In many an interview, I’ve extolled the virtues of making a leap of faith into the lifestyle of your dreams. I believe that in order to instil big life changes, you can’t possibly have all the answers before you get started; a general plan, an intuitive gut feeling, and a leap of faith is critical.

But where is the line between taking a leap of faith responsibly, and doing so in such a way that you are ruining possibilities for your future?

Because sometimes, we make bad decisions. What if your leap of faith is a bad one?

When a Leap of Faith is a Bad Idea

Any leap of faith – good, bad, or otherwise – involves fear. That’s what makes it the leap that it is….you know you need to take a step, but you can’t see the ground below where your feet are about to go. It’s the proverbial “Indiana Jones” moment, where you must trust that there will be something to catch you…as long as you take that step.

But.

I believe a leap of faith can be misdirected if you are unnecessarily burning bridges behind you. Although you need to put full confidence in the path ahead when you make a leap of faith, I also believe that having options is important.

When I took my leap of faith into the world of full-time travel, I left doors open.

• I invested the proceeds from selling my stuff so that I’d always have the cash to set up a home again whenever (and wherever) I chose.
• I made sure I had no debts.
• I even left the door open to step back into my financial planning career with relative ease (despite the fact that I was pretty sure I wouldn’t retrace my steps as such).

So even if things went totally awry in my travels, I knew I would not have irrevocably ruined my life or any part thereof.

Starting over is okay.

Digging yourself out of a hole that was avoidable is not.

When a Leap of Faith is a Good Idea

Like I said before, fear is good. It keeps us alert. For me, the fear that accompanies a (good) leap of faith is like butterflies in my tummy. The same butterflies you get when you are about to go on a hot date or are about to do something exciting and different and don’t know where it will lead.

My (good) leaps of faith are also accompanied by a strong intuitive sense that what I’m doing is right. In my journey to becoming The Professional Hobo, I had a lifelong inner voice that insisted there was something else out there for me. When I finally made the decision to travel full-time, as counter-intuitive as it may have seemed from the outside, my restless inner voice was finally quelled; and with that, I knew I was doing the right thing.

Intuition, and “Knowing” the Future

Whether or not a strong connection with your own inner voice and intuition is required for a leap of faith to be successful, I don’t know. But I would suspect that anybody who has taken a big leap of faith has had some sort of inner confidence that things will work out just fine.

None of us can see the future. There is no light strong enough to illuminate the path ahead fully. Besides which, where would be the fun in life’s journey if you knew all the answers before you began?

I was recently asked the question “if you knew then what you know now, what would you do differently?” I have no answer for this. Because for me, life is about the journey; the journey of experience, knowledge, and even acquiring a few character-building bumps and scratches along the way.

I wouldn’t trade any of my bad experiences for the prior knowledge required to avoid them. Because it’s every single experience – good or bad – that has made me the person I am today and placed me exactly where I am.

And although my life isn’t perfect (is there any such thing really??), I wouldn’t have it any other way.

What’s Your Leap of Faith?

So if there is no light strong enough to illuminate our path fully, all we can hope for is to see the next few steps, and use our intuition and faith to guide us until the next little bit of our path is illuminated.

Is there a path in front of you that you can’t see? That you’re scared to go down, and yet drawn to anyway?

Or have you already made a leap of faith?

Either way, what do you think are the essential ingredients to a “successful” or “responsible” leap of faith?

Please share!

Last week, we discussed asset allocation, and how to invest various pots of money associated with different goals. (See here: Financial Travel Tip #27: Where to Invest Your Travel (and Other) Savings).

But for travel purposes, you’ll be most concentrated on your travel savings account; both while accumulating money for your eventual travels, and redeeming it while you’re enjoying your travel adventure.

Generally speaking, your travel savings (in both accumulation and redemption modes) should be invested very conservatively, since you’ll have a relatively short time frame to needing the money, and can’t afford to lose value in a market fluctuation. Online high-interest savings accounts are ideal for this purpose.

