Found in the Indian Ocean some kilometers off the east coast of Madagascar, Mauritius has a warm climate all year long though it can get very sticky in December and January. Compounding sun, sea, sand and a rich ethnic culture, Mauritius offers exactly what sun worshippers and culture lovers are looking for, for their perfect holidays.
Tourists will find the island quite an interesting place as regards to its sights, sounds and cuisine all based on the multi ethnicity of the island and its mixed population of Creole, Indians, Chinese and Europeans.
Being relatively large in size for an island, Mauritius is divided into specific districts each offering different attractions. Port Louis is the capital and offers all the hustle and bustle of city life and is even home to a china town. Mauritius attractions should not be missed!
Grand bay found in the north of the island is very common amongst tourists for its beaches, nightlife, clubs and restaurants.
If you are looking for idyllic places to enjoy the sun and warm splashes, you can go to Pereybere, Belle Mare, Tamarin, Blue Bay or Le Morne; if you are into water sports, you can check out Blue Bay for sailing and windsurfing or Tamarin and Le Morne for surfing.
Still regarding water sports, fishing can be done all around the island as well as diving or submarine safaris to enjoy the wonderful marine life of Mauritius. Those into golfing will not be disappointed in a visit to Mauritius as the island holds a number of golf courses, with one set in a stunning environment on a smaller islet off the east of the mainland.
Those who want to get involved in some green hikes will be delighted by the Black River Georges National Park which harbors patches of the remaining virgin forests of the island and is home to a number of endemic plants and birds.
For whatever reason people may want to visit Mauritius, be it for a romantic escape, honeymoon, family vacation, Mauritius will be up to each and everyone’s expectations.
The dangers of drinking and driving should be cleared spelled out to teenagers as it has been found out that drunk driving is the number one cause of deaths among youngsters aged between 15 and 24 years and so disseminating this information to them is crucial not only for their own benefit but for other drivers and pedestrians as well.
Most parents make the mistake of thinking that the subject should be discussed only when their own children start to drive. Just like everything else in life, the earlier you are taught lessons, the deeper they get into the minds and you learn to abide by them; there is no need to actually drive to realize the consequences of drunk driving.
Teenagers have to realize just what are the consequences of driving whilst drunk and the huge repercussions that these may entail upon the families and friends of someone killed in such a way. Many people focus on how drink drive insurance will become expensive but they also have to realize what it is like for families and friends to deal with someone injured in such an accident and the aftermath of living with someone in such a state. Though it may not be easy for a teenager to understand this concept, they have to be warned about real life situations.
Also, teenagers have to realize what being caught drunk whilst driving exactly means. It is essential to check out the appropriate laws regarding drunk driving and what such acts lead to. Teenagers have to be told that this irresponsibility will lead to prison if not to more devastating consequences like ruining their careers or even in getting a respectable job.
It can also happen that your teenager finds himself in such a situation that he has been out with friends and had a drink too much and has to get the car back home but unfortunately gets caught, or even calls you as he is unfit to drive and risk being chewed out by you even though you have stressed out the dangers of drunk driving. This is also an aspect that should not be forgotten and be emphasized upon before it actually happens.
When we are young, we all do stupid things but the important thing is to be always safe, understand the lesson and try to rectify our mistakes and do better the next time the same situation crops up. Your child has to realize that no matter what happens, he can count on you wherever he is, in whatever situation he is and at any time for you to help him out.
It does not however mean that you are encouraging irresponsible activities or that the mistake will go unpunished. The crucial thing to you is for him to be safe and sound and to make him realize that he made the right choice in asking for your help.
As it goes, you have to set the example for your child to follow through and hence not drive whilst drunk. Leave your keys at home and take a taxi instead when you have to go to a party which involves drinking and your child will do the same.
Raising a family can be expensive as we know but with a little organisation and careful planning you can have a family on a small budget. One thing that all families cannot go without are of course nappies. Most young children are in nappies until the age of around 2 years old but you may be lucky enough to be able to potty train by 18 months, nonetheless nappies are expensive and an essential necessity that all families will need plenty of.
How to buy nappies cheap?
Many expectant mothers make the mistake of ‘stocking’ up on nappies but this is unnecessary and can be expensive. It’s expensive because you may stock up on one brand and your child may be allergic, also babies grow very quick so they may also out grow them quicker than you think so you’ll just be wasting your money by buying too much. ‘Stocking’ up is also unnecessary as you will find that there is always a supermarket or store that has them on ‘special offer’ unless you are running there is no need to buy some ‘just in case ‘or because you ‘might need them’. Buy nappies only when you are on your last box and remember to buy one size up if your child is approaching the maximum weight of the size nappy that he or she is wearing.
Re-useable cloth nappies
One way to save money on nappies are to buy re-useable cloth nappies, they can save money on the long run but many are put off with washing and the general car of having cloth nappies. Here in England you can get money towards using cloth nappies and this is usually a big incentive for most parents to give it a go but there are many people that prefer the convenience of disposable nappies as it is the easier choice. Also as England has unpredictable weather washing and drying clothes and nappies on a regular basis can get expensive if you need to switch on the heating just so they can dry. Some people still prefer to hang out their clothes to dry as it is cheaper than having a tumble dryer as they consume a lot of electricity and can also ruin clothes if the setting is wrong.
