Fotografo de Bodas, Santiago

February 10, 2009

As most of you have gathered, I’m pretty open with my finances and our attempts at savings and what not. I know a lot of folks don’t write about this stuff. In USAmerican society, not asking people about their money is an unspoken rule most people live by. But, my basic online rule is that once I touch on a topic by posting about it, I have absolutely no right to be offended if people ask me about it, even if it’s a taboo subject.

At the current moment we have about $20,000 dollars saved up, although if we calculate in dollars the number fluctuates depending on whether the dollar goes up or down, since half of that is in pesos. We had $25,000 but then we went to the U.S. and spent $2500 on plane tickets, $500 on our photo session, $1,000 on new camera equipment and $1,000 on gas/food/tourist attractions like theme parks and aquariums and basketball games. I had budgeted out very carefully just how much we had to spend and I’m happy to say that we didn’t go over at all, though at the end of our three weeks we really had to cut back since we were running low.

We estimate that if we wanted to leave right now, the 20k would be enough to get us all over Latin America for a year. Looking at the money saved by region is much a much more motivating way than to just give ourselves number deadlines.

I am going to continue blogging along the way. I won’t be writing as much as I am now, but I’ll still be writing and hopefully earning $1,000 a month. So the plan is that once we’re in the U.S. we’ll probably just relax and spend time visiting my family, but while there, I’ll work as much as I can so that for that time we’re only spending what I make and not dipping into savings. I’m also really hoping to book some weddings in the U.S. during that time. I think I’d get depressed if I didn’t shoot a single wedding for more than a year while traveling!

Anyways, we’ll be in the U.S. for three months since that’s how long S.’s European waiver visa lasts. During that time we’ll be staying relatively stationary and taking a break from backpacking.

Then the plan is to go to Canada, although we’ll probably mostly be doing a lot of camping and hiking and not spending too much time in major cities because first world countries are cost prohibitive to our backpackers budget.

From there, to go to Europe or not to go to Europe, that is the question. Well, it’s really not much of a question. We will be going. But I doubt we’ll be doing all of Europe. We probably won’t spend more than 2 or 3 months there, if that. Our idea right now is to visit only expensive countries where we know people and can crash on their couches (Hi Fned and Rachel!). And then we’d head to the relatively cheaper parts of Eastern Europe. We’d also like to do a whirlwind tour of the Middle East and go to Dubai. A really good college friend of mine is from there.

I have in my mind that I’d like to go to Africa and work with some kind of volunteer program there but I’m not specifically sure what or where yet, so those details will be worked out once the time is nearer.

And then from there, we’ll be off to Asia, ahhhh, sweet, cheap Asia! It’s a backpacker’s paradise. We’ll basically spend our time traveling there until our money has almost run out, and then with the last that’s left in our budget, head to Australia for one last hurrah. By that time, hopefully we’ll have found a country that we are both dying to live in. We’re hoping to have about 10k in a fund apart from the traveling money, that will be our emergency fund. Then, if nothing happens requiring us to use that emergency money (knocking on wood right now), that will be our start-up in a new country money so that wherever we end up arriving we’ll have the means to live for a few months while we get our feet on the ground and find jobs.

In an ideal world that’s our plan. And in an ideal world, we’ll be able to save up 60k. 10k for emergency/start-up money and 50k for the rest of the trip. Keep in mind that we’ll have 50k for the rest of the trip + whatever I make monthly as I blog. Although, I’m also trying not to count on that money as much because I know there will be times when we don’t have internet access.

A few other things to consider, my dad has said that our business will cover my student loans for a year since for a long time I worked for him for next to nothing. So this is his way of paying me back. But if we travel for more than a year, I don’t want to have to count on him paying those. So that’s $400 dollars a month, but may be a little less by then, because I’ve been paying back extra every month since I started paying almost two years ago. So each time the loan is recalculated (annually), the monthly payment goes lower.

We’ll also be paying approximately $200 dollars a month for Marcelo’s education after his first semester this year ends (which is being paid by the amazing JMCS readers who donated their time and money to help this cause!).

And then, of course, there’s travel insurance. I’m not sure how much that will cost, but we’ll need it for sure. We want to be covered in case either of us has any health problems on the road, and then plus we’re hoping to get our camera equipment covered from theft while we travel. I’d imagine that the policy would be fairly expensive, but I’ll do more research on that when we’re closer to our estimated leaving date.

