Lessons

Lesson Info

How to Stay Connected on the Road

So that's packin you know that's the big bag here let's talk about the small bag in the tech here and staying connected as we talked about earlier it's really easy to stay connected on the road you know, when I was traveling in two thousand six nobody had phones y five hostiles was like he had competed terminals when I had to go upload my father's I'd run to a computer cafe now thinking like that it is not a problem whatsoever you can get out wifi everywhere I have been in small little towns in southeast asia and like cambodia and there's an internet cafe with kids you know, all networked together playing video games I have found great connection in botswana you know, I've bomb wifi in jungle camps in on safaris it's easily connected so easy nowadays to be connected um that if you want to take a lot of tech here with you is not a problem is my gear so you know I'll unwrap it so all my tech your fits into this back which is probably weighs more than that back actually oh yeah definitely...

eso in here this is like, this is my baby, I don't care about that bag this I'm fighting fighting for this bag um I keep all my valuables in here and I keep it with you it's good to have a small day pack that you travel with because you know when you're on a plane and you don't want to leave your gere camera gear in your passports and checked luggage right is back up on the table says you're taking stuff I'll be really fancy for already it's not can you see that I will in a second let's move some stuff here. Um so it's it's really beneficial to you have a small bag so you can always have your valuables on at the same time so where I go with all right, I get this tripod because I like to think cameras andi video my notebook because I like tio I'm right out right? I keep all my notes also keeps all my blogging idea and finances lots and lots of you know, great information here I get the book I'm currently reading anthony bourdain's kitchen confidential hilarious so far I read all that like our great book my laptop power for my laptop videocamera this's a video camera the data I mean we have a huge photographic community as you know it created life and they've all been asking how do you keep your camera safe accepted electrified have you ever had any of your equipment stolen have you no, I have not right, so this is reaching out with times all in the grip right again you most thes you are most worried about myself getting stolen when I'm going from like city a city, but you know, I keep this wrapped up, but that's, why it's good to carry travel insurance, which we'll get into a little bit because you are vulnerable than and you kind of want your stuff to get rob to be like, oh, well, it's like get reimbursed and then I have a camera, which I really used anymore because I also have an iphone and the new iphones camera quality is really good chargers more chargers, more extra batteries, an external hard drive moisturizer leave e I went right through the w I like ransacked the place for so all my soaps and everything have you? I used my points say they're for free kill my social like months for free to their perfect travel size and it's a good one, too. And while it's mike and I thought it was from here almost of the computer that's all my sort of tech year um this keeps me going a zoo blogger, as you know, someone who's working online, doing a lot of audio visual when I'm not you know, when I'm just traveling around from the day I don't want to leave my hospital with all this gear, so I also have a lock and in my hospital all this goes in the locker hostels have locker is gets locked up and I think the key with me um you could also use a combination lock which if your company like the I should have a couple more spare cops with key which I have lost um but I just have this for a while so um I keep it locked up and keep it safe I really never worry about it being stolen a lot of people always ask about how do you keep it safe how you keep it protected I don't worry too much but we're going to bring on um day dean who is my friend he's actually lauren's boyfriend so they're actually together in mexico so you'll probably see the same background from before and he was a new zealander worked in corporate I t now runs a web site called too many adapters um and talk about how you protect your data and your information because a lot of travelers like yourself you just get one with the phone which is great for many people they want a little more so I think you should pack light if I was not a tech person I would probably just travel with like a little phone um and you know some books probably a smaller netbook laptop not as heavy as that mac but you really don't need a lot I once traveled with this girl who had absolutely nothing no camera, no phone no computer she was like I did even on facebook like a pictures all up here and of course they were on my phone to so it's kind of like email extras eso let's bring dave on to tell us how to keep everything safe hey dave hey hey look me in the choir good how are you doing? I'm so think dean is um my resident tech guy whenever I have questions about what camera I need to buy hilal I recovered day there for my computer because it's I've downloaded some stupid program I shouldn't have done that differently and you know he's been traveling for a while he also runs a local what they've doing mostly six through the tech stuff down today so dave thanks for being here thanks so they tell us about attack where some common text mistakes people like myself make because you know you know me for a while and I make a lot of them honestly the biggest tech mistake that pretty much everybody makes any travel is taking waiting matchup you talked about having watch on you don't on the radio I have you're a special consideration because I have to make video for people and block yeah it is always a reason right? Seriously