Don't Let Media Hype and Fear Mongering Stop Your Travels

Afar Magazine Co-Founder shares his experience of recent travel to Cairo:

"According to the Egyptian government, 2.2 million people visited Egypt in the second quarter, and none were attacked. That doesn't make headlines.


Bad things happen everywhere, and there are no guarantees. According to the New York Times, 67 people were shot in various incidents in New York over Labor Day weekend; 13 died. When I traveled to New York, nobody emailed me to make sure I was OK. But when things happen in a foreign land—and let's be honest, particularly in the Middle East—people are more likely to assume an isolated incident is indicative of much more."


Read the article: http://www.afar.com/posts/in-egypt-getting-beyond-otherness

Sometimes Credit Cards are Good

CNN.com recently posted this article "Five credit cards every traveler should consider". Personally, I prefer a pre-loaded debit (sometimes called "gift") card for each trip. I set my budget for each trip and load that onto a debit card. This allows me to easily track my spending and keeps me from returning from the trip with a huge balance on my credit card. However, if you are traveling to a country without multiple ATM access points, you must be sure to get cash before moving on to your next destination.  I have learned this lesson many times, unfortunately.


Here's some links to finding ATMs worldwide:

MasterCard/Cirrus/Maestro ATM Locator

Visa/PLUS ATM Locator