Randy's Travel Tips: Daily Life on the Road, p. 5

Personal Grooming

Traveling is not conducive to vanity. Your personal appearance will usually be far from what you would like for a night out at home. Fortunately, you will not encounter many mirrors along the way.

Hair Care

Clearly, the length and style of your hair is a matter of personal style, but it can have some effects on your travel life. Long hair on men is still considered quite "freakish" in many places, which simply means you may get more hassles and less acceptance from local people. Very short hair on women can be considered equally strange, but long hair worn loose will attract attention as well.

Just as important as social considerations are the comfort and nuisance factors. Long, thick hair is much hotter and sweatier than short, thin hair. Short thin hair also dries quickly and is less likely to need styling. At the beach, you may want to rinse out your hair several times a day. If you normally give a lot of time and attention to your hair style at home, you will be frustrated on the Road, where conditions and facilities will be much too Spartan to spend much time on vanity. You will not be able to shampoo and set your hair every day. The easiest is to braid your long hair and get it out of the way, dirty or clean. A few traveling men (and a couple of women) have adopted the local custom in Muslim countries, and had their heads shaved at the street corner barber. But just imagine the sunburn!

If you travel very long, you will eventually feel the need for a haircut -- for comfort, social acceptance, or just to make you feel smart. A trim job can usually be handled by any sober companion with a small pair of scissors, and this will last for a while. Thinning and shaping require a little more skill or at least a hair thinning tool (Hair-Wiz). My hair is thick and I like to thin it out regularly with my Hair-Wiz to keep me cooler. Unless you are looking for exactly the hair style you find on the local people, wait until you get to a large city and seek out a good barber or hair stylist. If you only do it every few months, it might even be worth the splurge in a tourist hotel for a professional job that may even make you feel civilized.

Hair-Wiz Mar 2003: Over the years, I have received a surprising number of enquiries from people who are looking for replacements for their Hair-Wiz trimming tools. Some are travelers, but others have found my page while searching the net specifically for "hair-wiz". It is amazing how many people came to depend on this very useful tool, which unfortunately passed out of existence many years ago. Eventually, the teeth break off and you need a new one; but there are none! I occassionally find much inferior (though similarly designed) hair thinning/trimming tools, which take double-edged razor blades (Shick), in the hair-care aisles of a pharmacy. I still use these, but have lost hope of ever coming across a stash of the original Hair-Wiz. Otherwise, it's the barber shop or an electric (yuk!) hair tool.

If you normally color your hair, a long trip may present a vanity dilemma. You won't want to bring any hair color along, and you will be lucky to find your brand along the way. Since a long trip is an exercise in humility anyway, you might as well give up your "colorized" image of yourself, and just don't use mirrors too often. You might even get to accept your natural coloring after awhile. You will be able to find some kinds of imported hair coloring in more modern cities in the Third World, and if you still feel it is important for you after a few months, then why not give it a try?

Shaving

Shaving with hot water is much preferable to using cold, and the best time to shave is when you take a shower, especially if it is hot (you lucky dog!) Men can do a fairly good job of shaving without a mirror, but only with some practice, so it is best to take one to the shower with you. Have it on a string you can loop over the shower head. (Knot this string once just above the mirror to keep it hanging straight.) Rub a little soap film into the mirror to keep it from fogging. Mirrors are self-camouflaging and it is very easy to leave one behind! Get in the habit of checking the shower and sink specifically for your mirror before walking out the door. You can also shave out of a canteen, much the way you would wash your face, but it is more convenient to use your cup as a basin for cleaning out the razor.

An alternative to shaving under your arms is to trim the hair off short with scissors. The benefit is more for comfort than aesthetics or vanity. You will still look like you have hair under your arms, but it will be more comfortable than wild growth and less skin irritation than shaving regularly. In hot climates, the long hairs can quickly get so gummed up with sweat that you cannot keep them clean. Yes I do; in the tropics I trim my arm pits every several months, and no one has ever commented about it. You may need some help from a good friend to keep from cutting yourself with the scissors.

To Shave or Not to Shave

On the Road, you are free. You can shave or not shave anything you like, as long as it belongs to you. If you can find a razor and (hopefully) water, you can shave. Whether or not you should shave, I leave up to you. Traveling is a good opportunity to try it both ways and see how you like it.

