Top 10 Tips
Ten Items That Make Life Happier and Easier On The Road Of Travel

1. Thieves have been known to cut the straps of one’s handbag or backpack – particularly prevalent in Vietnam as an example.
   1. I wear a PacSafe backpack that has steel cabling in the straps and the frame of the backpack. The inside RFID pockets prevent the scanning of credit cards and personal information.
   2. I pack a small PacSafe RFID handbag which I wear strapped across my torso for days when I don’t need to carry my backpack.
2. We purchase metal ‘hooks’ from REI or Adventure 16 which we attach to the loops on our slacks and to our backpacks, and use them to carry our cameras on our waists, sunglasses in a case, a small bottle of hand sanitizer – anything that we want to have on hand.
3. A money pouch that fits around the waist to be worn on the inside of slacks.
4. I place safety pins on the underside of the pockets of my cargo pants. I carry the passports in one pocket [front pockets only] and a credit card and small amount of cash in another.
5. We always carry some U. S. dollars when we travel. In some places credit cards are not accepted, in others paying with U. S. dollars can get you a significant discount, and sometimes cash machines and banks can run out of cash! This happened to us in South America when there was a public holiday following a weekend.  It then took three more   days for the banks to restock.
6. 1. A mini flashlight – (a must)
   2. Extra batteries (they can be hard to find and expensive). NOTE: Do not carry them in your carry-on luggage. In some countries they can be confiscated whereas in others- such as China- you must place items like battery chargers in a bin to be scanned with carryon items.
   3. A headlamp – Invaluable for remote areas where there is no electricity or when electricity fails.
   4. A travel scale for weighing your luggage before you reach the airline check-in counter.
7. 1. Your eyeglass prescription and contact lens prescription.
   2. Throw away – daily use contact lenses are the ones I find the most convenient when traveling.
8. A portable cell phone charger.
9. 1. A wattage converter.
   2. A set of universal electric plugs.
10. 1. A pocket knife (in your checked luggage only).
    2. A small pair of binoculars – especially if you will be in areas with interesting bird and animal life.
    3. Water purifying tablets if you’ll be trekking, or in areas where the water could be sketchy.