Pack a Straw!

Of all the surprising items to pack when you travel, a drinking straw has to sound the weirdest!  But pack one or two to spare you from damaged jewelry, knotted chains, and frustration.
Slip one end of your necklaces and bracelets into a length of plastic drinking straw, then fasten the catch.  They will not scratch or tangle.  You only need a piece of straw about one-third the length of your necklace or bracelet, so one straw may suffice for several pieces.  For fine chains, you can often slip two into one section of a straw, and the two necklaces still will not tangle and knot up.  Pendants on your chains, of course, remain outside the straw, so no problem there.

I've found the best straws at (of all places) MacDonald's and Wendy's.  Since they serve thick shakes and Frosties, their straws have a larger diameter than those from, say, KFC.  Perfectly adequate to hold a nice thick rope-style chain necklace.  And they are plastic straws, so these can last for ages.  You can easily cut a convenient length with manicure scissors or whatever is handy. 

When you take off your jewelry, slip chain end into a short piece of straw, fasten the catch, and put away in your jewelry roll.  Keeps your precious possessions safe.  Without adding any weight or bulk to your baggage.  (Mine's usually overstuffed to begin with!)

Pick up a spare straw next time you treat yourself to a shake or soda, and stash that straw in your luggage, ready for your next episode of pack-and-takeoff.

May your road rise up to meet you!

Ann

Road Warriors’ Need for a Fast Feed

In Asia, food fast means a trek to the nearest hawker stalls.  Europeans take their food so seriously they sorely disdain the very notion of food-on-the-run.  Unless you grab a gelato from a handy cart, you’re may be out of luck when you need to grab some food fast.  The fast food industry is biggest in the US.  Americans often eat on the run. 

And wherever you go, there are times you just want something familiar – an old reliable standby, rather than risk more strangeness.  After months in Indonesia, where any ground beef was jokingly referred to as “roo” (as in kanga-), the first stop on leave in Singapore was McD’s for “real” burgers.  The best McDonald’s cheeseburger I ever ate was in Moscow the day the city ran out of bread.  McDonald’s had burger buns: they owned wheat farms and controlled bun-making with typical McD’s precision.  They grew fantastic tomatoes (like Grandma’s garden) and leaf lettuces in the deep, rich Russian soil, too.  Very satisfying after months of riding the rails through China, then Siberia.

Road Warriors need fuel, and sometimes have to fuel up on the run.  Five Guys Burgers & Fries currently tops various lists of best burgers or best fast food.  I think they are hideously greasy.  Manhattan prices, when outside of Manhattan, do not sit well with my wallet either.

A better answer is Steak & Shake – an old chain founded in 1934.  Sparse on the ground – they are not present in every town or crossroads – they’re still worth tracking down if one is near wherever you land.  Roadside diner service at less-than-McD’s prices.

The Cheesy Cheddar Burger is a double steakburger with enough genuine Wisconsin cheddar to swim over burger, plate and fries.  Lettuce and tomato tops the burger.  The fries are skinny and good enough to disappear down the hatch even if you swear your diet is not going to allow you to tackle the entire pile.  Not so greasy – neither burger nor fries.  And really quite tasty.  At $4.99, it’s such a good deal.

If you are on the road Stateside, Steak & Shake beats McD's, Wendy's, Five Guys, et al.  On the fast food scale, it rates fabulous.  The burgers are thin, so do get doubles.