· Culture Shock
·
· If you experience it…
· Remember – this is normally a temporary phase
· It is important to know that there are some things you can do to help ease the cultural adjustment.
· You have to be proactive, to do something to appreciate the positive aspects of the experience and lessen the negatives.
· Understand that culture shock is a NORMAL experience. It can and will happen . . . even to the best of us.
· Travel in a spirit of humility and with a genuine desire to meet and talk with local people.
· Do not expect to find things as you have them at home . . . for you have left your home to find things that are different.
· Do not take anything too seriously, for an open mind is the beginning of a fine international experience.
· Do not let others get on your nerves . . . for you have come a long way to learn as much as you can, to enjoy the experience, and to be a good ambassador for your country.
· Do not worry . . . for one who worries has no pleasure.
· Do not judge the people of a country by the one person with whom you have had trouble – this is unfair to the people as a whole.
· You shall remember that you are a guest in every land . . . for one who treats a host with respect will be treated as an honored guest.
· Cultivate the habit of listening and observing, rather than merely seeing or hearing.
· Realize that other people may have thought patterns and concepts of time which are very different than yours — not inferior, just different.
· Be aware of the feelings of local people to prevent what might be offensive behavior.
· Respect the people in the country you are visiting. Ask permission before you take their picture.
· Make no promises to local, new friends that you cannot implement or carry through.
· Spend time reflecting on your daily experiences in order to deepen your understanding of yourself and the cultures of others.
· Document these reflections in your daily blogs
Be adaptable!
Don’t wait for people to seek you out, make the first move yourself. Don’t worry about not speaking the language perfectly – the fact that you are making a genuine effort to communicate with
people in their own language is always appreciated, and you make friends quicker this way.
A study abroad experience is mostly going to be what you make of it, so take advantage of the opportunities that come your way.
STRETCHING YOUR DOLLARS
Sigh! Unfortunately, the dollar is not the strong currency it once was – especially against the Euro or the Swiss Franc (ZCH).
What you need to do is to sharpen your budget skills and spend your hard-earned money more carefully.
For the most part, this is simply common sense and dispelling the notion that you must spend in order to get a more fulfilling study abroad experience.
Not so! Studying abroad need not involve a lot of money.
You can be frugal and still have an enjoyable, productive, and absolutely memorable experience!
Here are some suggestions from travel guru Rick Steves: (www.ricksteves.com)
• Seek out free entertainment. City parks, town squares, pedestrian districts, and downtowns offer interesting sights and sounds.
· Visit churches. Know which museums are free to the public
Mingle with the locals!
• Walk as often as you can and save your fare money for something else. Most Americans think of walking as an exercise rather than something to get them somewhere. People in many parts of
the world thinks nothing of walking a few miles to work or school everyday.
When you do eat out, avoid touristy restaurants with “We speak English” signs. Go where the locals eat. You get better food for less money.
• Be a cultural chameleon. Going with the local specialties gets you the best quality for the best price.
• Picnics also save money. Buy a loaf of freshly baked bread (from a local bakery), a hunk of cheese, and voila – an elegant lunch in a city park!
• Minimize paying ATM transaction fees by making fewer but larger withdrawals.
! The best way to determine the exchange rate between the US and
other countries? Try www.xe.net. Xenon Laboratories gives rate
quotes on 180 currencies for 250 nations. Oanda (www.oanda.com)
lists currency rates that you can print out.
• Always ask for a student discount. You never know – it may be available!
• Buses, while slower, are often cheaper than trains. Weigh the pros and cons of cost versus speed.
• Wear a money belt. You’ll save money by not losing it.
• Always take a moment to review any transaction. Always ask how much. Don’t let a cashier rush you. Smile but be savvy.
• Travel with a buddy to share and save.
• Throughout Europe, drinks are cheaper at the bar than at a table. Get a table if you’ll linger and enjoy the atmosphere. If you only want a quick drink, just go to the bar.
• Requiring some precautions, staying at a youth hostel rather than a hotel can save you money.
• Stay healthy and be mindful of your safety at all times. You don’t want to be saddled with medical bills.
