Flights and long drives differ greatly even if they are equal lengths. With a flight, all the stress comes in two delicately packaged servings. The first moments of stress are at the beginning: checking in, going through security, sitting and waiting for hours for the flight to take off. At the end of your flight you have to deplane and spend what feels like hours standing around waiting for your luggage to come off the plane. During a drive, the stress seems never ending. Between multiple bathroom stops, to the mandatory noon time food stop, it seems like being in that cramped space with your family will never truly end. Inspired by my upcoming drive to Vermont, I decided to post about ways to keep busy during a 6 hour car ride and alternately a 6 hour flight for people who may be traveling to school anytime soon.
6 HOUR CAR RIDE
Pack:
-everything in the trunk except a small bag, the more stuff you have at your feet, the less comfortable you will feel and the less room you will have to move around.
-bring one dose of ibuprofen / tylenol in case you get a headache from the stress
-two new magazines you haven't read yet. (books give me headaches when I read in the car so I try not to)
-create an "ultimate mix"; there should be 1 CD per hour of driving. A CD with 18 tracks will take about an hour to get through. If music in the CD player is not an option, put the same number of songs on your iPod
-a filled water bottle
What to do:
- read your magazines cover to cover, fully analyzing the spreads and "life advice". Whether you are critical or accepting of the information, two magazines can take you through 2 hours of driving.
- play CDs or music. If you get a headache or want to rest but you're too wide awake to actually fall asleep the background music can prove to be quite entertaining.
- play "the license plate game"; along the highway see how many state license plates you can spot. Bonus points for getting Hawaii or Alaska (unless you actually live there).
- Drink Water, but not so much that you have to stop every 20 minutes. Rest stops can be few and far between.
-sleep. I find it hard sometimes to sleep in cars but an hour nap or two half hour naps can help the time go by
6 HOUR PLANE RIDE
Pack:
-a small and light carry on. I know you are allowed to have a "carry on and one personal item" but I find it easier to just keep track of one giant tote bag than a tote as well as a roller / duffel bag.
-kindle (with at least 5 titles to keep you occupied)
-If you don't have a kindle try to pack a few small paperbacks rather than a large hardcover or large paperbacks. A few of my suggestions are: any of Shakespeare's plays, A Clockwork Orange, The Brief and Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao, A Super Sad True Love Story, Firestarter (by Stephen King).
- magazines (Vogue, Vanity Fair or Cosmopolitan will take the longest to get through)
- iPod; music playing device
- Cellphone
- Sleep mask
- Laptop
- Passport / Other form of ID
- Pen (to fill out customs forms)
What to do:
- I advise sleeping as much as you can at the beginning of the flight rather than trying to sleep in the middle. I always get too anxious about my arrival to fall asleep once the flight is halfway through
- listen to music. I try to play albums I haven't heard before all the way through. My album suggestions are Lady Gaga's 'Born This Way', 'Runaway' by Kanye West, '21' by Adele and 'Who You Are' by Jessie J
- Read all your magazines cover to cover first
-Read as many paperbacks / ebooks as you can before landing. If you are a slower reader, challenge yourself to finish at least one book. With a goal in mind, you will lose track of time and focus on finishing the reading task rather than time until landing.
- If you get bored with reading, try playing a game on your laptop or writing to pass the time. I like syncing my calendar and my Evernote pages when I have a lot of free time in airports or during a flight.
I'm not sure if these tricks / ideas will work for you but they always work for me. Six hour drives & flights seem like nothing when I have a game plan and I'm constantly occupied.
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