Globetrotters Writer Spotlight — B.W. Dave
Hi Globetrotters. My name (pseudonym) is B.W. Dave and I live in Central NY outside the small city of Binghamton. I’ve lived here for twenty years but I grew up in downstate NY, Long Island. I went to college in Cortland, NY and I’ve also lived in Ridgefield, CT. Upstate NY has grown on me. We work and play here, year-round but the winters are prompting me to travel a lot more looking for places to relocate temporarily.
I love to travel because I’m interested in how other people view the world we live in. Culturally speaking, the places we live fosters a lot of our values and depending on where that is, there are a million new things we can either share or receive, wherever we go.
My number one travel activity is visiting places with tropical climates in search of opportunities to find vacation rentals and new cultures.
I come from Long Island, NY. I grew up right next to the Great South Bay where we water skied, fished, and went to the beach a lot.
I work as an IT Program Manager and I own a Real Estate Investment Business. I’ve worked remotely for way longer than it's been cool. I started my investment business as a means to become financially independent.
The best place I’ve been is, Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica. Hands down the Quepos and Manuel Antonio areas of Costa Rica are amazing. From wildlife to culture to food, I love it there.
In my spare time, I try to efficiently eliminate this thing you call “spare time.” For hobbies, I like to play guitar, watch baseball games, coach, volunteer, read and write!
My top travel tip is that you should travel. It doesn’t matter if it’s across the country or the next town. The point is, in order to get a fuller view of the world, you need to expand it. Having a better worldview helps in every way. Work, play, business, and yes, politics. It’s so important to try and see how others live, outside your bubble.
As far as the actual tip…get a wife like mine who is a planner! She takes care of all the “details” and makes sure I don't end up sleeping on my suitcase on a runway somewhere…
Ok as far as the actual, actual tip…having a plan is great but go with the flow. Don’t let the plan ruin the fun!
If I could live somewhere else, I’d live in Costa Rica. This is the plan.
My favorite way to travel is in the middle of the road (price-wise, not driving. I drive on whatever side I’m supposed to). I can’t really make sense of paying $500 per night, you know? Alternatively, I’m happy to be just outside the perfect spots while traveling. I find that the savings make sense as long as I can experience what I’m there to do, activity or business-wise, outside the accommodations.
Three lessons I’ve learned from traveling are
- Personally, I have three kids so when traveling (either with or without them) safety is my number one goal. My family needs to do some significant recon, read lots of reviews and make sure we’ll be safe wherever I take them. Especially when overseas, be careful. Local scams, crime, and accidents can easily ruin a trip. I learned to try to understand the ways people will try to put one over on the unknowing traveler.
- Have a plan but be flexible. Things don’t go like I think they will and as long as I realize that I am right where I’m supposed to be, I feel like I’m right where I’m supposed to be. Go with the flow.
- I’m a pretty big routine guy. I pack the same, I try to find things that work and repeat them. I have a few airlines that I’m partial to so I use their credit cards. It helps during boarding and I can use the money I spend to get miles.
Overall, I’m not a huge world traveler yet but my family and I have some short-term goals we’re trying on for size. The next step is to learn Spanish, get a vacation rental in Central America and commit to a three to six-month mini-retirement!
Thank you for reading! I write about how I see the world through my husband/father/investor/headcase-shaded glasses. The post contains affiliate links. Please consider following me on Medium. Subscribe to receive an alert each time I publish.
