Know your water

Buying bottled water all the time will add a lot to the total cost of your trip to South Africa. And yet, ‘don’t drink tap water’ is one of the rules of thumb for travelers who visit various countries in Africa, Asia, and South America. It’s definitely one of the basic safety tips for visiting Egypt. However, South Africa is much safer in this regard, at least in heavily populated areas. Tap water in cities meets the WHO standards, but you should never drink from rivers, streams, or wells unless you are 100% sure in the latter. If you set out for a hike in the wild, be sure to stock up on water purifying pills.

Be advised that South Africa is one of the countries with a severe water shortage. Many places don’t have running water at all or have only a limited amount of available water. Therefore, you should always have a hand sanitizer on you. It’s also essential to use water very sparingly while you are in the country.

Only go for legit rides

If you need to get somewhere on a taxi, use an Uber or find a certified car with a meter in it. This isn’t as much of a safety concern because South African rides are considered low-risk compared to some other parts of the continent. However, without a meter, you are most likely to get ripped off. Note that the locals love to haggle. Therefore, if you are feeling bold, feel free to try and negotiate your taxi fare beforehand.

Prepare for emergencies

Being prepared can save you in a pinch, so you need to know how to act in an emergency before you board the plane to South Africa. Start with compiling a list of contacts for emergency services in the country:

Emergency – Ambulance (10177)
Emergency – Cell phone (112)
Emergency – National (10111)

Have them on speed dial during your trip.

You also need to research hospitals and hospital protocols the foreigners need to follow to receive help. Focus on the healthcare service providers in the area you will be staying. Do not forget that you need to make several inoculations before visiting South Africa. You also need to find the best way to send money to South Africa and teach your trusted contact at home about how to use it. This way, you will be able to get money fast in case of an emergency. Money transfers can be lengthy and banks take huge fees. Therefore, finding an alternative method is essential if you want to be able to get help from home immediately.

Keep an eye on your stuff

The majority of restaurants and shops in South Africa don’t accept cards. Therefore, as a tourist, you’ll have to stock up on cash. This makes you a pickpocket magnet. The situation is made worse by the fact that travelers are easy to pick out from the crowd. They also often carry expensive tech and jewelry. If you want your valuables and money to stay safe, you need to practice ‘constant vigilance’. It’s easier to keep your stuff safe when exploring cities because you can use specialized anti-theft bags. However, when you are on the beach, there is no other way but to watch your valuables.

Stay in during the nights

South Africa is amazing and welcoming, but it’s not a 100% safe destination. To reduce the risk of having an unpleasant incident ruining your trip, avoid walking the streets at night. If you want to enjoy the local nightlife, be sure to book a trustworthy taxi to get you directly to and from the club.

The post 5 Travel Tips for a Safe, Fun, and Unforgettable Trip to South Africa appeared first on 203Challenges.

Here is your monthly dose of travel challenges for September:

Go on a wine-tasting tour

There is something about people who know their wine. They’re like the ‘cool kids’ of adulthood; they can blow your mind with their in-depth knowledge of the nectar of the vines and get you wondering whether they grew up in a royal family that drank Domaine de la Romanée-Conti instead of water. Now is the time to enhance your understanding of what they’re actually talking about, so that you can join in their next wine-heavy conversation.

Even if you don’t get hooked, you can use the fancy words you learn to shock your not-so-wine-specialist friends by describing that $5 box of wine as “sun-drenched and raisiny with spice and meaty notes, a spicy palate and a balanced-dry finish” next time you’re drinking cheap wine in the park.

Besides, wine-tasting is a good excuse for a day of guilt-free drinking.

DIY – a travel money jar

From today, make a promise to yourself to put at least one dollar in a jar every single day until this time next year, to be used as funding for a future trip. Now repeat after me: “I will not take money from this jar for anything else”. Wait, I will put that in bold:

”I will not take money from this jar for anything else”.

Option 1: After one year you’ll have enough money to head on a short trip. You know that you’ll have at least $365 to work with, so you can start planning and budgeting straight away.

Option 2: This could be how you start saving money for the trip of your dreams. In this case, it’s a good idea to decorate the jar with photos or maps of that destination – it’s proven that people tend to stay more focused on their dreams and actually turn them into a reality when they are constantly exposed to them.

Practice people-watching

You’ve seen that one creep who sits all alone in a café just watching people pass by. This is your challenge to become that person, although we encourage you to do it in the least creepy way possible.

That means not staring for too long, no eye-contact (unless it comes with a little friendly smile, where appropriate) and never judging or making fun of anyone or anything you see.

When you get over the initial feeling of discomfort, people-watching becomes an entertaining activity that helps you get into the rhythm of the city. It’s perfect for solo-traveling and is also a source of inspiration for all creative jobs or hobbies.

Swap hobbies with a friend

Who knows – you might get hooked on your friend’s hobby and that might be the beginning of a new era in your friendship. You probably have at least one friend who spends their free time doing some awesome stuff you always say you will try next time – steal it from them for a few days. And then there is that one friend who likes to do things you can never find excitement in – knitting, for example, might never feed your hunger for thrill and adventure, but hey, you can end up with a free pair of self-knitted socks and save a few dollars for the travel jar.

