7 Travel Tips to Make Your Journey More Comfortable

The weather changes; that’s a given, but your body needs time to adjust. I’ve spent most of my life in Los Angeles, but when I moved to Bangkok, where I currently live, it took a couple of years to adjust to the heat.Southern California is warm, but in Thailand, there are just three seasons; Hot, Hotter, and Damn, it’s HOT!Understand that I just didn’t up and move on a whim. After twenty-three trips to the Land of Smiles, I decided to make Bangkok, Thailand my home. The weather is great, once you get use to it and I like the beat of the city and the nightlife. Despite what the media reports, it’s a great city with over one hundred Starbucks, more than four thousand 7-11s, and dozens of McDonald’s to make you feel like you’re in a familiar setting.Here are just seven travel tips that can make the difference between a good trip and a wonderful journey into a new land.1. For at least the first night or two, have a reservation at a hotel so that you have a destination, an address for the immigration documentation that they will hand you on the plane to fill out, and peace of mind of knowing you’ll have a frame of reference. Once you’re settled in, get going on finding a more reasonably priced, better located, and “cooler” place to stay.2. Always carry a few business cards from the hotel that you are staying. This will make it easy to get back to the hotel, once you get lost a few times, and if you purchase items in some of the shops, you can give them a business card with the hotel name and number, along with your name to have the item(s) delivered.3. Travel light, especially in the clothing department. One of the coolest parts of traveling is hanging in a coffee shop and looking at how the locals dress. This is also a great way to strike up conversations with people; by asking them where the best places to shop are located and where the deals are. In most of my early trips to Thailand, I wore jeans and a shirt, with a suit for business in tow and purchased locally made cargo pants and shirts for my evenings and exploring time. At the end of the trip, I just left the clothes on the bed for the maid to find a home for.4. Locate a pharmacy as soon as you have a moment to spare, because eating some unwashed fruit or some tainted street food can be a cause for alarm. Knowing where to get medication (upset stomach etc.) for relief makes a trip a lot more enjoyable and will encourage you to try new dishes. Be careful what you attempt to bring into a foreign country, Japan for example, is very strict. Ice can be a problem, so chilled might be a better choice.5. Scrimp at home, not while on vacation. Save up some of that junk food money to enjoy some great meals while enhancing your cultural experiences. It’s hard to enjoy a cheap vacation. You don’t have to be fast-and-loose with your wallet, but there seems to be something that you just have to have to remember the trip. Sometimes common items at home are priced much higher in other countries because of tariffs, which are placed on items to encourage domestically made items.6. Dark alleys are dark for a reason. They are not designed for active use. Traveling alone is a bit riskier, but I prefer it because it doesn’t tie me to anyone else’s agenda and gives me complete control over my time, spending, and eating urges. It is especially helpful if you keep a running journal of your days and nights so that you can go back to the great places on another trip and collect as many business cards as you can; it’s helpful if you lose something and are attempting to track it down (like a camera, scarf, umbrella, wallet, or “hot” phone number).7. Before you land, keep yourself hydrated by drinking lots of water and shy away from alcohol on the flight. Have copies of your prescriptions with you, pack sunscreen, lip balm, and any other sundries that you use daily (smaller portions), and carry more than one credit card. There’s nothing more embarrassing (from experience) than to offer your credit card and have it rejected because the bank (which you called ahead of time) failed to see the note on your account that you were traveling to “dump-truck, nowhere” and in their vigilance to prevent identity theft, leaves you stranded.Travel as much as you can, as soon as you can. Your bones and muscles don’t have the same energy in their 70s as they do in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s.Your travel experiences will be things to share for many years and your creativity, thinking, and appreciation of life will hit new heights.Your really should travel now, not when you retire. Make travel part of your life, not something to be put off until the time… when you have the time.

