Tips for Travelers – Do as I Say, Not as I Do
During this day’s transition from Kathmandu, Nepal to Chiang Mai, Thailand, DM and I broke every rule of the experienced traveler, including:
1. Allow plenty of extra time to get to the airport in case of traffic.
“Our international flight is at 1:30PM; let’s arrange for a taxi at 10:30” say I.
“Oh, that’s silly,” says DM. “It’s only a 20 minute ride to the airport – make it 11:AM.” I didn’t feel like arguing, and also refrained from saying “I told you so” when the taxi arrived 20 minutes late, and traffic was horrendous.
2. Besure to check that you have all your belongings before leaving the hotel.
Three blocks into the noon-time traffic of Kathmandu, DM shrieks “Oh No! I left my purse on the couch in the hotel lobby – we have to go back.” Fortunately, the taxi driver knew a back street, and the purse was still there. And even more fortunately, the plane was a bit late.
3. Be sure to check the rules about currency exchange if you have any significant amount of local currency left.
I had about $70 US in Nepalese rupees, which I decided in our hurry not to pause to exchange at the airport in Nepal. It was only when I got to the US and tried to exchange that I found out that it is “illegal” to take NPR out of Nepal, and no other country will exchange the currency.
4. Be sure to check that you have all your belongings before leaving the plane.
I stepped aside to check the connecting flight number as we waited to exit the plane; only after we were halfway up the concourse (fortunately, still within the security area) did I realize my backpack was too light – I had left my fanny pack/purse on the airplane seat. I swam upstream against the flood of exiting passengers to retrieve it, and we loped through the concourse to catch our flight rather than making our anticipated R&R stop in the Thai Airways Orchid Lounge.
5. Be sure you have some local currency in hand on arriving in a new country.
We had planned to grab some Thai currency in the Bangkok airport, but had no time between flights due to flight delay and my brain-dead episode. By the time we arrived in Chiang Mai, the ATMs and currency exchange booths were shut down for the night. Fortunately, DM’s neighbor had given her a few leftover baht to use as mad money – just enough to pay the taxi to our hotel.
So yes, we knew better. God watches over fools. We got there anyway.
Allyson Johnson 