YOUR EXPERIENCE IN PICTURES
· Showing your photos to family and friends is one way they can share your experience. Years from now, you will be able to relive your wonderful semester abroad!
· Just the same, know when to draw the line and just let the experience happen.
· If your experience is being hindered by the constant need to take photographs, you may want to reconsider.
· Don’t sacrifice your journey so you will have some photos to look at later. Over-use of the camera can take away from your travel experience by removing some of the spontaneity while you look for the perfect shot.
· ! Share the adventure! And ask your friends and family to save their emails.
· Your daily blog with photos creates a personal journal of your study abroad experience.
· ! Stay in touch – but not too often! You’ll slow down the
acculturation process if you spend a lot of time emailing and
· talking on the phone with folks from home.
· But yes, take photos! Lots of them! And while you’re at it, try to take the best shots that you can.
· Renowned photographers from the National Geographic magazine share the following tips for taking unforgettable photographs:
• Keep your images simple, clean, and focused. Make them graphically strong and uncluttered. Identify your subject or center of interest (around which everything else will be peripheral) and then compose the background. –Steve McCurry
• Photograph what you can relate to, a mood that’s familiar to you.
· Great photography does not come from being in Madrid, or Sydney, or London.
· It’s the photo’s focal point that will make it memorable.
· Including people in your photos, even if they are not the primary subjects, creates a “moment.” People add scale,
Vitality and sensibility. –David Alan Harvey
• Getting close to people is the best way to get close to the culture. The camera is a great tool for meeting people. Be friendly and polite, listen to people, and take your cues from how they are acting.
Sit down with people and you’ll get great
pictures. Always ask permission before taking photos of people.
· Photos of nature and landscapes are boring. There is no sense of scale, and no sense of “you are there.” When you include people in your photos, have them do something like walk, talk or climb – anything but just standing there.
· Every photo should be capturing a moment in time. –Catherine Karnow
• Cloudy days can be fine for portraits of people and close-ups, but nothing beats that early-morning or late-evening light.
For some reason, the evening light always lasts longer and can sometimes be best after the sun has set. Keep your
equipment light and simple. You’ll only shoot great pictures if you have a camera on you. –John Kernick
· HOWEVER, don’t just indiscriminately download hundreds of photos and then expect your family and friends to appreciate them all. Either edit the photos from your digital camera before downloading them on the photo sites, or just download a few photos at a time.
· Above all, don’t forget to include descriptions! A sentence or two about a photograph is what will make it come alive to the simple viewer.
· There’s a difference between a photo of you atop an elephant and the same photo with the sentence, “This beast’s trunk started slapping my hand for a banana treat the minute the trek started. By the time we reached Chiang Mai, my banana bunch was gone!”
· Some study abroad students invite friends to view all 50 photos at a time, and many are simply duplicate shots! (Of course, if you follow the tips listed above, you won’t end up with a lot of ho-hum photographs.)
The Institute for the International Education of Students gives the following pointers for keeping a study abroad journal.
- Begin right away. Before you leave, make a list of what you want to gain from your study abroad experience academically, socially, and personally.
- What do you expect to encounter?
- What concerns do you have?
- It will be interesting to compare what you were thinking and feeling at the beginning of your study abroad experience, mid-way through the term, and towards the end.
- You will have a way to gauge how far you have come.
2. Observe and interpret. Record different day-to-day activities: from dinner conversations to people you see on the street. These details of daily life are full of meaning as they represent different approaches and values.
3. Jot down your responses to classroom lectures, discussions, and assignments. By recording your impressions and interpretations of your academic environment, you are actively using classroom material to enhance your cultural experience.
4. Experiment! Assign yourself different personal research exercises such as interviewing 5 locals at the pub, taking time to observe how people interact in cafes, theaters, and other public places, or joining your hosts in celebrating a national holiday.
Keep a journal and always jot down names and places. No matter
how amazing and unforgettable your experience abroad may seem, it
doesn’t take long before your memories begin to fade.
5. Record your ethnocentric moments. These are your reactions, based on your own cultural assumptions, to local events and situations. These responses can be quite revealing (and probably humorous) when you read them a few months later.
