Travelingbug.org

Christmas in Buenos Aires, Argentina - Video of the Week

This last year I spent Christmas in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  They celebrate Christmas a lot different there than in the States.  It is tradition to go to church for a Christmas Eve service, and then go back home to eat a big dinner with family.  Just like any other meal in Argentina, we didn't start eating until 10 pm (still early by Argentine standards).  At 12 am, everybody around the whole city starts to celebrate Christmas by setting off their own fireworks in their backyards or in the streets.  Jared, Hayden, and I celebrated Christmas with my friend Eugenia's family.  We had a great time, and when people were letting off fireworks we went into the street so that way we could see all of the fireworks around their neighborhood.  People were letting off fireworks for more than 30 minutes! 

This was very cool to see how a different culture celebrates the same holiday, because where I'm from in the states it is so cold that nobody wants to be outside for more than 30 seconds.  That 30 seconds is running from your car to the house...It was great to celebrate Christmas in warm weather!  Enjoy the video!

Shoppers Paradise - Hoi An, Vietnam

While traveling abroad I had heard a lot of stories of being able to get suits tailor made in Asia for dirt cheap.  Nobody ever mentioned a city by the name of Hoi An when they were talking about suits, but I can tell you from first hand experience that this is the place in SE Asia to get your suit made.  They have shoe stores, coat stores, suit stores, and basically anything else you can image that can be sown together types of stores.  I have never seen a little town like this where even budget travelers were spending money on getting clothes made for themselves.

      

After I had checked into my guest house, I decided to walk around the streets of Hoi An.  It is not a very big city so I was able to walk around the side streets, and get to the market from my guest house (which was on the edge of town) in about 15 minutes.  Like every other Asian town, every shop owner up and down every street was trying to get me to come into their store to buy something from them.  I had to kindly turn down a lot of stores until I found one that I decided looked like my spot.  How did I decide you might be wondering...like every other decision I had made along my trip concerning where to eat/grab a drink:  if there are a lot of people in one store/restaurant then I should eat there since it seems like it is a popular place. 

So I went into a store called Phuong Huy (Happy Dragon).  The store is located right by the market in Hoi An so it is very easy to find.  I walked by the store, and there was about 6 customers trying on their finished suits.  I had found my tailor!  They had 3 women working in the store.  I walked up the stairs into the store, and it had fabric of every color and texture lining the walls.  They had a couple of manikins with suits on right by some mirrors and a dressing room in the back. 

Argentina - value of the peso

  

 Everyday all day all you hear about in the news is information about the "Credit Crunch" that is affecting every country around the world.  One affect of the "Credit Crunch" has is the changing of the value of each countries currency.  Right now the US Dollar is gaining strength against almost every major currency except the Japenese Yen.  While traveling around the world it is important to know how much your home currerncy is trading against every country you are/will be traveling through. 

Check out the Currency Converter in order to know exactly how much the value is of your home currency.  Right now $1 US Dollar is trading for 3.28 Argentine pesos.  I will be traveling through Argentina in December, and one main factor in choosing this destination is how far my money will go once I get there.  I can remember eating at a restaurant in San Telmo called Des Nivel.  A friend and me had a bottle of wine, salad, bread, and two unbelievable steaks for about 43 pesos or about $14 US Dollars.  You can't get that meal in the States for less then $50.  This is just one of many stories about how cheap it is in Argentina.

While I was traveling the world I figured that for one week of traveling through England, Europe, or Australia, was equal to about 1 month of traveling through Argentina!  That is a huge benefit for not having to save huge amounts of money to travel through South America compared to other destinations.

Ear plugs

On the first day of my world trip I received one of the things that I used almost as much as my Ipod.  I received a package of ear plugs.  I would highly suggest for you to bring a pair of ear plugs with you on your trip no matter how long you think you are going to be traveling for. 

I stayed in mostly hostels during my trip.   Most hostels only offer group rooms where there could be 4-10 people in a room.  While staying in these rooms there will always be people coming in and out of the room no matter what time of the day it is.  No matter how quiet somebody is trying to be they will still be making noise.  Most of the time they are opening up and closing locker or taking things in and out of their bags.  Nothing could be more annoying while you are trying to take a sietsa (nap).

This is when the ear plugs come into play.  Just put them in your ears and it takes care of most of the noise.  At least if you can fall asleep before people come in and out of the room you won't be woken up by somebody walking in the room.  As a traveler you will learn that a siesta is a part of your lifestyle, and that these ear plugs will be very important to you!

