It has been years since I have seen a paper ticket for an airline flight. Yes, I remember what they looked like. They were often issued in duplicate and triplicate form and you had to look closely at them to make sure you were using the right one at the right time. I also remember how difficult it was to replace one if it was misplaced before you took the flight.

I remember one instance in particular in which I and my family were planning a three week long vacation in Europe. We bought the tickets early, and then put them up for safekeeping. And boy, were they safe! A few days before we were to leave, we looked for them and no one could remember where we had put them for safekeeping. We went into panic mode.

We finally had to purchase new tickets. The airline cancelled the old ones but would not return our money until we returned the original tickets. It was only after we returned from our European trip that we found the original tickets. We got our money back, but the inconvenience in the meanwhile was traumatic. This process would have been much easier today with the issuance of an electronic ticket.

Few airlines offer paper tickets anymore, and you might find it costing you more if you request one. Electronic tickets are most often purchased by internet through your home computer and you can not beat the convenience. So, why should you purchase online electronic tickets?

• It might be the only kind you can get. Some airlines no longer offer paper tickets.
• You don’t have to go to a travel agency or airline office to purchase them. You also don’t have to stand in line with your luggage at the airline terminal to purchase them when you get electronic tickets ahead of time.
• Payment can still be made with credit cards (and sometimes cash through online bank withdrawals) just as with paper tickets. My advice would be to always use credit cards; they are safer.
• They are easily accessible. The records on the internet remain at least until after each leg of the trip is completed. Once purchased they remain in the database for easy access at any time. If misplaced, you can go online and print out another copy. No more lost tickets.
• You can get immediate confirmation. This is usually through your email.
• They are instantaneously available. You don’t have to wait for the tickets to be mailed to you. They can be printed out immediately after payment is processed.
• The electronic tickets allow pre-flight check-in. Most airlines allow you to print your boarding pass within the 24 hours prior to the actual flight. If you only have carry-on luggage, you can go straight to security screening section. And even with luggage, you can usually check them curbside with the electronic ticket or through kiosks provided in the terminal by most airlines.
• On international flights most airlines still require you to check in at the counter before clearing security and boarding, but all of the other conveniences noted above still make electronic ticketing worth the time and effort.

There are always those individuals who insist on having a paper ticket issued by the airline. It doe not however make much sense anymore, since you have the ability to print out an electronic ticket immediately from any computer with access to the internet. Be thankful for the convenience of the internet and electronic ticketing. Time is money and electronic ticketing gives you more of it.

Have you ever gotten sick in a country where you did not know the language? As the saying goes, “I have been there and done that”. Fortunately for me, as an English speaking American, most of the areas in which I have found myself usually had someone who could communicate with me in English or spoke a language in which I could communicate.

Getting sick any where is problem enough, but not being unable to communicate with the health professionals can be inconvenient at the least and disastrous at the worst. It happens all the time. Just hope you are not the one it happens too.

There are ways of course to avoid this problem. Every way will not work for everyone, but by planning ahead, you can limit your health risks and the subsequent communication problems with health care professionals.

First, stay healthy. This seems rather sarcastic and to some extent it is. You can’t control when you catch a cold, have an allergic reaction, fall and break an arm, or God forbid, have a heart attack. But you can eat well, get a restful night’s sleep, and be careful to not exert yourself to an extent you would not at home. Plan you trip to allow for a more casual pace. Your body will thank you for it.

Second, if you have known health issues, make sure you take sufficient medications with you. If you have your normal medications, you are less likely to have to get new supplies in your destination country. And, if you take a list of your medications with you, including their generic names; finding a pharmacist that understands these medical terms avoids some of the communication problems. If your destination country is one that recommends certain immunizations, make sure you get them before you leave your country.

Third, you can decide that you will only visit countries that speak your language. OK, admittedly this limits somewhat your destinations. If you speak French, English, Portuguese, or Spanish as a native language, you can travel to many more areas of the world and be understood than say someone who only speaks Swahili. There are numerous countries that at one time were under the domination of countries speaking these languages, and most continue to use these languages at least as a second language.