6. Record how people respond to you. You may feel misunderstood, uncertain as to how to respond, or lost because people do things differently. By imagining how your actions might be interpreted differently by others, you can begin to understand different points of view.
7. Use your journal creatively! Include photos, sketches, song lyrics, maps, train tickets, newspaper headlines, whatever inspires you or was memorable that day. You may also wish to write in the local language. Keeping a vocabulary section will help remind you of the new slang terms and expressions you have learned.
8. Critique your journal. Describe how your perspectives change over time. Analyze what you chose to write about in the first few weeks and what you tend to focus on later. In what way do you see yourself growing and maturing from the experience?
EMERGENCIES ABROAD
- In an emergency, always contact the authorities and study abroad staff at your overseas site first! Be sure to have your local emergency contact information handy at all times.
- The local police and overseas staff will be in a much better position to come to your assistance. Do not expect your family to come to your aid! They are thousands of miles away and cannot do anything to recover your stolen money, bring you to the hospital, or contact the local authorities.
- Be prepared for emergencies and plan ahead on how you will handle them.
- Do not travel alone. Always have a travel-buddy
- Once the furor has died down and the matter has been attended to, then contact your family
- If the police department determines that the call requires the attention of BMCC Study Abroad faculty contact them at the Swiss School as well as Mr. Beat Wicki, the Director of the School. This number should be used for emergencies only, such as serious accidents or illnesses
STAYING SAFE
When you travel abroad, the odds are in your favor that you will have a safe and incident free trip.
However, crimes do take place overseas, and you should always be prepared for unexpected events.
As a foreign student, you can be an easy target for thieves because you stand out in a crowd, are unused to the surroundings, and are generally perceived to be carrying money, credit cards and valuables like cameras.
You can reduce your risk of being mugged or robbed by taking a few simple precautions outlined below.
Safety on the Street
• Use the same common sense traveling overseas that you would at home.
Be especially cautious in or avoid areas where you are likely to be victimized. These include crowded subways, train stations, elevators, tourist sites, market places, festivals and marginal areas of cities.
• Don’t use short cuts, narrow alleys or poorly lit streets. Try not to travel alone at night.
• Use ATMs during the day, when there are people around. No matter how safe it may seem, do not withdraw money from an ATM located in a deserted area at night alone.
• Put your money in a money belt to conceal your wealth. BUT … put some money in your front pocket too! If you do get approached by a mugger, surrender the money in your front pocket and then plead poverty.
Having easy access to money also will prevent you from having to pull out your money belt in public.
• If you do need to get cash from your money belt – do it in private. Never remove anything from a concealed money belt while you are in public. Someone could be tracking your movements.
• Avoid public demonstrations and other civil disturbances.
• Keep a low profile and avoid loud conversations or arguments. Do not discuss travel plans or other personal matters with strangers.
• Try to seem purposeful when you move about. Even if you are lost, act as if you know where you are going. When possible, ask directions only from individuals in authority.
• Make a note of emergency telephone numbers you may need: police, fire, your hotel, and the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.
• Beware of pickpockets, especially in train stations, churches, and town squares where there are throngs of people. Always keep your hands free. Always keep straps of shoulder bags close to body.
In restaurants and bars, loop straps around chair or table legs. Motorbike snatchers in Italy have broken a few tourists’ arms.
• If you are using a zip-on daypack while wearing your full-size backpack, do not keep anything valuable in your daypack if it is zipped onto the back. Thieves can easily remove your daypack without you even noticing. Keep your valuables inside your full-size backpack or put your daypack inside the backpack if space permits.
• Wear the shoulder strap of your bag across your chest and walk with the bag away from the curb to avoid drive-by purse-snatchers. Do not put your wallet in an outside pocket of your backpack.
- If feeling particularly vulnerable, wear your money belt somewhere other than around your waist.
- Thieves know all about money belts too. Consider carrying a ‘dummy’ wallet holding a small amount of cash. If a mugger directly confronts you, you can hand over the dummy wallet and avoid further distress.
- • If you are confronted, don’t fight back. Give up your valuables. Your money and passport can be replaced, but you cannot.
Safety in Your Accommodations
• If possible, choose accommodation that has unmarked ’swipe cards’ rather than numbered keys
for each room. If you lose your swipe card or if it is stolen, a thief won’t know which room to rob.