How to get a Visa before/during your trip

I had no idea how to obtain a visa before I left on my world trip.  It is really pretty simple once you know the requirements of the country you are trying to enter.  I had to get a visa for Brazil, Australia (purchase on the internet), Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia.  A visa can range any where from $20-$100 US Dollars.  It is basically just a tax to enter a country   

A visa is required upon entering certain countries around the world.  Depending on your nationality you can enter a certain country without a visa. Some countries do require that you have a visa to enter the country though.  To know what countries require visa's you can visit your country's state department web site.  For American citizens you can visit the State Department website.  Each country will have different requirements you need to provide in order to obtain a visa.  I would highly suggest that you to have extra passport pictures with you before you leave on your trip.  You can just keep this in your bag and use it as needed.  American's don't have a "free" pass to every country.  I think the best passport to travel on is a New Zealand passport.  They almost need 0 visa's enter every country. 

How to budget for your trip

It is hard to know exactly how much you are going to need on your trip around the world.  It would be ideal for every traveler to not have to work during their trip, but sometimes this is not reality.  The best way to do the budge is to over estimate.  Some countries or continents are cheaper to travel through than others, but in the end the cost of cheap or expensive countries will even out.  I based my travels in US Dollars, and it was pretty accurate for traveling around the world for 11 months.  Here is an example of how you might budget your trip for 1 day.  Then depending on how long you are going to travel you will multiply this number times the amount of days you travel:

1. Food: Breakfast ($5), Lunch ($7), Dinner ($10), for a total of $22 for one day
2. Housing: $25
3. Tourist event: $10
4. Other (misc.): $10

This totals $67 US Dollars per day of your travel.  So if you are going to be traveling for 2 months and plan on not working during your trip you will need around $4,020 excluding your plane flight there and back.  Again, if you are traveling through South America or Asia it is going to be a lot less expensive, but this is a good indicator of how to budget your trip.

It is always good to know what the conversion rate from the US Dollar is compared to the currency of the country you are going to visit.  Usually when you land in an airport you will be able to exchange money.  Or else there are places in major cities where you can change convert your money  like in banks or exchange shops, but most of the time you will get ripped off if you are a traveler.  XE Is a great site to stay up to date on what the dollar is worth in every country!  I have experienced the best exchange rate from just going to an ATM and taking money out there.  That way you know you are getting a good rate, and don't have to lose money by the "commissions" that most shops charge

How to get Started

When I started thinking seriously about travelilng the world I was not sure about a lot of things!  How I was going to quit my job, how i was going to pay a mortgage while I was gone, and a car payment while I was traveling, how am I going to pay my bills, etc?  There will always be 1,000 excuses on why you shouldn't take a trip around the world!  There is one solution to this problem.  The solution is that you need to select a start date for your trip!  Once you have done this you will then start to take care of all of your issues and everything will fall into place!  If you never select a date to leave on your trip you will end up being "busy" the rest of your life.  You will also always think about the opportunity you had and regret not leaving! 

A great tip for a traveler preparing for a trip around the world is to bring half the amount of clothes you think you need and double the money!

Here are the basic things that you will need to bring with you on your trip:

Bag

The most important thing you are going to buy before you leave on your trip is your backpack!  You are going to have this with you everyday, and live out of it for a couple of months to one year!  You will want to have a comfortable bag that fits well on your shoulders while being completely full of your heavy things.  If it is not comfortable then you will have a terrible experience traveling from city to city.

Travel bags come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.  The most popular choice of world travelers is a backpack style.  I would suggest not buying the bag off of the internet, because you are going to want to try it on and walk around with it on.  I would suggest to go to an outdoor adventure type of store and ask a sales person to help you find the best bag for your body type.  You should be able to find a good bag for about $150-$350 US Dollars.  The backpack style is very popular, because of the ease of walking through cities and how compact the bag is.  Many hostels, train stations, and airports have lockers where you can lock your bag when you are not using it, and do your thing around town without worrying that your bag will be stolen.

Another option that some travelers are using more is the luggage style of travel bag.  These travel bags have wheels so that it is easy to walk with.  I would not recommend this bag for your trip, because most of the times the bags will not fit in the lockers that I mentioned in the last paragraph.  You also might go on short treks or walks through unpaved areas along your trip. If you have a rolling bag it will be very inconvenient and very uncomfortable for you to lift over areas that aren't pave.  In reality everybody outside the States using the backpack style of bag while traveling abroad!

