I like to think that I am a pretty experienced traveler. But when I hear advice given by the likes of Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-hour Workweek, I realize that I have a lot to learn. As a result, I was delighted to read the tips given by Mr. Ferriss and others in “How the Tough Get Going,” an article in last Sunday’s NY Times written by Stephanie Rosenbloom. Here are a few of my favorites.
The wheeled backpacks from Victorinox are pretty cool, and I bet they do make getting through the airport and onto the plane a little easier. The handles swivel for comfort, and the shoulder straps can be tucked into a zipped flap when you’re not using them. If the wheels detached for ease of using it as a backpack I would be more excited about it – I have to think that it is a little too heavy to use for great lengths of time as a backpack (noone says how much it weighs, but other similar wheeled backpacks weigh 8 or 9 pounds, a lot to carry on you back once it is filled with clothes, etc.).
I am definitely going to get myself a set of GoToob travel bottles. Travel bottles I have bought in the past were either too hard for me to squeeze all the liquid out of them, or the tops would open in transit and I would discover that there was shampoo all over everything in my liquids Ziploc bag. The medium size comes with a suction cup on the side of it, which will allow me to stick it to the wall after I’ve squeezed out some shampoo instead of having to try and stand the bottle up on a tiny soap dish in a hotel shower.
Since I frequently get colds either during traveling or shortly thereafter, I am happy to hear any good advice for preventing getting sick while traveling. So I will be taking some Quantum Super Lysine pills next time around (and I will blog on other tips from around the Internet for staying healthy while traveling in a future blog). And of course, I will put my hand sanitizer in one of my GoToob bottles and keep it ready at hand!
I run hot while traveling, especially when I’m running around packing and getting to and from the airport. This puts me in a conundrum, because I would love to get a Nau riding jacket. I don’t know how much I would use it, but it looks really cool, and I bet it is comfortable! Hey, wait a minute. I’m going to Belgium in September. It can be chilly and rainy there in September. OK, the riding jacket is in.
I would love to get some Techwick boxer briefs from EMS or a few pairs of Ex Officio boxers from REI, because I often get accused of not being very economical in my packing. If I brought 3 quick-dry undies with me instead of 10 cotton ones, washed one every night while I took my shower and then wore it the next day, that would make me look more James Bond, say, and less Don Knotts. I have used other gear made out of similar material like tee shirts, and I know that clothing made with wicking technology is amazing for comfort and durability.
Admittedly, there were times when I cringed while reading the article, feeling that the advice being given was overly controlling or paranoid or just unnecessarily fussy. Kind of like when I see Alton Brown putting potatoes through a ricer to make the perfect mashed potatoes and I think, “a potato masher does the job just fine.” Granted, I don’t travel nearly as much as these people do – maybe if airlines lost my luggage 5 times a year I would be more apt to get extra travel insurance with WorldNomads, and maybe if my home was vacant, say, 150 days of the year, I would want to put up infrared cameras and use iControl software to monitor whether there is any movement in my home. But no amount of traveling is going to inspire me to put a starter pistol into my checked luggage to make sure the airline doesn’t lose the luggage (yes, that’s one of Mr. Ferriss’ tips).
