A Traveler in the Foreign Service: Get paid to travel as a diplomatic courier

by Dave Seminara on

If you see an advertisement offering a chance to get paid to travel, odds are it’s a scam. But there are a few legitimate jobs that actually pay you to travel and the diplomatic courier profession is one of them. The Foreign Service has two main branches — generalists and specialists.

Generalists serve in more traditional diplomatic functions, and specialize in one of five career tracks: consular, management, public diplomacy, political and economic. Specialists also have diplomatic status but work in fields you might not associate with embassies — administration, construction engineering, facility management, information technology, international information, medical, office management and security.

The Diplomatic Courier Service is in the security branch, along with special agents who look after the security of our overseas embassies and personnel. Dale Cazier, a native of Syracuse, has been a diplomatic courier for 19 years and is currently the Deputy Director of the Diplomatic Courier Service. We spoke to Dale to get the scoop on the life of a diplomatic courier.

What does a diplomatic courier do?

We’re the only entity authorized by the federal government to carry classified information over international borders.

Do other countries have diplomatic couriers?

Yes, but not as many as we have. Right now we have about 100. But of those, about 20-25 are managers or supervisors like me.

Where have you served?

My first assignment was Frankfurt. In those days first tour couriers were given six-year assignments, now they’re usually three. After that I was based in Miami and then did two tours based in Washington.

In a good year, how many frequent flyer miles can you accumulate?

When I was based in Miami, within a year and a half, I got a million miles on American Airlines.

And you’re allowed to use those yourself, right?

Oh yes, they’re long gone now. When I first joined, you couldn’t keep your frequent flyer miles but that changed in the mid-’90s.

So how much classified cargo are you carrying on these flights?

It ranges from a piece of paper in a small orange pouch all the way up to a generator, which is massive.

What are the cities that U.S. diplomatic couriers are based in?

There are ten places; the offices vary from one-person offices to about 30. The four main regional offices are Frankfurt, Bangkok, Washington and Miami. And then there are hub offices in Seoul, Syndey, Manama, Dakar, Pretoria and Sao Paulo.When you join the service, can you express a preference of what city you want to be based in?

When you first join, you don’t get a choice. The career development officer meets with new recruits and says, ‘Here are the positions we want to fill with new recruits,’ and they can choose from those, but they don’t really bid on them.

There are a lot of pretty scary airlines in the developing world. Are diplomatic couriers required to fly on any of those airlines?

We don’t fly on those kinds of airlines if we can avoid it.

But there are some out-of-the-way posts serviced by dodgy airlines. How do you get to those places?

We try to avoid the more hazardous airlines but we don’t just fly, we also use ships, trains, whatever means of transportation is available.

But I imagine more than 90% of your trips are via planes, right?

90% is pretty close but we don’t just fly on passenger planes. We’re moving away from passenger flights toward cargo carriers.

Do you still get soft drinks and peanuts on cargo flights?

No. You’re lucky if you get a seat. Sometimes the only place to sit down is those little fold down seats. They’re about one square foot and it’s just like a piece of hard wood.

Is there time for sightseeing once you get to your destination?

There’s very little time for sightseeing. You might not arrive in a place until very late at night, and then you typically leave very early the next day to go to the next destination or back to your base.

How many days are you traveling in an average month?

You travel about 75% of the workdays in a month, so that could be 15 days or so.

Mostly day trips or do you stay overnight?

Over time that has changed. We used to go on 2-3 week trips at a time. Nowadays, most of the trips are down and back on the same day, if it can be done. That saves the taxpayers a lot of money on hotels.

O.K., so there isn’t a lot of time for sightseeing but you get loads of frequent flyer miles. But if you travel for work do you still want to fly in your off time?

When you fly day after day it can get tedious. I’d be home for a day or two and my wife would say, ‘Let’s go somewhere.’ But I’d just want to stay home.

What makes a good diplomatic courier?

The whole job is based on personal relationships and you’re completely independent. You need to be personable, flexible with different personality types. You’re always dealing with foreigners, most of whom don’t speak your language. People who can keep themselves entertained and don’t get upset easily and can make good judgments under stressful conditions do well.

And if you don’t like to fly I guess this a bad career option?

Right. And it’s not as glamorous as people think. It’s exciting and there’s lots of adventure, but it’s hard work too. If you don’t like traveling, or dealing with stress, or being on your own all the time, it’s probably not the job for you. But lots of people like it.

Ever had any close calls with foreign officials during your career?

I have. There was one time in Africa, when an official at the airport asked me what I was doing there and wanted to see my passport. Next thing I know, I was taken into a detention office.

