Local or abroad, five common sensers for the business traveler… and number five is a cracker.
I have seen this stuff happen in Europe, Australia and in Thailand, it’s just essential for the business traveller to remember these key points when travelling. Avoiding number five, it might save you blood loss.
1. Beware the free wifi
‘Sniffers’ that detect your network connection can park in an alley way, tap into your connection and watch what you do. Like bank passwords, Facebook posts.
Some VERY annoying persistent pop ups would not leave the computer after staying at a hotel in Sydney. No hotel will admit their wifi could be compromised, but, like every app you install, you accept the T&C’s, which include ‘your computer may not be safe using this connection’.
On this occasion, it wasn’t.
It’s WAY better to pay the data excess of your phone locally and if overseas, buy a data sim. A virus costs a lot more to fix.
Trust me.
2. Have a data recovery plan
The phone is an LG, it’s six months old. I had a Thai SIM card in slot two, which gave me data and access to Google maps (a great way to foil a dodgy cabby). I charged it overnight and hit the treadmill, but three songs in, my music stopped. I checked the plug and it’s in.
“Have you tried turning it off and on again?”
I tried that. I tried taking the battery out, the sim out and cleaned it. But it still wouldn’t turn on and was over heating.
“Damn”, I thought. No phone when you’re away for work means no contact.
BUT I have a DRP (disaster recovery plan). $300 later and I had a passable Samsung. Hit the cloud for my account passwords, sims in and 30 minutes later, back up and running.
3. You can’t miss a flight if you get there early
Chiang Mai domestic is not the worst, but you get the drift. It was Maccas or Burger King, I copped some poo from another traveller who thought getting there two hours before was too early. It was raining, the bikes were going slow, we hit gridlock and it ended up being 90 minutes before check in. Comfortable.
I quite liked the mud on his dacks, his skanky pits and the murderous look on his face as he made it five minutes before check in closed.
4. The night before you fly out is the wrong night for a bender
Now in fairness to XXX XXXXXX (keeping him anonymous), he was doing an industry function and he was stone cold sober. And shitting himself a touch. I was sitting in an outdoor bar keeping hydrated on watered down vodka on the edge of the night market with a mate, also called XXX.
“XXX! How you doing?” I asked as she shuffled past just before 11.
“Bit shit mate. I left my bag in a car. Gotta find it, I fly out at 7.00 tomorrow. Gotta go.”
5. If you fancy a hooker, keep it on the down low
I overheard at a conference at 5.00pm on the last day:
“Well, that’s done, good work boys, time for hookers!”
“What you fancy?”
I decided not to write the answer. It was hard enough not to punch him. It was two straight guys and two gay guys. Sounded like they were discussing a beer. Yeah, it’s legal and personal choice. But details can be kept to yourself.