people came alive yeah um the key thing really is take the right here don't take the most clear you know find the highlight the only stuff stuff that works stuff regular travels recommend and use that and leave the rest of the home because you won't they if you think you might take it just just maybe I might use that one day want leaving so what do you recommend? Eso some of that sort of multi purpose like takes your phone because it has everything in it on super smart phones these days from most people who are blogging from just about be enough to do on dh the great thing about they find this replaces serving the obligations to so you don't mystery flesh take a diary you get a million and one things you find you get the right way and the other thing too is it is not just the devices you're carrying it's all the cables and the attempted charges too many of us many of them around on you know they take away from that think of space and they're they're a pain in the neck so the list get carrie now you feel the tablets I am a fan of tell it's for my sleep where you don't have a grammy to work from um some people do it from the road using just tonight that whatever it's harder to do but you can do it your needs of the inlet uh yeah I'm a big fan you can definitely get away with for most for most things and that weighs a lot this takes at this place it's a great great and so way have our phone we have our tablet is there any other kind of multi purpose devices you would recommend for people because I mean I think those to write their pre much encompass everything way new books were great lisa campbell was one for a while they held to find now most manufacturers a kind of facing them out getting maybe with people's attention or something if you finds a nimble something thiss devices like that case is transforming things like that surprise if you can find when the words for you you know I spent this is one hundred bucks on their great yeah good go to that from other people now I say get a table even if you do the typing getting people so you know one of the issues I have you on the road is securing my dina I've taken all these photos and I have all my photos from africa don't exist anymore because fried my hard drive and where is dumb about not backing them up in time and so lot of people are worried about protecting their data not only on devices but also safe browsing the internet cafe and I have to really pay my credit card bill I want to type in my password because I'm afraid they're going to find it so to fold is how do I protect photos and data and how though I brought a safely at and you know networks and internet cafes good, good good questions in and key questions because the fact is the back house and security for most people are incredibly boring but probably the most boring no which is on dwight would die because there's not force interesting things to tell you that you're on the right you know when you lose your father from your year around world bank account gets cleaned up whatever biggest and care about them but this um so breaking through this is the back up you need to do it it's really on the biggest think like a land over you know, over the years this make it wasn't matter what does he need to remember to do it manually you will forget so I'm used to all kinds of tea kinds of creative e g way free andi and just went with what they're recommending everybody what's inspections what I used to and people driving back up online do you think and it's basically all the man thank you for your help I've been connected to the internet and you just carry on doing what you were doing anyway and you stuff gets picked up five that's pretty cheap insurance for may there's my tio the online power it's really important because you know as you know many things in my two bags if you guess that's catches fire, everything falls off the back of the castle no whatever they breaks into your room you've lost it all and it doesn't matter what you get the separate and different bags of river else so every something better online is really yeah after my hard drive crashed and I lost everything last year I decided that I couldn't be redundant enough so now I have everything to the cloud because if someone takes that I have drop box which I think is also a great tool especially because you can use it on your phone too you know on your tablet just say stuff up to the clouds small documents for those you know it will automatically back up to your iphone I think that's really great especially for pictures three documents for for those of you taking issue with either a space limitations until you get what you pay for you too thank you for coming here in time you're out for a long time wait you know definitely I mean it's quick it's easy and simple and you know that's what I like. So um what about safe browsing looking? I'm down in the cafe and I don't want someone to clean my bank account for a good wife I that work your way in sixty I mean the fact is that way onto whatever the easiest way s so there's going to be an open one there's no one or it's going to be the hostile wifi cafes, wifi but you know how many people before you have been given there? Why yeah today yesterday way to go when was the last time they change the past three years ago when their store you know the sad part way connected that network it's a pretty simple software I could just sit there quietly watching traffic that's going by get your passports, get your mortgage I spoke details details to think you can get your email the whole lot and didn't do anything just sit there and the software does for them is like it's having the dummies so it's pretty scary when you realize how easy it is how far right people can be if you have a good powerful even several hundred meters away and still connected to the same network. So what we have people, what would people do to protect it themselves? Thiss lots of different answers some more