5 ms·

I'm more-or-less doing this now too, here's a few problems I've run into: - Visa renewals. Leaving the country every 90 days to renew your tourist visa gets ol

by JDDunn9 11y ago

I'm more-or-less doing this now too, here's a few problems I've run into: - Visa renewals. Leaving the country every 90 days to renew your tourist visa gets old fast. - Finding a country that is both stable and has a low cost of living. I was in Bangkok during the last revolution when the current military junta took over. The airport shut down and I had to take a bus past a lot of guys with machine guns to get out of there. - Starting a family changes things. Poor countries have poor education systems. I enjoyed my visit to Pattaya, but wouldn't want my kids passing by "walking street" on their way to school. - You lose some small niceties like Amazon Prime and Hulu :)

ido 11y ago
I've been through this thought process myself & my conclusion was that a lot of the eastern side of the EU (including eastern Germany) is not a bad compromise between fairly low cost of living & decent infrastructure/public services.
- codecamper 11y ago
  Yes but a beer and a sausage for lunch will really cut into the afternoon productivity. :)
- turar 11y ago
  What countries do you have in mind?
  - ido 11y ago
    I currently live in Berlin which is getting borderline expensive (still much cheaper than almost any major western city - more so now with the weak euro). I've heard good things about the Czech republic and Bulgaria. Seems like Croatia isn't bad either.
    - prodmerc 11y ago
      Don't forget Romania :-)
geomark 11y ago
I've been through this whole thing. Where I am now is I'm older and living in Thailand with a wife and kid. When I was younger I had the same big ideas about traveling while earning a living as a single guy; current fashion is to call it being a "nomad". There are more and nicer coworking spaces now but it's still just working during your vacation. I ended up grinding at a big tech company, saving/investing a lot more than other people who were living it up, and then retired (very) early. I also grew up a little during the process and wanted more than just an ocean view and party life. That happens to most people, although not all as you can see with a trip down Walking Street. Life in Thailand works for me and my family. No visa runs if you have a spouse or retirement visa. Most modern conveniences are available. Speaking the language with a good accent helps a lot. But costs are surprisingly high if you want a "normal" life. Cars are way overpriced due to high tarrifs. Electronics are pricey as are many western foods. My kid goes to an international school, which is really the only viable option for education, and that costs about US$10,000 per year. Real estate in the US varies greatly in price, which means someone like me who wants to live away from a city could get a ranch in the southwest US quite cheaply. But in Thailand land prices are kind of high almost everywhere. We have land near Khao Yai National Park about two hours from Bangkok; it's very nice up here. Long story shorter, life changes a lot as you get older; you want different things. The advice in the article worked for me. If was to do it over again I would be tempted to try the "nomad" life as a freelancer. But knowing what I do now I would probably repeat what I did - work for 20 years at big tech co, take nice annual vacations, save a lot, retire early.
lukasm 11y ago
> Visa renewals. Leaving the country every 90 days to renew your tourist visa gets old fast. You can go to, say, Poland. It's just slightly more expensive than Thailand. No Visa renewals. > - Finding a country that is both stable and has a low cost of living. I was in Bangkok during the last revolution when the current military junta took over. The airport shut down and I had to take a bus past a lot of guys with machine guns to get out of there. EU countries are more stable. > Starting a family changes things. Poor countries have poor education systems. Poland scores very high in terms of education. No district schools BS. > You lose some small niceties like Amazon Prime and Hulu :) VPN :D
- JDDunn9 11y ago
  > VPN :D I've tried but Hulu even blocks VPNS :(
- webbizowner 11y ago
  >You can go to, say, Poland. It's just slightly more expensive than Thailand. No Visa renewals. Is that meant literally? And for how long can one stay there as a foreigner? How about working remotely from there for companies outside Poland - allowed?
  - claudius 11y ago
    > Is that meant literally? And for how long can one stay there as a foreigner? As an EU citizen, forever. For everyone else, the same rules apply as always. Working for companies outside Poland shouldn’t be an issue either way, you just still have to tax your income correctly?
hmartiniano 11y ago
Despite beeing more expensive (think double or triple the 500$ figure for a comfortable life, depending on the particular country you choose), south european countries might be a good alternative. You get more stability and much better education and health systems, while keeping the good weather and lower cost of living.

