到的人感興趣的我們這兩個人本身，而並不關心我們的房子、古董、藝術品或其他財產。這是一種非常坦誠的交友方式。
多數日子，我們早上八點起床，邊喝咖啡邊閱讀網絡報紙。如果這是“旅遊”日，我們就盡量在遊人擠滿博物館、曆史景點或我們要參加的活動之前出門。有時我們隻是過著簡單的生活：逛逛雜貨店，買買衣服，或者把該洗的衣服洗了，把該讀的書讀了。
在去理發的路上漫步於泰晤士河畔令一件平凡瑣事變得意趣盎然，許多次，我們都與路上遇到的有趣陌生人聊得很高興。我丈夫每天花一些時間來製定未來的旅行計劃並寫一本小說，而我則盡量定期更新我的博客，homefreeadventures.com。許多個晚上，我們都一起看從網上租來的我們喜歡的電視節目或電影，我們通常會熬夜到很晚，就像我們在家時那樣。
網絡聯接
既然我們已經賣掉了房子，就沒什麽賬單要付。我們使用一項網絡付賬服務，用信用卡買幾乎每件東西，因此我們可以累積裏程獎勵。我們的一個女兒幫我們收取郵寄來的信件，不過這類信件幾乎已經沒有了。
良好的網絡連接很重要。電腦將我們與家人和朋友聯係起來，幫助我們計劃未來的旅行，而且是我們在看不到英語電影和電視的地方時的娛樂活動來源。我們每人都有一台筆記本電腦和一部iPhone，Kindle裏裝著我們的圖書館和旅遊書籍。
我們有醫療保險和補充醫保，當我們回到美國時，會去看醫生，接受年度體檢。我們還有覆蓋急診和醫療轉運的國際醫療保險。該計劃有很高的扣除額，有助於降低我們的開銷，因為我們在國外醫療機構的治療效果很令人滿意。例如，一天早上在墨西哥，蒂姆醒來時出現了嚴重的流感症狀。一個小時內，一位醫生就出現在他床邊，給他打了一針，並開了一張方子。他收了50美元，蒂姆很快就痊愈了。
當然，我們很想念家人和朋友，但他們原諒我們的離開，並當我們租下他們附近的房子前去做客時也會熱烈歡迎我們。甚至我們的財務顧問也很不情願地承認，我們的計劃效果很好。
對我們來說，放棄2,500平方英尺（約265平方米）的加利福尼亞州優裕住宅，換取巴黎或伊斯坦布爾的500平方英尺公寓不僅是個合算的取舍。代替我們耐用的煤氣爐、名牌鍋碗瓢盆和巨大冰箱的是我們現在用的小洗碗槽、冰吧和一些可愛的簡單炊具。我們共用有一個洗手池的浴室，並在一台13英寸屏幕的電腦上看電影。
同時，我們享用著如同來自天堂的美味鵝肝午餐，駕車穿過風景如畫的法國鄉村──那裏甚至連牛都那麽美麗──並在飯後徜徉在意大利的阿諾河(Arno River)畔。
隻要還走得動，我們就不會停止這種旅行。
LYNNE MARTIN
2012年 11月 16日
The Let's-Sell-Our-House-And-See-The-World Retirement
I'm 70 years old. My husband, Tim,
is 66. For most of our lives, each of us lived and worked in California.
Today, our home is wherever we and our 30-inch suitcases are.
In short, we're senior gypsies. In early 2011 we sold our house in California and moved the few objects we wanted to keep into a 10-by-15-foot storage unit. Since then, we have lived in furnished apartments and houses in Mexico, Argentina, Florida, Turkey, France, Italy and England. In the next couple of months, we will live in Ireland and Morocco before returning briefly to the U.S. for the holidays.
As I write this, we have settled into a darling one-bedroom apartment a hundred yards from the River Thames, a 25-minute train ride from the heart of London. We have a knack for moving in. Within a few minutes of plunking down our belongings in new digs, we have made it our own: The alarm clock is beside the bed; my favorite vegetable peeler and instant-read thermometer are in the kitchen; and our laptop computers are hooked up and humming. Together we begin learning how to make the appliances cooperate.
Given all that, I suppose a better way to describe us is gypsies who like to put down roots. At least for a month or two.
