When you travel abroad, credit card is the most effective method of carrying money which you. However, your present card may not be financially convenient for such use. Check on these important tips to get the things right -

1. Inform your card company about your travel as a precaution – If the card company sees use of your card at a strange place, it may suspend your account and will try to contact you. In the possibility of no contact, the credit card will remain suspended. You will never know why your credit card is refused and with this first jerk in your travel, you will have to run around for arranging money! It takes only a phone call to inform your credit card company about your travel plan.

2. Check the acceptability of the card – You should ensure that your card will be accepted in the region where you are traveling.

3. Read the cardholder agreement carefully – You should understand the fine print in the agreement. You may not have the agreement in the first place and will have to call your card issuer to get a copy. You can clear all the uncertainties about the transactions abroad.

4. Ask all your doubts to their customer service representative – This is very important because it will give you confidence while using the card abroad. There will be certain amount fees which your card issuers may charge. There may be huge fees for withdrawing cash from ATMs abroad. There is no use asking these questions when you come back. You should also know what to do when your card is lost. Also, make sure about the cover your card issuer is offering for fraudulent transactions.

5. Understand the rate of exchange – You should be clear about the basis on which your company will charge you for conversion of currency. This is a common mistake by most of the international travelers because spending becomes very expensive on an adverse rate of exchange.

6. Carry with you the contact numbers of customer service – If anything goes wrong, you should have a number to call to your card company to get help. The normal number which you use regularly may not be useful for international calls.

7. Check the expiry dates – You should check the date of expiry of your card and the limit available to you on the card. You cannot increase the limit while you are traveling.

8. Preserve all the receipts – If you are overcharged in a particular transaction, you should be able to produce a receipt is to your card company so that you can prove the details.

9. Always check carefully any bill before you sign it. If the bill is in US dollars, you may ask for the bill in the local currency of that country.

If you feel that the present card will prove expensive and inconvenient, you can switch to another card temporarily. It is very convenient feeling to swipe your card while traveling overseas, but when you come back and receive a statement from your card company, the shock should not spoil your entire travel pleasure.

Traveling abroad with ‘loaded’ credit cards is everybody’s dream. But with exorbitant fees and conversion charges, the trip may leave a bitter test at the end. How to avoid it? Well you can do it very easily. Chintamani Abhyankar provides useful tips and advice on precautions while using your credit card abroad.

The death of someone close to you could be a devastating blow. Even though it is a fact that humans die, people find it hard to accept the death of a loved one. But remember that there is nothing you can do to change this fact, and also, you should know that those who die will be accepted in God’s Kingdom. The last thing you can do for a deceased person is to deliver a eulogy speech.

A eulogy speech is a dialogue that focuses on the praising someone that has departed. It mainly talks about the person’s life and achievements. The person delivering eulogy speeches usually share their fond memories with the deceased person.

If you are asked to deliver eulogy speeches, and if you think you are not ready for it, then here are some tips on preparing and presenting eulogy speeches.

The first thing you can do before writing down the speech is to gather more information on the deceased person. Get all necessary information such as their birthday, goals and achievements that some of the people who are to attend the funeral might not know. It is also a good idea to think of some stories about the deceased person and tell it to the public. You can also add the legacy they have left behind – their family, lives they have changed, triumphs, etc. Just remember that all the things you are to say on an eulogy should be facts, not lies.

The next tip is to not make a lengthy speech. Long speeches tend to stray from the main points you want to share. All you need is to make a short enough speech that can clearly send the message that you want to during the eulogy.

When writing the eulogy speech, it is easy to focus on the person’s death, the cause of death and such information. However, this information does not make a good speech so instead, you should just focus on talking about the person’s life, particularly, the happy times you spent with them, the achievements, that that person made, and other positive things about the deceased person. Remember that everyone on the funeral feels sad, so hearing good stories can actually ease up the pain.

It is a good idea to write down all the memories you want to share on the eulogy. Most of us are not public speakers, and so, having notes will help you remember the things that you want to say. This notes will definitely guide you in to presenting a memorable eulogy speech.

Remember to practice delivering the speech for at least four or five times. This will help you know how to annunciate the speech properly. Practicing can also help ease up the pain you feel for losing a loved one and thus, feel better when you deliver it in the funeral.