Now, excuse me, I will go play a game of League of Legends while my roommate writes the next article.

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The post Travel inspiration – 4 September challenges appeared first on 203Challenges.

Here are the most useful Google Maps hacks, tips and tricks to use both when on the road and at home.

#1 Beat the crowds

When showing attractions, Google Maps has a feature called “Popular times” displaying the peaks and troughs of visitors’ interest during the day. This average data will help you decide when to visit in order to skip the longest lines. You can choose a day of the week and explore it hour by hour.

See the most popular visiting hours and then choose a calmer time for your visit.

#2 Use navigation offline

Navigation in Google Maps works even if you’re offline, which is handy when you’re abroad and want to save on data roaming expenses. All you need to do is download maps of the area you’ll be visiting in advance. Detailed instructions on how to do this are available here. This is also useful for domestic travel, when you plan to visit destinations with poor network coverage.

#3 Save locations on your personal map

When I visit a new city or a country, I always research what I want to see, find the attractions on Google Maps and use the “Save” option to keep them at hand when I need to design my route later. You can choose to save the site under “Favorites”, “Starred places” or “Want to go”. Alternatively, you can create your own customs lists and sort them by destination, for example. Then, when you open the map, you’ll see all the places neatly organized on your to-visit list.

1. Type in the name of the attraction. 2. Click the “More info” button. 3. Choose the “Save” option. 4. Choose an existing list or create a new one (Berlin, New Zealand, Cheese museums etc.).

#4 Read reviews

Google Maps is one of the main sources of visitors’ reviews of hotels, restaurants, attractions, and even buses (which are reviewed on bus stops marked on the map). Of course, you should be aware that reviews are personal and influenced by many factors. Then again, if hundreds of people have complained about the cleanliness of a restaurant, you should take that into consideration.

#5 Send to your phone

If you’re researching destinations on your laptop but will need the information on your phone later, you can easily send everything you’ve done to your phone via SMS or email. This works if you are signed into your Google account on your both devices.

Send information straight to your phone.

#6 Ask questions and get answers

Google Maps has a forum-like feature where users can ask questions and get answers. The app accumulates the most frequently asked questions, which you can then see by typing the name of a certain location and scrolling through all the attached information.

#7 See upcoming events

Very few of us scroll down to the end of the information about a site in Google Maps. However, when you search for a bar, cafe, museum, opera house or other attraction and scroll down to the bottom, you’ll find a list of the venue’s upcoming events with a link to its website and further information.

Scroll down to see upcoming event info at the bottom of the page.

#8 Find all the cafes/museums/hotels around you, the lazy way

If you just type “cafe” or “museum” into the search bar of Google Maps, it will highlight these places in the area around you. It’s a great way to decide where to go next without having to trawl through thousands of reviews.

#9 Zoom in and out with only your thumb

Sometimes you only have one free hand to hold your phone, and zooming in or out with two fingers seems like mission impossible. Google Maps has solved this problem, of course! You can easily zoom in by double-tapping on the screen. If you want to zoom in and then out, do the following: double tap and hold, then slide your thumb down to zoom in and up to zoom out.

#10 Indulge in time travel

Google Street View has amassed a huge collection of images from around the world, and while the data has been updated with more accurate imagery, the old views have been preserved for the sake of ‘time travel’. When you’re in Street View mode, just click the small stopwatch in the top left corner of the screen and use the slider to see older images. Here’s a short video demonstrating this feature:

#11 Avoid traffic jams

If you’re connected to the internet, Google Maps will provide you with real-time traffic updates. The busiest roads are marked in red, allowing you to plan your driving route along the much quieter green lines.

#12 Measure distance between any two spots

Right click on the map and choose the “Measure distance” option from the dropdown menu. Then click on the map and fine tune the line that appears on it. With every subsequent click, a line will connect the spot you just clicked on with the previous point. This tool allows you to create elaborate routes and measure their length in increments.

#13 Add stops to an existing route

You are headed to your friend’s new house, but suddenly he calls and asks you to drop by the supermarket on your way to pick up some more beer. Instead of recreating the route from scratch, you can simply use the “Add stop” option and change the route. This tool is available in the dropdown menu by clicking the three dots next to your starting point.

#14 Remember when you parked (Android only)

After having parked your car, open Google Maps, tap on the blue dot and choose the “Save your parking” option.

#15 Share your location

If you have to meet friends who don’t know where you are and you can’t give them a decent explanation, just follow the instructions from the previous feature, but instead click on the “Share your location” option. You can choose a timeframe between 15 minutes and three days, or “Until you turn this off”. You can use Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Google, or any other contacts you have saved in your apps.

#16 Use voice commands while driving (Android only)

It’s not a good idea to take your eyes off the road while driving. Thankfully, you can make use of the “OK Google” command while using Google Maps navigation to answer queries like “Find gas stations nearby” or “Where’s my next turn?”.

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