Long Haul Flying Advice

Yes, this is a post with advice on long haul flight advice. I've been on over twenty long haul voyages so I'd like to think I've learnt something in that time that I can share with less experienced long haulers. Have you only been on a few long flights and at the end you've had terrible jet lag, possibly a migraine and vomiting and you've arrived to meet your long distance boyfriend looking and smelling like... you just got off the long-haul flight from hell?! ...You sit in the waiting lounge in a major international airport like Singapore, Heathrow or Abu Dhabi and you see others, especially the airline hostesses, who look immaculate and you can't understand how it is possible! If this is you, then this is the blog for you.

The main thing to bare in mind is that the flights dehydrate you badly; the strong air conditioners for hours on end dry out your skin and everything excessively and this excessive dehydration is your biggest challenge.

Long Haul Flying tips:

1. ANTI-HEADACHE TIPS
DO NOT DRINK THE ALCOHOL! Now this is one of the hardest rules to follow, but it's also one of the most beneficial. It is so tempting to drink the complementary bevvies (alcoholic drinks), but trust me it's not worth it; you can always slip a bottle in your handbag if it's your last leg of the journey for another day. Alcohol will dehydrate you, which will only lead to oilier skin and increased headaches later in your journey. The same applies for the tea and coffee, you can have a little but don't overdo it.
Even when you think you have drunk enough, believe me you still need to drink more.

You might be angry about losing your water bottle at the beginning of the trip going through security, here is your plan:
Fill up a water bottle and take it with you to the airport. Drink it gradually and aim to finish drinking the whole bottle just before the security gate where they don't accept water bottles. Then you present them an empty bottle and they will (at most airports) allow you to keep your empty bottle.
As soon as you are through security, refill your water bottle. If there's a second security gate that rejects bottles (I've seen it before!) you have to drink it all, all over again. But at least then you can save money on buying expensive fluids in transit and stay more hydrated.
Then on the plane, I choose soda water instead of soft drink, because soda water is water that will hydrate you, whereas soft drink is much less hydrating.

2. ANTI-SMELL TIPS
Bring spare underwear and a spare t-shirt on your flight. I usually change half way through the voyage, so by the time you arrive at your destination you are not too smelly.

At your stop-over go to the bathroom and wash-up at least. It's so nice to at least wash your armpits and at an oriental airport that has fresh water in the toilet you can rinse more. People who can afford it can pay for a shower and a bed at major airports, but if you can't then realise this will do just as well and for free.

As per the moisturiser below, if you haven't carried deodorant "borrow" the duty free tester perfume!

Choose your clothing carefully. Cotton is breathable and doesn't make you too hot or cold during the changes in temperature between transit, takeoff and landing. Trousers, a cartigan, a t-shirt, a jumper or big scarf and closed in shoes will tend to be your least smelly option for an outfit, as well as providing warmth and comfort, which are equally important.

3. SKIN CARE TIPS:

Before the flight, moisturise your skin excessively; especially your face. You can carry some moisturiser with you on the flight to top up or use the testers in the stopover duty free shops when desperate!

Some of the airlines now have a "mist moisturiser" in the plane bathroom. This is really nice as it has an anti-bacterial and moisturiser all in one.

Do not touch your face except for moisturising and definitely don't wash your face with soap even if you are dying to because all your pours are opening up and your skin feels awful! Touching your face will just lead to more dirt getting into the pours, etc.

4. SLEEPING TIPS
Sleeping is probably the hardest thing on the long-haul, especially if there are good films to watch all night long. I don't have much to say here, I recommend watching the films but also trying to get as much sleep as you can at a time during the flight that matches as closely as possible to night time at your destination (if that makes sense)! So in one direction it may be better to wait to sleep until the second half of your flight, but in the other direction it may be better to sleep as much as possible at the beginning of the flight. You decide. I can explain better if you want me to.
Just know that the more sleep you manage the better you will feel on arrival at your destination. Good luck!

5. HAIR TIPS
Well, as with the skin, the hair dries out first and then reacts by getting really oily. I recommend tying or pinning your hair off your face and trying not to touch it for the duration of the flight.

6. YUMMY MEAL OPTION TIPS
Well this tip is just something I've learnt to avoid making a bad meal choice on the plane. I've noticed a correlation between which meal is the best option and where was the last stop-over location or sometimes what nationality airline you are with. For example, if you just left Venice, Italy the chances are that the pasta option will be better than the Asian rice option. But if you just left Bangkok then the rice or noodle option will definitely be better than the pasta option. It seems so simple that it's stupid, but I've found that by following this principle I usually end up with the best meal option on each flight!

