8 tips to have a memorable trip abroad

When you travel, it is required that you understand and respect the culture and laws of the people of the country you are visiting. Some may be religious, some may just be for convenience. All the same, an understanding of the same will go a long way in having a memorable trip.

1. First in, First out

On trains, buses, trams or any other mode of transport, let the people who are already inside get down first. When everybody who wants to get off at the stop have got off, you climb. The same thing applies for elevators as well. It is a very important thing you should remember and follow always.

2. Don't waste a driver's time

When you want to travel by bus, tram or train, first check whether you can buy a travel card instead of buying individual journey tickets. It is much cheaper and much more convenient. Don't waste the drivers time on the bus asking him questions, because, in most countries drivers double up as ticket issuers as well. Do your own research before you get on to the bus/tram/train.

3. Stand the 'right' way

When you are going up or down on an escalator, stand to the right, one behind another, even if you are in a group. That way you will leave space on the left for people who are in a rush. Most tourists do not understand this and end up standing in two's and block the way for someone in a hurry. In the UK, the locals hate the tourists for doing this. So a little help from our side when we visit their beautiful country will go a long way.

The perfectly 'wrong' way to stand on an escalator 

Next time, a beautiful girl is looking at you on the escalator, it may be a sign that she wants you to move out of her way.

4. Learn some basic words

While this may not be a necessity, learning a few words in the local language definitely helps you make new friends and get liked by the locals. For example, when I was in Spain for 2 weeks, I learnt to say Hello (Hola), Goodbye (Adios), Salude (Cheers), I could order in a restaurant in Spanish and also ask how much something costs. It's also fun to learn something new, so give it a try.

The only country where I could not learn to say 'Cheers' was in Hungary. I tried for 3 days and gave up as it was too complicated. By the way, try saying Egészségére :)

To make your life easier, use the Google Translate App. It has a super cool camera translation which lets you translate menu cards, signboards and products in a supermarket in real-time. You will have to download the offline language translation if you don't have internet.

Download it here https://goo.gl/c1zaJo

5. Don't hesitate to talk to strangers

In India, we are often told as children not to talk to strangers. It is so deep rooted in us that we forget to smile at the guy who makes way for you at the mall (a Smile with a Thank You is nice) or a kind driver who lets your car pass first in a narrow lane (a simple thumbs up or a wave is awesome).

When I was walking around in Barcelona, I smiled at a guy trying to attract customers to his restaurant. He smiled back and struck a pose. I took a picture of him and asked him for his email so I could send the picture to him. He took me into his restaurant and introduced me to his Manager who offered me a complimentary glass of Cava (Spanish Sparkling Wine). Smiling and talking is free so go ahead and invest in it.

Striking a pose for me in Barcelona

This guy actually tried to type his email address on my phone!

6. Queue up

You do not have the birthright to skip a queue. Yes, even when your bladder is full after 10 beers and your liver and kidneys are overworked. The UK is notorious for its queues, so much so that even if you are the first customer at a shop, you wait for someone so you could form a queue.

7. Sample but buy

You visit a wine stall at the local market and you are unsure about what you like. The kind stall owner offers you a taste of the various wines he has. It's an unspoken rule, but after he has extended the courtesy of offering a sample, please extend the courtesy of buying something from him, however small or inexpensive it is.

8. Tip with a smile

While leaving a tip is a personal choice, I would recommend leaving a tip, however small, to the person who served you at a restaurant or a cafe. If you can afford to go abroad, you can definitely afford to leave a token of gratitude.

If you found the article useful, share the article or comment with your thoughts

Gaurav Rajaram is a photographer from Bangalore who is passionate about travelling, teaching and writing.

He teaches Accounting and Direct Tax to students pursuing the Chartered Accountancy (CA) Course. You can read more about him and what he does for a living here

5 tips to travel the world on a budget

Want to holiday abroad but can't really afford the hotels and their exorbitant prices? Or you have the freaking money but don't want to spend it on overpriced hotels? Or the main purpose of your travel is to meet like minded people and have some meaningful conversations?

If you can connect with any of the 3 questions above, you need to start backpacking. Hell yeah, don't wait for your friends! Just pack your bags and start travelling. 

Travel the world with your backpack

1. Two is many, Three is too many, Four is not funny

NO! NO! NO!

If you want to backpack, you have to travel light, as light as possible. You don't want to be lugging a huge suitcase(s) around, with 20 shirts, 5 trousers, a running shoe for the morning run, a formal shoe for the evening dinner and a hiking shoe for the hikes! The lighter you travel, the faster it is to pack.

