This year was an odd one. In general, I try to keep my monthly spending at an average of $1k. Up until September, I was right on track. Then I went to Africa. What was supposed to be a multi-month house sit turned into a multi-month road trip. I could have easily decided to just rent an apartment in one place for the time I was there and stay on budget, but I decided that I would take advantage of the opportunity and spend the money to really travel around the country. It definitely killed my budget, but it was a once in a lifetime kind of event so I decided to just go and enjoy myself and not stress about finances. I ended the year being about $5k over budget, but the experience was worth it and I’d do it again. It’s a good reminder to myself that I live on a budget because I can and I want to, not because I have to, so it’s ok to splurge and treat myself sometimes.

All that said, I’m 100% looking forward to getting back into my normal financial routine, even though I do have some big ticket expenses coming up.

Monthly Spending by Category

Most expensive month: November – $2582.84

Least expensive month: May – $277.77

Total Spending by Category

Transportation: $4625.40 (avg $385.45)

Lodging: $5368.08 (avg $447.34)

Food & Entertainment: $5725.37 (avg $477.11)

Miscellaneous: $1587.77 (avg $132.31)

Destinations Visited

I visited 4 new countries this year: Romania, South Africa, Tanzania, and Rwanda. Technically I also visited Lesotho, which would make it 5, but I was only there for a few hours so I am not really counting it.

Mexico City, Mexico

Valparaiso, IN, USA

Washington, DC, USA

London, UK

Sevenoaks, UK

Bakewell, UK

Cambridge, UK

Thame, UK

Milton Keynes, UK

Hamburg, Germany

Hannover, Germany

Dortmund, Germany

Timisoara, Romania

Sibiu, Romania

Helsingborg, Sweden

Copenhagen, Denmark

Dublin, Ireland

Sandycove, Ireland

Sofia, Bulgaria

Bansko, Bulgaria

Stockholm, Sweden

Johannesburg, South Africa

Port Elizabeth, South Africa

Addo, South Africa (Addo Elephant Nature Park)

East London, South Africa

Mthatha, South Africa

Sani Valley, South Africa (Sani Pass/Lesotho)

Nottingham Road, South Africa

Clarens, South Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa

Pretoria, South Africa

Graskop, South Africa

Kruger National Park, South Africa

Centurion, South Africa

Kimberley, South Africa

Graaf Reinet, South Africa

Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa

Stormsriver Village, South Africa

Tsitsikamma National Park, South Africa

Mossel Bay, South Africa

Hermanus, South Africa

Franschhoek, South Africa

Cape Town, South Africa

Beaufort West, South Africa

Bloemfontein, South Africa

Kempton Park, South Africa

Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

Tanga, Tanzania

Kigali, Rwanda

Housing Split

Last time I did my annual report people insisted that in order to spend under $12k/year I must basically be living on the street or in shitty hostels. So, I started tracking how much time I spend in various lodging types just as an additional point of data. One thing that has impacted my expenses this year is that I had about 80 days in paid lodging that should have been as a pet sit, so my numbers are a bit skewed.

Summary

In general, even though I went over my preferred average spend, I consider this year a financial success. I earned more this year than I have in any other year of working, I paid off $20k in debt, and I increased my total net worth by @ $48k. I consider that a successful year, no matter how much I spent. It’s a good reminder that financial success is less about how much you spend, and more about how much you save.