Accumulation: Make it Automatic

While you’re in accumulation mode, set up an automatic transfer of money from your bank account to your travel savings account. Set it up to coincide with your paycheques, so you can effectively “pay yourself first”. And if you’re really dedicated to saving for travel, you can take any surplus funds after your bills are paid and manually transfer that over to your travel savings account too.

Redemption: Give it a Few Days

One of the things I like about keeping my travel savings tucked away in an online account is that I can’t access it instantly. So if I end up in a sticky situation and my ATM card is compromised, my financial liability is limited to the minimum balance I keep in my bank account.

But the flip side is when I need money from my travel savings account, it takes a few days for it to transfer through to my bank account. Although I’ve never had any trouble with this, it does take a little forethought and preparation to ensure the funds are then when you need them.

And if you anticipate needing a regular stream of income from your travel savings account, you can set up an automatic redemption plan, just as you did while accumulating.

Most banks have money market accounts, or some kind of high-interest savings account you can use. I like using ING for my high-interest travel savings, and have had no complaints.

Special Deal for Professional Hobo Readers

ING wants to give you a bonus for opening your own savings account! When you open an account with a minimum $100 balance, they’ll give you a $25 bonus. It’s like an instantaneous 25% return on your money!

To take advantage of this offer, simply open an ING account and enter the following “Orange Key” when prompted:

15312741S1

…or click on the link below to get started.

Note: This may or may not work for readers of different countries (I’m not sure, but it’s possibly only a Canadian/North American discount code). But for a free 25% return, it’s worth a shot! 

House-sitting: my verandah...er, office....in the Caribbean

My travels have evolved significantly since I started traveling full-time in 2007.

Initially, I volunteered in trade for my accommodation as a way of staying somewhere for longer periods of time in addition to having a deeper local experience than I might if I were just passing through.

Over the first few years, I milked goats, painted murals, designed marketing and promotional plans, cooked meals for large groups of people, led eco-treks on llamas, landscaped, sailed, and yes, I even occasionally cleaned toilets. All in trade for free accommodation (and sometimes food).

These were all highly varied and incredibly enriching experiences. But as the years went by and my writing took off, I found that between my volunteer requirements and my online career, I often had difficulty with time management. And if I was actively on the road, travel fatigue would set in quicker and quicker.

This was when I discovered house-sitting as the perfect medium: it’s free accommodation, allows time for writing and relaxing, and gives you a chance to experience a slice of the local lifestyle.

As a full-time traveler, I’ve discovered that long-term house-sitting sets a pace of life that I can maintain over the long run and not get exhausted or fall prey to “motion sickness on the road”. I even get to to enjoy the comforts of home – somebody else’s home, that is!

Landing a House-Sitting Gig

I’m not the only one who thinks house-sitting is a pretty cool way to travel long-term on a budget (or even short term on vacation). I’ve applied for dozens of house-sitting gigs that I never got a foot in the door for. Why? Because homeowners are inundated with applications when they list an availability on one of the many house-sitting membership sites.

So it’s a bit of a trick to get noticed by a homeowner and land the house-sitting gig of your dreams.

I recently chatted with Lisa Logan of TrustedHousesitters.com, who gave me some great pointers for successfully landing a house-sitting gig. Not only that, but they’re giving readers a discount on a TrustedHousesitters membership! Check it out:

10 Tips for Landing the Perfect House-Sitting Gig

The House Sitting Book

For people who want more information about house-sitting as a lifestyle, I came across an e-book that covers it from many different angles.

Josie Schneider has years of experience house-sitting around the world, and she has compiled her travel and house-sitting experiences into The House Sitting Book: Travel the World and Your Lodging is Free.

Not only does it cover many of the concepts and pointers in the article above, but this book also goes deeper (way deeper) to help people with any degree of travel experience to delve into the world of house-sitting.

