Fabulously Broke in the City » Travel

Thinking about retirement: Why I think I may not want to fully retire

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 06:00:08 +0000

I spent about a year in 2011 faking what my retirement might be like, and I traveled quite a bit.

To recap, for about 8 months I went to the following cities around the world:

Beijing
Shanghai
Hong Kong
Macau
Singapore
Lisbon
Evora
Madrid
Salamanca
London
Paris
Stockholm
Brussels
Austria

During those actual days of traveling, I spent about $20,000.

I really enjoyed the whole experience, knowing fully how lucky I am to have had the resources (time & money) and the opportunity to do so…. but now I’m re-thinking my retirement.

You know how everyone always says they’d love to retire and travel the world? I don’t think I want to do that.

Traveling the way that we do on such a budget, is for the young

My parents who are nearing retirement, can’t handle the amount of walking and exhausting days of touring we did.

My aunt who is older than my parents, traveled to Paris for 2 weeks and spent $20,000. Obviously, some of the money was spent on clothing, but I’m fairly sure her hotel was a 4 or 5 star hotel (we stay in 2-3 stars), and they must have eaten in restaurants every single day.

Even if we had to money to travel like that, I am not sure I’d want to. It’s pretty tiring. I might want to go back to cities I enjoy like Hong Kong or New York, but not to do adventure traveling and discovering new places.

Traveling all the time gets boring

I know. First world problems… but it really gets to you, not being able to really relax, have a comfortable routine and to always be in tourist mode and on-the-go.

I missed my clothes and I missed the essentials of what makes a home for me, namely a kitchen!!!

After a while, all that traveling feels like a blur and I started feeling jaded.

I’d suggest traveling for 2-3 weeks at a time annually, rather than traveling the way we did.

You will enjoy it more, feel less stressed and really appreciate it. It’s a nice break from work, but not as a full-time endeavour.

I am dying to get back to work

I am by no means a workaholic, but I like being challenged mentally.

Traveling does challenge you mentally, but in a different way.

Even when I have kids, being challenged by them (both mentally and physically), still isn’t the same as working at my job.

When I work, I am able to use my experience and skills to figure out and solve problems, and that kind of challenge is what I miss the most, when I don’t work.

It just isn’t the same.

I am now considering a part-time retirement

I don’t even know how this will work, but if I could work part-time in my industry, or do something where it isn’t 40 hours a week, I’d probably do that when I retire.

Perhaps I will have less energy when I am older, and my mind might change… but at this point in my life, I feel like I have too much down time.

I need to be busier than this, but I don’t want to be so busy that I’m stressed.

So what are my options?

At this point, I have no idea. I know that I will not be traveling 100% on vacation when I retire, and I know I will miss being challenged and using my skills when I don’t work at my job.

I know I will have kids, which will help fill that void of busy-ness immensely, but I really don’t think I have the personality nor the will to be a full-time stay-at-home parent.

Maybe I could start a business on the side… but that’s like working, isn’t it? Arg.

So .. what ARE my options?

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

How I book my vacations

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 06:00:26 +0000

I am someone who loves to save money when I can (especially on hotels or flights), but I am also someone who loathes checking 50 sites before deciding on which one has the best deal.

After booking a number of flights (from Canada to cities in Asia, and then Canada to cities in Europe), my strategy has been simplified.

I BOOK FLIGHTS FIRST…

You can’t really book hotels until you know when you’re leaving and arriving. I also find that sometimes it’s cheaper to fly on a Tuesday rather than a Wednesday, and if you book your hotel first, you may not get the best deal.

Generally, for Europe, we book with Air Transat most of the time.

For Asia, we used Air China and Singapore Airlines.

I use Expedia to check flight prices, the best dates and which airlines are the cheapest. Then I pick the cheapest and go to the actual airline’s website to re-check to see if it’s cheaper on their site.

(Side Note: I really hate Expedia’s layout but they’re the best starting point for finding flights)

Sometimes, instead of buying a direct flight, I will buy a flights with stopovers with two different airlines and build my own flight (I’ve noticed the combinations they give on Expedia aren’t the best deals at times).

For Asia, we flew to Vancouver with Air Canada before switching to Air China to get to Beijing. It was cheaper than a direct flight from Toronto to Beijing.

