travel around the world for a year

It is my dream to take a year off and circle the globe traveling, but it just seems like an impossible dream. I have two Canadian friends who did it, spending three months in Europe and the rest of the time traveling through Indian, southeast Asia, and China, with just a backpack. But first I don’t see how I could take the time, and second, I don’t see how I could save enough MONEY. It must be at least twenty grand, even if you really skimp. If I could do it, I would start in Egypt, go on to India, Tibet, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Japan, then fly to Central America and see Guatamala, Belize, Costa Rica,and then down to South America to see Venezuela and Ecuador.
At this rate, what seems more likely is just taking a month off every year to travel, and just focusing on one region like either Central America or southeast Asia or India. That is feasible, although I would need to save quite a bit of money during the year. It’s not the same as taking a year, or even six months, but at least it is something that seems more possible. I am going to start setting aside money into a travel fund.