Shoes

You will need to have a good pair of walking shoes when you leave on your trip.  You will soon realize that your day will consist of miles miles of walking each day.  The first couple of days you might struggle walking everywhere, but before you know it, walking the whole day is just something you get used to.  Most of your days will consist of walking tourist sites, hiking, or playing local sports. 

A great part about traveling is the night life!  You should think about bringing a pair of shoes that will allow you to get into a club or restaurant that has a dress code.  Most places will not allow you to enter in a club while wearing athletic shoes or sandals.

I would also suggest that you bring a pair of flip-flops or sandals along with you on the trip too!  During my world trip I "lived in my sandals."  I would use my sandals to walk around the city, or go to the beach, or even to go out at night.  I think it is essential to bring a pair of sandals on your trip for the showers!  You will come to find out that most hostels bathrooms are not like the bathrooms in your house.  I would suggest to always shower with sandals on!

Rain Protection

The rain is something that you are going to run into during your trip no matter where you are in the world.  Is is not going to matter what time of the year it is or if you are in the northern or southern hemisphere.  I would highly suggest a rain jacket.  I would buy a rain coat that will give you protection from wind and rain.  This will be very helpful on any treks that you might take through the mountains or forest.  The Tongariro Crossing on the north island of New Zealand is a perfect example of needing a rain coat.  You start the 17km trek below the mountains and hike up into the mountains throughout this 4-5 hour trek.  During this stretch the weather can change very rapidly from being sunny to having the rain come down within an hour.  Without a rain coat you will have a very hard and miserable day!

I would also suggest that you get a water proof cover for your backpack too.  These are available when you purchase your backpack.  You will not be happy if you have a backpack that gets rained on, and you having everything you own being soaked.  I was in Cambodia during my trip, and out of nowhere the skies opened up and rained so hard for two hours.  The bus I was traveling on had stopped at my destination, and I had to go and grab my bag and get into a taxi.  It took only 2 minutes to do this, but I was completely soaked.  My backpack was without a bag cover.  Needless to say everything that I owned was soaked!

Clothes

Deciding on what clothes you are going to bring on your trip makes it hard.  If you are going to stay in one climate (follow the sun for 1 year) the whole trip then it will make deciding on what you are going to bring easier .  If you are going to be changing climates from cold to hot or vise versa it could make it hard to decide on what clothes you are going to bring.  How big your bag is going to be is really going to be the deciding factor for you.  The best idea is to bring what is most important first.  Just remember that you are going to be able to buy clothes (shirts, sweatshirts, underwear, socks) and toiletries anywhere around the world.  Just remember that throughout your trip you are going to throwout old clothes and buy new clothes.  South America and Asia are great places to pick up new clothing items, because everything is just as nice and at a lower price! 

When I left on my world trip I made the mistake of buying new things in the States, and bringing too many clothes.  I ended up sending home a lot of things home the first couple weeks of my trip.  I also could have saved a lot of money by buying the things I needed before my trip in South America.

Here is an example of the items that  I would take on your trip:

2 pairs of pants (1 pair of jeans), 2 pairs of shorts,  5 shirts (1 collared shirt), a lot of underwear and socks, a hooded sweatshirt and a rain jacket, 2 pairs of shoes, a winter hat, and then toiletries. 

These items will basically fill up your bag.  I know that it doesn't sound like a lot, but once you start traveling you will get used to not being able to get into your closet and having a lot of clothing options.  Every traveler is in the same boat as you so don't worry about being very fashionable during the trip! 

Travel Belt

A travel belt is one of the things that you do not want to be without during your trip.  A travel belt can hold your passport, plane/train tickets, credit cards, and your money!  This "belt" is actually just a thin strap that goes underneath the clothing of your pants or shirt.  People that see you on the street do not even notice it underneath your clothes when you are walking down the street.  It is very smart to have this while traveling so that your "life" is not accessible to people who might be looking to pick pocket you.  It is very important that if you are walking around a city or going out at night, and you are not wearing your money belt, that you lock this up in a safe at the hostel.  If you lose your passport, money, and credit cards all at one time you could be in bad shape!

On-line Payments

The Internet is very accessible around the world.  Every city in the world has Internet cafes that allow travlers to use a computer for 15 minutes to 1 hour by paying the fee.  That fee could be 50 cents in South America to $5 in New Zealand. 