As a back-up plan, have someone be ready to deliver the eulogy speech in your place. During the funeral, you might get overwhelmed by your emotions and not be able to speak in front of everyone, so having someone take your place would be a good idea.

Selling a house quick can be very tricky in the current market but do remember that there are a considerable number of people who are buying now in order to take advantage of the fallen house prices.

Keep in mind that 95% of people buying a house are after a home and not an investment or development project. For this reason they can’t see beyond the presentation. You must have heard of the popular proverb “First impression is the last impression”. You must make sure that your property makes a good first impression to your prospective buyers.

You really have to ensure your house is in an excellent order. This is a lot harder to accomplish than you may initially think. When you have been living in the house for many years it is so easy to get used to the way things are and stop noticing the important bits that outsiders see immediately. Take another look at that crack in the ceiling, or the damp patch with mould growing in the corner, or the mould in the grout around the bath or the broken drainpipe outside. All these are simple jobs to rectify but are all stored away in a potential buyer’s first impression.

Call an estate agent and ask for an appraisal. It costs absolutely nothing and you will be told exactly what areas need improving. Here is what you should look out for:

OUTSIDE

It is amazing how most people overlook this part. It really is where the first impression starts so it must be as best as it can possibly be. Make sure you mow the grass and keep the garden nice and tidy even if it is only a small garden. You can make a small garden look cosy rather than small. Only keep items which will enhance the garden. Ornaments which you may think look nice may not be to a potential buyer’s taste such as gnomes.

Have a good look at the outside walls of the house. Are they looking worn and need a little TLC? If so, call upon friends and family to give it a bit of a paint over.

INSIDE

People buying houses with the desire to turn in into a home for themselves are particularly attracted to kitchens and bathrooms. These are the two most important rooms in any house. Even if you don’t have a fantastic kitchen or bathroom you can certainly make them look more appealing by cleaning the taps and any fittings making them shine brightly. Clean all furniture with perfection and don’t forget the cupboard doors, fridge doors, microwaves, dishwashers and any other loose piece of equipment around. Make sure your stove shines.

All doors around the house must look like they are always in use. In other words, they must be well oiled. Creaking doors give a bad impression to prospective buyers. It gives the impression that the house has not been well taken care.

Plants in the right places can add vibrancy and a glow to your home. This little touch will make it feel like a home for the prospective buyers. All these simple changes will help make your house sell quick. Of course this involves some labour on your part but will make all the difference.

Alternative Option

There is an alternative option if you find you do not have the time to do all the work to the house yourself. If you are really desperate to sell your house quick you can have the option of selling it to an investor. Investors are the remaining 5% who purchase property and they don’t worry about the presentation at all.

Investors can buy your house in as little time as 10 days or even to suit your own deadline requirements. They also pay for all the legal costs. A short term sell and rent back agreement can be arranged if you find you need a little extra time after completion. Sales can be done so quickly that you find you are not ready to move. It happens a lot.

If you are selling due to financial difficulties and do not want to move but are being forced to then the sell and rent back option is definitely for you. You can take advantage of the sell and rent back scheme which will allow you to sell your house and rent it back at rents which are set to the current market rates in your area.

Buying a gift for a man means taking a moment to think about what he does in life for work and play. Men who work in or like carpentry may find a new hammer or drill useful. However, a 3D artist would have very little use for a hammer. It’s important to keep this in mind when buying a gift.

Guys who like electronics will certainly give off some kind of sign. They will usually be talking about the latest greatest thing, or be drooling over a new piece of hardware. If you don’t have time to listen then take a peek inside his den or workshop and see what’s there. If you open the door and there’s a tower of giant beeping plastic with lights on it then that probably means he likes electronics.

Another thing you need to consider is that there is a difference between electronics people and computer people. Computer people are often called packrats for all the parts they keep strewn about their homes. We can’t help it we never know when we will need them. Other men also like camcorders and other audio video electronics, and then you have gamers.

Most notably the hardest to buy for these men love their games. When buying for a gamer you have to figure out which time period of games he likes. Whether he is an older gamer or he is a modern gamer. Then you have to figure out which system and game types he likes. After all this you then need to get him something he doesn’t already have.

Keep in mind not all of us are the same. Every expert seems to think we all like starring at naked ladies and drinking beer all the time but that’s a big misconception. We are often just a sensitive about issues and as complicated inside as anyone else. Finding cool presents for men isn’t hard if you just take the time to get to know us.