Travelingbug.org

$134 to enter Argentina starting Jan. 1 2009

I am headed to Argentina for Christmas and New years, and I can't wait to return for my third time to Buenos Aires!  I recently read an article from The Argentine Post that caught my eye:

the government will start charging tourists a reciprocal visa fee to visit the country. Beginning January 1, tourists will have to pay a visa fee upon arrival if they come from countries that charge Argentines a similar fee. In the case of the U.S., which charges Argentines US $134 to get a visa, Americans visiting Argentina will have to pay a similar amount upon arriving at Ezeiza, Interior Minister Florencio Randazzo announced Wednesday.

“We’re going to charge them a reciprocity fee, which has nothing to do with a visa requirement,” Randazzo said. Argentina will maintain its open visa policy, meaning will not require tourists to get a special visa to visit. It will simply charge a fee upon arrival. The duration of visas will not change.  (information from www.argentinepost.com)

They just passed this new "entry fee" about two months ago, but it will not start until January 1, 2009.  Argentina is not the only country to charge a reciprocity fee.  Chile, also does not require US citizens to have a visa to enter the country, but does collect a "fee" for them to enter the country when flying into Santiago.

This information is good for helping you to budget your next trip to South America or helping you think of ways to save $134 before you leave.  I know that $134 doesn't seem like that much money in the states, but if you can live off $20-$30 a day in South America that is another week of traveling!  If you are traveling through South America it might be wise to fly into another country like Brazil (where you already have to pay for a visa to enter the country).  Then you can bus down into Argentina and avoid the fee. 

Warning - Siem Reap Airlines

One of the first blogs that I did when I started travelingbug.org was about  traveling to Angkor Wat which is located in Cambodia.  One of the ways that I mentioned on how to get there was to fly Siem Reap airlines.  I read a recent post about this airlines that is not very good news for anybody using this company. 

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2008-11-14-eu-airline-ban_N.htm

The European Union has recently banned all flights from Siem Reap airlines into the EU.  They said it had to deal with safety concerns.  I would highly recommend to find another way to get to Siem Reap other than use this company. 

Safe travels

4th of July outside the States

Being outside the States on 4th of July is definitely a little strange.  After celebrating the 4th of July for 20 years in a row I have been out of the States the last two summers.  I'm excited to be able to B-B-Q and see some fireworks this year.  It is strange being outside the states because no other country celebrates it...I know I know,  why would any other country celebrate our independence day.  Thats not the point.  The point is that I was so used to spending time with friends and family during the 4th.  And having the day off work and just hanging out together is good enough.  When you don't have the same atmosphere for a big day you definitely start to feel a little down while traveling. 

The good news is that you can always celebrate the 4th of July wherever go.  I have been with a lot of people from other countries over the past two years, and you can always get people to celebrate with you.  It is kind of crazy, but I have been in Barcelona the last two summers during the 4th July.  While  I was not able to see fireworks for the 4th I still found plenty to do.

                      

In 2006, Jay, Parker, Gary and me saw The Wailers at Bikini's in Barcelona.  This is probably the best place to see live music in Barcelona.  It is located at:

Deu I Mata   Num 105 and the phone number is 93 322 08 00. 

Travel Flashlight

While I was traveling from hostel to hostel there seemed to be one thing that was constant.  I usually stayed in a room that had other people that were staying in the same room.  Most hostels put you in a random room with 4-8 other people that you have never met.  Some people are friendly and some people are not.  It seemed that some people would be cool and try to be quiet and respect if you were sleeping or some people would turn on all the lights and talk and not care. 

One thing that I did not have while I traveled the world was a flashlight!  I can't tell you how many times throughout my trip that I had wished I had brought one.  I would have probably had used a flashlight every day on my trip if I had one. 

While staying with 4-8 other people in one room it seems that somebody was always sleeping throughout the day or night.  It seemed that when I would need something out of my bag that somebody would be sleeping and would have the lights out in a room.  I always felt bad about turning on the light so I would crack the door and look through my bag with no lights.  Let me tell you...this doesn't really work.  Most of the time I would end up making a ton of noise, dropping things, and eventually turning on a light.

I would highly recommend bringing a small flashlight with you on any trip that you might be staying in a hostel.  It doesn't have to be expensive or big.  Just a simple flashlight that goes on a key chain works.  Tech Tools sells key chain flash lights for $4.99.  Something simple like this works anywhere at anytime.  To be honest with you, you can probably pick up a key chain flash light at any gas station.

Ipod speakers

I use my Ipod everywhere I go.  I usually have my Ipod in my pocket when I head out of my apartment anytime of the day.  I usually have it when I walk/bike to meet up with friends, and there is nothing better than having my Ipod with me to pass the time.  I used my Ipod everyday of my trip!  My Ipod was basically my best friend, because it was always with me whether I was traveling by myself or with a group of people.  If I was by myself I would plug in my head phones and walk around a city while site seeing.  It made the time fly by, and I never really felt lonely while I was walking around by myself.