During my trip I still had loans/bills that I still had to pay in order to keep my "life" going back in the States.  Before I left on my trip I made sure that all of my accounts (bills) were able to be viewed on-line. My bank offers on-line banking.  On-line banking allows you to receive ebills, and pay them through at the same time.  On-line banking will send checks through the mail (for free) to the creditors.  You don't have to be in your home country to pay the bills.  You can be at any Internet cafe around the world.  This is a great way to avoid late payment penalties.

You can also check your checking account on-line showing you how much money you have left in your account.  That way you can judge how long you stay in a given country or what adventures you can pay for throughout your trip.

Travel Insurance and shots before your trip

You never want to think that you might get hurt during your trip or that you might get sick enough that you might have to return home.  The reality is that this does happen to some people while they are abroad.  Travel insurance generally covers lost baggage, overseas medical, and even travel back to your home if you are injured.  A company that is pretty popular throughout the travel community is World Nomads. 

It is also a good Idea to get certain shots before you leave on your trip to stay healthy.  I would suggest to talk to your local physician and tell him where you are planning on traveling to get his recomendation on what shots are needed. I would at least get your hepatitis A and B shots.  I know that if you are traveling through the jungles of Peru that you will need to get your Yellow Fever shot.  I was traveling from South America to Australia, and when I arrived at customs in Melbourne I was questioned over being in Peru.  I actually had the customs agent ask me for my shot card proving that I had my Yellow Fever vaccination.  Without getting the shot, I would not have been allowed to enter the country.

If you are traveling through the jungles of Africa, Asia, or South America you might have to take maleria pills.  Maleria pills are expensive and can make you sick depending on what type you are given, but they will save your life.  Some travelers throughout SE Asia will tell you that they are not taking them, and some will tell you they wouldn't travel without them.  I personally didn't take maleria pills, but I made sure that I covered up my skin in the mornings and nights to protect myself from the mosquitos.

Visa's

A visa is required upon entering certain countries around the world.  Depending on your nationality you can enter a certain country without a visa. Some countries do require that you have a visa to enter the country though.  To know what countries require visa's you can visit your country's state department web site.  For American citizens you can visit the State Department website.  Each country will have different requirements you need to provide in order to obtain a visa.  I would highly suggest that you to have extra passport pictures with you before you leave on your trip.  This will allow you to avoid having to pay money for more pictures when obtaining a new visa.  It also allows you to avoid the hastle of finding a store that takes passport pictures.

There are two ways to obtain a visa while traveling abroad.  The easiest and cheapest way is to go to the Embassy of the country you are trying to enter.  Most countries have their embassy located in a capital of another country.  For example, if you are already in South America and traveling into Argentina, you do not need a Visa to enter Argentina as an American citizen.  If you are trying to enter Brazil you will need to obtain a visa before you arrive at the boarder.  So you would go to the Brazilan Embassy which is located in Buenos Aires.  You will then drop off the required documents, your passport, and pay a fee.  In about 24-48 hours you will be able to return to pick up your Visa that is now attached to your passport.  It is as easy as that.

While traveling through Asia you can obtain a visa at the boarder of the country you are trying to enter.  You can do this at the boarder of Laos and Cambodia (do not need a visa for Thailand).  You will just need to have the items they require and fill out the information there.  It will take about 20-30 minutes in order to complete the visa.  It is always easiest to get everything done before you go to the boarder just to make sure that it is done, and that there is no problems.

Some tourist companies or hostels also help you obtain your visa's for a fee.  You actually hand over your passport to these people and in about 24-48 hours you will have your visa's.  It is scary to handover your visa to a stranger, but I did it along my travels and had no problem.  This is definitely the easiest option, but a little bit more expensive due to paying the extra fee for the service!

Music

During my world trip my Ipod was my best friend.  If I had not met any friends in a new city or the people I knew didn't want to do anything I would grab my Ipod and walk around the city by myself.  Music makes it seem that you are not walking around by yourself!  It makes the 20 minute walk enjoyable and exciting at the same time.  Music will also help you pass a lot of your down time throughout your trip (waiting for trains, buses, airports). 

I would suggest for you to bring little speakers that adapt to your MP3 or Ipod.  That way when you are hanging out in a group at the beach, park, or hostel, you can all listen to music at the same time!  Electronics are very popular items to steal!  I would suggest to never leave your music player laying around a hostel.  Either lock it up or make sure you are carrying it!