She covers tips like:

• Creating a good house-sitting profile
• How to get the attention of a homeowner and get them to respond to your application (with examples of her own successful applications)
• How to set criteria and choose the right gig for you (eg: rural or urban)
• Contracts
• General travel pointers like visas and staying in touch
• Tips for getting used to “living” in another country (like navigating transportation options, cost of living, and language)

She even details her own 3-step method to getting low-cost apartments, if you have your heart set on a destination but no house-sitting gigs avail themselves.

I will say that some of the sections and concepts covered seem a bit antiquated or basic to me; geared more towards technophobes than location-independent savvy travellers. But if you’re new to both house-sitting and the travel game, this book could be the perfect introduction giving what you need to know. And Josie peppers everything with personal anecdotes and illustrative experiences that fill out her concepts nicely.

Check out the book here:

The House Sitting Book: Travel the World and Your Lodging is Free (102 pages, $23.99)*

My Travel Style

Given the amount of time I’ve been on the road full-time, my tolerance for fast travel has become little more than a month or two before I get exhausted (and often sick, as I was here and here).

So my own travel style has evolved to hinge on long-term house-sitting gigs around the world. I tend not to choose my destination; rather the house-sitting opportunity dictates my next move.

Grenada is likely a place I’ll come back to over and over again (as the homeowners here have a regular need for a house-sitter and I’m old hat to the place now), and this summer I’m bound for Switzerland to sit for a friend’s house in Zurich and cottage in the Alps for two months.

And every day, I receive notifications of inspirational house-sitting opportunities around the world; I tend to contact a handful of homeowners each week, and I see who takes an interest in my profile.

So where to next? Who knows. That’s half the fun!

*(yes, this is an affiliate link. I’ll get a small commission if you purchase through this link, but there is no cost difference to you).

After 20+ years in big business, Sis. McCray “retired” (before conventional retirement age) in 1996 to be of service to others. She is now a “professional globetrotter”, with a distinct purpose to assist women and children in distress, mainly in Africa, the Near East, West Indies, and the Caribbean. Please enjoy this week-in-the-life of Sis. McCray from when it all started, on her first overseas trip to England where she lived for over a year.

It’s hard to believe this is happening! Strangers only a few hours ago, Bob & Barbara have invited me to stay in their home for a month! In addition to that good fortune, Bob reminds me of my loving grandfather, who died many years ago.

In the queue, waiting to board the Airbus in Los Angeles (LAX), Bob & Barbara look intently at me. They ask in unison, “What country are you from?” I could see they were not planning to ask in unison. Grinning, we stare at each other. Thus begins our conversation.

The flight, at least 16 hours in the air and over the ocean, replaces my new excitement with apprehension. Short flights have always been fine, but 16 hours! I cannot swim if this plane dives in the Pacific Ocean!

As tension grips me, a man sitting across the aisle adjacent to me exclaims, “You do not have anything to worry about. This is my 20th flight to London, and as you can see I’m still here.” Together we chuckle; his smile helps make my fear disappear.

Day One

Tuesday, 21 September, 1999

Arrival in London: 10am

After descending, my stomach stops clenching, and the plane touches the ground with a slight skip.

Clouding my mind are questions about my heavy suitcases, and seven boxes waiting for me at baggage collection. Do I utilize the Baggage Attendants to assist me? How much will it cost?

Although my brain is still in dreamland, my biological clock is saying “It is time to sleep.” Looking for a phone to call, and realizing I do not have a single British pound in my pocket, one stranger sees my dilemma. “Ay lovey, not to worry, ‘ere’s some schillings.” Sounds like a Scottish accent to me.

To my surprise, Barbara tells me, “You disembarked at the wrong airport. You are an eight hour bus trip away, and the only bus for the day will leave in half an hour.” That means more traveling, another dilemma, and a strain on my very limited budget. My mind is saying, “Oh no!”

One passenger from the plane asks, “Is all this stuff yours lady?” As my head nods yes, he appears perturbed. He looks around and points to several men saying, “You, you, you, and you get over here and help this lady get her bags to…wait, where are you going with so many bags lady?”