Whichever you decide, cloth nappies or disposable remember that you can always save money if you really want to!
Before you buy a cheap car, take a good look at the insurance. Do it right and you can save some money on your insurance. How much you pay for your car insurance depends on the type of car and the owner but what many people don’t know is that there are quite a few cheap cars to insure which can work in their advantage.
For example, if you have a history of car accidents or you have run afoul of the traffic law before, then your track record will not be in your favour.
Insurance companies weigh in these factors when pricing the car insurance fee:
Before you buy a cheap car, consider the above eight factors which will affect the cost of your car insurance.
Each item on an NHS prescription costs £7.40 irrespective of their actual prices. This means that if you were to get something which costs £10, you would only pay £7.40 if it was on a prescription but the same applies if the medicine you were after costs less.
After a visit to my GP, I was prescribed an anti fungal shampoo called Nizoral and the GP said that it is available off the shelf and it would be better if I get it over the counter than her putting it on an NHS prescription. However when I went to boots, I had to pay £9.60 for the Nizoral shampoo and because I had already asked the guy to bring it over and already tendered my money, I thought it had to be same price everywhere and the GP was obviously mistaken. I was not very happy about it and decided to enquire about it later.
Onc e home, I thought I had 2 options; one was to go back to the GP and asked her to put the shampoo on a prescription and the other was to return the item to Boots and get it somewhere else cheaper. I saw that other supermarkets were selling it for £6.80 and obviously Boots was ripping me off. The problem was that on the day that I purchased the shampoo from Boots, their payment system was down and I had to pay cash and didn’t ask for any receipt because it would have taken much longer, waiting for their system to get up and running again. So I couldn’t just go back and ask for a refund without any receipts and decided to just count my losses but learn from my mistakes.
To sell this item £3 more than other places is a rip off to me because it’s nearly 33% more than what it should be. I think Boots knows that some medicines which are available over the counter will not be put on NHS prescriptions by GPs and they put up their prices to make a profit on innocent people because not many people will go back to their doctor and ask them for a new prescription or will go other places to check prices for convenience purposes and to get their medication faster.
Many teenagers will try to get their driving licence as soon as possible so that they can buy their own car and have their own mode of transport. In the UK, you are allowed to drive at the age of seventeen and although many parents will either buy a car for their children or help them with the finance aspect of it, the problem that most teenagers will face is the fact that car insurance for 17 year old drivers is extortionate and soon becomes a major hurdle and a spirit killer.
Of course once you’ve passed your driving test, you are very keen to start driving on your own but you may only do so legally if you have proper car insurance cover in place. The thought of driving uninsured will cross the mind of many young drivers and there are valid reasons for this. First of all, you’ve just turned 17 and you don’t want to spend a fortune on your first car. So you get a vehicle that’s pretty cheap, say for less than £1500. Now when you start hunting for a decent 17 year old car insurance quote, you find the prices ridiculous expensive especially for that particular car make/model that you’ve purchased and you think to yourself that this can’t be right because it’s a used car after all, not a new one. But when you keep searching, you discover that no insurer is willing to offer you a decent car insurance quote and the cheapest that you’re getting is £4000 which is well over twice the amount of money you’ve paid for your car.
It is then that reality strikes and the hope of driving your own car starts to vanish. No wait, don’t just give up yet. Surely there must be a way to get a 17 year old driver insured at a rather decent premium, no? Well things are tough in the insurance sector and especially with so many people driving without a licence, the insurers have had to increase quotes a lot for all drivers and you being a new driver with no NCD (no claims discount), your chances are already limited.
So what can you do? Put it this way, you’re a young driver, 17 of age, and just like it’s difficult for a job seeker without experience to get a decent job, you will find it hard as well to get a reasonable car insurance quote, no matter what car make/model you’re trying to insure. The best thing for you to do is build up your driving experience and no claims bonus so that in 1 or 2 years’ time, you pay a fraction of what you’ll be paying now.
You may have noticed that many retailers now offer a price matching guarantee to many products they have to offer.
What is price matching?
Price matching is when you see a product cheaper elsewhere and the retailer you purchased the product from at the higher price gives you a refund for the difference. For example you buy a lawnmower at Homebase for £80 but find the same thing at B&Q for £70.
Some places have strict requirements so you may not always be able to guarantee a price match elsewhere. Some places will state clearly that if a store is currently having a sale then they cannot price match the product.
You can always try your luck and search online as many online retailers also offer good value for money by choosing them over high street chains. Print out the webpage and take it along to a retailer where you can get the cheaper price rather than the store price.
I have also found that some stores are charging online customers less than what is advertised in store. For example a little while ago I wanted to purchase windows 7 but in store it was selling for £30 more than online. When I queried this I was told that I should have ordered it online and picked it up free in store, but they do not offer this option to do this online for this particular product. Luckily the manager in store accepted to price match the online price and I got it £30 cheaper.
