Customary

My clients (Kristin Poulton and Jim Barnett, both of QAD, Inc.) patiently waiting at the customs counter at Birmingham Airport (BHX).

Our gear was left on the tarmac for an hour, then another 30 minutes waiting for an agent to appear. Traveling with gear means being an exporter/importer, with all the preparation and paperwork you can imagine that entails. I’ve done it about a dozen times; Kristin and Jim have both become experts.

 

ACTION ITEM: Do not travel overseas with gear without full documentation, usually in the form of an ATA Carnet.

Tiny Bottles

This is one of my must-have travel accessories, tiny bottles of Tabasco sauce (though they’re also available in more convenient packets, I vastly prefer these cute little bottles). Sometimes dining on the road can be less than inspiring and Tabasco adds a needed kick. But when I fly (and assuming I don’t need to climb into a rental car after arrival) I often try to squeeze in an early morning Bloody Mary, turbo-charged by a few shakes of this tiny treasure.

Roll Baby Roll

I was on a location shoot in late May, I think. Between scenes, the client burst into the room to announce that custodians were using Number 2 pencils to hold the rolls of toilet paper in place. Yup. In every stall.

Turn Clothes Hangers into a Sleep Aid

You probably already know that you’ll generally sleep better in a room that’s quiet, dark, and cool. There are a lot of tricks I use while traveling to make my room as dark as possible, which helps as I almost always seem to get the second-floor room with the mercury-vapor lamp three feet from the window. I use those trouser hangers, the ones with the clips, to hold the drapes securely closed. Like this: