A lot of us do a lot more travelling than our parents' generation ever did and although it is probably quicker to get anywhere these days, I don't think it is as comfortable as it used to be. Travelling is not leisurely any more, unless you go first class, I suppose. Rush here, rush there, queue up, check in, squash yourself into ever narrower seats ... Or is it just me getting larger in the posterior?
Anyway, it does seem more stressful to me, so any advice that can reduce that stress and make travelling more enjoyable has got to be good news. So, here are a few of my favourite tips to help you enjoy your trip.
Separate Cases: this tip is more relevant to the ladies, but increasingly so for men too. Pack all your regular stuff like clothing, shoes, camera etc in one largish case, but put all the stuff you need to keep you fresh in a smaller, maybe shoulder type bag. That way, if you experience a delay, you won't have to hunt around in you case for your hair spray or make up bag. Great for when you arrive in the hotel too. You don't have to unpack immediately, but you can spruce yourself up and go dine.
Packing Clothes: if you are one of those people like me whose clothes always arrive rumpled and crumpled no matter how carefully you have packed them, then try this method. Separate your clothes into the crushable and the hardy types. Hardy would include underwear, jeans and the like. Crushable is all the rest. Then, carefully pad out the crushable with the hardy and nestle them up against each other in your case like cushions. You should find that they are all crinklefree at the other end when you unpack. You could also try rolling clothing of man-made fibres rather than folding them, they will crease less that way too. It saves a lot of ironing at the hotel.
Pleated Skirts: you can protect the pleats of a packed skirt on a journey by rolling it up and feeding it waistband end first into a nylon stocking. This tube will look like a drought excluder, but place it at the back of your suitcase and it will arrive safely no matter how far you are going.
It's In The Bag: or 'bags', I should say. Pack a nylon foldable suitcase inside your regular suitcase. It will start off empty, but as you get less time to launder things towards the end of your vacation or trip, you can put the used things in there. It is far nicer and more hygeinic than mixing used and clean clothing in the same case. It is also a good idea to take a few pretty cloth shopping bags with you. Put your belts in one, shoes in another, accessories in another et cetera, then when you arrive you can hang the shopping bags in a wardrobe. It makes packing, unpacking and looking for things quick and easy.
Giving Gifts: when travelling in Third World countries, take a bag of nice-looking biros and pencils with you. Children love them, they are useful, save the parents buying them and will not rot their teeth like sweets would. The kids will be chuffed to bits to receive a pen from abroad too.