Fourth, check for the availability of health professionals speaking your language prior to your trip. Many countries have doctors who were trained outside of their country and many of these are fluent in English and other major languages. Costa Rica and Panama are noted for their abundance of English Speaking doctors, many trained in the United States and England. In the case of many of the countries that emphasize medical tourism (whether in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Asia, or the Middle East) this is also true.

I am not suggesting that you be overcautious or expect the worst. I do suggest however that if you are going to spend much time in a country that you carefully consider the above recommendations. Getting sick in a country where neither you nor the health professional speak the others language is not good for your health.

The average male or female in 2010 who has already lived to age 65 and is healthy stands a good chance of living another 20-30 years. That is the same amount of time that most of them spent raising their families and developing their careers. So, statistically they have 20-30 years to enjoy their retirement years.

How these individuals choose to live those additional years is not only dependent on their income and savings, but on the quality of life that they aspire to have in those remaining years. They can choose to sit and vegetate or spend their time exploring the educational and geographical areas they never had time for prior to their retirement.

My inclination leans toward the second option, exploring areas of life I missed during my work years. I love cruises, so I did a little research on the costs of actually living on a cruise ship for an extended period of time. Doing so may be more economical than you imagined.

Economical cruises for a seven day cruise can start as low as $500.00 to well over $2,000 depending on the cruise line and its amenities. Some cater more to the partying crowd, while others cater to the sophisticate crowd. You know which category you fit into. For a one year travel itinerary, at these prices, for 52 weeks of cruising your cost would range from $26,000 to over $100,000. Most people would choose something in between the two extremes, so figure on roughly $52,000 a year or $1,000 per week.

Now, let’s take that amount and compare it with room and board at a retirement home or care facility. Between the end of 2004 and early 2010, the costs of such facilities increased from approximately $192.00/day to $224.00/day, rounded off annually to $70,000 per year in 2004 and $80,000 per year in 2010. This amount does not include any specialized care or medicines, but neither does the cruises.

Assuming you are healthy and enjoy travel, look at some of the additional benefits you could have by living on a cruise ship.

• Cruising year round can be cheaper than a retirement home - room & board is included.
• You can go anywhere in the world that a cruise line goes.
• You can travel around the world in your normal process of living.
• You can be in a different country several times a week and see more of them each trip.
• You never have to worry about preparing your next meal.
• You have built in room service.
• Your entertainment is already paid for.
• There is always someone available for socializing.
• Emergency medical treatment is readily available.

If this scenario interests you, you can plug in your own personal and financial circumstances to calculate the advantages and disadvantages to you personally. After doing my research, it seems to me that a life of cruising might be a worthwhile option, even if only for six months to a year or two.

How many times have you said to yourself upon thinking about a previous travel experience: ” I can still “____” every time I think about “____”. Fill in the first blank with “smell”, “taste”, “see”, or ” hear” and the second with any location you have visited in the past. Your fives senses have just acted as triggers to an instant recall of your travel experience. It happens to all of us.

My first experience abroad was Mexico. I was nineteen years of age, had just finished my first year in the University, and was going to spend the summer with the family of a student friend of mine. My first night in Nogales, Mexico my friend’s brother took me to eat at an outside dining area next to the Plaza de Toros (bullring). I had not had any previous experience whatsoever of Mexican culture — not in any form.

As the mariachi bands began to play, it sent chills up my spine. My youthful spirit of adventure took over. I don’t remember what we ate, but to this day I still have the same excited feeling when I hear a mariachi band play. No other Latin music does that to me, even though I have spent time in many Latin countries since that time. It was that first Mexican musical experience that now triggers pleasant thoughts of the experience every time I hear mariachi music.

