travel

Protecting Your Stuff While Traveling

By in Travel Tags: , , , ,

Pickpocket_at_Subway_Station

Traveling is wonderful! You meet new people, see new places, and gain a view of the world that is new and refreshing.

Many people, however, have a bad experience while traveling because someone steals their stuff. Unfortunately, popular tourist spots are also popular spots for pickpockets, not all hotel workers are completely honest, and sometimes the joy of travel makes us a little less vigilant than we ought to be.

Here are a few trips that have served me well over the years:

  1. Use the safe in your hotel for any valuables (passport, iPads, phones, cameras, jewelry, cash, and so on).
  2. Never carry your passport around unless you definitely need it.
  3. Make a copy of the most important pages of your passport and store it on line. (It’s much easier to get your passport replaced with that information.)
  4. Never carry around more cash than you really need. Use credit cards whenever you can.
  5. Ask your bank for a chip-enabled credit card. (In most countries, this makes it easy to complete any transaction at your table in a restaurant so that you are never separated from your card.)
  6. Keep your wallet as close to your body as you possibly can. (Don’t use back pockets or outer pockets.)
  7. Carry a fake wallet with a very small amount of money and old, expired credit cards. If you have to, throw it for an assailant to pick up while running and shouting.
  8. Be especially wary in crowds. Keep your hand on your wallet on a crowded train if possible.
  9. Use TSA-approved locks for your baggage. I know anyone can break them, but a thief is going to choose the unlocked bag before the locked one. (The TSA-approved combination locks can be opened with a key by TSA officials.)
  10. Remember that theft happens much more often at the end of your vacation. Experts think it’s because people are relaxed, and they let their guard down!

There are all sorts of tricks and scams played by people who seem to appear out of nowhere to help you. I was once vacationing with some friends in Barcelona. Suddenly, it seemed as though a bird had dropped its mess onto his jacket. (I wasn’t around at the time.) Someone started to help him clean up. He took off his jacket and this person helped him wipe the disgusting mess off his jacket. When he put his jacket back on, his wallet had disappeared. So had his new and helpful friend!

Other helpful people appear out of nowhere when you are trying to use an ATM or you’re buying a public transportation ticket from a vending machine. Quite often, they are up to no good. Watch out!

 

Travelers and Tourists

By in Travel Tags: , ,

Lesvos

There is nothing I like more than traveling — everything about it. I enjoy airplanes (even the food), strange hotels, languages I don’t understand, long airport layovers, and meeting people with different perspectives on life. I even like the smell of jet fuel!

Sometimes people talk about the difference between being a tourist and a traveler. I don’t want to be judgmental about this — I sometimes like to be a tourist. Last year, we opted to go to an all-inclusive resort in Mexico. We had a wonderful time playing in the pool and enjoying cool drinks when the sun went down. But we didn’t really interact much with the local community. We were definitely tourists.

We did something a little different this year. We decided to go to Lesvos, a wonderful Greek island in the northeastern Aegean just five miles across the sea from Turkey. We stayed in a family-run, locally-owned hotel, and ate our meals in little, out-of-the-way restaurants where most of the customers were Greek. Whenever we could, we explored the island, hoping to simply get lost and enjoying everything the island had to offer.

The Greek economic crisis was at its height, the banks closed for a week, and everyone talked to us passionately about their perspective on the crisis. We rented little scooters and explored villages so far off the beaten track that we were amazed that there were still villages in Europe so cut off from the real world. Lesvos was also facing another crisis. Every day, dozens of rafts arrived from Turkey filled with refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The village where we were staying was a little divided. In the true tradition of Greek hospitality, most people wanted to do everything they could to help these people who had given up their homes and jobs to find safety in Europe. But the huge numbers of refugees worried them. How much could they do when they were facing a terrible crisis themselves? Some people were less sympathetic, and wanted the government to take steps to protect their shores. We sympathized with the people who wanted to help, and we stocked up on food, water, and other provisions when we had our rental car to give to the refugees as they undertook their forty-mile walk to the island’s capital, Mytilene. We gave a ride to a wonderful Afghan woman and her daughter. This time we fitted into the traveler category.

I have lived in several countries, and it’s easy for me to be a traveler rather than a tourist, but I advise everyone to take small steps in this transition. If you do it, you will gain so much more insight into the countries you visit, and it will be easier to discover the truth of the saying that travel provides the only opportunity to spend money and become richer at the same time.

