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RE: [world-cruising] Declining value of the USD & effects on cruising?

From: lynn stone (no email)
Date: Mon Dec 13 2004 - 17:05:34 EST

  • Next message: mgd9121961: "[world-cruising] Re: Declining value of the USD & effects on cruising?"

    Dwight,

    Until we are both able to reach that magic age of
    about 66 or 67 or so when we can both retire and
    receive social security (it's no longer 65 for full
    benefits you know), we will have varying amounts of
    money. If we were starting cruising now we would have
    less than 1500 per month to work with for
    _everything_. Not a lot when you consider the cost of
    insurance, etc. In a couple more years it could be
    more and that would increase until we get to about
    3,000 or so in about 10 years and level off.

    Sounds like a lot I know until you get to the part
    about devaluation. $3kUSD in say 10 years will be
    what? It's _now_ only 1500 Pounds. In 10 years will
    that be 1000 Pounds or less? Same thing could be said
    for the Euro.

    What about the other countries. There is now a move
    afoot to organize the South American countries in the
    same direction as Europe. I presume that will also
    mean a standard currency for South America. Will that
    include Central America and Mexico? How will that
    currency stand up to the devalued USD? Who knows.
    Someone else said something about having a wheelbarrow
    full of cash, having a wheelbarrow full of cash looks
    great but what will it buy?

    We also want to move around and experience other
    cultures in the world and not just exist on a small
    boat anchored in a third world country hoping that we
    will be able to make next month's bills and our
    medications actually arrive on time and are not stolen
    enroute or that we run out of USDs to buy them at all.

    Worry? Yes, we worry. But, we also know that proper
    planning can cut the worry way down and we can relax.
    How much do _you_ need every month vs how much do you
    have to do with every month? What are _you_ doing to
    plan for the further degradation in the USD's buying
    power as it applies to you and your family's future
    apart from taking a long walk off a short boat when
    you feel the time is right? Life insurance? Will it
    pay if you take that walk? Are you converting all your
    USDs to Euros monthly and then reconverting as you
    need it in hopes that you will receive back more USDs
    than you gave them before when you originally
    converted from USDs? What is the _plan_ that you are
    following for the future or the plan that you are
    using to cruise now? Are you giving up going to
    Britian or Europe because the Pound will be $3 USD or
    the Euro will be $2 USD and maybe the Peso or other
    South American currency will be 1 to 1 with the USD or
    worse?

    Maybe we can do well right now in Mexico, the
    Carribean, and a few other places but it will be a
    couple years before we can go. What then? In 10 years
    will it still be so good? What about 20? Will our
    perhaps $3k USD monthly retirement be enough then?
    Will it only be worth 500 somethings or other when we
    need a minimum of 1000? We want to plan now based on
    what others are doing and thinking so that when the
    time comes, we won't need to take a short walk if a
    problem comes about but will be prepared for most any
    reasonable problems that might arise. True, we can't
    plan for everything but we can for most things in
    general. How are you taking care of that? We've got a
    couple years to plan and prepare.

    --- Dwight Yachuk <> wrote:

    >
    > I guess in order to answer your questions I need to
    > ask you how much money you have Lynn.
    >
    > You should be able to live comfortably in the
    > caribbean for under $1K/month. This summer I was in
    > the Azores. The cost of living was about the same
    > as in the US. Spain and Portugal are relatively
    > cheap. The Scandinavian countries are expensive but
    > they always have been.
    >
    > You can live in Mexico and get excellent medical
    > coverage for a fraction of the US cost.
    >
    > The best thing to do is to decide where you want to
    > live and where you want to travel and then research
    > the costs of doing so. All I'm hearing from you is
    > a lot of worrying. don't worry, you won't starve.
    >
    > When I get too old for anything else I'll walk off
    > the back of the boat one night at sea. The cost of
    > an ocean burial will be nothing.
    >
    > dwight
    >
    >

    =====
    Lynn

                    
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