Top 5 travel must-haves

Here's a simple list of 5 essential yet often overlooked items (which are not staples such as clothes and toiletries) that I'd learned from my recent family vacation, and that in my opinion we need to bring during travels to make a trip just that little (or a lot) more comfortable and applicable.

In descending order:

5) Umbrella.

---Well, it's for days that just in case, it rains. And given the unpredictable weather nowadays, it can rain anytime, anywhere. A personal tip would be to bring one small enough to fit into a medium-size bag so that it's more portable, and that you won't forget to bring back later after the trip. Also can be used as self-defense weapon...xD

My experience: I didn't even think of bringing an umbrella, so when it rained, I risked getting all soaking wet; good thing it was just a drizzle, and I wasn't too far from my chalet! It'll be a different story if either it was raining cats and dogs...or if you're the kind that likes dancing in the rain :)

4) Extra plastic bags and/or sheets.

---Extra plastic comes in very handy during trips, simply because they're water and dirt-proof. Therefore, they're good for storage purposes, as well as for keeping all those extra stuff that you bought back...Do reuse them though, so that we can do our bit for environment conservation.

My experience: Since we lived in a pretty simple chalet, an extra plastic bag came in handy for keeping the clean clothes dry while the dirty ones were hanging on the rack, that had limited hooks since the bathroom was pretty small. Besides, I went to a beach vacation so think of all the sand trapped in those used outfits after a swim at the beach...so separating them is more convenient too.

3) Extra safety and/or hair pins.

---These are multi-purpose and basically explain themselves. Think impromptu lock picks, think getting small trapped stuff out of places, think patching up 'holes' of any kind temporarily.

My experience: I accidentally brought the wrong shirt to the trip because I kind of grabbed the shirt out of my drawer and coincidentally they were of the same color. The shirt that I accidentally bought was...uh well, not so presentable if I were to wear it out of the house just like that. A safety pin, along with my jacket, remedied the problem.

2) Shawl.

---for warmth during cold weather and cold air-conditioning, too. Shawls double up as protective headgear too. A personal tip is to use a shawl that's long enough to be a makeshift blanket too - for those times where the blanket provided isn't thick enough and you're still kinda numb from the cold...Use one that's made of thick, comfortable material that'll keep you warm and comfy :)

~I did a random Google search...and yes, guys do wear scarves too, but they're kinda short, so I'll ask you to bring a spare blanket to use for sleeping instead...so sorry dudes, this particular one is more for gals. 

My experience: This one came from watching my sis. Long story short, our air-cond was cold, she brought her shawl and managed to not wake up and freeze the way I did while trying to survive with a thin blanket throughout the night...Okay, a shawl would be my next investment.

1) Mosquito repellent.

---obviously, for repelling mosquitoes, because FYI, they can be deadly (more on that tomorrow). Also can be smeared around corners to repel ants, cockroaches and other insects you don't want to be near with. Unless you're the kind that likes to study insects while you sleep...

My experience: The chalet that we were staying was full of ants...with the not-so-occasional fly and mosquito dropping by for visits. The ants were all over the floor! So, with a bottle of all-natural mosquito repellent, I smeared that on tissues under the door. Even though there were still some ants by morning, it helped deter most of them away from our room after that...

That's what I can share for now. Haha I'm getting sleepy now...

Good night and enjoy today's post yeah :)