Men, if you are interested in fitting in, shave as the locals do. In most of Asia, facial hair is rare. In Latin America, a mustache alone is 'de rigour', and beards (or at least 5-days growth) are common in the Middle East. Beards are hotter, sweatier, itchier, but otherwise much less trouble than shaving two to four times a week. Be aware that you may encounter a few hassles if your passport photo doesn't match your face; you should at least get some new visa photos when you make a major change.

Women, hairy legs stand out as much on women as they do on men in Asia, and are much of a novelty. Elsewhere, it doesn't make too much difference. In conservative countries, your legs will be covered most of the time anyway. Many Latin American women don't shave and have dark hairy legs.

Your Personal Image

In my experience and opinion, people tend to maintain pretty much the same personality, no matter what they are doing. Traveling people may be more laid-back and easy-going, but they have their own basic identities like everyone else. Still, travel is a marvelous opportunity to experiment with your own image, if not identity. You can start, or stop wearing jewelry or eye glasses, coloring your hair, smoking, wearing jeans and T-shirts, or letting some of your hair grow for a change -- who's going to know? Except for a companion from home, your peer group is thousands of miles away! Travelers not unlike yourself end up getting their heads shaved, their hair done in African "corn-rows", or their ears and noses pierced. You will probably go back to most of your old habits, but isn't it fun to try on someone else's style for a while? This is part of the Freedom and Audacity of Life on the Road!

Insects!

On the Road, you will come into plenty of contact with more insects, bugs, and other creepy-crawlies than you likely will at home. Your first line of defense is a good Insect Repellant which I discuss at length at that link. I will repeat here that you should avoid squandering this precious stuff by covering your body with trousers, socks, and a long-sleeved shirt, and save the repellent for your head and hands.

In Your Hotel Room

In the same section referred to above, I disuss the use of mosquito coils, mosquito nets, and mosquito net hoods, which can all be used in your room, especially while you sleep. I had a cockroach once in my room in the Philippines, that would nibble on my knuckles through the mosquito net, if I happened to lean up against it while sleeping! If roaches are a serious problem in your room, they will certainly be selling those "roach motels" at the nearest shop! Or get a better room.

Anytime you travel in warm climes, mosquitoes and sand flies will be a problem. Those crude huts right on the beach are usually the best places because a strong shore breeze (trade winds) usually keeps the mosquitoes back in the shelter of the jungle farther away. But if they are a particular problem, it is a very good idea to pay a little more for a room with a good overhead fan, preferrably right over your bed. This should keep the bugs at bay. You should still have at least a light sheet/sarong to cover most of your body while you sleep. If you don't have a fan -- 'Damn! No electicity in this paradise!' -- or if they're still bad, you should expect to have a mosquite net provided over the bed, and/or burn some mosquito coils in your room at night. More details on surviving pests at the beach are found on the next page under Hitting the Beach.

Wherever you travel in the tropics, you will eat in cafes where your table is firmly planted in 4 tuna fish cans full of water. These 'moats' prevent ants from mounting and pillaging whatever is on the table. You can do the same thing in your room if need be. You can also dab some insect repellant on the end of your (indoor or outdoor) clothes line to keep the ants off your damp clothes. But if you start squirting valuable DEET repellant all along the cracks in your room to keep the ants out -- that's right, it's time for a new room.

While you are sleeping, it is quite likely that any number of different species will be checking out your room and its contents. Some of them may still be there in the morning. That's why its a good idea to shake out everything before you put it on! Better yet, roll up your trousers and underwear or zip them into your pack. Place your socks to firmly block the tops of your shoes, where scorpions love to hide! And be sure to shake the scorpions out of your swimmers before blithly slipping them on over your naked nether regions! Or you won't be the first one to be stung there.

Ants, cockroaches, mosquitoes, even scorpions can be dealt with. But if you find fleas, ticks, or bedbugs in your room, it's a bad idea to stay there; they are just going to get into everything, including you! If you travel long, you will become familiar with the acrid smell of bedbugs; espeailly squished ones. If you find squished bedbugs on the wall next to the bed, look for another hotel.

Gekkos are harmless, usually cute, and eat mosquitoes; learn to live with them.