One of the oddest recall triggers for me is eating a banana with a vanilla wafer. That combination never fails to bring up vivid pictures of the countryside of Southern India. Now, you don’t normally associate bananas and vanilla wafers with India, so why would I think of India? Why not think of India while eating curried food?

The answer is simple but enlightening. I was traveling with a group of American educators in Southern India and as part of the educational experience, we were visiting numerous local villages, some of which had previously had little contact with Americans. Frequently the villagers would greet us with a group of musicians and lead us into the village playing the local music.

So, why bananas and vanilla wafers as a trigger? Why not the music like in Mexico? The one common element as we went from village to visit was that in all of these villages we were offered bananas and vanilla wafers (they called them by the British term, biscuits), as soon as we arrived. So, the bananas and vanilla wafers became a trigger to help me remember the music, people, and cultural experiences. You never know what your trigger will be? I didn’t plan it that way. It just happened.

While going through international travel (or even local) experiences, we can’t always anticipate what the trigger for remembering that experience will be. The things that are the most obvious to us while living the experience may never be remembered while some smell, taste, sound, or sight which seemed insignificant at the time may become the trigger to reliving many joyful memories. They could also be the trigger for negative memories, but let’s not dwell on that possibility.

Wherever you travel, try always to include as many sensory experiences as you can. Taste the new foods, listen to the new music, and carefully look at the new sights. You never know which of your sensory experiences will later trigger the cherished memories.

So what are some the countries I recommend for an expatriate traveler?  In Central America, you have Panama, usually in the top 5 in all lists.  It is my top choice and one in which I personally intend to spend significant time in the coming years.  In addition, you have Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Nicaragua.  In South America you have Argentina, Ecuador and Uruguay frequently mentioned and in some lists Brazil is included.

If you plan your itinerary carefully, you can maximize your experience in each country just by utilizing the tourist visa.  I have researched and listed below the times that a person can reside in each country as a tourist.  For those countries that allow up to 90 days either without a visa or with a tourist visa, you could easily spend a year spread out over four different countries.  This would give you ample time to become acquainted with each country.

Central America

* Panama allows a tourist 90 days.

* Belize allows a tourist 30 days which can be renewed each month thereafter for $25/month up to 6 months.

* Costa Rica: Outside of transit passengers, the need for and time allowed for a tourist visa varies from up to 30 days to 90 days. For U.S. citizens and those of over a dozen other countries, no tourist visa is required for stays of up to 90 days.

* Guatemala: Citizens of the U.S., E.U. countries, Australia, Canada & Japan can stay in the country for up to 90 days without a visa.

* Nicaragua: Tourist visa not required for U.S. Citizens for up to 90 days. Others need to check for your country.

South America

* Argentina: Tourist visa is valid for 90 days and is renewable.

* Brazil: Tourist visa valid for 90 days, extension of 90 days up to 6 months.  Maximum of  6 months in a twelve months period.

* Ecuador: Tourism visa valid for three months.  Can extend to 90 more days in Quito and Guayaguil.  They also have a volunteering visa (have to be volunteering with a non profit organization) for up to one year.

* Uruguay: U.S. citizens do not need a visa for less than 90 days. Others need to check for your country.

Just by using a tourist visa — or no visa in those countries that do not require a tourist visa — U.S. citizens could spend over two years outside of the United States without even having to renew one visa.  Citizens of other countries have similar times but would need to verify the requirements for themselves.

What if you could have your own personalized travel guide by Offbeat Guides which contained all the information you needed for the trip but without a lot of unneeded information.  Doesn’t that sound a lot better?

Well, you can. And the cost is in line with what you would probably being paying anyway for your travel research materials.  For less than the cost of many generalized travel guides, you can have one made to order for you and your trip.

And, the simplicity is stunning.  In five easy steps which can be done in under 5 minutes, you can order a travel guide personalized for you and specific to your planned trip.  You simply provide your destination, your current locations, your name, your travel dates, and if you know already, where you will be staying.  With this information a book with 100’s of pages of information is customized for you and your trip.