I tried to explain my situation but he didn’t get it. So I was in a crowded room with a bunch of people I didn’t belong with. The guy told me to wait in the room but my outgoing flight was about to leave and the next flight out of the country wasn’t for another week. I didn’t want to stick around to see what they were going to do to me, so when the guy left the room I just sidled out into the hallway, very slowly, thinking that he’d catch me. I just kind of slinked over to the check in and snuck back onto my plane. But the whole time, I was expecting the security guards to come after me with their AK 47’s. When the plane took off, I was greatly relieved.

What does your passport look like as a courier?

It’s full. You have to keep getting extra pages added to your passport. My passport got huge. I had to carry about 4 passports usually, because 1-2 would always be out at embassies waiting on visas. We’d usually have a few diplomatic passports plus one regular tourist passport for situations when we didn’t want to show our diplomatic passport.

How hard is it to become a diplomatic courier?

We just brought in five new couriers in a training class, and we plan to hire nine more. We had four or five thousand applicants for 14 job openings. It’s very competitive.

Note: The State Department isn’t currently recruiting couriers, but you can sign up for an email update here, and you’ll be notified the next time there is a vacancy.

Read more from “A Traveler in the Foreign Service” here.

How to sell a campervan in New Zealand

by Kyle Ellison on

As I hope I’ve exhibited in penning the series “Freedom to Roam,” there are few better travel experiences than touring New Zealand by campervan. Trekking through the Southern Alps, exploring hidden wine regions, sampling freshly caught seafood, basking on lazy beaches — all are accessible by simply putting four wheels beneath your feet and hitting the open road.

That being said, all of that goes out the window once it comes time to sell the van. For all the monuments of relaxation, which lay scattered about the country, selling a van in New Zealand can be the most ulcer-inducing, stress-provoking, miserable existence that can surely be the worst part of your trip. It’s the price to pay for the economic gamble, and unlike most fairy tales, it doesn’t always have a happy ending.

As I discussed in the initial entry to the series, “New Zealand by campervan,” travelers can save heaps of money on long-term New Zealand travel by opting to buy and sell a van versus renting one and eating the cost. Potential risks of this option, however, involve buying a van that needs immediate maintenance or, worse yet, the chance that you aren’t able to sell the van before you leave the country.

So after 7,000 kilometers, in which the van transported me from glaciers to rodeos and Murderer’s Bay to Mordor, here’s a look into how the gamble worked out as well as some tips for recreating the adventure. First off, you’re going to have much better luck selling a van in Christchurch than in Auckland. Why? Because there are about 45,000 campervans for sale at any given time in Auckland. The supply far outweighs the demand, and this is terrifying if you are a seller. As a general rule for buying and selling a campervan in New Zealand, buy one in Auckland but sell it in Christchurch. Trust me on this one.

I was not in Christchurch, however, I was in Auckland, and competition was stiff. In a market like this you need to get noticed fast, and you want to make sure your car is clean and in good working order. Luckily, ours was only in need of an oil change. So with new oil, a new filter and $85 later, I was in possession of one more selling point.

Next, you need to find a place to advertise your van.

Option #1: Backpacker’s Car Market, Auckland

Though the name sounds welcoming, be warned. This place can be the most depressing spot on the planet. If you are a seller, seriously, this can be the seventh circle of Hell. Here’s the deal with the Backpacker’s Car Market: As a seller, it’s going to cost you $135 NZD for a spot at the market in which you have three days to sell your car. If it doesn’t sell after three days, time to fork up the cash again.

During our time at the car market there was a lone traveler from Israel named Gabriel who couldn’t sell his van. It was painted the color of an old man’s couch and had about 340,000 kilometers on it. Gabriel was on his 14th straight day of sitting at the market, which is a soul-sucking garage in a sleazy part of town. Needless to say, Gabriel was not in a good mood.

The main problem with the Auckland Backpacker’s Car Market is literally in the name; you are selling to backpackers. Often times this means you are haggling with people with minimal foresight with regards to quality and maximum emphasis is placed on the cost. If the van next to yours is $200 cheaper, they’re going to buy that van. Why? Because, that’s like, a lot of beer, dude.

Furthermore, every day there is a new seller who is on their third day or has a flight in the morning, so they get desperate, drop $1000 or $1500 off of their car and leave the country with something other than a total loss. As you can imagine, it’s tough to compete with these people.

Granted, there are all sorts of travelers who successfully sell their van here, but a room full of money-desperate travelers trying to sell used cars to penniless backpackers is a recipe for misery.

Want a better option? Sell your car at the Backpacker Car Market in Christchurch where you can leave the van for up to six months. Plus, there are only about 12 vans here to choose from, so it’s a seller’s market.

Option #2: Utilize online forums

Just as we have Craigslist here in America, so too does New Zealand have their share of online forums. While TradeMe is the most well known, they require a hefty listing fee as well as a fee for if your van sells. It’s cheaper than the car market, but it’s still an expense. Better bet is to go on Gumtree or Backpacker Board where you can list the van for free and still reach a large number of buyers. This option works best if you have a mobile telephone where buyers can contact you to arrange a meeting.

