Your Escape Blueprint

Ever since we shared our plans to escape, explore and experience with family and friends, the resounding response has been–Good for you or awesome! Usually followed by—I wish I could do that!

What is preventing you from living the life of your dreams? Is it the job, school, kids, mortgage etc. or is it quite simply fear of change? Take a moment and write down a list of things that are stopping you.

Now let us look at each one:

You have a job!

So do billions of other people.  Ask yourself “do I like my job? Do I bounce out of bed in the mornings to go to my job? If my job ended tomorrow would I be sad or would it be Yippee!” The truth is that many people’s jobs cause immense angst which one dictionary describes “as the constant struggle one has with the burdens of life”. We highly recommend reading “The Money is the Gravy” by John Clark, getting rid of the angst opens up a completely new world.

We are not telling you to go quit your job, however have you considered taking a sabbatical, or becoming a distance consultant? The The 4- Hour Workweek by Tim Ferris has some great strategies that can help you rethink your career and your lifestyle.

You are a student.

Can you take a gap year, or finish your studies online? As long as you have internet access you can work from anywhere in the world! If you are a teacher, have you considered teaching somewhere else in the world? English teachers are in demand worldwide. This is a great choice for young and old alike, as it offers the opportunity to live and work in many different cultures throughout the world.

You have kids!

This one can be trickier, however if you really want to pack up and go, they can go too. You can home school on the road, again all you need is internet access. To be honest what do you think would be more beneficial to your kids, the experience gained from exploring new cultures and countries or the daily boredom of a classroom desk.

Why not take the kids and sail the Caribbean for two years, as some of our friends did? Others packed up the whole family and moved to Australia, the kids went to school there, dad finished his degree and mom worked as a distance consultant.

You have a mortgage!

Having a home gives you many options. Let someone else pay it while you are gone! Rent your house out or do a long term House swap , basically you exchange homes with someone else in the area you wish to visit. The other option is of course to sell your property, who knows you may want to buy elsewhere in the world. It is getting easier all the time.

The biggest challenge in making any decision is fear of the unknown! Speaking from personal experience, I know that each time I faced my fear and acted in spite of it, I never regretted it! Ask yourself this, when you are lying on your deathbed, reflecting on your life will you be thinking I wish I had done____________ you fill in the blanks!

“The saddest summary of a life contains three descriptions: could have, might have, and should have.” ~Louis E. Boone

Contact us today to find ways to change whatever is holding you back.

We started interviewing property managers this week.

The question we were asking ourselves was, what to do with our house, should we sell or rent? In other words should we take the equity out of it or turn into a regular income. We decided to rent……. that way we can get income, plus still take advantage of what has and continues to be a appreciating market here.

To be honest deciding to keep our home was more of a comfort factor! After all if things don’t work out as planned or the world’s economy collapses…… we will have a home to come back to. Renting it is! Do we do it ourselves or get a professional in, if we were planning on being around we would probably have done it ourselves. However we are not…. so a professional it is.

We started by asking people we trust, in our case our accountant (reviewing your plans with your accountant, is probably worthwhile as ours was a huge help).

We have interviewed a few of these referrals; we checked out there websites beforehand to get a feel for their business. We gave each of them a quick tour of our house, then sat down & listened to what they had to say. Sometimes what they don’t say or don’t ask is more enlightening………..  for instance security concerns!!! BC bud has to be grown somewhere and if the news has it right usually in rented homes!

Knowing that, would you be more comfortable with a manager who visits your home once a year or every couple of months? Don’t get me wrong they will do a drive by………. sorry but unless you have X –ray vision that’s not good enough.

Have your list of questions and make sure you ask if there any additional costs to you…… yep one of them would charge us advertising costs and security check costs in addition to the basic charge for finding and vetting a renter!!! These costs can add up, especially if they end up checking multiple applicants.

The reality is we want the best tenants for our house, so feel comfortable with the manager you choose and ask how he determines suitability…… that’s another very enlightening question!

Here’s another one…….. is the person you are interviewing actually going to be the person who finds, vets and deals with your tenants on a ongoing basis? Or are they part of an organization with multiple managers? Would you as a renter want to have the same person to go to with any maintenance issues or have a faceless contact person & never know who was going to show up? I know which I would rather have.