Why we're doing this is simple: My husband and I─in a heart-to-heart conversation during a trip to Mexico─realized that both of us are happier when we're on the road. We enjoy excellent health and share a desire to see the world in bigger bites than a three-week vacation allows. The notion of living like the locals in other countries thrilled us, and after almost 18 months of living 'home free,' we are still delighted with our choice. Even a 'cocooning' day is more interesting in Paris or Istanbul.
How we're doing this is more complicated. But we think our plan would work for many retirees with a reasonably healthy nest egg. A budget on the road─as in a stationary life─depends on how a person prioritizes expenditures and what kind of lifestyle he or she wishes to pursue. Someone who needs a large wardrobe or thrives on giving lavish dinner parties wouldn't find our life appealing. (Rented places seldom offer much in the way of attractive dinnerware.)
We certainly have moments when we question our sanity. Being up to our knees in water, completely lost in the middle of a torrential rainstorm in Istanbul, or discovering that we have locked ourselves out on a third-floor Paris balcony does give us pause.
But we've learned three things. First, coping with new situations and making complicated travel plans even as we're on the road keep us sharp.
Second, we aren't alone. We meet fellow retirees on a regular basis, some who are taking extended vacations, others who are leading a life similar to ours, and some who have settled permanently overseas. A man I met early on in our travels said to me, 'There are a lot of us out there who have figured it out.'
Third and most important, the rewards far outweigh the risks. The moments when we glance out 'our' living-room window at Florence's skyline or turn a corner in 'our' neighborhood and see the tip of the Eiffel Tower winking at us make the scary times worthwhile.
Taking the Plunge
Becoming international nomads sounded appealing, but we first had to find a way to afford such a lifestyle. Serious number-crunching showed that selling our home in California would allow us to live comfortably almost anyplace in the world. Not having property taxes or a roof that needs fixing can pay for a lot of train rides.
A few specifics about money. Our financial adviser sends us about $6,000 a month, generated from investments. We also collect Social Security and a small pension. We have a 'slush fund' of about $20,000, which allows us to make advance deposits─for housing, cruises, flights, hotels and so forth─without affecting our cash flow.
We follow some simple strategies to keep our budget in line. Stays in more expensive locations, like Paris or London, are balanced by living in less pricey countries like Mexico, Turkey or Portugal. We dine out several times a week but eat at home much of the time. I like to cook, and food shopping is a great way to learn about a country. (Finding baking soda in Buenos Aires isn't nearly as simple as it sounds.)
People certainly could live on less than we do. Accommodations are a good place to start; the cost of rentals overseas varies considerably with size, season, location and amenities.
And when all else fails, walking and gawking are free everywhere.
Ocean of Opportunity
Although we have used airplanes, trains, buses, taxis, cars and ferries, our favorite means of transportation is now trans-Atlantic repositioning voyages.
When cruise lines move their ships seasonally, they offer big discounts. Not many people can spare several weeks in the off-season to cross the ocean. But it's perfect for us because we not only reach our destination, but we also are housed, fed and pampered for more than two weeks each time. Traveling by ship, we arrive in sync with local time and get a quick peek at interesting places that we probably wouldn't choose for an extended visit.
We are not married to any particular cruise line. Tim shops for the best deal he can find that fits into our schedule, although we sometimes schedule around the cruises. Prices vary. In May, our Atlantic crossing─16 nights with an ocean-view room─cost about $2,500 for the two of us. That included all of our food, and a wine package for me. Our return trip in November from Barcelona to Miami with the same cruise line will cost about the same.
Our repositioning bookings extend into 2014 and form the base from which the rest of our travels plans will grow. At the moment, we have reservations for next year to live in Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Russia. We are already confirmed for a Paris apartment for June/July 2014.
In our experience, vrbo.com and homeaway.com are the most reliable sources for short-term rentals. They offer a wide range of properties to fit almost any budget, and because we usually stay at least a month in each place, we can sometimes negotiate a slightly better deal.
Settling In
We have had the best luck renting properties whose owners live locally. They offer information about transportation and shopping, grant reasonable special requests and are usually quick to correct any shortcomings. When I mentioned to our apartment owner in Paris that the pots and pans were a bit tired, she appeared the very next day with a new set of cookware and two wonderful stainless-steel frying pans.