A few other random insights into our budget:
-Starting in Feb. we’re putting $300 a month into an IRA.
-All photography money I make is only spent on photography business related expenses (new gear, marketing materials, etc.). So it’s like that money doesn’t even exist until I *someday* get to the point where I’m actually making profit after expenses.
-This year we should be able to save approximately $25,000. That will put us at $45,000 in December, which is our planned leaving date, so we’ll be $15k short. We may leave with what we have and travel less time. Or we may decide to stay a few extra months. These figures are calculated based on our current salaries.
-S. is starting a business that should be up and running in Feb. and turning profit by March. At first it won’t be a significant amount of extra income, but as the ball gets rolling, it could end up being a lot. A lot as in, we’d far surpass our savings goal. But, since that’s all just predicted and isn’t anything concrete yet I’m not counting those numbers in the totals.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. As you can tell, I’m open about the finance stuff.

12 Comments

Subscribe to comment feed

Facebook comments:

One Trackback

11 Comments

Keelay! Come to Michigan next summer & be Jessie's wedding photographer! Then I can see you! Thank God for your blog so I can get my dose of you every now and then! I'm so proud of you & I am jealous that you get to live out every dream you have ever had! Don't go and do something stupid like getting knocked up! Love you!

Comment by Hulie — February 10, 2009 @ 9:28 am

Reply
Thank you soooo much! I felt weird about asking, for the record, but I wanted to use you as my travel model to figure out how to budget for big trips. I also read too many PF blogs that itemize everything, I think…

Comment by Mei — February 10, 2009 @ 9:48 am

Reply
My hubby and I were talking about the idea of taking a trip around Central and South America for a year but in a car. We can’t take the babe on that many buses. I think we will start a fund soon!

Careful about what you eat in developing countries. I have amoebas right now and I can’t take antibiotics because I am breastfeeding so instead I get to take a shitload of garlic pills and smell really gross. Not pleasant!

Comment by kumichan83 — February 10, 2009 @ 11:12 am

Reply
I know it’s expensive, but you definitely have to see Europe, at least England and Germany (probably biased because I was born there), if you can fit it in. I loved living in England and absolutely adored all the traveling that I did with school and family. You will definitely never find the same history and beauty that those countries offer. Have you tried reading any of the backpackers on a budget books? I know there’s a ton out there, but that might help as well (I’ve heard good things about the Lonely Planet ones). From what I’ve read, English books are hard to come by, so if donations are necessary, I don’t mind. Just don’t be surprised if I read it first.

P.S. I finally made it all the way through your archives and am now up-to-date and I have to say I love reading about your guys’ lives in Chile. It’s like traveling without leaving the comfort of your computer!

Comment by ShawnaHanna — February 10, 2009 @ 12:19 pm

Reply
Wow! You and Seba really have done your homework!! Actually, I’m pretty sure you could travel during a year in South America for less than 20K. While we were there, Hubby and I saw plenty of opportunities where we could have eaten for much cheaper or been lodged in less expensive places if only we’d known beforehand (hence: done our homework like you guys and not left everything till the last freaking minute!).

I agree with ShawnaHanna as well: YOU.CAN.NOT.SKIP.EUROPE. There are plenty of hostels all over the place and traveling by bus is still quite affordable if you have the time.

And of course, there’s always the friends network!! I’ll be damned if I’ve been living here for what seems like freaking foreva and I can’t be of any good use to you guys in connecting you with friends of ours living in other countries on this continent!!

You and Seba will love traveling together almost as much as we’ll love reading and seeing all your posts/blogs and pictures of your trip!!!!

Fned.

Comment by Fned — February 10, 2009 @ 3:54 pm

Reply
Hulie, tell Jessie to hire me! And seriously, do you even have to save it?!? I promise you I will not be getting knocked up anytime soon!

Mei, don’t feel weird, I’ve gotten much weirder questions on this blog, haha! Our budget isn’t very specific yet, but I feel like we’ll have a better idea once we get going. When are you leaving for your trip and do you know where you wan to travel yet? Maybe you should start a blog about your preparations!

