How to leave ...

You would think it was relatively easy to start travelling: agree where and when to go, resign your job (or take extended leave), book the tickets, redirect the mail, do something with the house and your possessions ... ahhh, now I see why this mightn't be so easy after all! And then there is the little issue of how to fund your life until you start earning again.

So, how did we do it?

Step 1 - Where and when to go?

Italy. There, that was easy. Some may want to see as much as possible in the time available, but Vicki and I had both travelled that way before and this was an opportunity to immerse ourselves somewhere with plenty of history, culture, scenery and wine. So for us it was Italy. And a bit of Greece. The When was a bit harder. Heading into a northern summer was obvious, but the right time for us was when the kids were self-sufficient. Emotionally this was the hardest part - leaving family when you're on an open-ended trip that could stretch out for years.

Step 2 - Getting rid of stuff

As you can only take what you can carry, what do you do with the rest of your possessions? Do you own (and want to keep) your house? Do you intend to come back? In our case No and No. So for us it was just a matter of terminating our rental, putting the few key and sentimental possessions into long-term storage, and selling everything else. Hard work as it turns out but quite refreshing to de-clutter your lives. Once you get over the fact that your beloved possessions are worth next to nothing second-hand!

Step 3 – Funding the new lifestyle

Owning a house does give the option of renting it out, getting an income to keep you going, perhaps locking up part of your garage as storage for your valuables and furnishing the house with the rest. As we don’t own a home we did the next best thing – we bought one! Sounds counter-productive but we found a house split into two flats in a nearby city (Dunedin) that was relatively cheap. It is ugly, probably will never appreciate, but the return is very good – and that is what counts. And as it is in two flats we still get an income if only one is occupied. Of course we have a local management agent as we will have better things to do with our time! The key is to try and live on your income while away so you’re not always dipping into your savings. We’ll see how that works out!!