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5 Essential Things that You Need to Carry on Trips

Work-Trips-AbroadThinking of going on a road trip? Or on a vacation? List down all the essential things that you need to carry. The problem that road-trippers and tourers face is they forget to pack some everyday stuff, which are essential.

This article is to help them out as I am going to make a list of some pretty routine things that come in real handy for everyday use as well as for vacation tours. Some of them are ordinary household stuff, but people often forget to pack them.

A flashlight

There's electricity everywhere, then why do I need to carry a flashlight? If this is what's going on in your mind, then you need to consider the following anecdote:

I visited a tropical country once where every modern amenity was available. But just ten meters from the hotel where I was staying was a mosquito-laden swamp. One day, as our car broke down on the road, me and my driver were walking by the swamp. My driver suddenly pulled me by my right hand. Bewildered, I asked him what's wrong, and he pointed at the King Cobra with raised poison fangs; I was about to step on it.

That day I realized the importance of carrying a flashlight. Wherever you go, always carry a flashlight with you. Regardless of your location, the flashlight is always of help. You can even use it for self-defense. Besides, if there's a power-cut or a bad weather situation, the flashlight would save you from a temporary lack of vision.

A foldable knife

Make sure you can shove it into your pocket. The benefits of having a small but sharp knife are many. Wes Siler has compiled few of them in his article and some of them are anecdotal too.

You may not find yourself in extreme situations, a foldable pocket knife can still be helpful as you can use it to open boxes, packages, peel fruits, cut up small chunks of wood and ropes and sculpt on rocks and wooden surfaces.

A disposable lighter

A lighter is an essential thing for you to carry. But should you carry a disposable lighter or a zippo lighter? Some so-called experts might advise you to carry a zippo lighter, don't listen to them. Always carry a disposable lighter. Need to know why?

A disposable lighter is to use and throw. But a zippo lighter uses the liquid lighter fluid, which can be refilled once finished. Apparently, there's a point to using a zippo lighter instead of a disposable lighter. But the truth is, not every place has a stock of the lighter fluid that you can unearth.

On the other hand, disposable lighters are easy to find no matter which part of the world you visit. So if one lighter gives out, you can always get yourself another one. Disposable lighters run on the butane gas, which is susceptible to fires. Never carry exploding lighters. The buying and selling of such lighters still take place in the United States, and people still buy them. But they aggravate the odds of a building or a vehicle fire.

Reusable filtration bottle

You'll find every survival guide to have a mention of the reusable water bottle. The high-quality ones come in plastic and metal. Filling the bottle won't be a problem because every facility, no matter how small or how remote it is, has a steady supply of water. If stranded in a place that has unclean water, you can fill the bottle with it and have the water filtered.

Such a bottle won't cost you an arm or a leg. So, don't forget to take one when you are heading off to a road trip or even to an overseas trip.

Medicine-kit

Yes, you guessed this one right. Always carry a medicine-kit no matter where you go. Keep at least ten or fifteen band-aids in it along with a pain-relief spray and over-the-counter pills such as painkillers, aspirins and paracetamols. The medicines will help to alleviate common cold, headache, etc.

Travel safe

Carrying these five things increases your safety. A trip is to have fun and excitement, but never at the cost of your safety. So follow the tips discussed above, and travel safe.

Contributed by http://www.firesafetyconsultant.com

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