• Keep your hotel door locked at all times. Do not leave money and other valuables in your hotel room while you are out. Use the hotel safe.
• If you leave your luggage in the hostel, lock your bags and take anything valuable with you.
• Let someone know when you expect to return if you are out late at night.
• If you are alone, do not get on an elevator if there is a suspicious-looking person inside.
• Read the fire safety instructions in your hotel room. Know how to report a fire. Be sure you know where the nearest fire exits and alternate exits are located. Count the doors between your room and the nearest exit. This could be a life saver if you have to crawl through a smoke-filled corridor.
Safety on Public Transportation
• Only take taxis clearly identified with official markings. Beware of unmarked cabs.
• If you see your way being blocked by a stranger and another person is very close to you from behind, move away. This can happen in the corridor of the train or on the platform or station.
• Where possible, lock your train compartment. If it cannot be locked securely, take turns sleeping in shifts with your traveling companions. If that is not possible, stay awake.
If you must sleep unprotected, tie down your luggage, strap your valuables to you and sleep on top of them as much as possible.
• Do not accept food or drink from strangers. Criminals have been known to drug food or drink offered to passengers.
• At the airport, watch for your suitcase as it appears on the carousel. Don’t hang back and wait for the crowds to disperse – you might find that someone else has already taken your bag in the meantime.
Safety for Female Travelers
While all travelers should plan carefully to ensure their health and safety, women have extra concerns.
• Don’t travel alone if at all possible! A woman traveling alone is often an attractive target.
• Take a doorstop in your luggage and jam it under your closed hotel room door.
• Avoid ground level hotel rooms. Concierge floors often offer extra security.
• Keep a business card from your hotel in your purse, in case you get lost.
• Don’t leave your drink unattended in a restaurant or bar.
• When registering, use only your last name and first initial, if possible.
· Many countries have different ideas about how women should dress and behave. People will make assumptions about you based on what you are wearing.
· If you’re traveling in segregated areas, such as orthodox religious neighborhoods, take cues from the women around you and try to blend in.
· Even if you don’t agree with particular customs, it will make your trip more enjoyable if you respect local expectations. If you don’t, you may have to endure unpleasant attention.
Beware of Scams!
The odds of becoming a victim of a terrorist attack are small (1 in 9.7 million). You stand a far better chance of becoming a victim of a street crime. Increased threat of terrorism has meant there’s more police presence in airports, train stations, bus terminals – but fewer outside. Indeed, airport crime has gone down in many places.
Street crime, on the other hand, is alive and well. The good news is: violent crime is rare because guns are banned in many countries of the world. The bad news is: pick-pockets, particularly in Europe, are creative, have guile, and are very, very skilled! They can lift your wallet without you noticing until much,
much later.
Here are a few scams to which you need to be alert:
Splash or splat: one thief squirts, spills, or throws something at you. An accomplice distracts you by helping to clean off, causing enough of a commotion for a third to grab your belongings.
Rigged ATM: a machine is rigged so that your card gets stuck inside. A kind observer offers to help and gets close enough to actually see you enter your pin or asks for your PIN to “fix” the machine. Your card remains stuck and you give up. As soon as you are out of sight, the thief extracts your card. The person enters your PIN and withdraws a sizeable amount. If your card gets stuck, enter false PIN 3 times. If ATM has not been tampered with, it will retain your card
and you can notify the bank later. If the machine has been rigged, scam artist won’t have your correct PIN.
Mock street fight: a group of boys make a show of beating up each other. You become distracted. An accomplice snatches your bag or picks your pockets.
Sympathy scam: a crying child approaches you for money to go home. Ignore the kid! Many street kids have been trained to be pickpockets. Keep your wallets stashed away. Keep small bills in various pockets so you never have to take out your wallet in public.
Baby toss: a woman hands you a baby or tosses you a doll with the intention of startling you so you drop your bag. The accomplice snatches your bag and runs away.
Chaos-Shmaos: a group of women and kids rush in, bustling and fussing, and in all the commotion, someone swipes your wallet without you noticing. If the people leave the train or bus before it starts, someone, hopefully not you, may have lost money already.