The opposite bug problem is the source of a hopefully old-fashioned story. In Mexico, the CNEP (National Malaria Erradication Commission) would come around to rural villages at least once a year and spray all the crude huts with DDT -- inside and out! This happened to me twice on beaches in Mexico, but fortunately the landlords warned me ahead of time, and I covered up most of my stuff with a poncho. However, after the spraying, it's not a really nice environment to live in, and the spray dries into a white powder all over everything. When done, they stamp a CNEP number on the door. I'm not sure if this practice still continues, but Malaria certainly does.

Relaxing

Believe it or not, you have to remind some people to relax on their holidays. Of course it takes a couple of weeks to slow down from the fast-lane pace of modern living, not to mention working. Eventually you realize that everything around you is moving much slower, and you might as well get in step. At some point it should hit you that you have absolutely no pressures, deadlines, or expectations to live up to, other than those you place on yourself.

You can also be so focused on your sightseeing goals, and so intent on being a watchful traveler that you lose sight of the freedom that is yours just to relax and enjoy the fascinating world around you. Some people just never slow down. If you've planned your travel schedule to be a non-stop whirlwind sightseeing tour, you will be exhausted in a few weeks and never relax. It's time to change your plan!

Reading

Reading is the easiest way to relax and forget your daily travails for awhile, no matter where you are. I spoke above about reading for "cultural research", and I have already introduced the idea of taking along just one novel, and trading it along the way. You can also buy new English paperbacks in major bookstores and airports everywhere. There are good used English bookstores in a few places like Singapore, Kathmandu, Dharemsala, Nairobi, Mexico City, and San Jose, Costa Rica, but your usual source is travelers and travelers' hostels.

Don't be a literary snob! Swap your old novel for anything else going. Besides being a good way of meeting new people, you will expose yourself to books that you would never have read on your own. A few of them might even be good! Remember that it is a social, rather than a commercial bartering system. Sometimes you trade up, and sometimes you trade down, but the system works to keep everybody in some kind of fresh reading material, and brings people together at the same time. If you refuse because you think your book is much better, you just stuff up the system! You can always swap it for something else. Some books have travel histories more interesting than your own and you may even find a record of the countries and travelers a book has been through, scribbled in the back!

Yes, do pick up an extra book or two for 5-day train rides and long sojourns back of beyond, but even there, you will likely find more travelers to swap books with. I once carried a great book around for two weeks in South America (an English translation of Pablo Neruda's autobiographical "I Confess That I Have Lived"), because all the travelers I met were reading in German, French, and Dutch. When you've been looking for a trade (any book!) for over a week and you spot someone with four books, it's hard to be understanding when they refuse to swap because these are all "important" books that they plan to take home with them.

Cinemas

Films are a great escape from the daily travel life, they are usually very cheap, especially in smaller towns, and you can still see a 'double-feature' for one price. After three of four hours watching adventures in other places, you will emerge trying to remember which part of the world you are actually in! Latin America is great for a large variety of cheap cinemas. Kung-fu movies and Indian epics seem to dominate the fare in much of Asia; you should definitely sample some of these amazing films, but they get a bit redundant. The weekly film in an old barn can be the social highlight of rural towns, cinematically abysmal, but socially fascinating.

Days Off

Travel is hard work. Nobody works seven days a week, and no one should travel seven days a week. If you go out sightseeing every day, you will soon run yourself into the ground. Try to take at least one day a week, and preferably two, when you plan nothing but a few chores, reading, and relaxing. If you have too many chores, take an extra day or two so you have time for some unstructured activities. Definitely plan for days off when making any itinerary.

I usually take Sundays off (or Fridays in the Muslim world), regardless of how many other lazy days I have during the week. This is the day when everyone else in the country is out sightseeing, visiting, or just strolling around. Many shops and all public offices will be closed. It's a good day to stay indoors, or at least out of public transportation, in order to avoid crowds.