Hope this advice may help you arrive a less grumpy, thirsty, smelly, dirty, ugly passenger next time!

Travel Safety Tips

Well probably you have received loads of advice before about being safe whilst travelling, but maybe you still somehow managed to get mugged on that last trip to Paris/Bali/Peru/wherever. You may have heard it was the safest place in the world with low crime rates and how on earth did you still manage to get mugged?! I've travelled in over 30 countries and I've only been mugged once overseas in Berlin - I left a bag of dirty clothes in a hostel locker unlocked assuming no one would be desperate enough to want my dirty traveller clothes! Well below is a list of what seems to work from me - a mix of my own ideas, others and common knowledge. I hope it will help you stay out of trouble for your next trip.

1. Blend In. I almost cried when my parents got mugged in London and at the time my dad was wearing a bright yellow Australia jumper. Why dad, why?!! It may be hard to blend in when you are a blond in Africa, but it doesn't mean you should give up completely and attract attention to yourself. My tips for blending in are - match the colour scheme (if you see lots of black coats wear black, if you see lots of colour wear colour), don't be too noisy and attract attention to that fact you are speaking a foreign language, buy some cheap local clothing and donate it after your trip (hiking boots and backpacks are a giveaway so try to keep your tourist outfit for hiking trips not city site seeing if everyone is well dressed where you are and you are the only person in miles wearing hiking pants and boots).

2. Trust No One. Molder and Scully were wise in saying this. Never ever leave your bag with someone else unless (a) it has no valuables in it and (b) you have warned the person you will unfriend them from facebook if they take their eyes off your bag for a second. A second is all it takes to get mugged.
The oldest scammer trick in the book is "Oh you're from Melbourne, I have an uncle who lives there" then they pretend to help you before coaxing you into a shop you don't want to visit and even forcing you to buy goods you don't want. These can be interesting experiences the first few times, but after a while it's tiresome so I recommend not befriending people who approach you on the street like this.

3. Dine in Local Restaurants If a restaurant is full of tourists then it will be a target for thieves. Plus local restaurants are usually cheaper and more authentic - don't be fooled into thinking being with other tourists makes you safer, not from pick pockets.

4. Keep your valuables on you. You know all about the pouches you can buy. Keep them hidden or keep the zips in site and check them regularly - I'm paranoid about this.

5. If you're alone, don't flash your camera about too much. If there's two of you you can keep an eye on each other, but alone and attracting attention can attract pick pockets, scammers, etc. Just pull out the camera when you are about to take a picture if possible.

6. Be adventurous, but be intuitive. If your gut instinct tells you an ally way is dangerous then most likely it is. Make good judgements whilst your wandering. I check my access routes for a street. I avoid walking next to cars that are parked with people inside them in case they decide to jump out and grab you. I make sure no one is following me when I leave a bank. Listen to locals - in some situations locals have even warned me not to go somewhere, because they thought I'd get mugged.

7. Don't do exactly the same thing every day. Predators watch your habits. If someone observes you dining alone in the same restaurant at the same time every day then you are looking for trouble. I learnt this hearing about crocodile attacks in north Australia - crocodiles can watch you for months, even years, swimming in the same water hole until they know your habits to well and they know the perfect moment to strike. My boyfriend's work van in Lima took the same route every morning collecting the employees until it had been doing this for around 8 months and at a traffic light just after everyone left the bus besides the driver, the bus got ambushed and stolen within seconds.

8. Become Taxi Wise. Not everyone comes from a place where taxis are dangerous, some of us come from places where taxis are very safe or simply expensive so we seldom use them. Understand that taxis are one of your biggest safety risks in many countries. I recommend asking locals for advice about their local taxis. For example, in Lima there are more illegal taxis then legal ones, so if you are transiting between the airport with all your luggage it is recommended to only take a booked legal taxi to avoid being the victim of an armed robbery, etc. In other places, it's simply about taxi-scammers who don't turn on their meters of pretend it's broken - you need to develop an instinct for when this will happen or in many places you can agree on the fair before you hop in the taxi. In South America sometimes people judge that if a taxi has a Christian cross hanging from their rear-view mirror then they are less likely to rob you because of their values - but obviously this is prejudice and won't always be the case.
Maybe this is more about saving money then safety - but another good trick to avoid scammer taxis is not to catch the taxis that fester around train stations, bus stations etc. Walk 20 metres to the main road outside the entrance and you are likely to avoid many annoyances mentioned above to do with taxis because these scammers love to target tourists.