Of course, challenges await us at each destination. A partial list: learning how to negotiate the grocery-store routine; using local transportation; connecting to the Internet; getting decent haircuts; operating heating and cooling systems; deciphering exotic DVD players.
Producing meals in an unfamiliar kitchen is often a particular challenge; microwave instructions in French or Turkish can considerably delay meal preparation, And every washer/dryer we encounter presents a whole new group of mysterious settings.
So Far, So Wonderful
Connecting with people we would never have encountered in our regular lives is the most thrilling part of our lifestyle.
In Paris, my favorite neighborhood cheese vendor chose a slice of Brie that he guaranteed would melt perfectly at the precise time our guests arrived, and it did; we met two brilliant young Serbian educators and an internationally known Italian poet at a dinner party on a terrace overlooking Florence; and the owner of a gorgeous 16th-century hotel where we were staying in Kusadasi, Turkey, whiled away an afternoon with me playing fast and furious backgammon. Such moments make the uncomfortable times─like being stuck in a London traffic jam while still learning to drive a stick-shift car on the left side─more than worthwhile.
We also enjoy the freedom of not being weighed down by our 'things.' Indeed, one of the benefits of living home-free is that people we meet on the road are interested in us and could care less about our house, our antiques, our art or other possessions. It's a remarkably forthright way to relate to others.
Most days we're up by 8 a.m., and we read our newspapers online with our coffee. If it's a 'tourist' day, we try to get out in the morning before the crowds fill up the museum, historic site or event we're bound for. Sometimes we just attend to life with grocery or clothes shopping, or catching up on our laundry and our reading.
Strolling along the Thames on the way to have a haircut turns a mundane chore into an event, and many times we enjoy a chat with an interesting stranger along the way. My husband devotes some time every day to making travel plans for the future and writing a novel, and I try to work regularly on my blog, homefreeadventures.com. Many evenings we watch our favorite shows or a movie we've rented online, and we usually stay up too late, just as we used to do at home.
Online Connection
Since we have eliminated homeownership, we have few bills to pay. We use an online bill-paying service, and we buy almost everything by credit card so we can rack up mileage rewards. One of our daughters receives the mail, which has dwindled to almost nothing.
A good Internet connection is essential. Our computers link us with family and friends, help us plan future travels, and are our source of entertainment in places where movies and television in English are elusive. Each of us has a laptop and an iPhone, and our Kindles house our library and travel books.
We have Medicare and supplemental plans, and when we return to the U.S., we see our doctors for annual checkups. We also have international health insurance covering medical emergencies and evacuations. The plan has a big deductible to help reduce our overhead, since our experiences with health-care providers abroad have been very positive. For instance, Tim awoke one morning in Mexico with raging flu symptoms. A doctor was at his bedside within the hour, administered an injection and gave us a prescription. He charged about $50, and Tim recovered quickly.
Of course, we miss our family and friends terribly, but they have forgiven us for leaving and welcome us enthusiastically when we rent a house near them for a visit. Even our financial adviser has grudgingly admitted that our plan is working well.
For us, giving up 2,500 square feet of gracious California living for a 500-square-foot apartment in Paris or Istanbul is more than a fair trade-off. In place of our heavy-duty gas stove, big-name pots and pans and enormous refrigerator, we now find ourselves using Barbie-size sinks, bar fridges and some pretty sketchy cookware. We share bathrooms with one sink and watch movies on a 13-inch computer screen.
At the same time, we enjoy lunches where the paté comes from heaven, drives through the luscious French countryside where even the cows are beautiful, and strolls along the Arno River in Italy for our after-dinner exercise.
We don't plan to quit until the wheels fall off.
LYNNE MARTIN
In short, we're senior gypsies. In early 2011 we sold our house in California and moved the few objects we wanted to keep into a 10-by-15-foot storage unit. Since then, we have lived in furnished apartments and houses in Mexico, Argentina, Florida, Turkey, France, Italy and England. In the next couple of months, we will live in Ireland and Morocco before returning briefly to the U.S. for the holidays.
