My main thing was renting my apartment - no big surprise here, that I used craigslist. Some people still don't use this site, so I have to mention it. The source of many magical happennings is definitely http://www.craigslist.org/. When using craigslist, I've always had great luck and I hope you will, too. Write your ad carefully if you're going to be subletting - make sure you communicate who you are in your ad - nothing worse than posting a generic ad and getting people who want a generic situation, i.e. a place they don't have to care about. If you're subletting your home, make sure you write the ad so that only people looking for an actual 'home' to lease will respond. My title was : Pergo-free zone! That way only people who give a crap about floors will call, and I don't have to worry about all the creeps who would put holes in my walls to put up posters for a stay of one semester.
Then of course I had to make sure I got a ticket - I was very lucky and had frequent flyer miles saved over a period of 20 years and a donation of miles from my Mom (thanks, Mom!) to make up the rest. I include this not to make you sad that you don't have 60,000 miles for a ticket, but to remind you that if you do have miles, to call and get your ticket over the phone. I tried and tried to make it work online and it was ridiculous how quickly they wanted 90,000 or even 120,000 miles for the ticket I got through a customer service rep for 60,000. It doesn't hurt to tell the rep you're using this ticket for a very special trip, so they get a little excited about helping you get there. And if your rep is in a bad mood, thank them for their help, say you need to talk to yourself about the dates, and call back to speak with someone else. There's always someone who'll think it's cool you're doing something besides business travel or going to Disney. Oh, and any big trip like to Europe or somewhere far should include a free layover on one leg. So I got to stop in NY and visit my family on the same ticket. They will not tell you this, you have to ask. Maybe you want to stop in Paris in the way to Berlin. It should be free.
Third most important thing - how can I get housing for free? Housing, unless you're going to South America or Asia, will kill a small budget. The miracle of the internet is that if you have a dream, so do a half million other people and someone's out there facilitating your dream for people like you. Sites that hook people up are generally great for making sure you won't be sold into slavery once you arrive. They check people's info, keep logs of all your communication through their site, and try to keep everyone safe. They also are big on peer comments, so you get to see what others have said about the place you're going and how it was to be there. I joined http://www.mindmyhouse.com/ for $25/year (or 2 yrs - can't recall). This site is British, and loads of British people have second homes in Spain, so there were lots of situations in the country I was headed to. The challenge is finding someone who's not just looking for a free caretaker/dogsitter. You may love dogs, but they can't be left for weekend excursions and you could end up stranded at home most of the time. In which case, write a book. About the dog. I was extremely lucky that there was a small retreat center looking for someone exactly like me, but there are new posts all the time and there's always something that might allow you to do someone a favor and still have flexibility.
I also joined http://www.workaway.info/ ($25/2 yrs) that hooks people up with volunteer opportunites where the host houses and feeds you in exchange for (usually) a half day of work, Mon-Fri. The obvious advantage of this is that you are living with people and therefore not alone in someone's remote villa burning up the youtube videos to entertain yourself and the dog. And I have to say that even though I opted not to do this there were a couple of opportunities that were just incredibly tempting. Learning from a horse whisperer? Helping a university professor with her computer skills and data entry? Helping with winter maintenance at breathtaking historic boutique hotels? There were many more that sounded truly fun, and you'd be linked to the community through your host. Down side on this was that mainly non-Spanish speakers use this site so you'd be speaking Spanish when you went out but probably not at home. A wonderful woman here in Andalucia who hosts work exchangers uses http://www.helpx.net/. Again, these sites are big on hosts and volunteers reviewing each other, so you get a pretty good idea of what you're getting into.There's also http://www.wwoof.org/ that has a worldwide network of small organic farms looking for hlp in exchange for lodging and meals. That site has been around for over 25 years and you could spend a lifetime exploring what's on there. As for me, I'm past the grape harvesting stage of my life and really don't want to find out how many baskets of olives I can pick in a morning. But there were decades when I was totally game, and maybe you are.
Now that I'm in Spain, I'm starting to use my http://www.couchsurfing.org/ membership to take little side trips and get to know some people who live here and love to show off their home city. So far I've had someone offer to take me traveling indefinitely but my visa doesn't allow for that so I'm working on going to Cordoba for 3 nights, instead. For last minute excursions I've been using youth hostels, of which there are literally thousands now. Used to be there was one in every city - now there are 5-10. And no, I'm not always the oldest person staying there - I have run across some 'well over forties' who still love backpacking and meeting people. In Madrid we were actually the majority.
Don't let anyone talk you into a fucking worldphone. Skype is amazing and I can even Skype from my Ipod Touch. I can use Skype to call a phone (anywhere in the world), too, by paying all of 2 cents/minute. And you can leave voice mails on Skype, too, so you're not limited to sitting around waiting for people to be online. I bought a Spanish cell phone because they were practically giving them away, and if you want to by train, bus or plane tickets online you usually need a phone number in the country where you're purchasing that ticket. I got a pay-as-you-go phone for something like $10 and I can receive calls and texts for free, so if anyone needs to get me ASAP they can. Also good to have if you're going out hiking alone, etc.
I also got a free, international texting number through the app TextNow. It never hurts to be available in lots of different ways in case you lose your phone or can't get online. Europe and free wifi are not in a love affair, and Americans will feel like they can't function if they're not in constant contact with several hundred people. My cell phone company at home (CREDO) - the Best Cell Phone Company Ever - also let me pause my service for 6 months, so my bill there isn't zero, but it's definitely quite reduced and no one's leaving me voicemails or texts and feeling ignored when I don't respond. The number won't work until I reactivate it.
There are a load of great apps for travel, too, so having an Ipod Touch is a great thing (thanks, Mom!). There are even several apps that tell you where to find free wifi wherever you are. Note that sometimes there really is no free wifi around town, but if you're desperate McDonald's and Starbucks have it. But at Starbucks it's only for 45 minutes and often slow, so you can't get much done in that time.
I know there's more, but that's the most important stuff about getting out of the US for an extended period even if you don't have a ton of money. Honestly, you learn a lot more when you don't, so there. Now get online and make tracks. Then tell me how you did it, please!
I have a great friend who uses craigslist to swap her apt in NYC for apts in Paris. She's done this for 2 summers, I believe and has had great experiences. She's awesomely brave and goes with craigslist - there are also swapping sites (housing swaps, you dirty minded reader) if you want to have someone in the middle to facilitate things.
ReplyDeleteShe also made the comment that she spent quite a bit less on food in Europe than in NYC. I'd say that is true especially for basics, but the minute you want organic or gluten free you'll probably be spending a bit more than stateside. But the gluten free thing is very common here and even tiny supermarkets have a section for that. Even up here on the mountain :) I am way off my train of thought about housing, here.