Czech, Czech, Czech it out!

In my first google search the title "Best banks for travellers" quickly found millions of sites of people asking the same question. Most were outdated or unhelpful each responder suggesting a different bank. I began by comparing the names of three banks that came up the most frequent in all these sites; Chase, HSBC and Charles Scwab. There were downsides and upsides to all these as I found when I first searched the websites. I called each one asking for specifics and looking for someone to really tell me what would be best for my situation.

#1

I first called Chase: #713-262-1679
I would open the College Checking as it has no monthy service fee for students, yay!
FREE Chase Debit Card
• FREE Online Banking and Bill Pay
• FREE Chase MobileSM banking1
• FREE Account Alerts1
• FREE Access to more than 16,500 Chase ATMs and 5,300 branches nationwide

Minimum Deposit to Open
• $25
No Monthly Service Fee
• If enrolled in college for up to five years;
• OR, with monthly direct deposit
Otherwise a $6 monthly Service Fee

However, I found that they charge you extra when you don't use a Chase bank and they also charge extra fees on top of Visa fees when withdrawing and using your debit card abroad.

#2

I then called HSBC and found that there is an HSBC branch in Prague, wahoo! And as long as I withdraw from this bank, I won't get any fees. However, if I don't use this bank I'll get a charge of $2.50 no matter how much I pull out-there also might be additional charges from the bank I use that is not HSBC. ALSO, there is a 3% charge on daily transactions (just using the debit card at a coffee house for example). HSBC aslo uses Mastercard which has higher fees than visa in these daily transactions.

#3

Third times the charm-Charles Schwab Bank.
The trick to this is to open a Checking Account linked to Brokerage Account. Just a normal Checking account with incur charges abroad but the Checking Account liked to Brokerage Account (CABA, im calling it) offers no minimums to open and no monthly charges. The best part? You get reimbursed for those transaction fees when you withdraw from a bank other than Schwab AND they don't charge any thing on daily debit transactions (so you'll just pay the visa ones you can't avoid but nothing over that). Biggest Hurdle- because they give you checks (which i'd probably use on housing payments ect.) they do a credit check :[ I'm 20 and took out some student loans through fasfa but nothing more, meaning I don't have credit history. BUT- I was going to put my mom on my bank accounts and give her power of attorney (meaning she can put money in, take it out ect ect). I can avoid a credit check by opening up a joint account with my mom-which isn't a big deal since I was going to put her on my accounts. All I have to do know if fill out the paperwork and get it notarized by the bank location here in Reno. I'll have to move fast though so I get my card by the time I leave! Wish me luck!

Hope this info helped if you are looking into switching banks, leave comments if you've found a bank thats right for your travelling ;]

So here it is, my list of things to do before I leave as well as an updated packing list. This is, of course, a first draft and I hope to get more specific about each item and how much I'll be taking with me. Unlike other travellers, I have both the opportunity to mail things to my apartment in Prague before I leave and buy things when I get to Czech Republic! I have added a list of these things that I won't be taking with me but will need/recieve when I get there. On another note, Christmas was a wild success! I recieved many of the things I needed included odd emergency items like travel duct tape from Magellans and emergency toilet paper. I got an awesome backpack from REI as well as a whopping $100 to spend toward iTunes which is incredibly helpful! Other things I have caught up on- Teach mom to work Skype, check! Transfer music to Google Music in case of crash or robbery, check! and Update my blog, CHECK! It's about get wild...

To-Do before Prague:
• Get plane ticket
• Extend insurance
• Prague Packing List
• Get Address in Arrival Update
• Apply to Doyle
• Sharetalk
• Put mom on bank accounts
• Switch banks
• Up withdrawal limit
• Sign-up frequent flyer miles
• Buy calling card
• Sew Canada patch
• Sell parking permit
Money
• Get local currency ($50-100)
• Get new ATM card and pin
• Theft insurance?
• Inform banks leaving country
• Put together a budget for time abroad

Documents to Copy- put on USB drive to save room!
• Resume and work references - Don't forget these if you are planning to work while travelling
• All medical documents (vision)
• All emergency contacts
• Friend and family contacts for calling/emailing
• Visa
• Front and back of atm cards
• ID
• Flight Itinerary
• Arrival update
• Passport photos

