Travel Tips

After my recent trip to Montréal, I thought I’d share a few of my travel tips and my basis for them:

• When travelling abroad, make 2, 2-sided copies of your Birth Certificate and Passport. Keep a copy on your person and one in your luggage. When I somehow misplaced my passport in a flight between England and Portugal in 1994, I had to wait for a relative (my mother, disgruntled as hell for being awakened at the crack of dawn) to fax copies of identity documents to the US Embassy for verification to gain entry into the country. That made for a fun 4 hours of airport-backroom waiting with customs agents. The embassy official I met later that week in Lisbon keyed me in to this tip and I’ve seen it verified numerous other places since. Having the documents handy will expedite the process should you lose or have your documents ripped off. In case you’re wondering, my passport turned up in a trash can in the airport a few days later, even though we carefully searched the plane. I still have no idea how it got there or how someone found it.
• Bring a small container of Vaseline. When recently in Tennessee, I did a lot of hiking (abt. 2-8 miles/day) and an experienced hiker advised me that I should grease my feet very lightly with petroleum jelly to prevent blisters (and anywhere else that chafing might occur, she added). I did so and clocked-in around 40 miles of tough hiking that week with no blisters. Since then I’ve carried a small pot of the stuff in my kit and it’s come in very handy – even alleviating already-forming new blisters.
• Be nice to everyone. Not only for the normal “you’re representing your country” schlock, but because people will tell you more and be more willing to offer you advice and help if you strike up conversation and be nice to them. A good conversation with a pleasant local can make the difference between great food/accomodation/attraction/event and crap.
• Bring ass wipes and Pepto. When I was in Romania in 2000 our party of 20 had a magnificent meal in an old pub in the center of Bucharest. Everyone, including me, that tried the “special Romanian sausage” had a case of the “special Romanian shits” the next day and for several days following. This ruined the trip for at least 5 in our party but I was able to stabilize my gastrointestinal meltdown and keep myself comfortable with the use of these two things. Also, it’s widely accepted that pepto (or generic) will prevent Traveler’s Diarrhea if you’re visiting a country that may not be as sanitized as you’re used to. Ass wipes are sold in travel-size packs at most large drugstores – get the flushable ones.
• Keep a list of what you should bring. Here’s my list. Of course, you won’t always bring everything on the list but it helps to ensure you won’t forget something important. I also keep a complete dopp-kit that doesn’t require that I add a bunch of stuff from my regular bath goods – still less for me to possibly forget.
• A concealed travel wallet is good. Separating a small amount of money and a single credit-card into your wallet and the rest of your money/documents/credit cards into a travel wallet is good insurance against your own ineptitude or thieves’ skills. Pickpockets are everywhere and if they get a small amount of money and a single card it’ll be less of a bump in the road than if the thief gets it all. Make sure whatever you get is comfortable if you’re going to be walking a lot.
• Remember the sun. I prefer a hat but some like sunblock, though some prefer sunburn and misery.