Option #3: Put flyers at a hostel

This seems like a good idea until you go into an Auckland hostel and add your flyer to a stack of about 100 deep. Similarly, staring down a wall that is plastered in flyers for vans that are exactly the same or cheaper than yours can be another depressing realization. Nevertheless, you still have to try…

Option #4: Sell it to a dealer

For those who have entered desperation mode there are a fair amount of dealerships willing to give you pennies on the dollar for what you paid. This is a last resort as you won’t get more than a few hundred dollars, but it beats taking a total loss. Still, not recommended.

Option #5: Good old fashioned ‘For Sale’ sign

This, it seems, is almost clichéd. It’s just too easy. Put a sign up on your car and go about your daily life. What an incredible concept! There’s no way that can actually work though, right?

Wrong. Of both the campervans I’ve ever sold in New Zealand (2007 and 2012), this is the method through which I sold both vans. Once, while parked outside the Fat Camel hostel in downtown Auckland, and this current time, while sleeping at a holiday park on the outskirts of town.

So after nearly a week of haggling at the car market, printing dozens of fliers, visiting every hostel in Auckland, putting write-ups on every message board and getting jerked around repeatedly by a penny-pinching German named Johan, I was at wits end and beside myself with the frustrations of being unable to offload a perfectly good van and recoup some of the money I barely had in the first place.

Just when all seemed lost and this gamble was going south, an unexpected voice with a decidedly British accent disrupted me from a vigorous writing session inside the television room of the crowded campground.

“Are you Kyle? The one with the van for sale in camp number 13?”

“Why yes. Yes I am. Why don’t we step outside and chat.”

—

This concludes blogger Kyle Ellison’s series “Freedom To Roam,” the tales of an epic eight weeks spent embedded in a New Zealand campervan. After the worst week of his life spent failing to sell his van, he finally lucked out on a deal for $3400 to an affable British couple who he wishes nothing but the best in their travels. So what was the final overall cost for a campervan for eight weeks in New Zealand? $300. Was it a gamble? Sure. But when you’re an international vagabond, sometimes that’s just how you have to roll.

Space traveler brain scans bring troubling results to NASA

by Chris Owen on

Space travel appears to have taken its toll on NASA astronauts. Those in space for more than a month have shown unexpected symptoms that could set back plans for longer deep-space missions.

Researchers scanned the eyes and brains of 27 astronauts who had spent an average of 108 days in space, either on space shuttle missions or aboard the International Space Station. In many of the astronauts, they found symptoms consistent with intracranial hypertension, a potentially serious condition that happens when pressure builds within the skull.

“NASA has placed this problem high on its list of human risks, has initiated a comprehensive program to study its mechanisms and implications, and will continue to closely monitor the situation,” Dr. William Tarver, chief of the flight medicine clinic at NASA’s Johnson Space Center told Fox News in a recent article.

A symptom of excess cerebral-spinal fluid around the optic nerve was found in 33 percent of the astronauts and a flattening of the back of the eyeball was found in 20 percent.

“The MRI findings revealed various combinations of abnormalities following both short and long-term cumulative exposure to microgravity also seen with idiopathic intracranial hypertension,” said Professor Larry Kramer, lead author of the study.

Odds are the study will have no effect on Virgin Galactic‘s plan to begin suborbital commercial flights this year.

Flickr photo by cobra.creations

Cayman Islands launches solar-powered electric rental cars

by Jessica Marati on

The Cayman Islands are taking steps to preserve their fragile island ecosystem by launching a fleet of eco-friendly, electric Wheego rental vehicles and installing solar panel charging stations for electric vehicles throughout Grand Cayman.

The new stations, produced by U-Go, generate electricity using pollution-free solar cells, reducing carbon emissions to zero. Over the next year, 12 stations will be installed throughout Grand Cayman, the first in Governor’s Square. The initiative is part of a move toward nationwide Green Globe certification, an industry certification program for sustainable tourism. Members of the Green Globe alliance are recognized for saving energy and water resources, reducing operational costs and contributing positively to their environment and communities.

“We are thrilled to be able to introduce this technology to the Cayman Islands in an effort to further preserve our treasured ecosystem,” said Hon. McKeeva Bush, Premier of the Cayman Islands, in a release. “Our natural environment, including the Mastic Trail, the Blue Iguanas, and our pristine waters, is a source of national pride, which we plan to maintain for years to come. This development is crucial to our success.”

Travel Smarter 2012: Travel tips for health and wellness

by Laurel Miller on

Films like “Contagion” (which I very much enjoyed, and not just because Gwyneth Paltrow bites it within the first 10 minutes) instill a paranoia in the public consciousness about the hazards of air travel. It’s true, however, that most public transportation is the equivalent of a mobile petri dish; one can’t deny the inherent germiness lurking within. Subsequently, antibacterial hand gel is my new best friend.