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Read This Before Starting An Online Business

So you have decided to start your own business and be your own boss. Let me first congratulate you on taking such a smart move in your career. There’s nothing as fulfilling and satisfying as running your own business. Although there might be several local opportunities available in your area, you may consider starting an online business because it lets you reach out to a worldwide market with the help of Internet and cater to a wider audience.You must have heard of several online opportunities that are tempting and promise a good fortune. But let me make one thing clear that you cannot expect to become rich overnight. There’s no such quick success mantra that can help you start an online business which will make you the next Steve Jobs. To be successful in your business, you must invest a lot of time and hard work. If you are new to this field, I’d suggest that you first identify your strengths and weaknesses, and then take baby steps to start an online business.First of all, you must make sure that you have a reliable and legitimate business plan in place, because without proper planning you are unlikely to reach anywhere. Once you have developed a business plan, you will be surprised at the success that you will be able to find. When starting an online business, you need to weigh the different options available. If you already have an offline business such as a flower or gift shop then one thing that you can do is start promoting that business online.If you can invest a few extra dollars, consider building an attractive website that will assert your presence in the online market. This will not only make your business more visible to others, but also make it easy for the customers to contact you or buy products online. However, just building a website will not solve your purpose unless you start coming up in the search engine results.You must make sure that your website is positioned correctly in the search engines. Once you achieve the desired results and find your place in the first page of Google, you will be surprised at the level of success you can achieve. You must consider hiring a search engine optimization professional who can help you to achieve your goals.Another good option to start an online business is selling things online, not simply through your website but through sites like Craigslist and eBay. There are many successful businesses that use these sites to sell their products regularly. Thus, you can purchase wholesale items and sell them online through the e-marketplaces. Regardless of whether you sell clothing or electronic items, buying products at wholesale prices will increase your profits and give you a stable source of income.When starting an online business, there are several other things that must be considered in order to be successful. Just knowing what and where to sell is not enough, you must also apply the right strategies to reach out to your target market and boost your profits.

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Capital Investment in the Telecommunications Industry Today

In today’s economy, many news sources are filled with reports of the increasing levels of telecommunication industry capital investments. As a telecom industry executive, where can you turn for a business financing resource you can trust? Here are a few tips on finding the right capital investment source for your telecom business.First of all, look for a full service capital investment specialist. An industry leader is a much more stable financing source than a smaller single service financier. Look for a major corporation that offers asset based solutions, lines of credit and capital investment programs as well as ordinary loans. Once you have found such a company, you can rest assured that they are a full service organization suited to all your capital investment needs.Next, investigate the capital investment company’s track record of success. Have they been able to deliver results for other telecommunications professionals in the recent past? What are some of the companies for which they have obtained results? How much financial asset did they obtain for these companies? Are any testimonials available from satisfied customers? Find out what companies have walked the path you are about to embark on before you commit to a business financing resource.In addition, be sure to carefully examine their policy on customer service. As a business financing resource, they should be willing and able to answer all your questions fully and offer you the support that meets or exceeds your expectations. Make sure they have a full staff to offer you quality client support services.A business financing resource needs to be specially adapted to handling the new lending and credit challenges in today’s marketplace. Today’s credit crisis, created in part by bad lending practices, makes it increasingly difficult for some business owners to find venture capital.However, a company with strong experience and deep resources for telecommunication industry capital investment is able to better weather the credit storm and find business owners the resources they need to expand and thrive. Internationally and domestically, lines of credit resources are harder to find. Therefore, you need an industry leader with creative financial solutions to serve as your advocate.Selecting a business finance resource is more important today than ever before. In order to establish your credit worthiness to lenders, it is important to present yourself and your company in the best possible financial light and ensure that your business needs are represented well to investors.There are special risks attached to loans in the telecom industry. Technology depreciates as the loan matures, and dependability is a non-negotiable. Any lapse in uptime will damage your image in the marketplace. The news has reported many high-profile companies merging or outright failing in recent years. Even though many potential lenders were financially unaffected by the mortgage crisis, it has left an indelible mark on their psyche and their lending confidence.Because of all the special considerations when it comes to telecommunications industry capital investment, it is important to have a strong business financing resource by your side during the borrowing process. They are an invaluable partner when you need to secure wealth resource in the telecom industry.

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