Kathleen, the only thing about going around in a car is crossing the Panama Canal (reaaaaaally expensive) and then selling/buying laws in different countries. Like some countries have laws about whether foreigners can bring foreign cars over their borders. It’s all really complicated. But, while I’m not counting on doing this at all….if S.’s business goes REALLY well, as in INSANELY well, beyond our expectations, then we would want to do something similar…drive throughout the continent in a truck…with our dog, haha! I’m not counting on it happening, but you never know. And EW about the garlic pills. I’m so sorry you’re suffering through that right now!!!

Shawna, thanks! I’m flattered that you read all the way back. I’ve gone back to the beginning sometimes and have been really surprised by the things I wrote. It’s weird to see how much my life has changed. Trust me, I reaaaaaally want to go to Europe too. I mean, we’ll definitely be going, but I don’t think we’ll be able to make it all over. I am absolutely dying to go to Germany. It seems like such a weird place to me for some reason, but weird in a cool way.

They do sell Lonely Planet books down here in English and Spanish but they cost a FORTUNE. Chile has the highest book tax in the world, used to fund the military…a leftover tax from the dictatorship. So if you happen to pick one up for your own reading pleasures and then want to send it my way when you’re done, I wouldn’t be opposed!

Francine, yeah, we could probably travel cheaper, but knowing us, I doubt we will. We are both so lazy when it comes to cooking and we like nice restaurants so I feel like that’s not something we’ll be likely to give up. I mean, in the beginning I’m sure we’ll start out with good intentions to cook meals at the hostels we stay at, but I know that we are not the best staying on food budgets. However, neither of us mind crappy hostels, and honestly we travel sort of like you and Andre, walking around the city and taking photos, more than doing the super expensive tourist expeditions. So, we may end up under budget at the end of our time in Latin America, but I’m not counting on it. I will, however, make sure we don’t go over.

Comment by Mamacita Chilena — February 10, 2009 @ 5:37 pm

Reply
Kyle,

I spent 8 months traveling with my boyfriend at the time to Eastern Europe, India, and South America (well, only Argentina, Chile and Uruguay) with a 3 week hiatus in the US, and the two of us spent a total of $11K. That included everything – plane, train, bus, boat tickets, accommodation, sight seeing, and souvenirs. This was back in 2004/2005, and about a month of that was spent in Romania camping and such which meant we were spending $80 a week (no joke). I don’t know what prices would be now, but I think you will have plenty of backup $$$ given your budget! Feel free to contact me if you have questions about specific places, or anything else travel related for that matter. I do recommend this website for plane tickets – http://www.airtreks.com it lets you build your “round the world” trip and is super cheap. For us it was $1200 per person for NY-Paris, Frankfurt-New Delhi-HongKong-NY with no charge for changing dates.

And also if you do end up going to Africa let me know, I can send you in the direction of good people/places!

You are going to have such a blast, makes me want to do it all over again!

Comment by Petunia — February 11, 2009 @ 1:17 am

Reply
Well you know my thoughts on this subject…stay here longer! Haha, besides, that would mean more financial cushion for you guys and potential business success for S, so it’s really a win-win situation

I still think it’s amazing that you guys are so focused on your saving and have managed to save so much money. Totally dorky, but I genuinely find it inspirational.

Comment by Emily — February 11, 2009 @ 9:44 am

Reply
If you are going to be up my way (Vancouver, BC) let me know for sure!!!

PS I like the pic of you and your man on the road where he was going to fart in your face. lol. But really, they are all really good.

Comment by My Way — February 11, 2009 @ 4:02 pm

Reply
Petunia, WOW, that website is fantastic! Those are way cheaper round the world tickets than we’ve seen anywhere else. We weren’t actually planning on buying one of those tickets, but we just budgeted a few out and they’re relatively cheap, so that’s good to know. thanks for the info on your budget too…all really helpful stuff! I appreciate it, and I may just have to get your email from Katina to ask you a few more questions before we leave.

Haha, yes, Emily I do already know your thoughts on the subject. You’ve made your opinion clear But thanks for the kind words!

My Way, we just might be up that way so I’ll let you know for sure when the time gets closer!

Comment by Mamacita Chilena — February 11, 2009 @ 4:56 pm

Reply
Well doll, you’re timing’s pretty good as hopefully in year’s time we’ll actually have a couch for you to crash on!

Comment by Raybelles — February 11, 2009 @ 10:32 pm

Reply