As mentioned in an earlier post, Paula and I each purchased a Pacsafe MetroSafe 200 Anti-Theft Shoulder Bag when we started to travel overseas on a regular basis.

We just wanted to feel that our belongings were secure and even though the bags cost quite a bit more than an average handbag, we felt the cost was well and truly justified.

We found that the Pacsafe MetroSafe 200 handbag to be perfect in everyway when you are traveling.

There is plenty of room to hold everything a traveler needs on a daily basis,  a guide book, maps, digital camera, phone, iPod, note pad, keys, pens, credit cards, cash, hat/gloves, and small water bottle.

There are 4 anti-theft features to help protect your valuables:

The shoulder strap has slashproof, 840D ballistic nylon, high tensile, stainless steel wire and  it clips around a secure fixture to prevent it being snatched.

There are  eXomesh slashguard front and bottom panels and tamperproof zippers so everything is kept safe and secure.

There is also a:

• secure, zippered main compartment,
• secure zippered front pocket,
• rear pocket with concealed zipper, key clip, pen holder, headphone port
• 2 external pockets  for holding water bottles etc

The bag is easy to clean you simply spot clean with warm water and mild detergent, air-dry in shade.

This bag also comes in sage (green) and chocolate brown as well as the always servicable black.

We have had our bags for a number of years now and thoroughly recommend them and they are a worthwhile purchace for all women travelers and especially those traveling alone.

CLICK HERE to buy the Pacsafe Metrosafe 200 Anti-Theft hand bag.

If you are a traveler, you know that safety is important to enjoying your trip. This is even more so the case if you travel alone.

Here are some tips to keep in mind to enjoy your solo travels:

Knowledge Network – Make sure you leave a detailed itinerary at home with family or close friends. Set a schedule to check in with them on a regular basis and make sure they know which authorities to call if they have not heard from you in a set amount of time.

Don’t Announce It – No one needs to know you are traveling alone. If they do know it, they may pick you out as a target. This is especially the case for women.

Don’t Look Lost – Instead of looking at maps and seeming like a lost person, always leave your hotel, restaurant or other location looking like you know just where you are going and walk with determination. If you get lost, try to get to a safe place before figuring out how to continue on safely again.

Clothing – Try not to dress like a target. Wearing flashy clothing and expensive jewelry makes you an easy target. Try to dress more like the locals and apart from the fact you will be more comfortable wearing smart casual clothing or even just casual clothing you will look less like a tourist.

Hotel – When booking your  hotel  check out the reviews for that hotel to determine if it is located in a safe part of the city and that is near the locations you will be visiting. The less you have to walk alone the less likely you are of becoming a victim.  Unless you have selected to stay in a hotel that is definately down market, you will find that most hotels have good security and once you arrive check  the room to make sure the locks on the windows and doors are all working.

Be on guard and proactive – While you may be doing everything right, there comes a point where you may feel like you have become a target and that someone is following you. Find the nearest safe and populated place like a store or library and go inside to watch if the person is in fact following you. Sometimes paranoia can set in when you are on your own.

The key to having a safe and enjoyable trip is simple taking a few precautions and keeping your wits about you.

Paula and I purchased  Pacsafe MetroSafe  Anti-Theft Shoulder  handbags with slash proof handles. They hold every thing we need and we don’t have to be concerned bag snatchers. Also it pays to carry the bag with the handle over your shoulder and across your body so that it is securely attached to you. Anyone trying to take your bag will have to take you as well.

Keep your bag on your lap when you are dining or stop for a coffee and never walk away and leave your bag on a seat while you go to get napkins etc.

We also leave any valuables that we don’t want to carry around, in the hotel safe.

I was reading a blog today and in it was a picture of a large sink hole that had opened in the middle of the road in Guatemala.

The effect was devistating and caused the death of a father and two teenagers. Just another of those tragic stories.

It was actually reading about Guatemala that brought back childhood memories for me. Isn’t it amazing how something really simple as reading a blog can trigger off a memory.

When I was a child I remember having to write an essay on the Chicle Gatherers of Guatemala.

In my childs mind I remember thinking how great it would be to spend my days roaming the forest gathering chicle. As an adult I realise the harsh reality of what those peoples lives are really like. Children have such romantic notions about lifes realities, and rightly so.

So I researched the subject and learnt how the ‘chicleros’ would go out into the forest and tap the chicle trees so that the sap would gather into little pots that were tied to the tree. The chicle is exported to the United States and used in chewing gum.

So I did a little research to see if this is still how chewing gum is made and sure enough here is the low down:

Okay,  so Chicle is name of the gum obtained from the latex of the sapodilla tree (Manilkara zapota). This is an American evergreen which is widely cultivated in tropical regions for its fruit, which is plum-sized with translucent yellow-brown flesh. Apparently, large-scale cultivation of the tree for latex is impractical because it can be tapped only infrequently and varies widely in yield.

Chicle is collected during the rainy season from wild trees in the rain forests. Natives, called chicleros, cut gashes in the tree trunk to collect the sap which is boiled until it reaches a specific thickness and is then molded into blocks which are exported, mainly to the United States, for use in making chewing gum.

Unsystematic and excessive tapping of the sapodilla is leading to its depletion and has necessitated the increased use of chicle substitutes from other latex-producing plants.

To manufacture chewing gum, the blocks of chicle are ground, melted, and cleared in a whirling vat. Then the flavorings are added -fruits, licorice, mints, corn syrup sugar or artificial sweeteners. The gum is then rolled through sheeting machinery and chopped into sticks or into candy-coated pellets.

In today’s manufacture insoluble plastics may be mixed with or substituted for the chicle.

The United States is the major producer, exporter, and consumer, of chewing gum.

Chewing the resins from trees is believed to have been around since prehistoric times. The Native Americans chewed Spruce resin to quench their thirst. It is believed that chicle was imported into the United States through Mexico. William and Semple patented chicle gum in 1869.

So when your are chewing madly away on your next strip of chewing gum, remember the hard life of the chicleros. I know I will. I am especially fond of Airwaves, just love how it clears the sinuses.

You can read more about Guatemala: A Journey Through the Land of the Maya

Whenever Paula and I travel we stay in touch with family using our Skype accounts.

So what is Skype?

Download Skype onto your laptop or home computer and you can make free phone calls to anyone who has Skype installed on their computer.  So the only extras you need are a headset and a webcam if you want to see each other.

You can also purchase Skype credits to use on your mobile phone and this allows  you to make really, really cheap calls both locally and internationally to any phone whether mobile or home.

We have found that it is invaluable as will anyone who has spent time travelling. It is generally way too expensive to make calls from your hotel room and is only ever used as a last resort.

Pay phones are few and far between since the advent of the mobile phone and the rates are expensive.

So Skype gives you the convenience of not having to look for a pay phone or make expensive calls.

There are so many features to use:

• Calls to any mobile or phone worldwide
• Skypin numbers to have printed on your business cards or display on your website
• Call transfer
• Voicemail
• Send a fax
• SMS
• You can add the click and call button to your website so you clients can skype you
• Call forwarding for when you are away from your computer, you can divert calls to your mobile
• Record calls
• Set up a call center

I know that we find Skype invaluable.

We have found in some countries that when we make a call back home there is sometimes a delay which results in lots of  ‘can you hear me’, ‘Are you still there’, but once each party allows for the time lag the calls go without a hitch.

Skype are constantly improving and upgrading their service and you have the opportunity to rate the quality of your call plus you can participate in surveys to also have your say about the service.

It is really easy to sign up online to  Make cheap international calls with Skype .