Soooooooooo I'm a big proponent of flying whenever possible. DCA makes it so easy to get in and get out and not spend hours at the airport. But we drove to upstate New York for Thanksgiving.

Two words: the dog.

I think I've alluded to it before in a few posts, but if not, here is what you probably didn't need or want to know for the day: I have horrible motion sickness.

I honestly can't remember a time when I didn't have motion sickness. When I was younger, traveling with my parents, I constantly dreaded flying and early morning car rides because I knew I would get sick. Also?  There is evidence this is genetic (for example, here). Thanks Mom and Dad (...though neither of them have significant issues).

Sure, sometimes it was worse than others, and not having food in my stomach (i.e. mornings) certainly seemed to exacerbate the problem.  I'm also one of those people who isn't really ever hungry in the morning, so that doesn't help. I've been that way since about 5, when my mom says one morning I woke up, and out of the blue told her I wasn't hungry for breakfast.  Twenty-five years later and not much has changed.

When I say "bad", I'm sure my "bad" doesn't compare to people with actual medical problems that cause extreme motion sickness, so I don't want to exaggerate. Yes, on large, commercial planes I am ok probably 70% of the time. But I know I'm not the only one that dreads certain forms of transportation because on a good day, it makes me feel like crap for a few hours, and on a bad day, there will be throwing up. I'm sure the anxiety of getting sick doesn't help the actual motion sickness, either.

Here are ten things I bring when I travel internationally for general health and safety; as a part-time traveler, I try to minimize disruptions to my trip and maximize relaxation--a day lost to sickness or stress is a day less of vacation. While my first-aid kit (not covered below) does change some depending on my destination (i.e. on safari or to a European city), these health & safety items are constant in my packing regimen.
 
1. Wet-wipes. Yes, I'm a self-diagnosed germaphobe. It's also my area of professional expertise, which doesn't help. In this case, I think ignorance seriously may be blissful.  Anyway, I bring at least 2 packages of wet-wipes.  I do, generally, also have hand-sanitizer, but wet-wipes are way more useful because you can actually wipe the dirt/organic matter/whatever off of your hands instead of just smearing it around. In a pinch, they can also double as toilet paper. Win!
 
Where to find? Almost anywhere! I'm preferential to the original Wet Ones brand because they smell good. And not like baby-wipes.