6-Month Countdown

One of the first major decisions is to set an actual target date for when all of this is going to happen.  Setting a concrete date is helpful for not only planning, but also to start acting like this is "for real."  Back in July of 2011, we set our launch date for sometime in May of 2012.  That would give us almost 10 months to plan our sabbatical.

During the last few months, we've been busy reading many, many travel books and soaking up information on all of the potential destination spots that we have dreamt about for so long.  We've also been putting together a "to-do" list or "mile-markers" of tasks that need to be accomplished at the 6-month countdown mark, 4-month, 2-month, and 1-month countdown.  This is an ongoing list that is frequently updated.  

To give you an idea, here's what we have on our 6-Month Countdown:

• Save $$ (specify the dollar amount)
• Research vaccination needs
• Look for immunization records
• Research medical and travel insurance options
• Create profile for housesitter websites such as www.airbnb.com; housesitters.com; etc.
• Start looking into housesitter and dogsitter options
• Start learning a language (e.g. Spanish)
• Research visa needs for potential destinations
• Look into visa processing services
• Contact a round-the-world travel agency
• Solidify major destinations for a general round-the-world itinerary