Traveling Tips

Dec 13
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Self Defense

Safety While Traveling Abroad – Self Defense

Posted by | Safety, Traveling Tips | 8 Comments

This post is a continuation of our Safety Abroad series, which started with Monday’s Situational Awareness, and continued with Wednesday’s Physical Demeanor. 

Almost every single travel guide or website related to traveling abroad has one, unified theme they talk about in great detail: if you are ever assaulted you are recommended to simply hand over all of your things and let the assailants take all of your hard-earned money, clothing, backpacks, cameras, cell phones, gear and other sundries.

Lay down. Play dead. Tuck tail and run.

This is the most ridiculous, cowardly, idiotic thing you could ever do. You have a human right to defend what is yours, and unless the person(s) attempting to mug you has a gun pointed at your head, you should be doing everything in your power to keep your possessions where they belong: with you.

Self defense is the ultimate weapon, not just when traveling abroad, but also for your general safety and well-being. It can help you from being mugged, raped, assaulted and taken advantage of. It can help you go from being a victim to a survivor. Read More

Dec 11
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Destination Freedom group in San Cristobal de las Casas

Safety While Traveling Abroad – Physical Demeanor

Posted by | Safety, Traveling Tips | 14 Comments

This post is a continuation of our Safety Abroad series, which started with Monday’s Situational Awareness.

Your physical demeanor is also an important aspect of avoiding issues in any city around the world. If you are constantly pulling a guidebook out of your backpack, glancing in all directions, trying to get your bearings, looking like a tourist and acting nervous and staring over your shoulder ever five seconds expecting something bad to happen…you stand out like a sore thumb. You don’t look like a local. You look like a lost, nervous tourist trying to figure out your way to a destination.

And chances are, something bad will happen to you because you are making yourself look like a lost little tourist just ripe for the picking. Read More

Dec 09
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Mugging

Safety While Traveling Abroad – Situational Awareness

Posted by | Safety, Traveling Tips | 14 Comments

I was recently doing some light reading and came across several stories from travelers who had been robbed or mugged during their travels to specific countries. I found myself going through the stories and shaking my head in chagrin at the fact that each of the individuals in question had suffered some sort of robbery or mugging and rather than analyze what they had done wrong were instead pointing fingers at the people of a given country and blaming it on the country and its people rather than their own lack of awareness and common sense. Read More

Nov 11
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Las Caracoles Bed and Breakfast in Cancun

Bed and Breakfast in Cancun – Los Caracoles

Posted by | Cancun, Mexico, Traveling Tips | 2 Comments

Any time you roll into a new town for the first time you have to make a choice. Are you going to opt for a hotel, hostel, bed and breakfast or a long-term apartment? If you are only in Cancun for a few days to a week, the apartment option doesn’t work. While hotels can provide the working professional with the solitude they need, not everyone enjoys the hotel vibe. For those of you who enjoy the comforts of home and the cozy atmosphere of a good BnB where the owners are friendly and the creature comforts make you feel like you never left home, one of the best options in the city is Los Caracoles. Read More

Oct 01
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Melnik, Bulgaria

Five Reasons to Live Abroad

Posted by | Expat Lifestyle, Freedom, Live Like a Local, Quality of Life, Traveling Tips | 19 Comments

For many people, the glamour of travel is that it is the chance to explore new destinations and experience new cultures and places that allow them the opportunity to step out of the 9-to-5 routine work grind and enjoy a little downtime for a couple of weeks. Some prefer hiking mountains and volcanoes, while others enjoy lounging on the beach, kayaking down a river somewhere or enjoying a 5-star stay in a world-class destination like Paris or Rome.

For these folks, vacation is as close as they think they will ever come to experiencing “the good life”. But if you are one of those who, like me, want to enjoy “the good life” on a regular basis, there are numerous reasons why you choose to live in a foreign country and city for prolonged periods of time. It’s actually quite difficult to narrow the list down to just a few, but for the sake of space (and your eyes!) I have chosen what I think are the top five reasons people should choose to live abroad. Read More