Last but not least………  ask your potential property manager for references, if they are as good as they seem, they will not only expect it but will have lots of very happy clients for you to contact. After all you too want to be a happy client!

Yes we have found our property manager and the funny thing is, it is not the one we would have chosen before the interview process. As he said you have to be able to look people in the eye, get a feel for them, then follow your instincts.

Happy hunting!

This is the day where Mike is going to close the door on his golden handcuffs! Don’t get me wrong his career has served us well, however it is time to move on and make way for new adventures!

Every so often I get a call or email from him at work with 150, 132 days left! Someone or something has reminded him of why we are doing this. It is scary and exiting and we have both vacillated back and forth between the two.

We just spent 8 days in Palm Springs attending a “Master Your Mind” course….. it was hot and sunny, more importantly it really helped clarify why we have been considering this important move. This was partly due to the inspiring presenters, partly due to having some time together and due to the ugly grey, wet, cold weather when we got home. Enough! I want warmth and sunshine all year round.

110 days left and there is a lot to do…….  my do list is getting bigger by the day! There are also some big questions do we rent or sell? Do we pack the old backpacks and be itinerant wanderers or rent for weeks or months at a time? Then of course there is House sitting, watch out for my upcoming post on this topic, it’s exciting stuff.

Some decisions are easy! Like what to have for breakfast, or which TV channel to watch. However some are not so easy, like giving up a secure, very lucrative position, or deciding to venture out into the big bad world, with just one small suitcase and a passport.

We made the decision to get out of the rat race, to simplify and go experience what life has to offer. Then we thought about it……. and thought What IF? What if we get robbed or sick or what if our renters put a Grow Op in our house? Maybe we don’t want to go after all?

Mike will certainly admit that he is the one that has most of these thoughts, one minute we are good to go and the next minute he is asking what will we live on! I can tell when he has had a bad day! I get a email from him with a countdown of how many days left to go until D Day!

Then a week later it is back to yeah but where will we get the money……….. He is very well aware of his need for security and that security mindset keeps kicking back in. It is intriguing watching him yoyo back and forth. When we first had this discussion that yoyo was happening maybe every few hours, then days, then weeks and now……………. still there but recognised for what it is, the need for security. Financial security!

This means different things to different people as Mikes Coach Monique  told him. He could have $10 million in the bank and still not feel financially secure. We started looking at the numbers, to stay here and maintain our lifestyle we would need to have at least $2500 coming in after tax a month. However if that need is keeping him chained to work he doesn’t want to do, why do it?

We have been on this path towards financial freedom for some time now, starting with attending the Millionaire Mind Intensive course in Vancouver a few years ago. The crux of that course is that if you want to be free, you have to change to make it happen, whether that is simplifying your life to reduce costs or changing how you think and feel about money.

A good friend lives in Toronto and hates the winters (can’t say as I blame her) she had visited Fiji several times over the years and yearned to live there. The solution…… work part of the year as a live in caregiver and spend the rest of the year in Fiji living on her earnings, she simplified her life and maximised how far her saved dollars would go.

There is the answer……… maximise how far your money will go! There are many places in the world where you can live quite comfortably on just a few hundred dollars, not thousands……… We invite you to join us as we explore this beautiful world and escape the 9 -5………

We may not be in the Philippines but the fight continues……….. this article was published in the Seattle post recently

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine customs officials say they have seized more than 100 endangered green sea turtles intended to be smuggled to other countries. 

Deputy customs commissioner Horacio Suansing says the dead turtles were found along with rare black coral in two containers shipped from southern Cotabato city. The contraband, valued at half a million dollars, was seized Wednesday following a tip.

Green turtles grow as long as 5 feet (150 centimeters) and weigh as much as 290 pounds (130 kilograms). They are endangered because of overharvesting of both eggs and adults.

Suansing says the illegal trade is fueled by demand from collectors and the curio trade. He says the shipper will face charges of violating laws forbidding collection and sale of sea turtles and corals.

As they should be … alive!

OK so they now have 100 DEAD turtles, the shipper will face charges great! The question is, what is to stop the people or person that caught those Turtles going out and catching another 100 to meet the same fate?

The only way “we” that is people that care and respect these amazing creatures are going to stop this. Is to persuade other people who currently do not respect and care for these creatures, to think twice before purchasing one as a curio or for Turtle soup.