Unscheduled Days

A different kind of a day off from sightseeing, is a day you spend just wondering around, enjoying the atmosphere of a place you already know. When I have seen absolutely every sight I want to see, and if the place is even moderately interesting or pleasant, I plan to stay on for at least another day or two for some completely purposeless wondering. I once spent a whole day perched atop the main pyramid at the ruins of Uxmal, Mexico, just enjoying its special atmosphere in the changing light. Running around from site to sight, you can fail to appreciate the unique atmosphere of each place. Take the time to sit quietly in the main square of a town or city -- or pull up a box beside a stall in the marketplace -- just feeling its ambiance; you can observe the local people much better when you are sitting still. This can be such fun that you will find towns where you just want to sit and watch life go on around you for a week! Now you're really getting to know the place.

Enforced Holidays

At sometime during your trip you may encounter a big holiday period that makes travel difficult, if not downright impossible. When your whole life is a vacation, national holidays just get in the way. Mexico and Central America around Easter, Japan during "Golden Week" (end of April) or New Years, Hong Kong or Singapore at Chinese New Year, South America during Carnival, the Muslim world after Ramadan, and much of the world around Christmas, are examples of times when it can be almost impossible to find a hotel room or get a train ticket.

Places like Hong Kong, and anywhere near Europe tend to be invaded nowdays by westerners on the Christian holidays, as well. I thought it would be fairly quiet in Jordan over Easter, but thousands of Europeans poured in for their holiday. I was evicted from my room and had to sleep on the roof! Christmas and Easter tend to be the worst, because schools in Christian countries will be on holiday for up to two weeks at a time, and the chaos can last this long.

One problem is learning ahead of time just when the big holidays are, how long they last, and how crowded it will be. Is the Easter holiday before or after Easter, or both? Guidebooks won't have accurate information unless they have been there at the specific times. Carnival is a one-day holiday in most of Mexico and Central America, but you can count on weeks of holidays and water festivals in South America, which does not take as much time off for Easter. Burma has its Water Festival in April, Japan has Golden Week, and there are dozens of other unique holidays that you may not hear about until they are upon you.

If you have the time, find a cheap place to lay low for the duration, avoiding the frustrations of not being able to find rooms or transportation. The two criterion are a place that won't be very crowded, and one that you won't mind spending a week or more in; you'll be quite lucky to find a place that fits both. This situation requires prior planning. Select a few possible places ahead of time, and check them out. Arrive several days early (at least) and arrange the hotel rate for the entire period; prices can go sky-high during holidays, and you may just be thrown out if you haven't paid up in advance. Some of the best places are backpacker hangouts; they can also get very crowded over the holidays, but the more isolated the spot, the less likely it will be inundated by tourists. Another good bet is to stay in the city, if you can stand it. Mexico City shuts down for two weeks around Easter; many of the sights will still be open, but most of the shops and restaurants are closed as the entire population goes out traveling around. I spent a month in the Galapagos Islands around Christmas and New Year, avoiding the chaos of the holidays in South America.

Exercise

Traveling involves a lot of walking, and you will build up some pretty tough feet and strong legs, especially if you do much mountain hiking. Otherwise, travel is not a very good exercise routine. Riding in cramped buses and sleeping on poor beds can leave your joints and muscles stiff for weeks at a time. Your arms and upper body may miss the amount of exercise you are used to at home, and other than chasing buses, aerobic exercises are hard to find. Good exercise is not only good for your general health, it also improves your emotional well-being; when you start feeling down, try some good exercise.

You will find a few places where you can go jogging, but in general it is not particularly easy, comfortable, or safe. If you travel for several months, try a morning regimen of sit-ups, press-ups, or limbering-up exercises to keep your body in reasonable condition. Jumping rope is an easy aerobic exercise that you can do in your room using your laundry line; double it up to make it heavy enough. Just do these things whenever you can.

After months of hard traveling, I really look forward to getting to a beach for some good exercise. I look for a spot where I can do plenty of swimming and maybe even body-surfing; you may even be able to run on the sand. Like bicycling, swimming is something that you quickly gain strength at, and it is a great full-body exercise; you will amaze yourself at how you can improve in a week. This is another good reason to try snorkeling. Just about anyone can float with their face down in sea water at complete and total rest; it's keeping your face above water that takes so much energy. With a mask and snorkel, you can swim until you get tired, then just stop and rest while watching the sea life. I'm not kidding when I talk about snorkeling for four or five hours at a time, but much of that time is spent just leisurely poking around.

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