by JDDunn9 11y ago

ido 11y ago

I've been through this thought process myself & my conclusion was that a lot of the eastern side of the EU (including eastern Germany) is not a bad compromise between fairly low cost of living & decent infrastructure/public services.

codecamper 11y ago
Yes but a beer and a sausage for lunch will really cut into the afternoon productivity. :)
turar 11y ago
What countries do you have in mind?
- ido 11y ago
  I currently live in Berlin which is getting borderline expensive (still much cheaper than almost any major western city - more so now with the weak euro). I've heard good things about the Czech republic and Bulgaria. Seems like Croatia isn't bad either.
  - prodmerc 11y ago
    Don't forget Romania :-)

geomark 11y ago

I've been through this whole thing. Where I am now is I'm older and living in Thailand with a wife and kid. When I was younger I had the same big ideas about traveling while earning a living as a single guy; current fashion is to call it being a "nomad". There are more and nicer coworking spaces now but it's still just working during your vacation. I ended up grinding at a big tech company, saving/investing a lot more than other people who were living it up, and then retired (very) early. I also grew up a little during the process and wanted more than just an ocean view and party life. That happens to most people, although not all as you can see with a trip down Walking Street. Life in Thailand works for me and my family. No visa runs if you have a spouse or retirement visa. Most modern conveniences are available. Speaking the language with a good accent helps a lot. But costs are surprisingly high if you want a "normal" life. Cars are way overpriced due to high tarrifs. Electronics are pricey as are many western foods. My kid goes to an international school, which is really the only viable option for education, and that costs about US$10,000 per year. Real estate in the US varies greatly in price, which means someone like me who wants to live away from a city could get a ranch in the southwest US quite cheaply. But in Thailand land prices are kind of high almost everywhere. We have land near Khao Yai National Park about two hours from Bangkok; it's very nice up here. Long story shorter, life changes a lot as you get older; you want different things. The advice in the article worked for me. If was to do it over again I would be tempted to try the "nomad" life as a freelancer. But knowing what I do now I would probably repeat what I did - work for 20 years at big tech co, take nice annual vacations, save a lot, retire early.

lukasm 11y ago

> Visa renewals. Leaving the country every 90 days to renew your tourist visa gets old fast. You can go to, say, Poland. It's just slightly more expensive than Thailand. No Visa renewals. > - Finding a country that is both stable and has a low cost of living. I was in Bangkok during the last revolution when the current military junta took over. The airport shut down and I had to take a bus past a lot of guys with machine guns to get out of there. EU countries are more stable. > Starting a family changes things. Poor countries have poor education systems. Poland scores very high in terms of education. No district schools BS. > You lose some small niceties like Amazon Prime and Hulu :) VPN :D

JDDunn9 11y ago
> VPN :D I've tried but Hulu even blocks VPNS :(
webbizowner 11y ago
>You can go to, say, Poland. It's just slightly more expensive than Thailand. No Visa renewals. Is that meant literally? And for how long can one stay there as a foreigner? How about working remotely from there for companies outside Poland - allowed?
- claudius 11y ago
  > Is that meant literally? And for how long can one stay there as a foreigner? As an EU citizen, forever. For everyone else, the same rules apply as always. Working for companies outside Poland shouldn’t be an issue either way, you just still have to tax your income correctly?

hmartiniano 11y ago

Despite beeing more expensive (think double or triple the 500$ figure for a comfortable life, depending on the particular country you choose), south european countries might be a good alternative. You get more stability and much better education and health systems, while keeping the good weather and lower cost of living.