Have you read the family planning message behind Indian trucks - "We one, Ours one"? Adopt that wholeheartedly for your trip (for the bags eh).

YES! YES! YES! 




The Yes! was for the Bag in the background, not for the Beer :)

2. So what does travelling light entail?

Personally, I would recommend that you don't carry extras of anything except shirts and undergarments. When packing, you normally have the urge to pack that extra pair of jeans just in case the one you're wearing gets soiled or that extra sweater which looks awesome on you. I have done that in the past and realised that I never use any of those extras.

So for someone travelling for a month, a perfect bag would include:

1. 3 or 4 shirts (including one you are wearing)

2. 1 pair of jeans

3. 4 undergarments (including one you are wearing)

4. 2 socks (including one you are wearing)

5. Phone + Charger

6. Camera + Charger

7. Laptop + Charger (only if needed)

8. Body/Face Wash re-packed in small containers

9. 1 Towel (carry the most compact one you have)

10. 1 brush + medium tube of toothpaste

Depending on the time of year you are travelling, you may choose to carry a jacket/jumper/sweater, fleece and thermals (if needed). Carrying multiple jackets will take up too much space so take only one which will be perfect for all the places you are planning to visit.

Tip 1: Reversing and wearing your underwear after bath doubles the number of underwear's you are carrying :) So 4 = 8. It's a clever hack while travelling. Screw the critics, you're the one travelling!

Tip 2: However hard it may seem, do not put in things which you think you 'may' use. You can always buy them at the destination country if it's really needed.

Tip 3: If your towel is too bulky, think of buying a travel towel.

Tip 4: Keep some money aside to buy essentials at the destination country in case you forget something (like toothpaste, toothbrush, body wash etc).

Tip 5: Plan to take a 40-60 litre bag and not a big suitcase. That way, you will be forced to carry only things you will definitely need.

Tip 6: Carry only one amazing pair of shoes (waterproof if possible) that will serve you well in all weather conditions and terrains.

Less packing, less worries, more travel, more fun!

3. How to get from one place to another?

In  a nutshell, travel by the cheapest mode of transport. Usually, the cheapest mode would be a bus, but do check for flights as well. Sometimes, flights are much cheaper than trains and buses. It depends on your priorities though. I hate flights as it doesn't let me see the country. Buses and Trains would be my favourite, although in most places, trains can be ridiculously expensive.

The order of priority can be as follows:

1. Cheap

2. Fast (Need not be the fastest)

3. Comfortable

4. Where to stay?

There are tons of options available. Since you are planning to backpack, costs are definitely of paramount importance. Hostels are a great place to meet like-minded travellers. 

If your thinking is similar to mine, the priority would be as follows:

1. Cheap
2. No Curfew

3. Clean Toilets

4. Clean Beds

5. Lockers to keep stuff safe

6. Good atmosphere (Bar, Common Area, friendly staff)

7. WiFi

8. Access to transport

Feel free to re-order your priorities. These are just ideas to help you think. 

5. Start thinking about travelling light :)

Needs no explanation does it?

If you found the article useful, share the article or comment with your thoughts

Gaurav Rajaram is a photographer from Bangalore who is passionate about travelling, teaching and writing. 

He teaches Accounting and Direct Tax to students pursuing the Chartered Accountancy (CA) Course. You can read more about him and what he does for a living here

Travelling abroad? The ultimate guide for first timers

Whether you are travelling abroad for the first time on work, or for your honeymoon, these hacks will definitely help you. If you are a seasoned traveller, you probably use many of these that I have listed below, which in my opinion are a 'must-do' before boarding the flight.

Buy a Travel Card

A Travel Card is a pre-paid foreign currency card that makes your foreign trip totally hassle-free and convenient. You can load this pre-paid card with foreign currencies in India by paying in INR. It’s a smart alternative to paper based instruments like Traveller’s cheque or currency notes.

The super cool multi-currency cards

A cool new thing in travel cards is that some banks also offer a multi-currency card. So if you are travelling to let's say Germany (Euros), United Kingdom (Pounds) and the US (US Dollars), a single card works for you and you don't need multiple cards for multiple currencies. Be sure to ask your bank whether they offer this.

Advantage of re-loading

The added advantage is that you can load additional foreign currency onto it even when you are abroad (make sure your bank supports this and you have activated internet banking) and happen to fall short of currency. This has been a boon for someone like me, who travels for a longer duration than most people and estimating exactly how much you need at the start of a trip is a little difficult.