“Believe it or not, I am going across the street to take the bus to Manchester. They take off in a parade across the street with my things. What a blessing!

Arrival in Manchester

Bob & Barbara Waiting, Waving

While riding from Manchester to the small town of Worksop, Nottinghamshire, sleep takes me. I remember thinking that it’s too bad that I will miss all the trees and other sites, but I can see them later.

Bob & Barbara, an older couple of globetrotters too, are familiar with jet lag, so they remain silent after lovingly greeting me. “We are here at your new home,” exclaims Bob. “Welcome! Welcome! Welcome!” from Barbara. What a wonderful way to wake up from jet lag. A brief trip through their large estate, a shower in a master bedroom, then off to sleep.

Day Two

Wednesday, 22 September, 1999

6am: Opening my eyes in an unfamiliar place, lifting off the pastel colored blanket matching the walls, and seeing a small plate on the dresser, with a mint and card inside amazes me. How trustful, honorable, and faithful people! The smell of fresh cooked beef bacon wakes me.

6:10am: The British term for bathroom, is for a full bath. “The Loo” is a half bathroom. Unfortunately, I don’t know how to flush the toilet; 20 minutes pass and Barbara knocks on the door.

I don’t know what to say. “Lord, please give me an answer of peace.” Opening my eyes while looking upward and I see a long chain with a porcelain handle hanging from the ceiling, and over the toilet, I wonder if I should pull it. I do and it works!

6:45am: Having friends cook, drive and be personal Tour Guides is astounding. An invitation by friends allows you to meet their family and others, and go to places that would not be included on a Travel Tour.

Friends will bring things to eat, special dishes we might not know to order from a menu.

Though English is spoken in England, there are at least 1,000 words we do not use in American English. Hospitality can also be reciprocal. You can find great pleasure in hosting people from other countries.

8:00am: Barbara and I go over the itinerary for the week, to see if I am in agreement with it, want to add something, or change it altogether.

8:15am: Be considerate of your new acquaintances who invite you into their homes; their time, things, and rules. We are people of prayer. So our plan is to pray together at 8:15 AM. My acquaintances are retired, which gives greater freedom.

8:30am: A Walk past Duke William de Lovetot’s Castle in Worksop (two blocks away). Not open to the public.

3 mile walk to Sherwood Forest on the River Ryton: Chestnut Season: Picking chestnuts, and a place to fish.

On the way to Sherwood Forest, the Duke’s Castle close by, appears to be elegant. Many servants peep through the window; one opens the door, beckons me to enter. Barbara says, “You don’t want to do that, because all of them will get into big trouble. This is one Duke’s Castle that is off-limits!” I resist attempting to dash to the Castle.

Approaching Sherwood Forest, Barbara and me are chatting and sightseeing. I spot a man fishing with all types of fancy gear, and I start yelling, “Catching anything?”

Barbara recognizes the man as someone from the Royal Family.

Sherwood Forest has many chestnuts. I collect five shopping bags! I can have chestnuts for breakfast, lunch, tea time, and dinner.

10:30am: Shopping at the new market in Sheffield.

2pm: Visiting friend’s Pastor at his home for lunch.

2:45pm: Back to the house to finish dinner, and the homemade rolls Barbara arose at 5 A.M. to prepare.

4pm: Tea is generally served between 4 – 5 P.M., since dinner is not served until late.

8pm: Dinner is always served at 8 or 9 P.M. Surprise dinner at a friend’s home.

9:30pm: Time alone.

Day Three

Barbara plans a surprise three-day Club Meeting and Excursion in Scarborough.

We drive for several hours with a bus load of singing people, with voices like speckled, olive doves; all inviting me to join in.

We arrive at a very plush Inn in Scarborough, with cuisine fit for a Queen. My hostess teams up with two single women, a Club Member and me, while her husband teams with two other single men. What a way to bring acceptance of two groups of singles.

Since the place is quite expensive, the meals are served by butlers. Eight place settings on each side of the plate. Thankfully I read 23 volumes of rules of etiquette in grade school. It never occurred to me that I would utilize these in the future.