Travel Towel

A travel towel will do wonders for you throughout your trip! Compared to regular towels that are big, and take up a lot of space in your bag, travel towels are compact and don't take up much room in your backpac.  A travel towel also has the advantage of being a very quick drying towel.  It takes half the time as a regular towel to dry.  When you walk around hostels one thing you will notice is that there are a lot of towels hanging up to dry.  It is not fun to take a wet towel out of your bag, and dry off with it after a shower!   After a couple times of doing this you will throw the regular towel away and look for a new one!  Why not save yourself the haslte and get the travel towel.

Roll up bed mat

There are going to be many times throughout your trip that you are going to have a bed to sleep in.  Without a bed you will either be stuck on a couch or the floor.  If you buy a simple bed mat that rolls up and attaches to your back pack then you will avoid a messed up back.

I did not buy a mat on my trip, but that is the one thing that  I wish I had changed when I returned home.  I had a one week stretch where I slept on a tile floor in an apartment in Rio De Janeiro.  I also spent countless nights/time in airports where they didn't have anywhere to lay down except for on the floor.  If I would have had a floor mat

Where to Stay?

Hostels

There are so many options of where you can stay while traveling.  The most popular option for backpackers is to stay in budget hostels.  They are generally more affordable then hotels!  Depending on what continent you are traveling through they can range from $1- $35 US Dollars per night.  You can look up availability on hostels in every city around the world on-line through popular websites like Hostel World or Hostel Bookers.  These sites are really good for giving you information on where they are located, availability for a week at a time, price, and the ranking of the hostels compared to others in the area.

During peak travel periods (usually summertime) it is smart to book the hostels in advance instead of showing up at the hostel when you arrive in a city.  Also, a lot of hostels fill up during weekends and there ends up being no room for you in a lot of the better hostels.  I know that traveling through southern Spain in the summer gets to be very crowded.  In June, I was traveling through Spain and I did not book a hostel before I left Madrid going to Granada.  When I showed up to Granada there was no room in any hostel.  Instead of paying 13 Euros the first night I had to get a hotel room for 40 Euros.  You just need to be smart and know where you are traveling too instead of wasting money like I did.

Couch surfing

Another option that is very new. and that a lot of budget travelers are starting to use is called couch surfing.  There is a new website that allows you to see where there are couch's available: couch surfing.  You actually stay for free on other people’s couches in their homes/apartments.  People open up there houses for you to use.  They are usually good people, and were possibly travelers at one point in time in their lives.  They are usually good people, because if something goes wrong then the travelers who have had a problem contact the website, and then the web site will take that person off the site.   

Airports

If you have an early flight during the morning, and you don’t want to pay for a night in a hostel or hotel you can just go to the airport and sleep.  There are plenty of people that bring their bags to the airport and sleep on the ground or in the chairs.  This option is safe, because there are security guards walking around making sure that there are no problems.  If you decide to do this option, you can check out of your hostel during the morning, and then store your bag in the hostel's storage room for the rest of the day.  When you are done doing what you do you can come back to pick it up at night.  Most hotels have a spot to store bags during the day for free. So by sleeping in the airport you can save one nights stay!  (you need to always think on how to save money and extend your trip!)

Hotel 

The most expensive option is a hotel.  Sometimes you can get lucky on a travel website like cheap hotels, and book a hotel at a discounted rate.  If you are trying to travel cheaply then this is not the way you want to go.  If you do need one day back in “normal” life that a hotel is not a bad option.  Since they will provide your own shower, air conditioning, and television!

Home stays

If you are interested in studying a foreign language throughout your trip then a home stay is a great option.  Almost all language schools offer a home stay.  I would highly suggest this option, because you will be able to practice what you have learned throughout the day with local a speaker.  The more you talk and listen to a language the faster you will learn.  You actually are able to stay in a family's apartment or home during this stay.  They allow you to use everything in the house as if it were you own. 

Solo Vs. Group trip

Once you have decided to travel for an extended period of time you need to make a very big decision.  This decision will impact your whole trip.  Are you going to travel with a friend(s) or are you going to travel the world by yourself?   