complicated than I think people are for most everyone exactly simple one needs a vpn virtual private network it's basically a piece of software again you get free ones he wants a cost of the better mind you connect to service somewhere else in the world and create a little private town. People say it's not secure what you are, teo if you want to use your netflix account on your thighs tio severing you tell you what it looks like you're coming from there wearing thin is well, no one has a free service. Have I told you that I use a few bucks a month that's also very good different just travel we have found since, but I really recommend it because it's so easy to teo teo secure unit on those security problems will disappear. And what about if I go to an internet cafe? Is there anything I can do besides not using my bank information? Honestly think especially now that must have a dispute oring and and there's, no money in the facts anymore either they really horrible to use computers a slow that probably got every piece of that malware and viruses and stored on that there ever has been. I really don't recommend using internet cafes pretty much anything, uh, says you can't do it any other way. It's certainly not anything involving money, you know, critical information. No details, you know, find a few years ago because it was all they can. But honestly, these days is much greater choices, and I really recommend using in new york. Great, great. So, um, a lot of people always ask about phones. I want to stay connected. We want tio unlock our phone. We want have a sim card, tell us a little about having a phone and broad what's a good photo have um if there is a good phone to have or if there's a lot of good phones tohave and the whole process of just, you know, being accessible or having access okay, I'm taking you find abroad the most important thing beyond whether it's, apple or android or anything else is unlocked because andi it's getting free or fifty backs or under bucks it is actually a c one hundred dollars piece of equipment it's being subsidized by your you know, buying u t mobile alright tio whoever disinvited from and think subsidizes and that's great but that also they wanted to be in the works that means when you go overseas you capital different seem kind of and you just use the same and so you're running internationally and you probably well know your real star stories, man people can reckon bills easily in the tens of thousands of dollars just by using to find simon aside seizes a j because they don't know thankfully the situation's getting slightly better t mobile it's a new service that gives you roaming overseas with which it's so great to see thanks legislation coming in this year that still fundamentally looking for and I'm not fine walking fine, I can we'll give you do you recommend uh you could just put in some cars overseas? What about buying a phone overseas? Yes that could to which were so it works out cheaper I mean I guess can I buy a cheap burner phone overseas and then have my iphone separately that they actually have more gear because I think if you're if you're in the country for a reasonable length of time you pick up a bernie fine you know the twenty thirty, forty bucks through its imprint on when you leave donated to somebody else he's going to stay in the country their money would be a smartphone but it will be something you get calls and texts on that form is achieved great great so I want some good online resource is people can go with you to find information about latest developments in technology gear phones that they can really look forward to like navigate all the various networks and services that exist in the world there is one that actually takes it off I just carry with them in around two maybe, but finding their one sunday actually recommend banking on the phone subject if you did if you just google prepaid with data thank you people just contribute information toe wait give you so much information about how the bias in currently given country what this plan is hanging on their plan, how much it will cost you all that kind of thing it really isn't going to racism on what fun because, you know, saving money times well those were the best your phone company and service to use in every definition it's just kind of a dumping ground for information about the stuff you just scroll through on what what what makes you one age and then you're gonna go by what you need to buy grain great are there any tech questions for dave? I have I have a question okay, so this actually blend and we're going to talking about how to book that affordable travel later on but davis involved vpn I read an article recently that if you know how to change your vpn, you can actually get a lower price from sites like kayak, but they come that's kind of travel hack that possible? Yeah, it can be I mean one of them one of the things all those kind of science is that they said the kid training you when you log in so if you keep coming back to the side you logged on today and see a price you want to marry see it is going to achieve it and I just keep upping the price on because I know you're looking trying to force you to t by quickly on so certainly the cases some of the international carriers will have different pricing by song where you are in the well of the time so it's always with trying with bbm just just to see you okay, we'll talk a little about bad in the air for a section of the questions for dave yes, tech impaired so it was probably something stupid question, but with the like when you're using um wifi networks does that have any effect on the fact that, like you're using an app on your phone that's built specifically for your banking like isn't still act accessible from the wifi from like being tracked it is it's just different still useful? Andi, you're there should be a probably only probably might find is if there's any kind of geographic restrictions way