Backpacking in a foreign country generally requires you to do a lot of walking.  These tips will help you get the most of your time on foot.

1. Do not put money or valuables in back pockets.  Front pockets are a little safer, but still not encouraged.  Most likely, you are going to be pegged as a tourist, so just try not to act like one by having your rectangular shaped wallet hang halfway out of your back pocket like at home.  It will get picked.
2. Walk up hill to start when you start exploring.  If you are just out to see the city, and have no particular place to go, walk up hill in the mornings.  This does two things.  First, it allows you to have downhill walks when you’re tired at the end of the day.  The second advantage is that it gives you another sense of direction.  You know you were at an intersection, but you forgot which way you turned?  If you always choose uphill, you can find your way back by simply going downhill.
3. When you see a street vendor, purchase their food.  This is an unwritten rule while I travel.  I want to experience the food the locals eat, and anytime I see a street cart selling food, I purchase something.  It’s always cheap and most of the time it’s better than overpriced tourist lunch specials.
4. Avoid wearing sandals or flip-flops in busy and dangerous areas, you may need to make a quick getaway or run to avoid getting hit by a bus.  I learned this the hard way in Amsterdam.  Walking around in sandals and not paying attention to the fact I was standing over train tracks, I had to quickly get out of the way, but my sandal came off easily and I had to hop away in one sandal and one bare foot.
5. Try not to use a map, and if you must, make sure it’s small.  Nothing pegs you like a tourist more than unfolding the giant map.  Don’t be afraid to get lost, ditch the map and ask a local if you need directions.
6. Unless you are a serious photographer, take a camera small enough to carry in a front pocket or small travel bag.  You will get fewer people staring at your all the time.
7. Find a bench in a crowded park and observe.  The theory behind travel is to see and experience the culture.  Don’t get so caught up with an itinerary that you forget to observe.
8. Talk to as many locals as you can.  They always have the best advice on food, hotspots and shortcuts.  You will always learn something you didn’t know.
9. When you find a city loaded with street traffic, and you need to cross the street, most likely there isn’t going to be any form of an organized crosswalk.  So in order to dodge the Vespas and dented cars, walk with confidence, most importantly do not hesitate as drivers will not purposely run you over.  Generally, I just aim for the back bumper of a car, if I can do that, then it gives the car behind him the most time to react to my crossing and not run me over.
10. Relax and enjoy the experience.  So many “tourists” get caught up trying to do too much and see too many sites.  Find a good bar and have a relaxing drink for two or three hours. Backpackers know this.

So many backpackers I know who care about their budget are always coming up with good eats, maybe more importantly, good eats cheaply. While most of the time it will depend on where you are travelling, and the resources available, Ramen and Tuna is a cheap and filling meal. Me and a buddy were eating this just about every other day in the Dominican Republic. We got lucky by staying in a hostel that had a microwave. After that, it’s pretty simple nuke the ramen noodles first in a bowl, then lay out on a plate and throw on your canned tuna. Heat it up quickly in the microwave and then mix. You will be full before you finish, and best of all, it’s usually no more than a $1.00 - $1.25 per meal. It’s really all about using the resources around you, find out what your hostel has, and from there, go track down ingredients. If a hostel has no refrigerator, no microwave and even more importantly, no utensils…you’re eating out. I found a very well done ramen blog created by Matt Fischer, that has numerous ramen recipes for anyone interested.

Rum and Coke my friend….Rum and Coke. Otherwise known as a cuba libre (more lime juice is usually involved though). Travel to any bar and order one it will cost you at least twice as much as what you can make one yourself.

Gathering the ingredients is easy. There is hardly a country on this planet that doesn’t have readily available Coca-Cola, and rum is generally not too far behind. The hardest part is usually finding a glass in the hostel. To save yourself money, buy a small bottle of rum from a grocery store or corner market when you first arrive. Packing rum on a plane is not a good idea and it will usually be confiscated. A small bottle won’t cost you all that much if you buy local product. From there, any time you want a good drink, just go find a cold coke. If your hostel has a refrigerator that makes it even cheaper, as usually you will end up paying a little more for a cold can or bottle than buying off a shelf of room temp. I usually put about a small shot in a glass and just fill the rest with coke. If you desperately desire lime, pick one up from a local vendor as it won’t be all that much. Some of my favorite nights are just hostel bumming with fellow travelers sharing cheap drinks.

