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Tips

The tips relate to any country unless stated

Money saving tips

Make your own food: while I worked, I always made lunches either the night before or the morning before work. They were mainly sandwiches plus fruit, bars etc for different days, so as to avoid having the same boring food! Cook your dinner instead of eating out! As for dinners, it was more than halfway through my year when I started cooking large meals. The leftovers were put in the fridge or freezer for work during the week, depending on how much I cooked. The money saved would be spent on eating out while travelling. Some workplaces have free tea and coffee, and may have more. If you like chocolate bars, you could buy a pack of bars, such as muesli bars which is good for taking to work for lunch.

Foreign currency: if you have a credit card and it's in credit, use it to pay for goods and withdrawing in stopovers rather than taking out a lot of cash. There is also less risk of being robbed if you do not carry much cash especially in poor countries. A lot of things are cheap in poor countries so not much money is needed

Suncream: buy large sizes as they tend to be cheaper. In Australia, suncream is cheap in Soul and Pattinson chemists for around $13 for 500ml

Bargain food: go to the markets selling food, fruit and vegetables before closing time as prices go down when sellers try to get rid of their produce. In Paddys Market, Sydney, a box of fruit and vegetables is sold for $15 while in Prahran, Melbourne, bags are sold for $1

If you are a member of Global Gossip, which is a chain of internet cafes in Australia, buy phone cards there instead of elsewhere to collect more points for free internet etc. If you wish to send a fax home, print etc, you can do so using points on your card

Postcards and postage: you can post your postcards overseas for only 90¢ at Global Gossip, saving 10¢ for every postcard. Buy your stamps there and post from here. Also, check out about postage costs for parcels and letters. You need not be a member, though you could earn points if you are a member

Bulk buying: buy foods in bulk such as the largest pack of cereal, etc. When cooking, you may buy large jars of sauce rather than small ones. Instead, you may buy sauce in packets as they are cheaper than jars

Internet: if you have a lot of typing to do or a lot of emails to read and send, use unlimited internet. If you only want to use a few minutes, some places in Australia offer a few minutes free

Water: due to the heat in Australia, you would find yourself drinking a lot of water. Water costs around $0.69 for 1.5 litres for own brand drinks in supermarkets. When the water is used up, refill it with tap water. It may taste horrible but you may get used to it. Also, put the bottle in the freezer the night before if you are going on a trip all day the next day - icy water tastes nicer than tap water

Haircuts: if you like short hair, you could buy a hair trimming kit for around $20. Shave your hair off in numbers 1-5, depending on the kits - barbers are $7 in Sydney, $11 in Melbourne and higher elsewhere

Film rolls: film rolls are very cheap in duty free, so if you are flying to New Zealand or elsewhere or back, buy them in bulk - they may be available in 10s. APS film rolls are cheaper when you buy them in 40s rather than 25s.

Film processing: processing costs are very high for APS films. Panoramic photos cost around AU$1 each to develop. When getting films developed, you may ask for all to be developed in Classic size even if you have taken panoramic or high dimension (HD) sizes - you can always get reprints in other sizes later anyway. Classic sizes for a 40-exposure roll costs around $16. If you want photos to be scanned onto CDs, do this when handing in the rolls for developing as costs are higher for processed films

Discount cards: a YHA card in Australia cost me $32 but gave me discounts to attractions, hostels and activities in Australia. The discounts are greater than the cost of the card. There are few different cards available in Australia - VIP is one of them

Transport: Buy tickets for bus or tram trips such as in Melbourne's trams, buy a 10-trip or weekly ticket. While in Sydney, buy a blue travel ten ticket ($11) or higher.

ATM and EFTPOS withdrawals: When you need to withdraw money, withdraw a lot of cash so you won't need to go back again - try to stay within the number of free withdrawals. When buying goods with EFTPOS, withdraw money at the same time as they are both treated as one. The reason is that you are charged for such transactions

Credit card charges: if you are using a VISA from your home country, keep it in credit otherwise you will incur a charge of €1.90 for every withdrawal irrespective of the amount (this charge applies to VISA cards from Ireland)

Environment

Before throwing rubbish out, check for recycling facilities. There may be separate bins on the street or in the hostels

If you are a smoker, do not throw your cigarette on the ground. Extinguish them and put them in ashtrays in the bins or in the bin if no ashtrays are provided. There are many ashtrays around anyway. You may wish to buy a small container for ashes. This is very important in Australia. Please do the same in other countries - Australia is very clean.

Be careful about spitting in Australia - some people do not like this. There is a lot of people walking barefooted so be considerate. Do not throw dangerous objects on the ground - use the bins!

Help with recycling where possible. Litter bins are divided into bins for litter and for recycles. In South Australia, you get 5¢ for every can and bottle

Dangers

Traffic lights and pedestrian crossing in Australia and New Zealand: when there is a green man, pedestrians have the right to cross the road. Unfortunately, cars are also allowed to go through, but they must give pedestrians the right of way first. When there is a green man but no one crossing, the cars go through. This can be very dangerous especially as there are often people crossing at the last minute. There are quite a few drivers who have no patience that they would dare drive through even when you are on the road and have not finished crossing. This is one of my hates in Australia and New Zealand.

When eating out, be aware of meat that may not be fully cooked, particularly at Asian eateries and Malaysia.

Cancer: always put sunscreen on to prevent skin cancer. On cloudy days, there is still UV rays so you still should apply some cream on if you are wearing a t-shirt. When you are at the beach, put cream on before you go in the water as the risk is higher due to reflection of the sun's rays in the water. Reapply cream after you get out of the water.

In Australia, do not swim in the sea in the summer in some parts as box jellyfish arrive - they are dangerous. When travelling up north, do so in winter as it's cooler. You would also see whales and crocodiles.

By Australian law, helmets are to be worn when cycling

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