For some travelers the only way to travel the world is by traveling by themself.  Traveling by yourself allows you to experience so many more things compared to traveling with a friend back home.  The best part and also the hardest part of traveling by yourself is stepping out of your comfort zone!  You will have to introduce yourself to strangers, eat by yourself, and feel out of place a lot of the time.  But on the other hand you will meet new people introducing yourself to complete strangers or asking them if you can sit down at their table.  These other "strangers" could possible be people who you will travel for days or possibly weeks. That is the best part about this adventure you are about to set out on is not know what is going to happen next.  There are a lot of travelers who are traveling by themselves right now.  These travelers are looking to team up with other travelers.  If you talk to most travelers after their trip they will tell you that meeting new people was the best part about the trip.

In reality, when you start traveling, you are never really by yourself.  Once you check into a hostel there are always people hanging out.  Or if you join a group tour, you are then traveling with atleaset 5-10 other people who are instantly your new friends!  So do not be afraid that you will be alone the whole trip if you go by yourself.

If you are only traveling for only a couple of weeks, then I would suggest that you travel with a friend or two.  If you are traveling for more then 2 months, then I would suggest for you to try traveling by yourself.      

Communicating during your trip

Cell phone

Before leaving on your trip you need to find a cell phone that uses a sim card.  This can be a problem with some American cell phone companies, and I know in America that Verizon does not offer a phone with a sim card.  The best service to have if traveling the world as an American is to have ATT, Cingular, or T-Mobile.

The next step is to make sure that your phone is “unlocked.”  You might have to ask your service provider to “unlock” your phone.  Most companies want you to have been with them for at least 90 days in order to do this.  When your phone is “unlocked” your phone is able to pick up other companies coverage.  When you purchase a phone it is "locked" so that it only picks up the signal of that particular company.  When traveling the world with your phone unlocked you will be able to pick up service in almost every country around the world.

If you are able to get an “unlocked” phone you can buy a sim card in each country you visit.  You can go to any mobile phone company and buy a pre-paid sim card.  The company will give you a local number for that particular country, and you just have to pay for how much you use until you leave that country.  Text messaging is the cheapest way to communicate with prepaid cards.  When you have a local number you can receive calls free from anywhere in the world, but you have to pay for your outbound calls.  So your family and friends can call you in that country for free.

Skype

All over the world there are places to connect to the internet.  Most travelers us places called internet cafes.  They are very accessible and very inexpensive.  On most computers they will have uploaded the computer program called Skype.  You will need to set up an account with Skype in order to use the program.  They require that you put $10 US Dollars on an account to be a user.  After you sign up you can make phone calls through the internet.  Skype offers free international calls!  For a free call you need to make sure the other person receiving the call is using their computer, and has signed up for Skype.  If you call through Skype to another Skype user it is free no matter where in the world!  If you are calling from Skype to either a house phone or a cell phone then you will be charged for that call depending on what country you are calling.  Skype also allows you to use cameras during your conversations.  This makes it a great communicating device when you are traveling over seas.  It makes it feel that your family or friends are in the next room!  I would suggest for you to buy a cheap headset for your trip.  Sometimes the internet cafes’s headphones don’t work, and it is better to have your own to make sure you can hear and speak with headphones that work properly.

Calling Cards

Calling cards are the easiest way to make international calls.  You can buy a phone card in almost any convenience store in any city around the world.  The calling cards are specific on what countries they will call to.  So if you are looking to call back to the States, all you will need to do is find a calling card that allows calls to North America. Usually for $5 US Dollars you can buy a hundred or more minutes of international call time.  You will probably have to put money in the pay phone first, and then you will be able to enter in the phone card number allowing you to call international.

Blogs

A blog is a very popular way to give your friends and family a taste of what you are experiencing during this life changing trip.  You will first need to locate a blog that you are able to access at anytime.  Then you will need to create a user name and password in order to sign up for a blog website.  Once you have done this you can enter in all the email addresses of your friends and family.  When you create a new entry they will be notified through email that you have written a new blog.  The better blogs web sites will allow you to write a blog and post pictures along with your story.  A great site website for travelers to compare stories is TravelBlog.  It gives you a lot of great options for blogging that some other blogs do not offer.  Blogs can also act as a journal for you to in order for you to remember stories or events that happened on your trip that you might forget when you return!

Internet cafes

At almost every internet cafe around the world they have booths where you can make international phone calls.  You will be charged various rates depending on the owner of the internet cafe.  These phone booths are very easy to use.  All you have to do is sit down on the phone and dial the number you want.  This saves you the trouble of having to log into a web site or dealing with a calling card.