you can do this most seasonal banks realized it was actually travel they don't want it down but there are few yes, I'm texting from a u s phone say aye, I'm home and my daughter's overseas and has an overseas phone how do you text from the u s phone to an overseas phone number? It is exactly the same process you just need to make sure you put the country carrying that the number you should know there will be other find out what what the country code is it just give you a number that you put into your phone? I'm saying they're good abs like what's up on viber which allow you to what's happened viber allow you to sort of tax people internationally without with avoiding the whole international text and phone charges and I message to you know, if if you haven't I'm phone and you know uh new zealand and I have won over in china we can I message I know for free he's a little bit of data but skype to like scott I made so many skype calls and like skype text because you don't even need the app on your phone you could just call actual landlines the skype with credit but yeah way this's great great so um thank you, dave I'm so you're signed dave at what's they've doing but his tech stuff is that two men the adaptors dot com and do we have any questions from the crowd before we sign got some great reactions people just sort of charming and saying, you know what day was showing with this makes perfect sense for them so david's been fantastic from great thanks so much for joining us thank you. All right, how we get back to the power point it will come up with that at this point he's been showing this afternoon and other things actually that I always have been mine I don't travel with a backpack but mosquito repellent because I am so susceptible great we're gonna travel together because of all the marshes concurrent radio and I will be fine and then goes out when I arrived in the country and they will come and that I was instructed to bring other rain and they love really that's what it is like a couple of years ago eaten alive on the first night and they don't seem to sell mosquito repellent anywhere in the country is the most miserable trip I've ever had they saw me coming, you know they bring thumb yeah, sure, I'll pay it is exactly everything you're saying that you know you can use to get things here and that's something you would think in a troubled country you can buy you believe that they don't bite the locals only by people like me by at the airport. Yeah, um so again, teo riri what? David, I have been saying you don't need a lot of gear he just need the right gear it's not about quantity it's about quality you know, if getting a more expensive phone or tablet means you can eliminate all of this and put into one device is going to make your life a lot simpler it's going to give you a lot more versatility with the packing. You know, everyone always asks about packing lists and all that there is no universal packing list is what works for you the best um just pack light, you know don't take too much stuff you'll find if you take everything under the sun, you won't use a lot of it and you can sit in your bag and you're gonna be upset to check to carry it around you can totally wear a shirt a couple of times where stocks a couple of times you know, just do laundry living more often I mean no, no one's going to buggy if you're like hey, I saw you wear that shirt yesterday yeah travel together I was curious how did you do laundry? I'm just curious to doing laundry overseas. Lots of hostiles will have washington dryers are you airbnb? A lot. A lot of those places have washington dryers when I'm not at a place with washer dryer, I find the laundromat chop it off, we're doing myself, I just rather chop it off especially because I travel a lot developing countries and just cheaper and more effective just hand it to someone come back later clean clothes question I think it might be a silly question, but I don't usually see people travel with two backpacks, so when you actually are traveling from place to place to carry them, um that one back this one in the front so sort of like the reverse um it's quite common to see that you'll see that a lot when you start traveling around europe and something people will have the baby and the other baby looks like a turtle, I like to say also takes you really warm actually if you're out and really windy because you're sort of protecting your torso it's not the park uh so you just really about the right gear choose what is right for you but don't take a lot you can use it up again so let's talk about travel insurance I'm a big proponent of travel insurance I get all this stuff when I was in italy I was in chicken terror and one of the times man rollo and there's a doctor like sort of a dock area and then the time goes up on the hill and it's beautiful beautiful and so I kept on china like change angles and I kind of went down the dock and I flipped but first um into the water my bag different bag my camera and everything in me to the joy of the italian kids who were playing in the area and then just saw this tourist is, you know, dive in and totally ruined my camera tolly ruined my camera had luckily I saved the sim card but the camera was toast. Um and I was like, I you know, I have to find the camera the next big city I was going to go to was florence, but that was like two weeks, so I was like, I can't not have a camera so I went and bought one and there was about italian prices at the time was not good it was about four hundred bucks and had I had travel insurance I would have been able to together you reimburse for that purchase buy travel insurance agency didn't I have travel insurance? Uh I once was scuba diving pop the ear drum has see doctor luckily at this time I learned my lesson had travel insurance it was covered I lost my bag of times they lost my bag covered by travel insurance um I had a friend's father die I mean she had an emergency go home