If this interests you,  check out their website and look over a sample guide.

This created quite a political stir, especially among those who are strong on immigrants to our country learning English.    Well, there just might be some truth to his statement.   There are some projections that show within the next generation more than 50% of the United States population will speak Spanish. So, apart from any political and emotional issues, learning Spanish might be to everyone’s advantage.

Travelers in particular can increase their enjoyment of their foreign visits by being able to communicate, even at an elementary level with the “natives”.   With Spanish being spoken in most countries in Central and South America (our closest neighbors),  learning Spanish would not only be an asset here but abroad as well.

I started learning Spanish on my own through a language record course (yes, I am old enough to remember records), and followed it up by formal classes and a summer’s stay in Mexico.  I polished up the language by spending a year living in Puerto Rico.

If you want to improve your communication in your travels and your daily contacts here in the United States, learning Spanish is an excellent way to do it. And, if you really get good at it, you will be amazed at how you even think differently.  To a great extent how we view our external world is  shaped by the grammatical structure of our native language.   Learning a second or third language expands our world view.

Having had the experience of learning the basics of Spanish on my own, I know that it is possible to do it through self-taught courses. If you get serious about learning Spanish I would recommend that you check out the course “Rocket Spanish Premium” .  Mauricio has included some of the latest language learning techniques in his course.  It can be purchased both in a downloadable internet version and a hard copy containing a 25-CD set.

Officially the United States does not allow dual citizenship.   This is stated clearly in the following section of the U.S. citizenship oath:

“I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreigh prince, potentate, state or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen”

Some countries, like Canada, choose to ignore this renunciation and consider the new U.S. citizen as a citizen still of Canada also.

Why have dual citizenship?  For most people, it is not relevant.  For others it may be important because of the different regulations on right to work,  vote, or have property rights in these second countries.    Being a dual citizen can have beneficial consequences or may create dual headaches.  Whether being a dual citizen is right for you can only be answered by you and your circumstances.   If you think having a dual citizenship is something that would work for you, check with an attorney that specializes in such matters.   It is definitely not a “do-it-yourself” project.

“Closed Loop” Cruises: U.S. citizens who board a cruise ship at a port within the United States, travel only within the Western Hemisphere, and return to the same U.S. port on the same ship may present a government issued photo identification, along with proof of citizenship (an original or copy of his or her birth certificate, a Consular report of Birth Abroad, or a Certificate of Naturalization). Please be aware that you may still be required to present a passport to enter the foreign countries your cruise ship is visiting. Check with your cruise line to ensure you have the appropriate documents.

If you travel on a cruise from Miami to Los Angeles, you will still need your passport.  But if you take a round-trip cruise from Los Angeles to the Mexican Riviera, even though you stop in Mexico, you don’t need a passport.

It is always best to carry your passport with you.   You never know when you might need it.  It is still the best form of identification a traveler can carry.

You can plan or book your next cruise by internet at my personal travel agent site (come browse around).

Relax in a comfortable campsite;  Serenity Campground in Mentone, Alabama; in the middle of an azalea covered landscape, with fishing lake, easily accessible RV and tent camp sites, volleyball courts, and horseshoe pits. Every season brings new natural delights. Explore the surrounding areas; DeSoto State Park, Little River Canyon, Ft. Payne, Alabama; (home of the “Alabama Boys” singing group), the quaint historical town of Mentone, Alabama with less than one thousand inhabitants (451 in 2000 census), or range a little farther out to Lookout Mountain area near Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Serenity Campground is located in a quiet wooded setting with reasonable rates, RV connections (water and power: 20, 30 & 50 amp) and tent sites with water and power. It has a covered picnic pavilion with power, lights, fans, water, and fire pit. It also has a bath house, horseshoe pits, sandbox for the kids, a volleyball court and a dump station.

It is on a private lake for fishing where no license required.