While traveling, you will have a lot of down time either by yourself or with friends that you are hanging out with.  There is nothing like a little bit of music that changes the mood of the people you are with.  It is surprising to me how many people travel without a mp3 player or a CD player (if people are still using them?) 

I bought Altec Lansing In Motion speakers about 3 years ago for $99.  I think it is possibly the best purchase I have ever made.  Speakers to an Ipod were an instant party during my travels.  I would bring it with me to the beach, on the train, or just play it at the hostel when I was just hanging out.  Not to mention that it charges your Ipod while it is playing.  I didn't bring an Ipod charger so this was the only way that I could charge it.  I have spilled drinks on it, had sand cover it, and dropped it many times and it is still playing!  These speakers are also very small so they hardly take up any space in your bag.

While traveling make sure you are careful about showing it off though.  Things do get stolen from your bags while in hostels or airports.  The speakers I bought were so small that most of the time I kept them in my small back pack instead of my bigger backpack.  You will also need a Currency Converter to use the plug in for electricity so that the plug fits the outlet depending on what country you are in.

 

International voltage (electric) converter

 

One of the most important things that I carried in my backpack while I was traveling was my international electricity converter.  The plug-ins in the States are different from everywhere else around the world.  South America's is different than Australia, Australia's different than Asia, and Asia's different than Europe's. 

I can't tell you how important the converter was to me on my trip.  I carried a couple of items in my backpack that needed to be charged at least once a week.  The most important being my Ipod, which I used everyday multiple times!   The battery on my Ipod would only last about 2 days without being recharged. I also needed the converter to charge my digital camera battery (which lasted about a week) and my cell phone.   

Beer Junction - Hanoi, Vietnam

One of the first sites that I saw in Hanoi, Vietnam was Beer Junction (Bia Hoi Junction).  I arrived in Hanoi at about 5pm, and checked into my hotel in the historic Old Quarter.  When I checked in at the hotel I saw a girl named Zoey, that I had traveled through Laos with, and she told me the rest of our friends were down at Beer Junction.  So my friend Howard and I headed straight there to find out what this place was all about.

We hired 2 taxi's (a motorcycle) to take us there.  It took about 3 minutes to get there, and when we arrived it was comedy.  Beer Junction is located off a main street in a little neighborhood.  There is 4 corners where traffic is coming and going.  On each corner there are these "shop" owners that have set up these little plastic chairs and little tables in the street right off of the corners.  These chairs and tables were so small that it was almost like they were made for kids.  While you are sitting there there are motorcycles and cars passing right by me, but I never felt like they were going to hit me.

Sven, Jen, and Kelly, had saved us a seat at their table.  They had been drinking for awhile and told us a little bit about Hanoi since we had just arrived.  I couldn't believe how much a beer was.  It was 2000 Dong.  This turned out to be 10 cents (US) a beer.  And for my friends that were from England it was 5 Pence a beer.  I had no problem buying a round for my friends and everybody else that was hanging out around there.   

Howard and I almost couldn't drink a beer, because we had just come from Songkran (Thai New Year).  We had partied for about 4 straight days and needed a day off.  But since we hadn't see our friends four about a week we decided to hang out for awhile.

The funny part about Beer Junction is that the police come by to patrol the area.  When the cops show up, the store owners make you get up out of your chair and they take your seat and table and bring them back off the street and into their store.   The police just want to make sure you are not in t he street and they will fine the store owners if you are.  As soon as they start leaving the owners put the chairs and tables back down for you to sit in.

Beer Junction is a great place to hang out and meet other travelers from all over the world!  I would highly suggest hitting this up at least one night while you are in Hanoi!

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!

Best traveling web sites?

I just had a friend (Tonya) recently send me this link http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/23814195/from/ET/. This review tells about the best web sites for traveling and saving money!  It is not really for budget backpackers, but it does have some good tips on flights and hotels.  The tips say good things and bad things about the different sites.  I am definitely a big fan of Kayak.  I have been using this web site for about 3 years.   

Peace

ATM fees - Part two Bank of America

I recently found out that there was another bank in the States that has free ATM fees while you are traveling abroad.  Bank of America has joined a global ATM alliance with the following banks:

Barclay's(United Kingdom)
BNP Paribas(France)
China Construction Bank(China)
Deutsche Bank: (Germany)
Satander Serfin (Mexico)
Scotiabank (Canada)
Westpac(Australia and New Zealand)
You can click on the name of the bank to see where the ATM's are located if you are traveling in those countries.

There are over 12,000 ATM's that are outside of the States that you will be able to use without having an ATM fee.  This is great news if you are traveling in Europe, Canada, China, Mexico, and Australia/New Zealand.  Bank of America does not charge a currency conversion transaction either.