that flight was covered by travel insurance eso we'll talk about like what makes your travel insurance won't makes bad travel insurance but she's definitely covered somehow we won't talk about you know should you get travel insurance or really credit cards cover you could some cards offer insurance homeowner's insurance, health care all that good stuff but child insurance is a must for every smart traveler because I told you do not expect to go but first into the water and have my nice shiny camera ruin popping your job lose a bag or anything if you get rob covered the new passport because they've been stolen covered need to be made coli evacuated out of the safari because your leg has been enough by a lion covered, so why get travel insurance anything can happen most health insurance plans do not cover you overseas especially if you're gone long term especially true in the states some foreign countries will cover you have limited liability you know small medical things if you know sort of a national health care plan for the most part you overseas and you have blue cross prove shield harvard pilgrim whatever it is you have in the states good luck you're on your own uh it was you by some sort of supplemental more expensive policy plans can only cost a few dollars a day and really, you know better safe than sorry in effect with creamy hospital bills. Well, who has a car? Okay, you have car insurance I kind of have to it's mandated by law payment homeowner's insurance you got to pay it help you never have to use it right? Fire insurance turning into insurance but that one time you paid your super excited and that's all that matters it's that one time you want to worry about because felt has happened. My friends just were in peru. Um and they, uh one of the girls just broker like does not have travel insurance not to come back to the states and is, you know, really worried that the costs are going to be phenomenal because they use carry it and they never used it and they're like, well, you know never really used it before so whatever you know we'll get rid of it and now broken leg have to come back it's probably going to get stuck with the huge bill because the guy that set in peru to so you know we know how that turned out so good travel insurance what does it include? It will call coverage and most cities injury and sudden illness tweet for our emergency services and help personal accident coverage uh coverage for your gear and coverage for lost damaged or stolen possessions travel insurance is not just health care is toil care you definitely wanted to, um cover other things such as trip cancellation you know there's a riot or something there's a I met a tsunami you have to be evacuated out of that country. You wanted to cover that any legal expenses um your jet skiing and you hit somebody covered that financial protection if the country goes broke your traveling on a tour traveling you know and they're like, well, we've gone broke today. Good luck with that. Travel insurance will cover all this the main reason to get travel insurance is to be covered medically overseas that's what you're really you know wanted for you get sick, you go to the doctor you want covered, you break your leg get bit by a snake and you want to be covered uh but all this other stuff is great now motion travel insurance who only cover your electronics up to a certain limit sometimes five hundred bucks eight hundred bucks so you can you have to buy supplemental insurance if you have all this gear you want to ensure a lot of times they won't cover accident six state sustained under extreme activities such as scuba diving, bungee jumping, etcetera unless you buy supplemental care. So usually there's like the basic plan and the I'm going to china like be like bear grylls plan you know, the adventure plan um not covered if you injure somebody most plans and basically I like to call this they won't cover you if you're an idiot plan. Okay. Oh, I got junk. I was not a bunch of jugs and I got all my stuff stolen. You're an idiot. Too bad. Uh uh, you know, I left my bag at the train station while I ran into the bathroom. You're an idiot. Too bad, so pretty much anything reckless like jugs. You know, I fell out of the window because I thought was a good idea to stand on the rail, you know, sorry, not covered. This sort of anything sort of reckless behavior that a reasonable person would not do is something that's not going to be covered um so know that because I've had a lot of people get really upset, you know, insurance companies and you know, complain to me sent me these long emails about you know, I just want to let you know I for a consumer report about this company and it's like well, what did you do? Well, you know, I left my bag well, there you go second you say I left my bag you're being reckless and they're not going to cover you this insurance company wouldn't cover me because, you know, there were protests in the city and I had to leave it's like well was their official government the country warning no, I just felt on safe not going to cover you you know, let's not forget insurance companies are a business and they make money by not paying out so if they know they are not going to you know, make sure that they're not paying out just to any you know tom dick and harry and jane for something stupid so you know, it's important tio always have proof right when I lost my old bag they were like, so do you have any proof like like the seat like, well, something because then you can just file a claim, right? But luckily I had, you know, pictures of my bag and you know, because I keep him for photographs but you don't have to keep receipts of the shirt you bought five years ago right but you gotta prove some way you actually have the shirt what you're claiming is lost police reports I lost my passport you have a police report doctors receipts doctor's notes we keep lots of documentation because if you don't