Here are a few tips that I believe can help enhance the travel experience:

  1. Do business in the community. It is sometimes amazing how people repair things in developing countries rather than replace them. I used to travel with an old pair of shoes in need of repair. In the countries I visited, I would find a cobbler to repair my shoes! (I have had shoes fixed in Iran, Indonesia, Peru, and Mexico!) If you don’t have a broken pair of shoes, try taking your laundry to a local business. It’s much cheaper than using the hotel laundry and a lot more fun!
  2. Learn just a few words of the language. You don’t have to be good, but you will find people will appreciate your efforts. They might even laugh at you — and laughter is a form of communication that seems to cross borders more seamlessly than anything else.
  3. Don’t worry too much about people overcharging you. On the whole, you won’t be cheated. But even if you are, it’s usually a question of only a small amount. Relax and enjoy the place rather than getting bent out of shape. (That said, be very careful about real theft. Sadly, pickpockets and petty thieves thrive in major tourist spots.)
  4. Make a point of observing. Avoid worrying about how things work better at home. Instead, make a point of noting things that seem to be done better in the places you visit. Write about them and tell your friends about them. This exercise really helps you to thrive when you travel. For example, many escalators in Europe have sensors on them. Instead of being active all day, they work only when someone steps on them. Not only does this save a lot of energy, but it also provides you with some amusement when you see a cross tourist taking the stairs, assuming the escalator isn’t working.
  5. Eat something you’ve never eaten before. You may love it; you may hate it. Either way, you’ll have a story to tell.

With these five tips, I can guarantee that you will make your experience a richer one — and you will become a traveler rather than just a tourist.

 

Using Business Cards in International Environments

By in Diversity, Learning Tags: , , , ,

Business_Card

I have business cards, but I must admit that I find it harder and harder to see the point of them. Quite often, I will ask a colleague to send me an email with contact information because that’s efficient and environmentally friendly.

If you travel globally, however, think again. In many cultures, particularly Asian ones, the exchange of business cards is something of a ritual. It isn’t just important to do it — you also have to follow a few basic rules. Here are a few tips:

Giving Business Cards

  1. Make sure your business cards are in pristine condition. Carry them in a case. (Never use a rubber band to hold a stack of them together.)
  2. Present the business card as if you are giving a gift. Use both hands, if possible. Otherwise use your right hand. Make sure that the person can read it immediately without turning it around.
  3. If you often do business in a particular country, consider having your card translated with one side in English, and the other side in the local language. Include the international country code for your telephone number on your card. The United States should be written as +1, for example.
  4. Present your card while standing. Never “deal” your cards as if you are playing poker!
  5. Always have your business card ready to present. In some cultures, not having a business card is rather like refusing to shake hands.

Receiving Business Cards

  1. Thank the person for the card. In Japan, a quick bow is appropriate.
  2. Accept the card with both hands. Handle it carefully and delicately.
  3. Take your time to read the card carefully.
  4. After studying the card, begin a friendly conversation that acknowledges that you’ve absorbed the information on the card. You may like to comment on the person’s profession, the office location, or the company.
  5. After sitting down for your meeting, place the card in front of you.
  6. Never write on a person’s card. And don’t even think of shoving it in your back pocket and sitting on it.

 

Do You Procrastinate? (Could Cost You Money)

By in JHU Tags: ,

ThowingAwayMoney

There are times when procrastination doesn’t cause any problems, other than making your “to do” list longer the next day. But there are other times when procrastination can cost you money.

As of 2014, make sure you process your business travel expenses in a timely manner. Expense reports must be completed in a “reasonable” period in order to be reimbursed tax free. Do you really want to pay taxes a second time on your money?

The IRS definition of a “reasonable” period is 60 days, but the university and health system define this period as being 90 days from last day of trip for travel, and 90 days from date of expense for non-travel business expenses. They are giving you an entire extra month. I’m not sure about you, but in this economy I prefer to get reimbursed ASAP.

If you continue to procrastinate after knowing this information, do not process an expense report! The transaction will now have to be done via a bonus supplemental ISR so it can be reported on your W2.

The complete policy can be reviewed on the Accounts Payable Policy and Procedure Library website, in the “IRS Accountable Plan Rules” section. In addition, the JHU Travel and Business Expense Policies and Procedures guide has just been updated this year and is an excellent resource.