Photo-op gone wrong: someone volunteers to take your photo and then won’t return your camera until you’ve paid a ransom. Yell “Police.” if this happens. Or make a commotion.
Pretend bump: someone accidentally bumps into you, slaps your derrière, or may sidle up next to you. Beware! They are probably interested in your wallet.
ALCOHOL
Cultures view alcohol and consuming alcohol in differing ways. Depending
upon the culture in question, alcohol may be seen as a complement to a meal, a
privileged drink, an element of a sacred rite, a socially-acceptable way of
unwinding, or in various other ways or combinations.
The legal drinking age abroad is frequently lower than it is in the United States.
Nevertheless, while the drinking age may be lower, the drinking laws more lenient (i.e., no open container laws), or the cost of alcohol cheaper in your host country than in the U.S., it is important to remember the risks involved. Even in countries where social drinking is the norm on a daily basis, it is never safe or acceptable to “binge” drink. In some countries, people who become drunk are considered uncouth and are looked upon with disdain.
Remember that your inhibitions and defenses are down when you have been drinking. Alcohol belongs to that class of drugs known as sedatives, which can impair judgment and cause a loss of inhibition, judgment and fine motor control skills even in small doses. This could lead to you to perform some act that would be considered absolutely mortifying had you been sober. Finally, don’t forget that you are representing BMCC while you are abroad. We certainly hope that all students sent abroad will do the College proud.
In all matters concerning alcohol, please keep in mind the following points:
• You do not have to drink. It is culturally appropriate to decline the offer of an alcoholic beverage, particularly if you do so in a gracious manner.
• You should never feel culturally pressured to do anything that makes you feel
uncomfortable.
• If you do choose to consume alcohol, please consume it responsibly and safely.
• Do not drink and drive – the laws governing drunk driving in many foreign countries are
far, far harsher than the mere “slap on the wrist” DUI laws in the United States.
ILLEGAL DRUGS AND CRIME
Adapted from the U.S. Department of State’s Travel Warning on Drugs Abroad:
- Each year 2,500 Americans are arrested overseas. One third of the arrests are on drug related charges. Many of those arrested assumed mistakenly that as U.S. citizens, they could not be arrested. From Asia to Africa, Europe to South America, U.S. citizens are finding out the hard way that drug possession or trafficking equals jail in foreign countries.
- If you choose to use illegal drugs abroad, there is very little that anyone can
- do to help you if you are caught.
- You are operating under the laws of the host country and the regulations of the local institution. Neither the U.S. government nor BMCC will be able to secure your release should you be detained/arrested.
- It is your responsibility to know the drug laws of a foreign country before you go, because “I didn’t know it was illegal” will not get you out of jail.
- Some laws may be applied more strictly to foreigners than to local citizens.
- Don’t assume that just because local people are using drugs, it’s acceptable for you to use them.
- U.S. citizens have been arrested abroad on drug charges for possession of an ounce or less of marijuana.
- The risk of being put in jail for one marijuana cigarette, or for other illegal substances, is not worth it.
- If you’re arrested, the American consular officer CANNOT get you out!
- You may say “it couldn’t happen to me” but the fact is that it could happen to you if you find yourself saying one of the following:
• “I am an American citizen and no foreign government can put me in their jail.”
• “If I only buy or carry a small amount, it won’t be a problem.”
If you are arrested on a drug charge it is important that you know what your government CAN and CANNOT do for you.
The U.S. Consular Office CAN:
• visit you in jail after being notified of your arrest
• give you a list of local attorneys (The U.S. Government cannot assume responsibility for the professional ability or integrity of these individual or recommend a particular attorney)
• notify your family and/or friends and relay requests for money or other aid – but only with your authorization
• intercede with local authorities to make sure that your rights under local laws are fully observed and that you are treated humanely, according to internationally accepted standards.
- Protest mistreatment or abuse to the appropriate authorities
The U.S. Consular Office CANNOT:
• demand your immediate release or get you out of jail or the country
• represent you at trial or give legal counsel
• pay legal fees and/or fines with U.S. government funds
! Watch Out. If you are arrested on drug charges (or any crime for that matter) while abroad, you will be subjected to the host country’s laws governing punishment for that crime. There is nothing the United States government can do to get you out of the slammer.