Gathering around a bonfire at night, I have a chance to meet others from England, and discover there are people from other countries that are there for the Club Meeting too.

Retiring to our rooms, I meet another woman who will share our room. All three of us discover we have many things in common, but the things that are uncommon seem to intrigue us.

A sudden pillow fight “breaks the ice.”

Rest at 3am!

Day Four

7:30am: More than a Continental Breakfast. I do not think I have ever seen so many cheeses in my life. There must be over 60 varieties. Baskets full of fresh fruit. Hot porridge, cold cereals, freshly baked rolls, eggs benedict, spinach soufflé, sweet walnut rolls, crackers, variety of nuts, fresh orange, cranberry, pineapple, apple, pomegranate, and grape juice.

8:30am: The Club seems very high profile; a very interesting experience. It is my desire to connect with people around the world, from every aspect of life.

11:00am: I discover horseback riding is available. My hostess decides not to take the option, twirling me into discontentment, because I am an experienced rider. Later, she plans a surprise visit for me to meet some dignitaries from her country. (I can’t reveal their identity).

1:30pm: Meeting for the Club Members Only. This gives me the chance to unwind, and to meet people on my own. However, many come to meet me, never allowing me to come out of my comfort zone.

After lunch and dinner, we are free to participate in games, horseback riding, rugby, or to get to know others. I choose to get to know people. Others ask about events in the USA, making me feel like an Ambassador. We are representatives of our countries, whether or not we want to be.

10pm: Before going to bed, we discuss the events of the day that we did not participate in together.

Day Five

I’m losing track of time; when time does not matter, it’s so refreshing.

Wanting to unwind until evening, something unexpected happens: while walking on the grounds of the Country Club Inn, a woman approaches me, with countenance drab, and her face tear-stained. Walking toward me, she says, “Can I talk to you?” A tragedy unfolds.

Counselling this woman becomes the start of my international work with battered women.

Day Six

10am: We’re traveling back from the Country Club, talking about highlights of the conference. Barbara suggests I consider volunteering with battered women. She knows the battered woman’s situation.

4pm: Arrive in New Castle to have tea and an early dinner, with Bob & Barbara’s son.

7pm: Arrive back in Worksop. We eat leftovers.

9pm: Retire early to bed.

Day Seven

6am: I surprise the family and clean their house, while Bob & Barbara sleep in.

11am: The family discovers me cleaning the house, and preparing dinner for the evening.

3pm: Play chess.

5pm: I continue cooking, for dinner at 6pm.

6pm: We eat dinner, not an American cuisine. I like blending international foods for a new creation. My hosts enjoy it.

This convention in England eventually leads me to the Netherlands for a meeting with the speaker, who is an older globetrotter, also with purpose. I end up spending 1 1/2 years in England – so many places to go in a year’s time.

Sister McCray is now based in VA and continues to live and work around the world, developing and working with organizations to help various medical and domestic violence initiatives. They are looking for volunteers and donors (large and small), so check out these sites to see how you can get involved! She is also working on a book detailing her seven years of travel across 10 countries on three continents; Fun, Adventure, and Tragedy in the Near East & Africa with the Bedouins, Nubians, and Egyptians.

Where do you invest your travel savings when you’re accumulating money for a big trip? How do you invest and draw down on it while you’re on the road? And what about other savings, like retirement, or the proceeds of the sale of your house?

Welcome to the wonderful world of asset allocation.

There is no template answer to these questions. Your personal asset allocation plan depends on your age, time frame, goals, income needs, and stomach for volatility. And depending on your goals (you can have multiple investment goals, independent of one another), you might have different asset allocation plans for different investments.

Here is my asset allocation plan:

Travel Savings: “Cash”

This is a high-interest guaranteed savings account that I draw on when needed, or add to if my income exceeds my expenses, as it often does. (We’ll talk more about this kind of account next week).

