| Tips
for Travelers
If you are
travelling internationally, check the voltage
of your destinations and get an adaptor with the proper prongs and
wattage for your electronic equipment. Your notebook computer is
probably ok - but check the transformer.
Keep an eye on your notebook computer
as you are going through the x-ray machine. Some crooks work in
pairs to help themselves to such. Long trans-Pacific
flights used to be a killer for me because I could never sleep
on the plane. But now I can sleep for hours on end. Here
is my trick: I take along an inflatable neck pillow. Then take the
blanket and pillow they give you on the plane and put them behind
your back so that your back can be level with your neck that is
resting on the neck pillow. Nowadays I even travel with a spare
because they always leak after a few trips - even the name brands.
Take along
a pair of ear-plugs. You just
never know when there will be a screaming baby sitting close to
you! Blinders are also good
to have along for naps since the airlines only turn off all the
lights when it is a very long flight. If you have
a big carry-on and don't want
to be stuck with it under the seat giving you no leg room, or worse
yet, get asked to check it in due to a full cabin, book a seat close
to the back: you will be boarded first. (That is not the case with
some international airlines though.) And get one with wheels. Just
about all the airports I have been in require some walking to get
to and from the gate - and airports are getting bigger and bigger.
If you are traveling on business and want to save time, try to fit
everything in one carry-on and not check it in. This will get you
to your destination faster and reduce the risk of losing stuff that
you cannot do without - like your brochures and pamphlets and your
change of clothes! Try not
to sit close to the bathroom.
I paid for it on a long international flight one time! Not only
was the aroma annoying, people waiting in line with their elbows
on the back of my seat also kept me from getting some much needed
sleep. Bulkhead seats are great
because not only do you get more legroom, you also don't have to
climb over people to get to the bathroom even if you don't get an
aisle seat, nor do you have to get up to let someone out! But the
downside is the airbag in the seatbelt (on some planes) that makes
it uncomfortable.
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