I would like to hear about your survival tips for travelling - not just about the merits of having 4 wheels on your Samsonite - but more extreme things - like how to fend off the over enthusiastic mariachi band or cures for having over indulged in the Semmel Knodel.

We always bring a family size bottle of Tums.

Lots of marmite a month before travel to ward off mosquitos

5 day supply of chocolate in my carryon

I always travel with a few "comfort" OTC meds like Alka-Seltzer and Tylenol and an antacid. Of course, naturally I also have prescription drugs. I find that pliable earplugs that fit right into the ear are good if you're in a hotel that doesn't have "noise proof windows", and I also always travel with a sleep mask.

Travel sizes of nice things like facial masks or shower gels are nice.

I try to learn how to say "shame, shame shame!" in the language of the country I'm going to because yelling that & shaking my index finger at a perpetrator of not so great behavior has a startlingly good effect.

BC

Pumbavu - does the marmite thing really work?

Marmite it really the miracle food.

It is the only food known to repel bears. The US National Park Service recommends people apply marmite like sunscreen when hiking in bear territory.

It's also a fine substitute for engine oil.

Laugh, go with the flow, for something may not go as planned, don't let it ruin your trip, let it be part of your adventure!

CHARM! It will open doors that might otherwise be closed.

I like what Tiff said, "roll with the flow." Some friends once asked if everything always goes wrong on our trips like it did on theirs. I couldn't think of anything that had ever gone wrong on our trips.

Then I thought of the time we missed the plane to Munich and had to wait two hours for the next one. It didn't ruin our day. We just rolled with the flow. I think it makes for a lot better trip in the long run.

Bubble bath! A good soak after sight seeing.

WHAT is marmite?

NEVER, EVER get the middle seat on a trans-Atlantic flight!!!

<b>Sports Tape</b>
tear off a piece and cover any tender spot on foot;
<i>no blisters</i> !

<b>Wine Kit</b>
cosmetic bag with:
- corkscrew
- unbreakable glasses
- flask
- small funnel
- vacuum/stopper

If you forgot something - it's only a reason to shop!

If it's raining - it's only a reason for a trolley ride! or another cup of hot chocolate!

If you feel pain - it's only a reason to visit a local pharmacy for meds and souvenirs!

If you got lost - it's only another adventure added to your vacation!

After years of blister problems, I now never leave home without Dr. Scholl's moleskin (and something with which to cut it.)

After too much semmel knodel, Gas-x

Never pack anything I can't buy at a pharmacy when I land(like shampoo, tissues, hairspray), but for the plane ride I take a few very strong pain tablets &amp; something for a tummybug. I can't stand being in pain and a stomach ailment needs immediate attention - the rest can wait.

A book to read in queues at Italian train stations, hide behind when listening to other people's conversations once on the train, talk about to strangers who you see reading it too, remember which trip to Italy it was because that was the book you were reading that year. And find all your bus/train/museum tickets inside it years later and remember your trip again.

Be really nice to and chat up the waitresses on your aeroplane--then you can wheedle a bunch of those little bottles of Bailey's Irish Cream from them. Bailey's makes everything much better.

If still hungry for more after an airplane meal, don't hesitate to ask an attendant for another tray, or to help yourself if he/she takes too long or forgets. On a transatlantic flight to Paris my husband asked, waited, and finally went to the kitchen and grabbed an extra tray that was just sitting there. (Everyone had been served already, of course.) Of course, these days, with the airline's heightened security-consciousness and cost-consciousness, my husband would be wrestled to the ground as he nabbed that extra meal.