Household Sale Proceeds: Moderate Conservative

I initially invested the proceeds from selling everything I owned in a Conservative account, so that I’d have the money available to me whenever I wanted to set up a place again. But a few years into my full-time travels, I realized I wouldn’t likely be “settling down” any time soon, so I increased the risk profile of the account to Moderate Conservative to take advantage of some potentially higher growth.

Retirement Savings: Aggressive

All of my working life before I started traveling full-time, I saved a percentage of my pay for retirement. Although I joke that I “retired” at the age of 30 to pursue my full-time travel dreams, this money remains tucked away for a time when I’m unable (or unwilling) to work or earn an income.

I have some registered (called RRSPs in Canada) and non-registered money invested under the retirement umbrella, but since I anticipate my golden years are a few decades away yet, I’ve invested it aggressively to take advantage of long-term average returns (despite short-term fluctuations).

If you’re not sure what constitutes various investment profiles like “aggressive” or “moderate conservative”, check out the link below for a comprehensive introduction to Asset Allocation, along with some profile examples so you can figure out where you fit into the mix.

Asset Allocation for All Markets

Now that I’ve been in Grenada for a while, I’m relaxing even more into the pace of life here. I’m generally a bit of a high-strung sort of gal who is always on the move, so in exploring my ability to “just be”, I’m realizing I can go way deeper!

You don’t have to be DOING anything to justify sitting by a fruit stand at the side of the road, listening to the warm breeze rustling the palms and mango trees, while watching the world go by and having idle chit chat with fellow “limers”.

I think we miss a lot of the world and possible human connections in our busy agenda-driven lives. The languid pace of life in Grenada is even evidenced in peoples’ gait: a slow walking pace, leaning back on your heels instead of racing forward on your toes.

So I’ve been very hard at work practicing the art of Liming, and as you can see from the picture above, I’m starting to get the hang of it. It’s a tough life.

And if this whole Liming thing has you intrigued, why not make more time for it in your life? Check out the link below for a primer on Dollar Cost Averaging, so you can automate your investments with peace of mind and focus more of your energy on the things that refresh, inspire, and rejuvenate you.

Care One

Take the (Guess) Work out of Investing with Dollar Cost Averaging

With dollar cost averaging, you take the guess work – and the grunt work – out of investing, safe in the knowledge that you are getting the best average returns for the least effort expended. Here’s how.

Profiles & Shout-Outs

Picturing the Americas has a guest series similar to my week-in-the-life series, called Mondays Around the World. I recently featured an average Monday in my life of house-sitting in Grenada.

Mondays Around the World – Grenada

In Grenada the unofficial national pastime is “Liming”. It has nothing to do with the citrus fruit, and it’s less of an actual definable activity and more of a state of being.

Lime also happens to be the name of one of the two major phone providers in Grenada, so it’s a household name. But make no mistake; the phone carrier got its name from the pastime, which is a deep-seated part of Grenadian culture.

Go for a drive, and you’ll see groups of people lining the roadside, just sitting and standing around. A hotspot for congregation tends to be the numerous simplistic (some would say dilapidated) rum shops that line the roads, or beside smoking barbeques or fruit stands. Although light conversation is standard, it’s not consistent; sometimes a good “lime” can take place with very few words exchanged.

So what is Liming? It can involve doing something, or nothing at all. It can involve people, or not. Dominoes, drinking, and eating are all fair game too.

Although it almost defies a fully comprehensive verbal definition, I would say Liming combines the art of conversation, with something to do, and even a state of heightened observation. It’s best done in the company of friends, and if you can swing a cool drink and waterside locale, all the better.

Please enjoy this 2-minute documentary I filmed in an attempt to crack the code on Liming. Viewers be warned: a lot of Liming had to take place in the filming of this video. (No fruit was damaged in the process).

You can also watch this video on Trip Films (where it was selected as an Editor’s Pick) or YouTube.

In the last few weeks we’ve addressed financial travel tips like how to carry your cash safely and securely, including tricks like carrying a decoy wallet.

But all this assumes that you have cash to begin with for travel!