To Bring in Carry-on
• USB drive of all important documents
• First Aid Kit
• Guidebooks
• Inflatable travel pillow
• Earplugs
• Batteries
• Books/
• Bottled water
• Camera, film and batteries - Spare flash cards or memory for digital
• Carbohydrate snacks
• Chewing gum or mints - Especially if you are flying chewing something will help your ears
• iPod, MP3 player, Discman etc. - Including music and batteries
•
Essentials
• Backpack, suitcase, sports bag (something to pack everything in)
• Paper or Notebook
• Passport (check validity!)
• Pencils, Pens
• Tickets and itinerary (airline, train, bus, accommodation bookings etc.)
• Visa
• Travel Insurance (and why you need it!)
Finances
• ATM card (Maestro or Cirrus logos on the back are most widely accepted)
• Calculator or currency converter
• Cash in the local currency of your arrival destination
• Money belt (You can't be too safe in some places)
Clothes
• Boots
• Bra (sports and regular)
• Dress shirts
• Dresses
• Jacket
• Jeans
• Jumper, sweater or fleece
• Light jacket
• Long or thermal underwear
• Long sleeve shirts
• Pants or trousers
• Pyjamas/Sleepwear (Member's tip)
• Sandals, shower shoes, thongs or jandals
• Sarong or Lava lava
• Shoes
• Shorts
• Running clothes
• Skirts
• Sneakers
• Socks
• Suits
• T-shirts, singlets
• Underwear
Clothes Accessories
• A good hat
• Bandana
• Belt
• Cotton handkerchief or tissues
• Eye-mask
• Gloves or mittens
• Jewelry
• Knitted (woollen) hat
• Raincoat or poncho
• Safety pins
• Scarf
• Sewing kit
• Sunglasses
Toiletries
• Anti-bacterial cream
• Comb or brush
• Condoms and/or contraceptive pills
• Contact lens equipment or glasses
• Dental floss (also great for fixing things!)
• Deodorant
• Fingernail clippers
• Hair products (gel, spray etc.)
• Lip balm
• Make-up
• Mirror
• Moisturiser (face and body)
• Nail file
• Soap
• Talcum/baby powder - Useful against prickly heat, in shoes, on sticky zippers and more (Member's tip)
• Toothbrush
First Aid Kit
• Sleeping pills-Advil PM
• Emergency Toilet paper (Member's tip)
• Band aids
• Compression bandages
• Diarrhoea tablets
• Insect and/or mosquito repellent
• Iodine/hydrogen peroxide
• Motion sickness tablets
• Paracetemol, Tylenol etc.
• Replacement/rehydration salts sachets
• Fishing line - Strongest string in the world! (Member's tip
• Sewing Kit
• Tweezers
• Duct tape - Fixes everything! (Member's tip)
• Vitamin pills
• Water purifying tablets
• Yellow Fever certificate or International Certificate of Vaccination (Member's tip)
• Wet wipes/Baby wipes - Handy for cleaning hands or washing yourself in absense of a shower (Member's tip)
• Ziplock bags - The freezer ones are usually the best
•
Other Items
• Combo or key locks
• Compass
• Diary or organiser
• Electrical adapter and plug converter
• Flashlight or torch - Don't forget the batteries
• International Student Identification Card - For discounts worldwide
• Laptop - Especially for the business travellers
• Laptop Bag
• Laundry detergent
• Mini camera tripod - Big is better if you have the space!
• Phone card - Both for local and international calls
• Phrase books or dictionaries
• Pillow or pillowcase to stuff with clothes
• Plastic bags
• Power cords and chargers for all your electrical items - Save some money on batteries
• Sleep sheet
• Swiss Army knife or Leatherman tool - Don't keep in your carry on as it will be removed
• Travel alarm clock
• Universal sink plug - Squash ball can double as one (Member's tip)
• Watch

Store-Run in Prague:
• Toothpaste
• Shampoo/Conditioner
• Q-tips
• Toilet paper
• Items for house if necessary
• Food, of course
• Umbrella
• Cell phone
• Razors
• Towel
• Cotton buds
• Eating utensils
• Buy schoolbooks and binders ect.
• Laundry Detergent

To mail to myself:
• Sheets
• Backpack
• Laundry Detergent

I have had the opportunity to travel throughout Europe and in Spain and by now I know a fair amount about how to prepare for travelling. But how do I prepare for a trip where I will be living in a foreign country and travelling in my free time? Of course I want to pack light but I want to live comfortably not out of a backpack for five months? Specially in the cold weather in Prague!

At this point I am about a month away from my trip. So I should update my audience with how I got here-planning a 5 month trip. I've always wanted to do a study abroad and knew I was going I just didn't know where and I didn't know when. After my last trip to Spain, my eyes were opened; I was more excepting to different ways of life and a part of me was lost with my new realizations of the difference between what my life was like and what I wanted my life to be like. I ended a long-term relationship and changed my life plan. I was happy I was making changes but still the American way of life seemed to be suffocating me. I felt like I needed a big change, a big experience to jump start my understanding of what I really want out of life! I chose to do it soon, that next semester and I chose Prague because I'd never been there, I heard its amazing and because before I left for Spain I knew my next trip would be to Eastern Europe. A giant bonus is that all my courses in Prague are transferable-meaning they all go towards my degree and I won't be behind in my major (International Business).

I am doing this study abroad through a program at my home university, University of Nevada, Reno. It's called USAC and I am so glad I have a resource like this. They are awesome! I feel like I have my own army behind me ready to solve my problems and squash my fears. It's so nice to travel knowing you're safe.

I also have already bought my airline ticket through the cheapest airline site I could find- cheapfares.com. It was a little sketchy because the airline doesn't take credit/debit cards. Only cash which required a money transfer. I had to get a new passport because mine would expire while I was abroad. I also applied for my first visa-its gorgeous in my passport; makes me feel so accomplished! My schedule is worked out and like I said I get credit for all my classes meaning my scholarship would help me pay! Yay! Right now I am still getting things situated. Christmas is coming up so I gave my long-list of needs to my parents hoping they feel sorry for a poor college student looking to find her way in the world :]. I still need to get registered with the state department (in case something bad happens in Czech Republic my parents will be notified), I need to change banks so I don't get those nasty charges for foreign fees, I need to put a packing list together and make a binder (usb drive?) of important files. I am still looking at plans for spring break, I have my heart set on Egypt but am fearful of the turmoil in the country. So I will see, other plans include Venice for Carnival, a trip after my program and weekend trips around Eastern Europe included a trip to Bremen, Germany where I have a friend! It's all still up in the air; plus money is an issue-I am planning a trip to Thailand in Spring 2013 with my best friend, Amanda so I want to keep a little in the bank for that!

I am still preparing for the trip but want to capture the whole experience by blogging regularly-even though I haven't left yet!

Thanks for reading!