A TRAVEL expert has revealed why she always takes a simple £2 item away with her every time she goes on holiday.
Language barriers are one of only a few downsides to going away, but there are easy tricks for getting around them.
Travel journalist Sudha Maheshwari has a clever and cheap method for avoiding language problems when she heads abroad.
She takes a pad of paper and a pen with her, which she says she uses to "enhance her communication".
She wrote in Onmanorama: "Carrying a pen and paper or a small notebook can enable you to jot down key information or draw simple illustrations to enhance your communication."
A pack of three notepads can be ordered for £6.34 on Amazon, making them just more than £2 a piece.
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The notepads aren't her only method for communicating better abroad however.
She also recommends using technology to help improve understanding between yourself and the locals.
She added: "In today's digital age, translation apps have become invaluable tools for travellers.
"Install a reliable translation app on your smartphone, such as Google Translate or iTranslate, that allows you to input text or even use the camera to translate signs and menus in real time."
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Holidaymakers have been amazed by just how useful translation apps can be.
In a video on TikTok traveller Nguyen, also known as Gnoch Gnoch, explained how she stumbled across a handy feature on her Google Translate app that allowed her to instantly read other languages.
In the video, she said: “Oh my God guys. My mind has been blown.
“I’m at a restaurant at the moment and they don’t do an English menu and they don’t speak a lot of English either.
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"So I was like, ‘It’s fine, I’ll just put it in my Google Translate.'
“I went and downloaded the app for convenience for the rest of the trip and then I saw a little feature."
The feature Nguyen had stumbled upon was Google Translate's camera feature, which can translate words simply by taking a picture of them.
everal people commented on her video, which has been seen over a million times, thanking her for the tip.
One wrote: "Thank you for sharing! I'm a teacher & will definitely be sharing with my students! we use Google translate but never the camera feature!
A second said: "Well, I had no idea you could hold the phone to a menu to interpret."
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Meanwhile, this is the "best phone tip" to use when travelling.
And this hack is used by lots of passengers to get better seats on planes.
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