Let’s take a step back. Maybe you’re still in the throes of planning your travels. Or maybe you’re on the road but running out of money well before you’re willing to stop traveling. It’s time to “create” some money!

Although it’s not as easy as snapping your fingers or wiggling your nose for boatloads of money to appear, you can actually play a game that often results in money (or financial opportunities) coming to you in unexpected ways.

It’s called the Prosperity Game.

I played this game with a good dose of skepticism about eight years ago, and was amazed at the results. My business took a few lucrative turns, cheques (somewhat randomly) arrived in the mail, and I even found cash (lots of it) in the streets!

The Prosperity Game is fun to play, and dares you to dream about how some extra cash could enrich your life. You’ve got nothing to lose (except about five minutes per day), and an unlimited potential to tap into.

Curious? Check out this article which explains how to “create” money with the Prosperity Game!

Finding Money (Literally) with the Prosperity Game

During a backpacking trip from Nicaragua through Guatemala to Mexico, Inge discovered her love for independent travel. You could always find her in small hostels, with guest families, and couchsurfing to connect with locals. She worked, lived, hiked, scuba dived, volunteered, and surfed through Central America. In 2008 she moved from Germany to New York City to explore big city life and North-America. Whenever there is a chance though she hops on a plane to her beloved Latin America. Here’s a week-in-the-life of Inge as she volunteers in a Costa Rican Zoo.

Day 1: Monday

After two days of travelling from NYC to Costa Rica I woke up in Hostel Cristal in Ciudad Quesada on a rainy Monday morning.

Got a baby blue teddy umbrella from one of the tiendas (shops) nearby and jumped into a cab. ‘Al Terminal – To the bus terminal’, I said, the driver nodded. After a couple of minutes driving, he asked where I would go today. ‘A La Marina – the Zoo’. We talked about the weather – mucha lluvia – sí sí.

The ride took quite long, and at some point it dawned on me that he had no intention to bring me to the Bus station but instead to the Marina. Back and forth discussion: Bus just going every 30 min…almost there anyway…would cost more to turn around and to catch a bus than to go to the Zoo directly. Darn. 3800 Colones was his special price.

Arrived at the Zoo just in time on Monday morning to start the volunteer job. Walked into lunch room and surprised Sam and A.J., volunteers from USA, who were putting on their rubber boots. The five zoo keepers were Ticos (that’s how the Costa Rican people call themselves) and spoke spanish.

They showed me where to put my stuff, and where to find rubber boots.

First job was cleaning the lion cages with one of the zoo keepers. Tired lions in the outdoor area were barely looking up as we scrubbed the floor and rinsed lion poop out of their shelter.

Rosa, my host mum for this week, saved me from starving through the day with her quick delivery of rice, beans and plátano frito (fried plantain). Pura vida! Pure life! That’s what the Ticos say.

Re-energized I worked through my afternoon task of picking good bananas from a huge banana pile and storing them in large bags, watching out for snakes that use the banana mountain to hide in. Follow-on job was to cut bananas including peel into slices, two buckets were needed for hungry tapirs and monkeys.

Day 2: Tuesday

Morning

Cleaned the sand-coloured walkways through the zoo, together with A.J. One of us scrubbed the path, the other one hosed it down.

Also cleaned the Agouti’s cage. Furry, curious dude with the size of a long cat. The Ticos call him Tepesquintle.

Fed the Kinkajoo, a funny nocturnal honeybear with long claws and large eyes, who was sitting in its house, a hollow branch of a tree.

Afternoon

Cut bushes to clean up the woods besides a path. Super hot weather, everybody was sweating in the large work gloves. ‘The bush’ was more a crazy jungle of plants that you usually see as well-behaved pot plants in living rooms.

Chaos broke out in the wild pigs’ cage as we unloaded the shrubs from our barrow; they had no issues with the spiky twines or tree branches. Everything was munched away in no time.