There are other quasi-self-inflicted, travel-related maladies: neck and back pain, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), infectious disease, foodborne illness, stress–all of which kind of make you wonder why we travel in the name of relaxation, but I digress.

For many, myself included, part of the thrill of recreational travel is the element of risk involved, even if said danger involves nothing more than scarfing down a few street tacos. Regardless of why you travel, there are always new products on the market designed to make your trip more comfortable, or minimize your chances of getting sick. New research on the hazards and benefits of travel also keep us informed about what we can do to stay healthier on the road.

Below are my picks for making travel in 2012 a little less treacherous:

1. Reduce your risk of DVT
New studies show that choosing the window seat on a long flight can increase your chances of developing DVT. A theoretical DVT risk known as “economy class syndrome” (how’s that for an “f-you” to airlines?) has been debated for years, and attributed to the lack of legroom in coach.

Now, however, the American College of Chest Physicians have determined that the real issue is that window-seat fliers have limited opportunities to walk and stretch their legs during lengthy flights, which can lead to potentially fatal blood clots that may travel to the lungs (pulmonary embolism). There are a number of factors that contribute to one’s risk of DVT including age, preexisting health conditions, certain medications, and recent surgery, but even if you don’t fit these criteria, you should always try to get out of your seat and/or do some stretching exercises and leg movements once an hour during long flights. In other words, consider the aisle the path to clot-free veins.

2. Time-release DEET
Some people have no problem dousing themselves in insecticide, personal health and environmental side effects be damned. I used to silently sneer at those people while I sat around the campfire, my unprotected skin providing nutrients to legions of winged, blood-sucking creatures. What were a few bites (Note: it was never just a few bites; try dozens) compared to not getting cancer or maintaining the purity of the local watershed?

Then I got sick as a result of deadly bacteria-harboring sandflies, and now I’m one of those people who understand why DEET exists. I still don’t like it–it’s definitely not something I, nor the CDC, recommend using with abandon–but it’s critical for protecting yourself from mosquitoes, sandflies, ticks, and other potentially harmful insects, in conjunction with protective attire such as long socks, long-sleeved shirts, and pants (you can also purchase insect-repellent clothing). Note that I’m not taking into account malarial conditions, in which case you should be supplementing your DEET applications with a doctor-prescribed anti-malarial drug.

I was thrilled when I recently discovered controlled release DEET at my neighborhood travel store. Sawyer® Premium Controlled Release Insect Repellent is designed to “reduce the rate of DEET absorption” by 67% per application, and “extend the duration of its effectiveness.” This 20% DEET lotion is also odorless, so you don’t have to huff noticeably toxic fumes all day.

3. Hummingbird Lumbar Pillow
If you have existing back problems or an epic backpacking adventure planned, this little baby from innovative gear company Hummingbird is the bomb. Measuring 7″ x 14″, it weighs just 3.5 ounces, rolls or packs flat, and will keep your lower back happy while camping, or riding a Third World bus sans shock absorbers on a rutted highway with potholes large enough to swallow a Mini Cooper.

4. Simply Being Guided Meditation app
I’m way too ADD to meditate, but this suggestion came to me from my Gadling colleague, and fellow meditation-phobe, McLean Robbins. She loves this app, which runs through a brief series of relaxation exercises. As McLean says, “Perfect for shutting out the world on a terrible plane ride or easing into sleep in an unfamiliar hotel bed.” The app is available for iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, and Android.

5. Maqui berry
Move over, açaí, there’s a new free-radical fighter in town. Chilean maqui berry, which is FDA-approved and contains the highest ORAC (a system of measure for antioxidants) level in the world, has hit the U.S. Only a few companies manufacture it, but I recommend Isla Natura brand (Full disclosure: the company is owned by a friend of mine, which–in addition to maqui’s health benefits–is why I feel comfortable touting this product). Maqui (Aristotelia chilensis) is indigenous to southern Chile and was traditionally used by the Mapuche Indians as a medicinal aid.

Isla Natura’s USDA and EU-certified organic (Fair Trade certification pending) wild fruits are harvested by hand, dried, ground, and sold in eight-ounce packets. Use one tablespoon in smoothies or on top of yogurt or oatmeal as a daily dietary supplement, but also consider it an immune booster for when you’re traveling.

Bonus: you’ll avoid the high sugar content of Emergen-C, and the “licking a dirt floor” flavor of açaí, and Isla Natura provides employment to local indigenous families at its small Chiloe processing plant. Travel-friendly capsules will be available in April; go to the company’s website for information on scientific studies. To order, click here.

[flickr image via viajar24h.com]