Strong case for load shedding

If only suitcases weren’t part of globetrotters’ itinerary. Despite wheels and other clever gadgetry, they remain cumbersome, causing back spasms and leg pains.

Then there’s the mental effect, often spoiling an otherwise good holiday. It starts at the airport weighin. Overweight and extra cost? Remove some of the items and squash them into overhead bags already overflowing?

An undignified exercise witnessed by irate fellow passengers held up in long queues. Then there’s the walk on uneven cobbled streets from hotels to terminals.

Boarding trains or buses jostling with thousands of others during peak times in a foreign country is enough of a nightmare without still having to cope with the extra furniture.

In the scrum they are separated, each getting wedged between the legs of a fellow passenger. Alighting at your stop poses similar challenges.

By the time you’ve reached the hotel room, you’re so knackered, you swap the night city excursion for a hot shower and early bed. Total waste of time costing plenty bucks.

Wish we could go the way of an expat friend in Aussie. All he packs when going on a long trip are his rejuvenation pills, spare false teeth, hair restorer, neck pain relaxant, magnifying glass, corn plaster, liver spot remover and eyebrow clippers.

For good measure, he includes sunscreen and strong perving binocs. What about clothing? Barest minimum in an overhead bag (no waiting at delayed carousels) with a list of wishy washies at each port of call.

Read somewhere there’s a woman specialising in bag packing. She’s able to pack one suitcase for two people with all the essentials needed for a two-week trip anywhere in the world.

Apparently she folds each item in the form of a boerewors and by placing them side by side she’s able to fit in shorts, longs, undies, dress suits, shoes, blouses, swimming costumes, jerseys, fleeced line jackets, raincoats, etc.

And, what’s more, depending on the number of items, she’s able to do the same in an overnight bag. Think of it. Boarding and exiting a plane with a single bag.

I must remember to Google this frugal feline.

Cliff Buchler.

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