I thought I would continue the water bottle article with a slight offshoot just briefly mentioned. Flavor Packets. Flavor Packets are the newest additions to my pack while traveling. Drinking water saves a lot of money, and when you get tired of plain old water, it helps to have a low cost alternative available wherever you go. In addition to cost, it’s never a bad idea to lay off the soft drinks and chug the agua. That’s where these flavor packets come in handy.

The typical flavor packet can be used for about 12-20 ounces of water, depending on how strong you want it. A few different companies make these flavor packets and the number of flavors has dramatically increased.

Crystal Light is kind of leading the way with marketing, and at last check they had 12 flavors available. Great Value also makes a cheaper alternative. Kool-Aid and Lipton are also just entering the market as well. Lipton seems to be pushing their green tea, which I have yet to try. Kool-aid obviously has kid friendly flavors such as tropical punch, cherry, grape, and orange. Actually, when you think about it, Kool-Aid has been doing this for years, now, they just put it in a smaller packet and call them singles. Airborne is a new provider as well, trying to corner the immune conscience consumer, and marketing it as a dietary supplement.

I added these to the packing list because they almost force me to drink more water, which saves money, and they are so small and can pack anywhere with no problem or worry about additional weight. The downside I suppose would be the cost, I just know that buying things in smaller quantities is never a good value. So, for the extreme shoe-string budget traveler, think about buying a larger supply, or see what’s available in your kitchen, and instead of individual packets, dump the powder in a 35mm film case. Those hard plastic, well sealed containers are small and sturdy and can probably hold the equivalent of 3-5 flavor individual flavor packets.

The way I see it…there are two choices for packing the liquid. Cheap bottle vs. Nalgene bottle. Where you will be traveling is also something to consider….does your destination have potable water (okay to drink) or non-potable (drink at your own risk). Most of the time you visit a third world country, there is no need to carry a Nalgene bottle since you will need to buy it bottled anyways. But a reusable Nalgene bottle can come in handy when you have access to good water and a hostel refrigerator.

Bottled water. Be aware that water manufacturers make water with and without carbonation….I hate carbonation, and about gagged when I accidentally purchased it. Look for Sin Carbonacion (Without Carbonation) if you want “regular” drinking water.

Why Nalgene? Simple. They are head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to providing a durable plastic easy access bottle that does not have any effect on the taste of the liquid. Plus….they make a flask….that should say enough. If you are interested in learning more about Nalgene…here is their site.

Water Bottle Tips:
Airlines will not allow any liquids to be carried through security, so start off with an empty bottle and find a water fountain while you’re waiting for the plane.

Look for flavor packets or “On the Go Packets” if you want to actually get some taste to your agua (that’s Spanish for water;). Crystal Light makes some as does Water Sensations. I have seen these available overseas, but not that often.

Most Nalgene bottles have a loop or eye that you can use to attach to your pack, but if you want to get a handle on a regular bottle, use some small 2 or 3 mm perlon cord to tie around the neck of the bottle using it as a strap. The cord also allows you to reuse it for the next bottle. All in all, this cord comes in handy for many things.

What do you need to power up overseas? This article will answer that question. By the way, there is nothing fun about electricity…in fact…it’s quite boring, but I’ve done the research to make this part of your packing a little less time consuming.

The Lingo
Adapter (Plugs) - This is the piece that takes one countries plug and adapts it into another countries plug.
Converter (Transformers) - This is the piece that changes the voltage (coming out of the wall) that certain electronics might need to operate. There are two types…Step Up and Step Down. Obviously Step Up converters takes the voltage from 110-125 up to 220-250. Hence, Step Down converters does the opposite.

What To Do
Step #1 Check your electronic equipment before you go to see if you even need a converter. The idea here is to match the countries voltage to the electronics voltage requirements. For instance, most laptops will say they run on anywhere from 100 volts to 240 volts, and displayed as Input: 100V - 240V. In this case you do not need a converter. If you have an MP3 device that only runs on 110-125V, and the outlet is 225-250V, you need a step up converter.