As I write this, we have settled into a darling one-bedroom apartment a hundred yards from the River Thames, a 25-minute train ride from the heart of London. We have a knack for moving in. Within a few minutes of plunking down our belongings in new digs, we have made it our own: The alarm clock is beside the bed; my favorite vegetable peeler and instant-read thermometer are in the kitchen; and our laptop computers are hooked up and humming. Together we begin learning how to make the appliances cooperate.
Given all that, I suppose a better way to describe us is gypsies who like to put down roots. At least for a month or two.
Why we're doing this is simple: My husband and I─in a heart-to-heart conversation during a trip to Mexico─realized that both of us are happier when we're on the road. We enjoy excellent health and share a desire to see the world in bigger bites than a three-week vacation allows. The notion of living like the locals in other countries thrilled us, and after almost 18 months of living 'home free,' we are still delighted with our choice. Even a 'cocooning' day is more interesting in Paris or Istanbul.
How we're doing this is more complicated. But we think our plan would work for many retirees with a reasonably healthy nest egg. A budget on the road─as in a stationary life─depends on how a person prioritizes expenditures and what kind of lifestyle he or she wishes to pursue. Someone who needs a large wardrobe or thrives on giving lavish dinner parties wouldn't find our life appealing. (Rented places seldom offer much in the way of attractive dinnerware.)
We certainly have moments when we question our sanity. Being up to our knees in water, completely lost in the middle of a torrential rainstorm in Istanbul, or discovering that we have locked ourselves out on a third-floor Paris balcony does give us pause.
But we've learned three things. First, coping with new situations and making complicated travel plans even as we're on the road keep us sharp.
Second, we aren't alone. We meet fellow retirees on a regular basis, some who are taking extended vacations, others who are leading a life similar to ours, and some who have settled permanently overseas. A man I met early on in our travels said to me, 'There are a lot of us out there who have figured it out.'
Third and most important, the rewards far outweigh the risks. The moments when we glance out 'our' living-room window at Florence's skyline or turn a corner in 'our' neighborhood and see the tip of the Eiffel Tower winking at us make the scary times worthwhile.
Taking the Plunge
Becoming international nomads sounded appealing, but we first had to find a way to afford such a lifestyle. Serious number-crunching showed that selling our home in California would allow us to live comfortably almost anyplace in the world. Not having property taxes or a roof that needs fixing can pay for a lot of train rides.
A few specifics about money. Our financial adviser sends us about $6,000 a month, generated from investments. We also collect Social Security and a small pension. We have a 'slush fund' of about $20,000, which allows us to make advance deposits─for housing, cruises, flights, hotels and so forth─without affecting our cash flow.
We follow some simple strategies to keep our budget in line. Stays in more expensive locations, like Paris or London, are balanced by living in less pricey countries like Mexico, Turkey or Portugal. We dine out several times a week but eat at home much of the time. I like to cook, and food shopping is a great way to learn about a country. (Finding baking soda in Buenos Aires isn't nearly as simple as it sounds.)
People certainly could live on less than we do. Accommodations are a good place to start; the cost of rentals overseas varies considerably with size, season, location and amenities.
And when all else fails, walking and gawking are free everywhere.
Ocean of Opportunity
Although we have used airplanes, trains, buses, taxis, cars and ferries, our favorite means of transportation is now trans-Atlantic repositioning voyages.
When cruise lines move their ships seasonally, they offer big discounts. Not many people can spare several weeks in the off-season to cross the ocean. But it's perfect for us because we not only reach our destination, but we also are housed, fed and pampered for more than two weeks each time. Traveling by ship, we arrive in sync with local time and get a quick peek at interesting places that we probably wouldn't choose for an extended visit.
We are not married to any particular cruise line. Tim shops for the best deal he can find that fits into our schedule, although we sometimes schedule around the cruises. Prices vary. In May, our Atlantic crossing─16 nights with an ocean-view room─cost about $2,500 for the two of us. That included all of our food, and a wine package for me. Our return trip in November from Barcelona to Miami with the same cruise line will cost about the same.
Our repositioning bookings extend into 2014 and form the base from which the rest of our travels plans will grow. At the moment, we have reservations for next year to live in Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Russia. We are already confirmed for a Paris apartment for June/July 2014.
In our experience, vrbo.com and homeaway.com are the most reliable sources for short-term rentals. They offer a wide range of properties to fit almost any budget, and because we usually stay at least a month in each place, we can sometimes negotiate a slightly better deal.
