Stupid Traveler Tricks
I hate to say it, but I’ve traveled enough to have experienced each and every one of these dumb things! My hope is that I can spare you the same embarrassments in your journeys:
First: NEVER leave home without your swimsuit or your camera. I’ll never forget the first time I tagged along with my husband on a business trip to Las Vegas. We were staying with a group at Caesar’s Palace, and I figured we would be too busy for the pool. Wrong, wrong, wrong! One afternoon the other ladies hung out by the gorgeous pool on a beautiful hot day while I was stuck inside. Now, I caution people that if you take your suit you might not get within a mile of a pool, but if you don’t have it, someone will invite you to a pool party! My husband is the worst — he must have 5 swimsuits by now because he either forgets to pack one or thinks he won’t use it, and then he ends up buying another one. He hardly ever gets into a cold cruise ship pool, but what about that delicious saltwater thalassotherapy spa? And hey, what about an unexpected last-minute chance to go snorkeling?
Same with the camera — if you take it you might come home with very few or very ho-hum snapshots, but if you don’t have it you’re sure to miss out on the photograph of your life! This happened to me in San Antonio. I had been there a couple of times before, so didn’t think I needed to drag the camera around (it’s a bulky SLR with a big lens). Wrong again — we ended up with a free afternoon and decided to take the missions tour. Of course I missed out on a wonderful photo opportunity and haven’t had a chance to go back since.
Second: ALWAYS dress a little bit nicer. You never know what opportunities will come up. I’ll always remember the time we were in Colorado on a camping trip with the kids and drove into Denver for a day. We stopped for lunch, and it turned out we had bumped into one of those posh, trendy uptown neighborhoods. Boy did we ever look out of place, slightly unkempt and in old t-shirts, shorts, and hiking shoes! On the other hand, we have enjoyed serendipitous experiences like being given a private wine cave tour in Napa Valley, invited to a Chris Calloway (daughter of Cab Calloway) concert in an intimate bar in Santa Fe, and upgraded to first class on airplanes — because we were dressed up and looked like we belonged there.
To command respect in foreign countries NEVER wear flip-flops, gigantinormous white tennis shoes, tank tops, shorts, or baseball caps (except maybe at the beach). Europeans tend to go out-and-about in nicer clothes, and jeans are strictly for the very young and/or for nightclubs (in very chic styles, of course). Slacks and skirts are lighter to pack and don’t take up as much room as jeans anyway.
Third: ALWAYS take along simple first-aid supplies. I never leave home without my little bag of a few Dramamine and Pepto-Bismol tablets, cough drops, hand sanitizer, insect repellent, Band-aids, something for a headache, tissues, and Neosporin. I always throw this into a beach bag along with the mandatory sunscreen, lip balm, and sunglasses, too — because you just never know! I’ve been sunburned, eaten up by mosquitoes, stung by a jellyfish, scratched on coral, blistered by “comfortable” sandals, sick on little excursion boats, stricken by sudden allergy attacks — you name it. And since you can’t always count on being able to buy such remedies at your destination, you have to be prepared.
So there you have it — I wish you many safe and happy journeys!