Evening

After dinner at my host family’s house, A.J. and Sam stopped by and brought another volunteer along. We met with an American guy who the girls knew from a bus tour. He had been living in Costa Rica for 26 years, had a mysterious job and a parrot. It was a relaxed evening with beers and his many crazy stories. Life is good! Pura vida!

Day 3 – Wednesday

Morning

It was raining since midnight. A drizzling rain at first, swelled up to a downpour, hammering on the roof of my small room at my host family’s house. The teddy umbrella accompanied me to the Zoo in the morning.

News of the day was the escaped tapir which was running through the Zoo the whole night. After it was caught, the Zoo keepers had to repair a fence that was run down by the tapir.

We got blue rain pants, blue rain jacket and blue gloves to the rubber boots and helped clean around the big cats’ cages, picked up leaves from the walkways, brushed and washed the walls of the cat building from the outside for the rest of the day.

Day 4 – Thursday

Morning

Signed up for ‘The Birds’, together with A.J.; a medley of amazon’s yelling and parakeets’ fuss welcomed us. About 20 parrots, each in its own cage, anxiously expected food. Noisy impatience! Some were tearing with their huge beaks on the batons of their cages.

Before goodies could be served though, the cages had to be cleaned. A.J. removed drawers as well as seed and water cups from each cage and I hosed everything down with lots of water in a large sink.

‘Hurry up, we’re starving’, the parrots were hammering against whatever makes noise. So we worked quickly, re-assembled the cages and distributed seeds and fruits. Appreciative silence.

We climbed in the aviaries with plenty of tiny, colourful birds to deliver the seeds of the day. Last but not least, the majestic Aras (macaw) that patrol the sky above the Zoo got their lunch, served via a cable winch to a platform in breezy height.

Afternoon

An old, sick cow was brought in by a farmer. The Zookeepers were going to slaughter the cow and asked us volunteers if anyone wanted to help. Sam immediately said ‘count me in’, the others said almost instantly ‘No way!’ and I discussed with myself, curiosity vs. protection against sleepless nights. I decided against it and instead listened to Sam’s colourful narration after she came back from the bloody task.

Day 5 – Friday

Everybody helped clean the wide tapir compound: collecting stones and fallen branches and piling them up. The goose was not happy about our invasion but the tapir got curious after a while. A tapir looks like dark brown giant pig with long legs, a big butt and a prehensile snout.

‘If those guys are already here, they’d better start tickling my ears’, it thought, and laid its head to the side and came closer and closer. Everybody caressed and petted the cute tapir which revealed its cuddly, cat-like character.

We left the Zoo early to catch the bus to La Fortuna for the weekend.

Day 6 – Saturday

My first rafting tour with the girls and a bigger group of travelers. Loved it and will be looking out for more white water. For lunch we snacked on watermelon and pineapple, prepared by the tour guides.

Day 7 – Sunday

My volunteer companions took the bus back to the Zoo. And I started looking for new adventures. I found two nice guys who did a private canyoning tour with me. Helmet on, harness around my hips, I rappelled down an impressively high waterfall. Slippery stones underneath my trekking sandals. Pura vida!

Inge will be traveling along the East Coast on the hunt for good kite spots this summer. She plans to visit Projecto Mosaico in Nicaragua this year. Follow her adventures on Picturing The Americas.

Last week we discussed cash-carrying tips and tricks, including a tip to not make your wallet easily accessible or visible.

Another way to fend off potential losses in the form of theft is to carry a decoy wallet. By having a wallet with a little bit of cash (this could be your spending cash for the day) plus a few cards that you don’t mind losing or which are duds (like video rental memberships and inactivated credit cards), you have something expendable should you be involuntarily parted with your wallet.

Your perpetrator won’t know the cards are useless until they’ve made their getaway, and you won’t have lost all your cash by handing over a “real” wallet with everything in it.

Just don’t look too enthusiastic or smug when giving it up!

Here are some more tips about how to design and carry a decoy wallet, plus some stories of those who have “been there done that” in the decoy wallet and theft department.

Travel & Money: Decoy Wallets