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1. Granola Bars
Sometimes I forget to eat when I travel. I get full off of life and everything else around me. That is until my stomach starts growling like a dinosaur and I realize that I’m half way up the mountain already. Afterward, I started packing crackers. It was cheap and it was good enough to hold me down for the time being. Then I realized that granola bars, although slightly more expensive, are much better and healthier alternative.
Wings Of Nature sent me a few samples of their organic fruit & nut and coffee granola bars. They are manufactured using a “cold process” so they’re never baked or cooked, which allows them to maintain their delicious, natural flavor and texture. Cold Processing also preserves all the nutritional properties of the fruits, nuts and grains inside each bar. All the ingredients listed below are certified organic.
Espresso Coffee Bar: The rich flavor of Espresso and Cocoa comes from the mixture of real organic coffee beans, nuts & raisins blended with organic Agave syrup and organic brown rice syrup sweeteners.
Almond Raisin Bar: The rich flavor of Almond and Raisin comes from the mixture of organic nuts, seeds & dried fruits blended with organic Agave syrup and organic brown rice syrup sweeteners.
Cranberry Crunch Bar: The rich flavor of Cranberry Nut comes from the mixture of real organic cranberries, nuts & raisins are blended with organic Agave syrup and organic brown rice syrup sweeteners.
2. Stainless Steel Canteens
No traveler sets off without a bottle of water. What’s cheaper and more environmentally friendly than plastic water bottles? Stainless steel canteens. It’s better to buy a huge jug of water and refill it into your stainless steel canteen than to buy multiple plastic water bottles and dispose of them afterward.
3. Vaseline
Plain ol’ Vaseline is great but plain ol’ Vaseline with SPF is even better! It’s easy to remember to put SPF on our body but we neglect to do the same on our lips. Vaseline also comes in handy for dry hands and feet, cracked heels and it’s great for re-hydrating those tired-looking eyes.
4. Camera
Duh! What kind of traveler doesn’t carry a camera with them? But cameras aren’t just good for taking pictures of sunsets and mosques. I often use it to digitize guidebooks. When you’re traveling on a budget, $20 bucks for a guidebook can be costly. Instead, head to a bookstore in your local area, grab a cup of coffee and start snapping away. Take pictures of maps, restaurant listings, hotels, etc. Or if you’re at the airport waiting to board, you can visit a bookstand and do the same. Yes, the image may be small but you can always upload them to your laptop or just zoom in on your camera to view. Plus, it lightens up the load when you’re exploring a new place.
5. Microfiber Towel
It’s light-weight, fast-drying and definitely critical for those hot and humid days in India or during that long, long climb up the mountain. It also comes in very handy if you’re jumping from one place to the next. Many times regular cotton towels just don’t dry fast enough. It’s always still a little damp when you pack it in your bags the next morning.
6. Alcohol & Hand Wipes
Hand sanitizers are liquids and liquids are heavy. I prefer to travel as light as possible so I always bring alcohol and/hand wipes. A lot of the times, I collect hand wipes from my flights and from restaurants I eat in. Why use them when there’s a restroom nearby? It’s better to save them for when you’re on the road.
7. Personal Safety Alarm
Pepper spray and mace isn’t TSA approved so the next best thing to keeping yourself safe in foreign territory is a personal safety alarm. You can carry it in your bag or place it underneath your pillow if you’re sleeping in a hostel. Make sure the alarm is easy to set off in an emergency but not so easy to set off accidentally.