Price matching is a good way of saving money before and after purchase as you usually have up to 30 days claim back. You can use price matching before you buy as a precautionary measure, for example I wanted to purchase a car seat from Mothercare but found it cheaper elsewhere. The cheaper deal was with a company I was not familiar with but Mothercare agreed to price match and I saved £50 on my new car seat.
You can use online comparison sites to price match too, so if you go to Asda but find that Tesco is offering the same product for less you can go to customer services who will be more than happy to give you the difference back or deduct it from their current sale price.
Since the launch of the iPhone it looks like most people have converted and started using Apple instead. Then with the launch of the iPad many decided to fall into this trend too using it for various reasons but what happens when you let your children play ‘free’ games on your iPhone or iPad? Apple created many apps that are free to download and use the most popular ones being free games that can be enjoyed by both children and adults. I have noticed how people with children happily hand over their mobile phone to their kids to keep them from having a tantrum but what happens is in time they realise that there is so much they can do on mobile phones nowadays that parents simply give in to their children.
Apple ‘free games apps’
There have been a few reports that were released last year as many parents who own an iPhone or iPad were shocked to see that their bill was up to £200 more than it should be. After calling their bill provider it was found that the so called ‘free games’ were racking up huge bills unbeknown to the mobile phone owner and bill payer. Games such as Smurfs, Tap Zoo and Zombie Farm are the worst offenders when it comes to charging and as children don’t understand they unknowingly purchase items that they think is just a game.
You may wonder how it’s possible for children to make such a mistake but the problem was because if you had previously entered your password then it gets saved and you don’t need to enter it again so children are free to purchase things in their gaming session. Apple has now changed the security settings so that you need to enter a password each time you need to make an in-app purchase.
I for one do not understand why children need to have access to such expensive gadgets when they have toys and other consoles to keep them entertained. All Apple products are expensive costing hundreds of pounds and if parents are stupid enough to let their children play with them then it’s their own fault!
With more and more people turning to the internet to make purchases there are many things you need to look out for to make sure it is safe. I have been shopping online to make the majority of my purchases for the last 8 years but internet security has improved a lot in the last three alone.
How to stay safe with online shopping?
Most people shop online for convenience, now you can order and have items sent to your workplace, a long time ago you couldn’t set up an address book with different addresses so you could choose someone who would be home to sign for your delivery. You also needed to pay additional charges if you were not home when a courier came to deliver your goods, now most places try to re-deliver up to 3 more times for free, then they charge you if they are unsuccessful.
Some people shop because they find a reputable website that sells goods for a competitive price so instead of driving to a store to buy what you need without any guarantee its in stock you can order it online for home delivery or check stock and reserve it for in-store collection. Those who have commitments such as childcare or are carers also find it useful to be able to order anything they want online and have it delivered.
PayPal is also a safe way to pay with many online retailers signing up to use this as a method of payment. If you were to have any problems with a company you can get your money back quicker than if you used a debit card.
There are so many personal blogs on the web with people writing firsthand what they experienced, there are also other websites that are for reviews only and are unbiased and written by those who are happy or unhappy and want to share their view with other potential customers.
As April approaches prescription charges are bound to increase again as they have done every year. As the rest of England are penalised and have to continue to pay for life saving prescriptions Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish residents do not need to pay a penny. Scotland has just announced that they plan to scrap the prescription charges so that all their residents will be entitled to free NHS drugs regardless of age, status and employment.
The rest of England will have to continue paying for prescriptions that cost £7.20 for each item dispensed. There are some people who are not usually ill and don’t have to worry about the cost of medicines as they rarely visit the doctor. In some cases if the doctor finds that it will cost too much money for the patient they advise buying over the counter instead as most items are usually available both on and off prescription.
Save money with a pre-payment certificate?
If you find that you need NHS drugs on a regular basis and cannot buy them over the counter where it is sometimes cheaper you may have heard of a pre-payment certificate. Available for 3 or 12 months you are covered for the duration the certificate is valid for, no matter how many times you need a prescription.
A 3 month certificate costs £28.25 and will only benefit you if you need four or more items within three months. A 12 month certificate costs £104.00 and will only benefit you if you need more than 14 items in 12 months. I personally need 4 inhalers a month at a cost of £28.80 by purchasing a PPC I will save as much as £58.15 for a 3 month PPC alone or £241.60 for a 12 month PPC.
If you find that you become ill all of a sudden and require medicines on a regular basis you can pay for your medicines but ask for a receipt and refund form FP57 you must do this at the time the medicines are being dispensed and not a later date. You then have up to 3 months to claim the money back if you go on to purchase a PPC, just be sure to back date it to the date you had to pay for prescriptions so you can obtain a refund.
There are exemptions such as if you are under 18 and in full time education, over 60, have a low income, are pregnant and certain other medical conditions. If you fall into these categories then you do not need to pay, you can get help if you think you need it by contacting the NHS or asking your GP for advice.