My Tip - Make sure you are aware of the charges for getting the card, ATM withdrawals abroad, reload of currency etc as banks typically do not reveal the same unless you ask for it. For example, ICICI Bank charges 1.5 Euros/USD for every withdrawal from an ATM but does not charge for online payments or payment at point of sale using your card.

Buy foreign currency

This is also needed in addition to the Travel Card. Travel Cards are useful if you are buying flight/train tickets online or booking accommodation online in a foreign country.

However, cash is handy for smaller payments and some outlets may not even accept cards (for example, Amsterdam Coffee Shops accept only cash). So you can split your total foreign currency needs 50:50 or 75:25 between the card and currency or in any other ratio which suits your spending pattern abroad.

Activate International Roaming for your phone

Now, this is something most people ignore as they think they will not make/take calls abroad as the international roaming charges are extremely high (don't even think of using your Indian number abroad for calls or sms)

But let's say that you are trying to make an online payment using your travel card and it's not going through. You want to try making the payment using your Indian Debit/Credit card.

If you do not activate international roaming, you will not receive the One Time Password sent by your bank to pay through your credit/debit card. I had not activated international roaming and my travel card being a debit card was not accepted (the italiarail site accepted only credit cards). So I could not make the payment and finally had to get someone else to do the booking for me.

Carry original driving licence

You will need this if you wish to drive in a foreign country. Remember that copies of it will not be accepted. In addition, keep in mind that in some countries you can drive by just carrying your original Indian Driving License (UK allows you to drive with your Indian License for up to a year from the date of your entry into the country) and in some others, you will also need an International Driving Permit (IDP). 

An IDP is not a license by itself, it is just a translation of your driving license details in a few foreign languages (needed in countries like Spain, Portugal etc which are primarily non-english speaking). So you will need both the Original Driving License as well as the IDP to drive in some countries.

A Driving License also works as an ID proof to get into a Pub (It so happens that they ask for confirmation whether I'm above 25 all the time)

Buy 2-3 padlocks

This is especially useful if you are planning to stay in hostels abroad. While some hostels have a key-card lock mechanism for the lockers, some do not have that and you will need to spend extra to  buy a padlock (could be anywhere between 3 Euros to 6 Euros depending on the country). So it may be wise to just carry a couple of them from India.

Carry your Passport and make sure details on your visa are correct

This is quite obvious but what I wish to highlight here is that you need to make sure that the visa is valid for the entire duration of your stay and possibly for a few days even after your planned return date (in case your flight gets cancelled or you miss the flight etc). You do not want to be stuck in a foreign country with an expired visa.

Carry a copy of your air ticket and preferably check-in online

Some airlines accept an e-ticket on your phone but it is safe to carry a photocopy of the ticket (both to and fro). Stow one copy away in the corner of your carry-on baggage and keep one in your hand while travelling.

Why should you check-in online? 

Checking-in online gives you the advantage of choosing your seat preference. I have noticed that almost everyone checks-in online especially for international flights. So if you want to be spoilt for choices in seating on the flight, make sure you check in as early as possible. If you check-in online, a copy of the confirmation would be sufficient.

Keep a scan/photograph of your most important documents on your phone

This is useful if you happen to lose your passport or wallet and some of your identity documents are in there (Driving License for example). These are the following you should ideally have a back up of (preferably on your phone and email/dropbox/google drive):

1. Passport (Front and Back pages)

2. Visa

3. Driving License

4. Air ticket

5. Booking confirmations for accommodations

6. Contact details of friends/family (if)

Keep details for immigration forms handy

When exiting India and entering another country, you may need to fill up immigration forms as per customs regulations. Avoid removing your passport multiple times during your journey and take your passport out only when absolutely necessary.

So type these out on a word document and print a copy before you leave. You could simply use this to fill out any immigration form. You could also keep a copy on your phone.

1. Name on Passport

2. Date of Birth

3. Address on Passport

4. Passport Number

5. Validity dates (From ____ to _____ )
6. Place of issue

Pack a few sandwiches in a Ziploc

If it's a flight longer than 10-11 hours, you will most probably have a layover in a foreign country. The food in airports are ridiculously expensive, more so abroad, and you wouldn't want to spend your life savings eating a barely enough meal at the airport in Dubai or Paris .

It's good to pack a couple of sandwiches plus an apple which will prevent your tummy from making noises and disturbing your fellow travellers waiting with you at the airport. 

These are what I do every time I travel, so if you do/did anything different, feel free to share.