I prefer taking flights in off peak hours, but I hate red-eye flights (overnight). I like to arrive at around 7 p.m. or so to avoid rush hour.

(Ibis Singapore)

…THEN I BOOK THE HOTELS

I tend to prefer the Accor Group for hotels (Ibis is a great, low-cost brand), but if I wanted a kitchenette or an apartment-like hotel then I like Candlewood Suites, Marriott Residence Inn (fancy!) or Motel 6.

We like Ibis hotels for when we travel, because BF can remove the mattress and sleep on the hard wooden board that’s underneath. It isn’t a mattress spring or wood slats, so it’s the perfect travel bed without having to sleep on the floor!!!

I always use Hotels.com (no, they are not paying me to say this I actually like the site!).

I tried to use the same strategy of checking with Hotels.com and then booking with the actual hotel brand itself, but it turned into one big clusterf*uck when we tried to change some dates or something like that.

Now, I just use the site and forget about going to the actual site, unless the price per night seems unreasonably high based on past experiences.

I also really like the site for these reasons:

It manages all my hotel reservations in one place
Lets me earn free nights based on the average price of nights we paid through the site
..and you don’t need to stay with specific hotel brands each time you book*

So if you paid for 10 nights at $100 at a hotel, you get 1 night free at $100.

If you paid for 5 nights at $50 at a hotel, and another 5 nights at $100 at a hotel, you get 1 night free at an average of $75 a night.

*I mean that you can book with one hotel group like Marriott and then with the Accor group the next time (whichever hotel gave a better deal for your travel dates), and you still earn free nights based on the average price of your 10 night stays.

I used to hold 5-10 cards of different points with different hotel brands.

It’s annoying to know you ALMOST have one free night at each of them but you need to stay another week in each hotel.

(Macau)

LASTLY, I BUY TRAVEL INSURANCE

Seven Corners Travel Insurance works for us because it’s very easy to purchase and it goes for more than 2-3 weeks (we travel for months at a time). It was also available for Canadians!

You can read all about my experience with buying travel insurance here.

That’s it. That’s how I book my hotels and flights. It takes about half an hour if my internet connection is willing.

Europe 2011 – Part Two (Traveling again)

What I have to look into, before booking a hotel

10 Long Trip Traveling Essentials

Saving money when you are traveling on business

Cooking while on vacation

Asia 2011: What my trip cost in total = $7807.38

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Singapore – Shopping and Streets

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 06:00:48 +0000

Singapore had some interesting shops, but overall, it wasn’t worth the long haul there.

That said.. lovely advertisements and interesting shops were everywhere.

Singapore – Singapore Orchid Gardens

Singapore – Singapore Botanical Gardens

Singapore – Signs and Marketing (Ads)!

Singapore – Transportation and Getting Around

Singapore – Peranakan Museum

Shopping in Asia: What I Bought

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Hong Kong – Food, Wet Markets and Delicious Things

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:00:27 +0000

It’s no secret that Hong Kong is one of my favourite cities in Asia, now. BF and I wish we could go back but we’re planning other trips, which means we may not go to Hong Kong for another year or two. Or longer.

Alas!

Anyway, I think the minimum is a week to visit Hong Kong, but I’d have loved 2-3 weeks or even am month!

To get into what Hong Kong looks like to me in a nutshell, it’s in this shot:

Hong Kong – Ladies Market

Hong Kong – Signs and Marketing

Shopping in Asia: What I Bought

Asia 2011: What my trip cost in total = $7807.38

Singapore – Shopping and Streets

Packing Electronics and Other things for any Trip

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Singapore – Transportation and Getting Around

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 06:00:32 +0000

Singapore is really known for their public transportation, and while they had some good ideas overall, I think they might have made it a bit too complicated/confusing for NON-Singaporeans to understand at first glance.

That said, it’s fairly organized, extremely clean and wonderful.

Singapore – Shopping and Streets

Singapore – Signs and Marketing (Ads)!

Singapore – Singapore Botanical Gardens

Singapore – Singapore Orchid Gardens

Singapore – Peranakan Museum

Beijing – The People and the City

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Beijing – The People and the City

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 05:00:25 +0000

Beijing – Signs, Marketing and a Canadian Hangout!

