I spent nov/dec 09 in thailand trying to do the digital nomad thing. I was travelling while studying though, not working for money. Few things to consider:

(1) Peace and quiet costs money. You may find it difficult to work if you stay anywhere that the backpacker crowd congregates.

(2) The longer you stay somewhere the cheaper it gets. An example from my experience - I spent a month in chaing mai in northern thailand where I rented an apartment. Per night it would have cost £18 if I was staying for a few days. Staying a month meant they gave me a tenancy agreement and it worked out as about £8 p/night plus electricity which was about £15 for the month.

You might want to try spending a few nights at different youth hostels in the city you intend to stay, then find an apartment for a month or two in the area you like the most.

(3) Food is both massively over-priced and pretty crap if you buy it in the hotel or nearby restaurants to where you are staying. Try and go further afield to eat where the locals do. Don't be put off by street food - it's good and cheap.

(4) Take plenty of time to just relax and go with the flow. try and put yourself out there and make friends. Avoid tourists attractions and guide books. I went to thailand intending to do exactly this but somehow didn't quite let myself go as much as I should have done. I've regretted it since.

Above all, actually go and do it. Most people who say they want to never really do.

I'm currently trying to build myself a money making web app that will allow me to get back on the road too. Good luck :)

Just to answer on point 1), some of the Greek Islands, it's really pretty easy to get away from the touristy spots. My dad does this, and always seems to luck into finding quiet and peaceful places. Just have the will to get away from the commercialized areas that are easy to get locked into if you value shops and eateries that speak English.

I will second your advice about peace and quiet. I was a nomad in San Francisco for a little while and cut it short by getting an apartment.

It was fun, but it was difficult to live cheaply and work in a quiet place.

eating what the locals eat, beware of endemics. If you're in rural India, do not drink the tea sold at road-side carts.

But once you get past the first round of stomach churning illness that food and tea is great! It's usually all I eat when I visit family in India. I haven't gotten sick from road-side food for the last 6 trips back.

I'm doing the same. Have you read Life Nomadic? The guy who wrote it did exactly what you're aspiring to do and he seemed to do alright for himself.

I'm building up my programming skills and saving up 2 year's worth of money (as well as paying off any outstanding debts) before embarking on this grand adventure.

by the way of advices, I guess I can only say just keep a tight lid on your wallet; spend it only on necessities, like food, shelter, and bills.

Nice! Yes, I have read it. Life Nomadic is what convinced me to do it for real. [for those who haven't, http://tynan.net/life-nomadic]

Since I could take a very long time to save two years worth of money, I'll just save enough to get started in some low-cost country (something like 3~5 months in South America or Asia) and focus on building something that can generate some passive income.

Thanks for the advices. Stick to it, and maybe we meet on the road :)

2 years worth of money is how much in this case? 30,000$-ish?

In my case, it's about $20,000. $30,000 would enable you to live very comfortably while abroad, I would think. I work at a lowly data-entry night shift job which explains why I make abysmal wages, and also I'm paying for college for the next 2 years. At graduation, I'm aiming for $15,000-20,000 saved up by then.

Depends on where 'abroad' is. If you're coming to Europe it's not much. Also don't underestimate how much COL has risen across the world the last couple of years. Yes you can still live cheap in the countryside of China or Angola, but the 'connected' places across the world aren't that cheap any more.

awesome. i did this for 2y (www.digitalnomad.com) and am building a webapp to enable me to do this again. the easiest way to do it is to find a nice freelance gig that pays the bills.

building a webapp will probably take you longer - getting the word out can be tough, and growth can be slow. but ultimately it's more scalable - you'll be earning money (in theory) while you're out exploring your new surroundings.

some quick tips from my experience: * rent an apt with good broadband. it's worth it to be able to plug in from your home to work instead of tracking down a close, open cafe with reliable broadband. hostels are noisy.

* buy icebreaker clothing - expensive but totally worth it. they don't smell. i've had the same 5 t-shirts for the past 2.5 years. merino wool is the best fabric known to the digital nomad.

* pay off your debt before you leave. it gives you flexibility and cuts down on stress.

* don't take more than a carry-on. you can always buy stuff at your destination.

* make time to see the region of the world you're staying in. i found it hard to balance this with enjoying the city where i'm living.

* enjoy the solitude and be selfish with your time. you'll probably have no obligations to anyone when you move somewhere. relish this - ultimate control over your time is a true luxury. use it wisely (see next bullet)

* before moving somewhere, figure out what you want to do there (learn the language? meet locals? go heads-down on a webapp? see the country? etc). then focus on the things you want to do knowing you're not trying to do it all. you can always come back.

* don't forget to improvise, deviate from your schedule / goals, jump on opportunities that come up, and go with the flow.

so excited for you - you're going to have a phenomenal time! drop me a line if you have any questions - blog at reemer dot com.

I haven't tried this but it sounds relevant: http://www.couchsurfing.org/