wednesday, july 31st
aeroplane tips
i wrote some aeroplane travel tips for an up-and-coming zine, and thought i'd share them on here, too.
all you need is one light bag to carry on board with you. i know it can be tempting to bring a bunch of stuff on with you in case you get bored, but try not to do this. travelling long haul can be gruelling. after hopping between america and the uk for the past few years, i finally started to become more organised.
here are my tips:
- keep your tickets, money and passport all in a purse or a pocket in your bag. make sure they’re all together, but not all over the place in your bag. when you land, you’ll feel sorta weirded out, and the last thing you’ll want to do is dig around inside your bag at customs.
- bring along one book that you can sink yourself into. yeah, just one. any more than that will bulk up your bag.
- it is as dry as a desert up in the cabin, so make sure to bring a nice yummy lot of moisturizer and apply often. it also doubles as a lip-balm once arrived in the usa with a dry and sore face because i hadn’t moisturised on the flight, and i felt horrible.
- also, remember to bring a big bottle of water on the flight with you. arriving dehydrated is very out this season. being thirsty also just makes you feel more cranky and tired.
- bring some sewing or knitting or a journal. doing something creative passes the time way better than hours of tetris, and how!
- if you get scared or feel panicky, listen to the "flying without fear" radio station (it's dorky, but it works!) and practice deep and controlled breathing. doing some simple yoga exercises or just some stretches at the back of the plane helps too.
- bring one magazine, for when you need some eye-candy. ok, maybe two, but no more than two. i personally like seventeen magazine, but then i have a penchant for american teen magazines.
- there have been a bunch of reports in the press about how you can get ill if you don't stretch out when you're travelling on a long-distance flight. take a walk around the cabin. there are usually a bunch of people milling around, and it's a great time to talk with people.
- remember to take as many of those free ear plugs as you can: they are a must for gig-going grrrls. ditto those sleeping-eye masks. they make you feel like a princess when you sleep, and block out the sunlight for when you’re jet lagging.
suds at