have documentation and tv for them to say no it didn't really happen so always keep everything and if you as long as you are honest and have proof that something was stolen I owned the thing that was still in I got sick I went to the doctor they're going to reimburse you good cos I like I use I personally use world nomad high views m since two thousand three so I I'm a creature of habit have it and so um I've used them they're great lonely planet is the national geographic uses them they're really great company really traveler or into in great customer service um but also they only cover up to sixty five so if you're an older traveler ensure my trip is really good they look at a lot of different plans and sort of but she sort of price shop and compare and also have plans for older travelers may justice is popular with a lot of long term travelers and expats clements is good if you want to get insurance for your childhood here you want to buy a supplemental policy that this is great so other things to think about as we wrap up uh always take your copy of your passport have a photocopy it will come in handy if you were like me and left yours on an airplane once um or you get robbed or spring it's stolen or you lose it keep extra copy your passport go paperless with your billing that way you're not getting any male he do need snail mail earth class mail is really good still sort of scan all your our email uh vaccinations get back newt if you can see a doctor, there are lots of travel clinics around the world that, uh you know, we'll help you get vaccinated, but you know, I hate giving medical advice because I'm not a doctor but it's really smart to make sure you have the right vaccines at least have and tight forward those were the two ones that you know that they have be definitely want to get a tetanus is also good. You know, sometimes you'll be on a beach in some point of rusty. Now make sure going back to the banks and stuff you call your banks and credit card companies and let them know you're going overseas because the last thing you want to try to use a purchase and they're like no fraud and it becomes a half, huh? So key principles to my travel prep only if you say it's mostly packing go you get all your stuff throwing a bag uh you've called your credit card companies to get a copy of your passport copy of your vaccinations you've got travel insurance, we got the checklist to prepare short, you need less than you think you do don't overthink if you try that overthinking over plan, you're going to get lost in such my new show that you're gonna just drive yourself crazy, everything will work out. The hardest part is stepping out the door. Um, the hardest part is stepping out the door and you know, everything will work out, created general idea and then just sort of go, uh, you know, go with the flow, move, move, you know, don't have fixed plans as it as loud as you said, if your child has no fixed plans and it's not intent on arriving, some of the best things that have happened to me have been because I just sort of went with the flow uh, five miss gear, I'll just pick it up on the way you really just you don't need a ton of stuff there today was all about preparing for your check tomorrow we're going to talk about what to do on the road, how to get that cheap flight, how to get cheap accommodation day today costs working overseas and putting all these numbers together to figure out what your budget how much do you really need to spend uh but you know the prep part of everything is you know, save money make sure you get your bank cards all lined up do some child hack and get some points for free travel because don't give up that money those points are great I am flying first class from london to dallas and it's free on my point was great uh, you know, if you want more information about that I have a book called the ultimate guide to travel hacking and gives in depth information on my web site about that uh get your gear during a bag make sure you got insurance quickly about travel insurance before you get child insurance. Call up your health care provider, call up your credit card company and find out what their coverages that way you don't sort of have triple coverage, but if they cover you great but always make sure you're coverage not only you personally for medical put your stuff because if you get stolen you want a nice fat check coming your way so you can replace it and not have to come home because like you have no clothes you know or anything like that um and you know copies of your passport uh you know, have somebody I like to give my mom sort of like the my parents of like bank information and so in case like I have to call the bank and something urgent and my car just stolen they have sort of a copy of the number is that I concern in use you make sure you want to lock it out because you know you know what back to get dylan um yeah, you smart prop and you're good to go and, um yes guy says ah happiest moments as tourists always seem to come when we stumble upon one thing while in the pursuit of something else think about the times you sort of like wondered on path and found path b and that's sort of the funnest time so tomorrow we're going to deal with the even more of the day today stuff about traveling today we're all about you know, be inspired, you don't get bogged down into my nature of everything because it's going to just make travel seeing so like so much of work, I know you have these courses here, whereas I do this do that do that it's like, wow, I didn't know traveling was so complicated I'm breaking it down really simply, but if you look at the big picture there is on ly you've only got over a few things and once you do those few things just go you know, have fun. That's, what it's all about. Have fun. Enjoy your trip, you know, and just go and explore the world and discover new cultures and hoop around the world. Have a rock concert, you see penguins.