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In this post, I would like to discuss another of my biggest hopes (intentions) for the future.

Up until this past Sept. I had been working for an online company for the past 4 years and was just getting ready to make the big move to a mobile lifestyle. (When I lost my job in Sept.)

What do I mean by this?

I spent a bit of time traveling in 2008-2009 and I discovered that it was really pretty easy to maintain my work schedule while abroad.

As I’ve said in some of my earlier posts, one of my biggest dreams has always been about traveling the world. Of course a big stumbling block to that has been the saving money/working situation.

Now that I have discovered the world of online business and virtual type work I no longer see money as the challenge it once was. In fact, there are SO many places that I could choose to live (that are high on my list as well) that are MUCH less expensive than the U.S.

So, one of my biggest goals in 2010 and as I enter my 40’s is to create a successful online business model for myself that will allow me to be able to maintain a mobile lifestyle with the ultimate goal of living anywhere that I would choose. (Italy, for example!) 🙂

My current goal and location of choice is Thailand for the following reasons:

• I have heard from others that a reasonable cost of living would be around $1000/mo U.S. which I think is a totally doable goal!
• This is a part of the world that I have really wanted to explore (Southeast Asia)
• I am imagining living somewhere with a great view and in walking distance of a beach

This could change in the upcoming months and I will keep you posted! If I get my income up quickly I could also see myself moving to Italy, Ireland or England! 🙂

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I’m going to be doing a few travel adventure posts in the upcoming days…travel is such a big desire of mine so I wanted to be sure to include some posts of my favorite trips starting with my first trip to Europe! Yay!

My first international trip was a few years prior to this and I wrote about my adventures in Guatemala in post 19 to 40.

In 1998, I left San Francisco to take a 5 week course in Barcelona, Spain. I was going to get my TEFL (Teach English as a Foreign Language) certificate with the intention of being able to travel around the world teaching English. Yay!

Here are some pictures of the school I attended, the view outside my hotel room balcony and me with my certificate after completing the course!

Barcelona was an amazing city. Here are pictures of Antoni Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia and the famous La Rambla street:

I had my first Europe trip planned and my cousin was to join me in Germany after the course and then we would travel around by train!

Yay! I had been dreaming about this for years…

Before I met up with my cousin, I went to Prague with my Hungarian friend that I knew from my San Diego nanny days!

From here I visited another friend in Germany. We went to the  Dachau Concentration Camp which was a very somber experience and one that I felt I could not miss while there.

I also saw castles and some AMAZING scenery in Germany:

…and I LOVE Italy! My first trip to Europe included a whirlwind tour of Venice, Rome and Florence – then on to Paris!

I had also made several great friends from England during my days as a nanny in San Diego, so we then headed to England before going back to the states.

It was an amazing tip and adventure. You can bet that I would be anxious to return to Europe!

I did not actually do any teaching after my experience in Barcelona. Not for lack of wanting to…just different things that happened after I returned home.

I would end up back in San Francisco for a period of time…always planning that next trip!

And there would be more! Stay tuned!