Traveler offers packing tricks of the trade

For the past decade or so, I have made at least a portion of my living as a travel writer. Before that, I was a travel agent for several years.

In other words, I haven't had my feet nailed to the ground in any one place at any one time for very long. I like to go. I don't care where, either, as long as it involves a train, plane or automobile. Sometimes I even walk, if only around the neighborhood, just to satisfy my own wanderlust when I'm between trips.

Through the years of sojourning here and there, I have learned a few tricks of the traveling trade, especially of what to pack.

And what not to pack.

On my first travel-writing venture, for example, I took shoes. Lots of 'em. The suitcase was bulging with high heels, low heels, medium heels and even two -- count 'em -- two pairs of tennis shoes. There were so many shoes that Imelda Marcos and even Carrie Bradshaw would have been jealous.

Now this was in the prehistoric time before luggage came with those cute little wheels -- and may God forever bless the person who came up with that idea. By the end of the trip and after lugging that suitcase into airports and shuttle buses -- and bruising to lovely shades of purple and blue not only my arms and legs but also the appendages of anyone within 10 feet of me -- I vowed never again would I travel with more than three pairs of shoes. That ain't easy, given that all females are born with the basic instinct to change shoes at least six times a day, but it's a vow I've kept.

There are a few things, however, that I have learned not be without when I travel, so leave the extra shoes at home and pack these items instead:

-- Plastic storage bags in pint, quart and gallon sizes. Throw in a couple of plastic grocery bags, too. I tend to put spill-able stuff in the bags, but you can use them for any number of things, including storing wet bathing suits. Why anyone would pack a wet bathing suit boggles my imagination, but at least you'll be prepared. Anyway, I learned this handy trick after a bottle of shampoo exploded in my suitcase on an airplane. When bubbles started dripping out of the overhead bin, I knew I was in trouble.

Lesson learned!

-- If you're going into a foreign country, like Kenya, Mexico or northern New Jersey, for example, an anti-diarrhea medicine like Imodium could spare you from terrible anguish and embarrassment that those nasty little water parasites like to cause.

-- A small, all-purpose first-aid kit is good, too. Pack it with aspirin, bandages, sinus medicine, anti-itch cream, antibiotic ointment, insect repellent and even more Imodium.

-- A good book. Or even the Good Book, if you happen to be a preacher. Flights get delayed all the time. I once spent two hours sitting in a plane on a runway, but the time seemed to, ahem, fly by, thanks to the prose of Pat Conroy. And in a hotel room, a book gives you something to read besides the phone book.

-- It's always a good idea to take with you shower gel or a bar of Real Soap, the kind with Real Bubbles and Real Lather. Have you ever used those hotel soaps? They're too small and never seem to have any suds to them, and they seem to break apart before you finish washing all those 2,000 body parts.

-- And as long as I'm on bathroom products, add toilet paper to the list. Hotels in foreign countries -- even some of the five-star properties -- are notorious for using cheap toilet paper. Even tree bark is softer than some of the foreign brands.

-- If you're traveling overseas, take an electric current adapter. The entire world doesn't run on 110 volts, I can tell you. You can buy adapters in travel stores and places like Radio Shack, and it's a good idea to buy one with several different plugs. The peace of mind that you'll have knowing that your curling iron or electric shaver will work is worth the 50 bucks or so that one costs.

There are a few other items I take on trips. I always put a copy of my passport in my luggage just in case I'm bopped on the head and my purse is stolen. A couple of packs of chewing gum are always good, too, especially if you can't brush your teeth when you're supposed to. And gum is always nice to offer that seatmate who has just eaten 11 pounds of garlic and who has decided to tell you his life story.

If you wear glasses, like I do, an eyeglasses-repair kit is an indispensable item. Have you ever tried to tape or glue a pair of glasses back together?

Travel well. But leave all those pairs of shoes at home.

Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service

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