Asia 2011 Life and People

Asia 2011 Fashion

Shanghai – Shanghai Museum (Part Two)

Singapore – Signs and Marketing (Ads)!

Singapore – Transportation and Getting Around

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Singapore – Signs and Marketing (Ads)!

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 05:00:51 +0000

I found Singapore to have the most creative, interesting ads out of all the cities.

Granted, I don’t read Chinese so I cannot judge China fairly, but even so..

It is definitely a city of fines and prohibited actions.

That said, I appreciate that. I like knowing I am in a cleaner place BECAUSE of $300 fines for littering.

Hong Kong – Signs and Marketing

Shanghai – Signs and Marketing

Macau – Signs and Marketing

Beijing – Signs, Marketing and a Canadian Hangout!

Singapore – Singapore Botanical Gardens

Singapore – Singapore Orchid Gardens

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Macau – Signs and Marketing

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 05:00:42 +0000

Macau was interesting for me because it was Portuguese… but CHINESE!

I loved the signs. So Old World, and traditional all around.

Lots of great photo-taking opps.

Singapore – Signs and Marketing (Ads)!

Shanghai – Signs and Marketing

Hong Kong – Signs and Marketing

Beijing – Signs, Marketing and a Canadian Hangout!

Singapore – Transportation and Getting Around

Shopping in Asia: What I Bought

If you are reading this on any other blog than Fabulously Broke in the City or via my RSS Feed, it is stolen content without credit.

You can contact me here or find me on Twitter via @brokeinthecity.

Come and visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist where I am living with less, but only the best!

Europe 2011 – Part Two (Traveling again)

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 05:00:04 +0000

As I mentioned, I’m leaving for Europe (again) pretty soon and I managed to get some numbers out this time because I’ve just booked everything.

Where I am going:

Paris, France
London, England
Vienna, Austria
Brussels, Belgium
Stockholm, Sweden

Where the money is going:

We had estimated about $4000 per person and we weren’t too far off the mark, although I am thinking it will be $4500 after everything is said and done (not including the shopping I may or may not be doing )

TOTAL = $8069.61 for 2 people

Per person = $4034.80

CATEGORIES & AMOUNTS

Flights: $2748.52
Hotels: $3431.33 — We used as many points as possible (see below)
Food: $1215 — For 25 days
Entertainment: $200 — We have contingency money
Travel Insurance: $74.76 — A must! Booked with Seven Corners Travel Insurance again
Trains: $200 — We’re taking day trips and traveling from city to city

USING POINTS FOR HOTELS

We used points to book as many hotels as possible. We book through Hotels.ca and they give us reward nights that average out how much we’ve spent on the site to book other hotels.

That said, you can only use ONE discount reward night per booking, which meant that we booked 3 separate nights at one hotel in a row, so we could use each of our discount nights. *rolls eyes* I found it frustrating and troublesome, but that’s what you have to do to save a little money, I’m gonna do it.

We didn’t save a huge amount, but we saved about $500, I’d wager which isn’t bad at all. If not, we’d be looking at a $4000 hotel bill.

FOOD

We don’t really like going to restaurants, so we’re saving a ton here especially over the 25 days we’ll be traveling. What we prefer is buying fruit from the grocery stores, eating at patisseries and having the occasional meal out, rather than eating out all the time.

We’ll see how we do in this category.

TRAINS

We’re taking trains from Paris to London and to other cities, so we won’t be flying there. I am not sure how much we’ll need, so I put $400 but it may be more or less.

SHOPPING/SPENDING/ENTERTAINMENT

I have a feeling my Spending/Entertainment budget will be bringing that up to $4500.

BF is pretty good at staying under budget. Once he sets a goal, there is no stopping him. If he wants to spend only $4000, he will only spend $4000 come hell or high water.

He has even refused to buy a drink when he was super thirsty, JUST to stay under budget!!

I am not like that.. so..heh..

As for entertainment, I am not sure what we will spend the money on. I’d really like to see more of the museums in Paris this time, so that’s a big deal for me. There will also be less tourists this time of year, so I’m thrilled I won’t have to stand in line as much.

$200 seems pretty low for entertainment, but we’ll see. Last time I tried to over budget for Asia’s entertainment and we ended up spending WAY below my estimates.

Hello Europe! Here we come..! Again.