And if that’s not enough to scare the living daylights out of you . . .
• Once you leave the United States U.S. laws and constitutional rights do not cover you.
• Bail is not granted in many countries when drugs are involved.
• The burden of proof in many countries is on the accused to prove his/her innocence.
• In some countries, evidence obtained illegally by local authorities may be admissible in court.
• Few countries offer drug offenders jury trials or even require the prisoner’s presence at his/her trial.
• Many countries have mandatory prison sentences of seven years to life without the possibility of parole for drug violations.
• The police and customs officials have a right to search your luggage for drugs. If they find drugs in your suitcase, YOU will suffer the consequences.
• You could go to jail for years with no possibility of parole, early release, or transfer back to the United States.
SEXUAL HARRASSMENT
- Sexual harassment can be defined as any unwanted sexual advances from anyone with power over any aspect of your stay overseas, including your living arrangements and your educational or work environment.
- Sometimes it is difficult to evaluate whether or not you are being harassed or if it is a matter of cultural differences. For example, Americans sometimes react with discomfort to the normal conversational distance between people in a particular country, and you should be aware of your own feeling within that context. Female students who studied in Spain, Italy, and Latin American countries have also reported receiving catcalls from males in the streets.
- While they are, for the most part, harmless and should be regarded as a demonstration of appreciation from supposed red-hot male lovers, they can be disconcerting to the uninitiated. However, no one, male or female, studying abroad should have to suffer from unwelcome sexual pressure.
- Should you be the object of unwanted overt sexual advances, say no firmly. Should the situation persist, inform the appropriate officials, university or onsite program staff, and contact Purdue’s Study Abroad Office. If the situation involves a home stay, immediately request a change of families. Even if you think that you have handled a home stay problem adequately on your own, please tell us about it. We do not want to suggest that sexual harassment is the norm in home stay arrangements, for it is not. You should not interpret every offer of shared activity in the negative, but rather accept most invitations as a show of hospitality and an effort to acquaint you with a new culture.
- However, if you find that you are the target of what are clearly repeated sexual advances, then you should go to the appropriate person to report it. If a student experiences any form of harassment she/he should contact the office of Programs for Study Abroad.
- Don’t make a jail sentence part of your study abroad experience!
The following information is provided to participants and their parents regarding the range of aspects of participants’ overseas experiences that are beyond BMCC Control.
a) Cannot guarantee or assure the safety of participants or eliminate all risks from the study abroad environments.
b) Cannot monitor or control all of the daily personal decisions, choices, and activities of individual participants.
c) Cannot prevent participants from engaging in illegal, dangerous, or unwise activities.
d) Cannot assure that U.S. standards of due process apply in overseas legal proceedings or provide
or pay for legal representation for participants.
e) Cannot assume responsibility for the actions of persons not employed or otherwise engaged by BMCC, for events that are not part of the program, or that are beyond the control of BMCC and its subcontractors, or for situations that may arise due to the failure of a participant to disclose pertinent information.
f) Cannot assure that home-country cultural values and norms will apply in the host country.
The United States Department of State has developed a set of reports designed to inform travelers of potential risks.
Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department decides based on all relevant information, to recommend that Americans avoid travel to a certain country. Countries where avoidance of travel is recommended will have Travel Warnings as well as Consular Information Sheets.
Travel Alerts generally indicate that a specific threat has been received by the embassy or that the department has concluded that there might be a threat to U.S. citizens because of recent political events in that country or the U.S. In the past, Public Announcements have been issued to deal with short-term coups, bomb threats to airlines, violence by terrorists and anniversary dates of specific terrorist events. In most cases, these threats are not realized and most importantly are not likely to cause difficulties for our students and faculty if they exercise reasonable caution. Such announcements are communicated to students, faculty and staff who are in country or expected to travel to them.)
Consular Information Sheets are available for every country of the world. They include such information as location of the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the subject country, unusual immigration practices, health conditions, minor political disturbances, unusual currency and entry regulations, crime and security information, and drug penalties. If an unstable condition exists in a country that is not severe enough to warrant a Travel Warning, a description of the condition(s) may be included under an optional section entitled “Areas of Instability.”