Plastic Bath Mug

Especially for Indians who hate using toilet paper (for obvious reasons). Take a small one which fits in your bag. I believe in the saying, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do", so I never carry this but if you are particular about washing your ass well, by all means, go ahead and carry your own personal plastic bath mug :)


(Image credits Pixabay)

• Gaurav Rajaram is a photographer from Bangalore who is passionate about travelling, teaching and writing. 

He teaches Accounting and Direct Tax to students pursuing the Chartered Accountancy (CA) Course. You can read more about him and what he does for a living here

Transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary

Imagine yourself looking at the beautiful mountains in all its glory. In a distance, not too far, not too close, you can hear the melodious chirps of the resplendent birds. Take a deep breath and smell the fresh, unpolluted air. Take another breath. The air is still magical. You feel the calmness in every nerve of your body. You don't feel like going back to your mundane, everyday life, now that you've discovered this place. 

I can almost imagine myself standing in front of this magnificent place as I write this. This place is different for different people. It is any place your imagination takes you. And yes, they exist. If you could not imagine such a place, may be you haven't been to one. Maybe it's a sign to take the road less travelled.

For some, this place could be the magical Western Ghats in India, or the Himalayas in the North and East of India. For others, it could be the Swiss Alps.

Lake Bled, Slovenia

Come back to the scene you were imagining. You want to capture a picture of this magical place, so when you go back to your boring old life, you can recreate some of your memories of this place. 

You slowly take your camera out, and gently press the button to click the picture. The picture is secure in your memory card. You are happy. At the same time, you are sad, for you have to leave. You are happy you have some memories of this place in the form of a digital image.

You go back home, and like a child who gets excited at a toffee dangled in front of him, you excitedly plug your camera into the laptop and look at your pictures. 

This is what you see on the screen

Bandipur National Park, Karnataka, India (Original)

The disappointment on your face is evident. The place was magical, not like what you are seeing on your laptop. In an instant, you can imagine yourself back at that place, where your soul felt at home. But the picture on your screen contradicts every pixel your eyes took in. 

It is but natural that this happens. Your eyes can take in way more detail than any high-end camera costing huge amounts of money can.

What your eyes actually saw

Bandipur National Park, Karnataka, India (Processed)

Recreating what your eye sees can be done by simple processing to bring out details which the picture has, but is not apparent. The above image is a single image with very basic processing done to bring out details already there in the picture. 

Take a look at some more examples below.

An image of a Pied Kingfisher I shot a while ago

Pied Kingfisher (Original)

The background was a little distracting with the twig not adding any value to the picture. But the feel of the image was too good to cruelly discard it.

The final image with a tweak to the background. The image was cropped to highlight the bird more effectively.

Pied Kingfisher (Processed)

Another technique to recreate what your eye sees is HDR (High Definition Range) imaging.

HDR is a simple process of merging two or more pictures so that the final picture will portray the best element of every picture used in the process of merging. Your eye working in tandem with your brain is a natural HDR imaging system. Your brain processes hundreds, if not thousands of images every second to let you see things so clearly. In a camera, however, the range is limited. Through post processing, you can recover, to a certain extent, what you actually saw.

Take a look at some of my HDR images.

Picture 1 - Shot to expose the sky

Picture 2 - Shot to expose the houses/buildings. See the sky here, almost white

Final image combining the best of both images - A High Definition Range Image

Scroll up and check them out again :) 


Another HDR where I try to recreate what I saw

Picture 1 - Shot to expose the sky

Picture 2 - Shot to expose the rest of the elements

The final result - A High Definition Range image

Gaurav Rajaram is a photographer from Bangalore who is passionate about travelling, teaching and writing. 

He teaches Accounting and Direct Tax to students pursuing the Chartered Accountancy (CA) Course. You can read more about him and what he does for a living here

Why I travel and why you should

Travel  has different definitions for different people. Some people travel to get away from the madness of their mundane everyday lives, some do it to enjoy the sheer madness of travel.

The dictionary offers some help here.

Travel is

1. to make a journey, typically of some length.

2. to move, typically in a constant or predictable way.

If you think about it, we travel every day. We travel to work, we travel to the coffee shop, we travel to meet family. But neither the speaker nor the listener dwell on that any longer than how much time it takes for a scoop of ice cream to melt in the microwave.

When I tell someone that I am just back from my travels, their minds instantly start imagining the places I saw, the photographs I took and the experiences I had. Or at least they want to know more. "Tell me about some crazy things you did on your travel?", "How did you find travelling alone?", "How did you travel for 2 months!?" are some of the questions I got when I backpacked for 2 months, alone.

