To pay or not to pay

Over these five months on the road I've cemented certain principles: things I now consider an outright rip-off if someone expects you to pay for them, and other things that just seem like unnecessary spending.

Along the way I've adjusted my habits, cut costs and found new ways to travel cheaper.

At the moment I do NOT PAY for:
– Using a toilet. Never. I'll find a free one, sneak into one, go behind a bush or around a corner — but I won't pay for it.
– Internet. These days you can find open WiFi networks in any city. Wherever you sleep you'll usually have internet access, and during the day you can pick up open networks from shops. McDonald's and Apple Stores are other reliable spots.
– Water. As long as there's drinkable tap water, there's free water. Nip into café toilets and fill up your bottle, ask for tap water if you're eating somewhere, and carry a bottle around all day to refill it.
– Coffee. Hostels offer it for free, and they rarely check who comes and goes during the day. With Foursquare you can get free coffees (and in some places free beers or wine) in almost any city.
– Paying to get a closer look at a pile of old stones. After a lot of moving around, ruins, historic buildings and monuments have gradually lost their pull on me. What I love about travelling now is the social and cultural side — not staring at a heap of rocks. Once you've seen four churches, you've seen them all. If it's free, I go in; if not, I admire it from the outside.
– Urban transport. I either sneak on or I don't use it.
– Transport between cities. Hitchhiking — though my main reason for doing it is the fun of it, the fact that it's free is a very nice bonus.
– Charging gadgets. Wherever there's a socket, I plug in a multi-adapter and charge everything at once.

I SOMETIMES PAY for:
– Sleeping. I normally use Couchsurfing, but sometimes you just want a bit of time to yourself and I check into a hostel. Always the cheapest option though.
– Transport to a tourist attraction. If I can walk from a nearby village I've hitched to, I do. But sometimes, for reasons of time, price, distance or difficulty of access, you have to pay.
– Entrance fees. If there's somewhere I really want to visit and I can't sneak in, I'll pay.

In short, the only things I routinely PAY for are food, alcohol and condoms.