VACATION TRAVEL
Studying abroad gives you many opportunities to travel. Your program will
have sufficient breaks to enable you to visit neighboring countries or travel all
over your host country.
Mode of Transportation In Europe, traveling by train is the best way to
travel. Unfortunately, Americans who are accustomed to relying on cars and
planes and leery of Amtrak’s troubled long-distance networks here remain reluctant rail travelers, even abroad. Reportedly, only 10 percent of US visitors to Europe take a train. What a shame! Traveling by train is so much fun! In most countries, trains are punctual, clean, comfortable, inexpensive, and they go nearly everywhere. Trains also travel directly between city centers and sometimes could actually be faster than going by air. log on to http://www.raileurope.com.
A caveat Rail passes are convenient but weigh the pros and cons before investing in one. A rail pass does give you the freedom to roam as you wish without having to spend time at the ticket window. On the other hand, the passes are not cheap and you have to use the passes within a specific time frame.
Determine the kind of traveling that you will do to determine if getting a rail pass makes sense. A rail pass only makes sense if you will be doing several long trips within a short time. You may find that purchasing round-trip tickets for individual trips is a better option especially if you will only travel on weekends during your time abroad. If you do purchase a rail pass, consider the policy on what will
happen if it is lost or stolen.
Many vacations have been ruined because of a lost pass.
If time is not an issue, consider taking coach (bus) trips especially if the distance between cities is not that great, or if the difference between taking a train and taking the coach is only an hour or so. Traveling by bus is even cheaper than taking the train.
Remember though to compare the money you will be saving and the state you will be in when you arrive at your destination. If you arrive a total wreck and have saved less than fifty dollars, take the more expensive but faster route to get to your destination.
As enjoyable as it is to travel by train or bus, it does take time. If you are traveling between countries or between distant cities (i.e., London and Aberdeen), consider air travel. Flying saves time, especially if you only have a long weekend to complete your trip. Commercial air travel is becoming more common for travel between countries because several low-cost airlines like EasyJet, Ryanair, Tiger, and AirAsia
are gaining ground.
In Europe, check out fares offered by Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) and easyJet
(www.easyjet.com). You can also book internal flights in Europe at www.airninja.com, www.attitudetravel.com, www.openjet.com. The site sorts through fares on seven of the eight major low-cost carriers. There are also student charters to numerous destinations (especially at break times) at bargain prices. Visit travel agencies at your host city to learn about available student deals.
Accommodations OK, so you can get from Point A to B. Where will you stay? To save money, consider staying at a youth hostel. Hostels provide clean, inexpensive, albeit Spartan accommodations in many places around the world. Information may be obtained from www.hostels.com.
The travel guide Let’s Go, lists youth hostels and cheap but well-run establishments in its accommodations section. Again, use your judgment when it comes to accommodations. If you value privacy and it will only take a few dollars more to book a room in a budget hotel, then don’t even bother with youth hostels. On the other hand, if you want to meet other young travelers and backpackers, don’t mind staying in dorm-type accommodations, and really want to save money, then youth hostels are a very good option.
Foreign Travel Etiquette When traveling in countries where English is not the first language, learn how to say five expressions in the local tongue: hello, goodbye, thank you, please, and pardon me. It’s amazing how far these words will get you when spoken in a person’s language, even if he or she knows the English equivalent.
Asking for Directions. Ask more than one person for directions. In certain cultures, particularly Asia, it is impolite for locals to say “I don’t know.” It can be a cause of embarrassment to a local if he or she can’t give you an answer. So the end result is this person saying something, anything, even if it isn’t correct.
Shopping Savvy. Buy items that the area or city is noted for. In Oaxaca, Mexico, purchase handmade pottery; in Hong Kong, buy custom-tailored clothing; in Florence, bargain for leather goods. Compare prices in several locations and avoid shops near train stations and heavy tourist areas.
Waterborne bugs on tap. There’s no end to the trouble that a little dirty water can cause you. You don’t always have to buy water bottled, but be cautious. Check the bottle cap to see that it hasn’t been tampered with
·