Sitting on Lake Bohinj in Slovenia shooting the Ducks and the sunset

I have some beautiful memories of the experiences I had, not just with people, but with myself.

As I think back and put some of those memories into words, I am reminded of the time when I was travelling through Europe and I left my Passport behind in Brno, a quaint city in the Czech Republic.

  

 Most hotels or hostels in Europe do not allow bookings without a Passport. I realised that I had left my passport behind after I reached my next destination, a good 5-hour bus journey away. Not wanting to be stranded on the streets in a foreign land in peak winter, I picked my bag up and took a bus back to Brno to get my passport.

My constant companion sitting pretty in Bled, Slovenia

I used to have my own ritual on the bus - Settle down with a book I was reading on an Amazon Kindle which I had borrowed from a friend, drink a cup of delicious hot chocolate they used to serve on the bus, read some more and then peacefully fall asleep.

On my journey back after collecting my passport, true to my ritual, I fell asleep after the hot chocolate and some reading and when I reached my destination, still half asleep, conveniently forgot to pick up my Amazon Kindle kept on the seat. Wow! I just go back to collect a Passport I had left behind, and now I leave another prized possession on the bus. The day was a mixture of emotions; relief for having got my passport back, agony for losing the Amazon Kindle.

As it so happens, I contacted the bus agency to send it to my cousin who lives in The Netherlands who then handed it over to someone coming to India after a gap of about 3 months.

When I finally received it, I was pleased to find it in perfect condition and a sticker on top which read

Brno - České Budějovice  - 7 AM

The journey I had taken 3 months ago!

Instantly, my mind raced through the bus journeys, the hot chocolates and the book I was reading at that time.

Reading peacefully on a bench in Pisa

"That's why, travel, for me, is a state of mind. It's a state of mind which transports you and the listener, albeit vicariously,  to the excitement and exhilaration."

When I travel, I live in that moment. I enjoy an absolute sense of calm and quiet. I find new places and new people exciting. The sense of the unknown is encouraging. Because in our everyday lives, we always meet people we know and go to places we have gone to dozens of times. After a while, our lives lose the excitement we once had as kids. Mundane is the new fad. When we travel, however, we go out of our comfort zone and head into something unknown.

Stop, admire and breathe

On my travels, I have met some very interesting people and connected with them like we knew each other from a very long time. It has opened my mind to various new perspectives and ideas.

In Venice, I met a guy from California who still photographs using film cameras, something you would never see in your everyday life back home, well at least in this digital age. He shared some fascinating images and I came back inspired to think for a moment and imagine the picture I want before I hit the shutter button.

Visualise the scene before you shoot

In Budapest, when I was lighting my cigarette, I saw someone looking at me intently. Well, it turned out that I was lighting it the wrong way. The cigarette forgotten, this led to 10 minutes of small talk where we both realised that we were photographers of different styles. I do more of wildlife and she was a beautiful portrait photographer. She loved my pictures and  was appreciative of the beautiful wildlife India offers and my photographs. Her  emboldening words made my day and to this day, I can recall every moment of that conversation.

When you travel, you almost forget your everyday life. The tensions vanish, the deadlines go for a toss and you are yourself again. When you come back to your everyday life, you wish you travel again very soon. How often do you come back from work and wish you were back at work soon?

If I had to rephrase the meaning of travel, I would say that

Travel is

1. to make a journey into the unknown, of any length

2. to move, typically in an unpredictable way.

"So travel, get away from your boring lives every
now and then, see new places, meet new people
and come back richer from the experience. "

As somebody rightly said,

"Travel , as far, as wide and as much as possible,

Work ridiculous shifts to save your money,

Go without the latest iPhone,

Throw yourself out of your comfort zone,

Find out how other people live & realise that the world is a much bigger place than the town you live in.

And when you come home,

home may still be the same,

and yes, you may go back to the same old job,

but something in your mind will have changed."

You may not have too much money when you come back, but wouldn't you have experiences for posterity - something which is truly yours, which no one
other than you has access to, than money, which can be
stolen or passed on to your kids when you die?

George Bernard Shaw echoing a traveller's thoughts

Gaurav Rajaram is a photographer from Bangalore who is passionate about travelling, teaching and writing. 

He teaches Accounting and Direct Tax to students pursuing the Chartered Accountancy (CA) Course. You can read more about him and what he does for a living here