There are a few things I have learnt from traveling this past year. Mostly that I keep panicking and that I shouldn’t - most of the worries are in the prep, and once you’ve got your ticket to get there, your reservation for where you’re staying and health insurance, you’re going to be fine.
Anyways. Here’s a list of things that are important when you’re traveling and you’re not travel-savvy yet.
ID & cash
As a good friend once said when I was freaking out about my first trip all alone: if you’ve got your ID and money, you’re fine. You can buy what you need and you’ll be able to get home. In other words, congrats! You don’t have to pack anything else! (If you want to save some money, you better do, though.)
Basic Needs
There are a few things you’re going to need:
Water and food. Always carry a water bottle. They usually have drinking fountains at airports and train stations, or you can use tap water from the place you’re staying at. always make sure that the tap water where you’re at is safe though, and if that’s not the case, be sure to only use bottled water.
Option to warm up or cool down: have at least one hoodie with you.
Dry stuff: you’ll never appreciate dry clothes more than when you’ve just gotten drenched. You can get special survival bags, but any old plastic bag will do. Plus, they’ll do as an instant shopping bag or to hold your trail mix.
Comfortable footwear: better to look a little less glamorous in hiking boots or in those ratty sports shoes than to have to deal with blisters your entire trip. Or what a fellow traveller once told me: if you have to run out of your tent and can only take one thing with you, take your shoes. Because clothes are easy to replace, but to find a pair of shoes that really fit can take a long while.
Travel guide: know where you are and what you want to do. Hotels and hostels will usually have some free maps of the area, but a travel guide (which you can also get from the library) will go a long way. Or, if you want to be all “techno joy”, I guess you could use your smartphone. Hint: don’t get the heaviest book. And don’t forget your charger.
Comfort
There are a few things I have that I’ve paid a lot of money for, but which I’ve taken with me on every trip so far. They simply make traveling more comfortable.
Decent ear plugs: useful on a plane if you tend to get ear aches during landing and takeoff. Mine were custom made, but any old noise-cancelling pair will do fine. Also really useful when your roommates are being noisy. Sleeping hours can get a bit wonky on a holiday, so it’s important to get a good night’s sleep.
Sunglasses: not just for sunny countries; snow and ice reflects sunlight. Also you look hella cool in them.
A hoodie, preferably slightly oversized: it’s already mentioned on the list, but I do believe this item has a vast array of functions. It’ll keep you warm on chilly evenings, it can double as a blanket on a plane, it can transform into a pillow if you’re in a vehicle or if they don’t give those at the hostel. They’re easy to tie around your waist if it gets hot, and you can simply pull your hood up if your fellow traveller insists on reading with a light on. Also, if your laundry is starting to become a problem, you can use it to put your dirty clothes in to go to the laundromat (just spread it out, put everything in, zip it back up, tuck the hood in and make sure nothing gets out of the bottom).
Chargers: a charger where you can change the prongs so you can always charge your stuff, no matter what kind of outlets they have where you’re going. They usually have several USB ports too, so you can charge your phone, mp3 player and your camera at the same time. (Still need separate wires for all of those though… ugh.)
A travel-sized nail care kit. Handy because there’s usually a tiny pair of scissors in it and that’s useful for removing price tags or those paper wristbands. But the main reason is this: it only takes one holiday where you have one of those infuriating tiny hangnails, where you have to endure several days without getting rid of it, and you’ll never want to go traveling without a nail care kit again. Remember though that you can’t take this with you if you only have a carry-on bag with you and you’re travelling by plane.
A backpack: You are going to do a lot of walking. More walking than you have done the past few months, probably, because you’re going hiking, or visiting museums, or simply wandering around the city. And whilst that purse or shoulder bag may look super cool on you, it’s going to feel really heavy after a long day. You’re going to be carrying a lot of stuff with you - and that’s when you haven’t bought any souvenirs yet. Be nice to your shoulders and get a backpack. Mine is a few sizes smaller than a school backpack, but still bigger than those mini ones, and I’m really happy with that. It even has a hole in the top so you can put one of those straws in it so you can drink whilst on the move - which I have never used and is apparently a hole where the rain can get in - but it makes me feel pro as hell.
But most importantly: bring an open mind. Don’t be afraid to start a conversation; you will have at least one thing in common with other travellers. The most unlikely people might become the best friends. Try new things. Do things differently. Taste the local food - because my god food is so much better when it didn’t have to be flown over. Buy a piece of clothing, because clothes are still useful when you’ve come back home and it’ll remind you of those wonderful days every time you wear it.
Know that, even though you may be travelling alone when you start out, if you do things right, you won’t be travelling alone for long.
Reach out.
Learn.
Enjoy.
X- Bejoes
No comments:
Post a Comment