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1.  Consider Your Clothing. 

You don’t have to dress nicely by any means, but you should probably follow a couple of basic rules.  Most importantly, don’t ever consider fanny packs/bum bags.  Not under any circumstances.  They are easy to rob, mark you as a tourist, and most damning of al they are goddamn ugly.  For North Americans, leave behind the white socks, white sneakers, and baseball cap as well.  It’s certainly okay to keep your own sense of style, but if you want people to treat you more fairly, then avoiding the stereotypes is a good idea.

 

2. Money Matters

How much should you take and in what form?  The simplest approach is to forget traveler’s checks and large wads of cash.  Instead, bring your ATM card and pull out your money as you need it.  Try to withdraw the equivalent of a couple hundred at a time–this way you don’t pay a fortune in transaction fees, but if you lose your cash or are robbed it’s not the end of the world.  Most cities and almost all airports are connected these days–if you are going to be in one or passing through one you should be just fine. 

 

3.  Your Budget Will Be Wrong. 
You can plan down to the last tuppence, but in the end your trip–be it 2 weeks or 12 months–will cost more than your highest estimate.  Whether it’s replacing stolen/lost items, mailing things home, signing up for expensive tours, loads of souvenirs, or simply finding that the least expensive places are that way for a reason, that’s the nature of dealing with the unexpected.  Most importantly, don’t stress when things cost more than you expected.  (It’s the nature of the beast.  If you are simply flat broke, there are places all over the Internet about working abroad.)