Settling In
We have had the best luck renting properties whose owners live locally. They offer information about transportation and shopping, grant reasonable special requests and are usually quick to correct any shortcomings. When I mentioned to our apartment owner in Paris that the pots and pans were a bit tired, she appeared the very next day with a new set of cookware and two wonderful stainless-steel frying pans.
Of course, challenges await us at each destination. A partial list: learning how to negotiate the grocery-store routine; using local transportation; connecting to the Internet; getting decent haircuts; operating heating and cooling systems; deciphering exotic DVD players.
Producing meals in an unfamiliar kitchen is often a particular challenge; microwave instructions in French or Turkish can considerably delay meal preparation, And every washer/dryer we encounter presents a whole new group of mysterious settings.
So Far, So Wonderful
Connecting with people we would never have encountered in our regular lives is the most thrilling part of our lifestyle.
In Paris, my favorite neighborhood cheese vendor chose a slice of Brie that he guaranteed would melt perfectly at the precise time our guests arrived, and it did; we met two brilliant young Serbian educators and an internationally known Italian poet at a dinner party on a terrace overlooking Florence; and the owner of a gorgeous 16th-century hotel where we were staying in Kusadasi, Turkey, whiled away an afternoon with me playing fast and furious backgammon. Such moments make the uncomfortable times─like being stuck in a London traffic jam while still learning to drive a stick-shift car on the left side─more than worthwhile.
We also enjoy the freedom of not being weighed down by our 'things.' Indeed, one of the benefits of living home-free is that people we meet on the road are interested in us and could care less about our house, our antiques, our art or other possessions. It's a remarkably forthright way to relate to others.
Most days we're up by 8 a.m., and we read our newspapers online with our coffee. If it's a 'tourist' day, we try to get out in the morning before the crowds fill up the museum, historic site or event we're bound for. Sometimes we just attend to life with grocery or clothes shopping, or catching up on our laundry and our reading.
Strolling along the Thames on the way to have a haircut turns a mundane chore into an event, and many times we enjoy a chat with an interesting stranger along the way. My husband devotes some time every day to making travel plans for the future and writing a novel, and I try to work regularly on my blog, homefreeadventures.com. Many evenings we watch our favorite shows or a movie we've rented online, and we usually stay up too late, just as we used to do at home.
Online Connection
Since we have eliminated homeownership, we have few bills to pay. We use an online bill-paying service, and we buy almost everything by credit card so we can rack up mileage rewards. One of our daughters receives the mail, which has dwindled to almost nothing.
A good Internet connection is essential. Our computers link us with family and friends, help us plan future travels, and are our source of entertainment in places where movies and television in English are elusive. Each of us has a laptop and an iPhone, and our Kindles house our library and travel books.
We have Medicare and supplemental plans, and when we return to the U.S., we see our doctors for annual checkups. We also have international health insurance covering medical emergencies and evacuations. The plan has a big deductible to help reduce our overhead, since our experiences with health-care providers abroad have been very positive. For instance, Tim awoke one morning in Mexico with raging flu symptoms. A doctor was at his bedside within the hour, administered an injection and gave us a prescription. He charged about $50, and Tim recovered quickly.
Of course, we miss our family and friends terribly, but they have forgiven us for leaving and welcome us enthusiastically when we rent a house near them for a visit. Even our financial adviser has grudgingly admitted that our plan is working well.
For us, giving up 2,500 square feet of gracious California living for a 500-square-foot apartment in Paris or Istanbul is more than a fair trade-off. In place of our heavy-duty gas stove, big-name pots and pans and enormous refrigerator, we now find ourselves using Barbie-size sinks, bar fridges and some pretty sketchy cookware. We share bathrooms with one sink and watch movies on a 13-inch computer screen.
At the same time, we enjoy lunches where the paté comes from heaven, drives through the luscious French countryside where even the cows are beautiful, and strolls along the Arno River in Italy for our after-dinner exercise.
We don't plan to quit until the wheels fall off.
LYNNE MARTIN
想想他們回美國老巢時那個固定的家已經沒有了，心裏有點酸酸。。
人生就是這樣，沒有十全十美，哎！
謝謝美文～