What can you do? Spread this one to everyone you know, with the message …….. Speak up! If you see Turtle products, in a store, a restaurant, or a friend’s home. Speak up! Tell them how you feel & tell them that you will boycott the store or restaurant until they stop selling these items.

Together we can make a difference!

Let us stop this once and for all!

This little line jogged a thought, in the last few weeks; myself and Mike have been on such a journey, with such diverse methods of transport.

In fact Trains is probably the only thing missing.  We flew into Manila on a plane….. one of those monster ones! An airbus, it was the warmest flight I have ever been on putting most people to sleep. A ploy by the cabin crew perhaps? After all it was a 13 hour flight.

Manila airport to the hotel was with what seemed like a demented Taxi driver as he swerved from lane to lane, cutting in at random, signals, what’s that? As we found out later this is how they drive in Manila…….. he was just able to do it faster as it was late with less traffic.

The next morning was a first for me, a Tricycle ride, the only way to get around as far as I am concerned. A bike motorized or pedal power with cab attached. The variations on design are endless………. the aim is to be able to squeeze as any people in as possible. Even if they do have to be perched in front of the driver, like this little guy!

Then there were the Jeepneys…… a van or is it a bus? At the end of World War II, hundreds of surplus army jeeps were left behind. The Filipinos being the creative, enterprising geniuses they are, stripped them down, added as much seating as they could, stuck a roof on top and a lot of bling!  The Jeepney with its bright paint work, gleaming chrome hood and roof embellishments are a integral part of this culture. The owners give them names “Bad Boy” “Marlon” & “About last Night”? Mmmh! We also saw the strong presence of their faith, in lines such as “Jesus Loves” & “May the Lord have Mercy on you”

The Jeepney is undoubtedly the best way to get around between towns; each has a regular route (painted on the side, for instance Dauin-Dumaguette). The drivers, like a full load and will wait patiently until enough people have crowded in before setting off. Try to sit in the middle of the long benches as a extra stool is sometimes implemented at either end, making it very cosy. Additional passengers picked up enroute get to hang off the back or sit on the roof.

In the bigger towns and cities they also have larger buses, basically ranging from large Jeepney types, to more luxurious air con tourist type buses. I prefer to pass up the air con and mingle shoulder to shoulder with your fellow passengers. These Jeepney rides are inexpensive and should not cost more than a few Pesos per passenger.

In Intramuros we went back in time and did exploring with horse and cart….. check out our previous post on Intramuros for more details on Teddy and Rambo!

Then there are the Habal, habal! Enterprising young men with sooped up motorbikes that will transport anybody and anything anywhere…… They pack a lot on their saddles and are famous for being able to transport “a family of 5 plus the pig”, for more info visit “Risking Life and Limb”

The boat

Then there was the water transport……… boats are a integral part of life for any Filipino who lives near water. The banka is “The” boat in the Philippines a central hull with 2 outriggers made from bamboo and secured with fishing line. Coral Cay Conservations boat the Banakan is surprisingly stable, with lots of room. Sit and watch the ever changing coastline go by or catch up on some sleep. Shade is provided with typical Filipino ingenuity; a tarp is draped across a central beam, secured to the outriggers with nylon line and propped up with bamboo poles. It can be quickly dismantled as needed; squalls do blow in fast…… and disappear as quickly. The smaller ones owned by every family were a very common rainbow coloured sight.

I gained new respect for these versatile little boats when it was time to leave Coral Cays base camp……… Our next port of call had agreed to pick us up from base as they dove Napantoa regularly.

Amazing what fits in these!

OK we can swim out to the Kermit from here, how are we going to get our gear out there? Local fisherman to the rescue………. he piled not one but all of our luggage onto his little boat, with the top large one containing all our “dry” clothes perched precariously on top!

I watched with trepidation as this tiny, heavily laden boat, was paddled out, with both our dive gear, clothes,  cameras etc. fingers and toes were crossed as I watched anxiously to make sure it arrived safe and dry………… The canoe disappeared behind the boat and luggage was gone from view! Well no splash and sure enough when we got onboard it was all safe, sound and dry!

Travelling no matter what  the vehicle was always guaranteed to be interesting and often downright entertaining.