Crossroads

The only friend back home who's made noises about wanting to go to Europe, mulled it over, got ETBD and sat.

She recently learned she has breast cancer.

Another friend is kinda curious about it, but he has to swait for his blind cat to die.

Even getting out of a relationship takes commitment.

If she did travel with you, would she only be going to keep you happy and strung out over Her?

It needs to be all about you!

As we all know there is a cost involved in having a nomadic/expat lifestyle. Losing the co-dependent 24 year old girl is the cost. Is it a big cost? We don't know yet, because we don't know the return from your future wanderings.

My hit? Based on 12 years of living/working around the world? This cost will appear small in hind sight. It may hurt a bit at the beginning, but I suspect in...a year? You will look back and laugh, what were you thinking? Were you honestly thinking about letting this keep you from going?

You need to go.

#1, this type of thread should be on here more often. This guy's been addicted to TT since 2004!

Crossroads are a painful time. Like having kids and marriage for the wrong reasons.
..it happens.

OP, I was a 10th grade dropout. I didn't get to college till vocational rehab at 37. I've been dreaming about trying Spain or Porrrrtugahhl for 35 years. Since I kept hearing about them in oz and on the Swedish ships.*see profile.
It took a suicide attemt to get me to follow my own star. I hated myself 'cause I didn't want the Correct things in life. I wanted see the world.
I wound up on the ships from overhearing some one elses conversation. Shipped out happily for btwo years. Then paid off in oz. Because there was a book in the ship's liubrary about early exploration there.

Keep your ears open.

College gave me more reasons. I use it every day. Art History, Anthropology. This Texan now lives in Seville. A 3000 year old city.
Never felt so safe and tranquil in my life.

Let her live Her dreamed of life. Fish in sea factor.
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It took AA to get me off the dime to try this. "To Thine Own Self Be True."

I haven't regretted a second of this. Sure I'll return stateside. Just not in a hurry.
People over here go way out of thier way to help you. If you're not just a faceless zip-line tourist. They never mention nationality, politics, religeon, or free beer. Or a tip.

They just do it because it needs doing. You'll never know until you try chilling for a week or month. You have friends in Europe you haven't met yet.
Could she put up with that?

Travelling solo is by far the best.

OP I'm a doc and had a jamming practice in Seattle for a long time. We put down more and more roots -bought a house, had a kid etc. We kept waiting for the right time. Finally about three years ago we said to hell with it and sold and gave away everything and took off to Thailand and Laos for a bit -with a 2 year-old. From there, all kinds of opportunities happened that I could never have dreamed of back in rainy Seattle. From what you've mentioned of your partner -that is a warning sign. I'm assuming you are older and more experienced so maybe you are in denial that there's a problem. In my experience those issues dont go away and folks dont grow out of them unless you help train them. I would add that if you dont live a life congruent to who you are you are asking for a lot of pain. -one way or another.

This relationship is doomed. You've as much admitted it. It's your finesse on the endgame.

You've had extended travel experience so you have a good idea of what you are getting into.

I'd just caution you to think about your finances, and look out for your 59-year old self, after the 20 years of travel. No one else will watch out for that you in the future. Make sure you realy understand the implications of your finances. How secure is that interest income? How is it inflation protected? Have you anticipated tax consequences, health insurance or medical protection? Do you have a way of reassessing it as your needs change? ( That might fall under the heading of asset reallocation.). It might be a good idea to have a visit with a fee-based financial planner to get the details down about your plan. Also google for the early retirement forum where they discuss these things all the time.

In essence, if you are quitting at age 39 to travel for 20 years, you are entering early retirement. It sounds very appealing, but with so many things, the devil is in the details, and your plan is very dependent on the details of your finances. I'd want to know the real story so that I would understand my options. Adequate finances means more choices. Bad planning means few choices.

If I backtrack from your $50K yearly interest to what would appear to be a reasonable guess for your portfolio, then apply the SWR of 4% (Save Withdrawl Rate), your $50K annual is more like $25K. The SWR of 4% applies best to those at age 65, and you have to decrease it if you are younger. I'd guess that a more realistic Save Withdrawl Rate for you is somewhere about $21K. That might be something to consider in your planning.

Travel on $50K is much different than travel on $21K.

Again, these are broad guesses. That's why I suggest a fee-only financial planner to help get realistic numbers and do some homework on the early retirement forum pages. Look for FIREcalc.

The relationship. If you are questioning it - its not destined to be a long term goer. Keep her if possible as a friend, but row your own boat. She has a different agenda from you - and is at a different stage of her life.

The trip. One of the biggest problems that I have noticed with "long term" early retirement from "no fixed abode", particularly for one on their own, tends to be the eventual boredom with a life which does actually not fulfil them. (and in some cases heavy reliance on booze or drugs to dull the day). Eventually you get sick of just passing rhough the lives of others, and the same with them in your life. While its easy to make casual acquaintances its not until you make a really good friend in a new place that it becomes a Home to you.

You have obviously worked hard, saved hard and planned for your future. A couple of years of doing nothing may sound idyllic, but reality is likely to be that you will miss the structure of your days, the rewards mental and physical of being "needed" for want of a better word. One of the joys of going on even a short term holiday is the change from the routine. Reverse that phsycology to a long term situation. I am not accusing you of being a drifter - just suggesting that its not all its cracked up to be.

Take yourself off by all means - but don't shut the door completely on your current home lifestyle - keep in touch a little with friends, store the furniture if its worth storing, so that you can go back if you wish for extended periods and while you won't pick up completely you can still give yourself time out in familiar surroundings. We have more in common with animals than we think - the "nesting" instinct is stillthere be it Philly, Thailand or whereever.

Ohwell, you're a wise man from the road.
I don't mind problems occasionally. It keeps every day from being the same.

I have all Europe available to me, en peanut butter stressed travel. So I can only do it once a year. "Escape Semana Santa" as the local travel shops say.

But I get into a rut. A daily routine of coffee stops and friends there. Nice to choose our rut. Solo.

Glad I can find AA meetings in English around the world. So I can compare notes with old road monkeys like me.

"God, grant me the Serinity to accept the things
I can not change.
The Courage to change the things I can.
And the Wisdom to know the difference."