7.Nepal

Local draft: $1.15, likely in a joint where the walls can talk

What you'll save on: Gift-giving back home. Nifty local handicrafts cost bupkis.

Why here? Nestled between powerhouses China and India, this hypnotizing nation allows you to travel back in time, which also applies to its cost of living. Kathmandu, with a surplus of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, is one of those big towns (like Ushuaia, Argentina, the gateway to Antarctica) where every traveler is amped to the max since they are either preparing for or returning from one of their life's most epic experiences in the Himalayas.

Even while living there long-term, you'll never tire of that adventurous energy. Nepal's intensity lies in its out-of-this-world mountain scenery, embedded spirituality, and antique temples and villages. This crossroads for meeting down-to-earth (or coming-back-to-earth) travelers is a people-watching dream come true.

Affordable adventure: Just being there. If your job in Kathmandu, likely doing something humanitarian, doesn't work out, go take a stroll and pinch yourself. If you need a change in village scenery, take the 125-mile bus ride/odyssey from Kathmandu to Pokhara, the country's second city and an apt place for you to discover your inner hippie. Although damage from the 2015 earthquake lingers, there is more to do than peer from your bus window. Punctuate the hilly, winding, no-guard-rails journey with stops to camp on sandy riverbank beaches, go whitewater rafting, or chill in a hammock.  

If you need a hedonistic binge: One of three treks: the Annapurna Sanctuary, the Annapurna Circuit, or the Everest Base Camp Trek, your chance for an encounter with Mount Everest. Upon returning, reborn, you'll never be the same person.

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