Travel Tip #1: Bring a Towel.

There is a great series of books called ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’, in which several characters have many intergalactic adventures, and they give some very good tips for traveling that at a young age I decided to try incorporating into my own intercontinental excursions. The #1 tip that the ‘Guide’ provides is: BRING A TOWEL. The ‘Guide’ proclaims that a towel “…is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have (Adams).” There are an estimated 500 different uses for a towel; think about it – you can use it as a blanket, a pillow, a bed, a sack to carry your belongings in, a distress signal should you be in danger, a sail if you’re on a raft, you can wear it over your head to ward off heat, bugs or noxious fumes, wet it to use as a weapon (beware of younger brothers waving wet towels!), and of course, if it seems clean enough, you can use it as a towel. Also, the ‘Guide’ notes, there is a psychological component; if someone sees a traveler with a towel, they assume that they also have a toothbrush, toothpaste, comb, tweezers, and any other personal care accessory that goes with it, and will be happy to lend the traveler one that they have lost. They are also lightweight and easy to pack. Many a time a towel has proven to be a very useful travel necessity!