From past Earth Routes newsletters:
Anti-Jet-Lag Diet
Developed at the US Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory, the Argonne Anti-Jet-Lag Diet helps travelers quickly adjust their bodies' internal clocks to new time zones. It requires some planning ahead, but it can reduce that spaced-out feeling after a flight across time zones.
1.Determine breakfast time at destination on day of arrival.
2.Feast-Fast-Feast-Fast on home time. Start three days before departure day. On day one, feast: eat heartily with high-protein breakfast and lunch and a high-carbohydrate dinner; no coffee except between 3 and 5 pm. On day two, fast: eat light meals of salads, light soups, fruits and juices; again, no caffeine except between 3 and 5 pm. On day three, feast again. On day four, departure day, fast; if you drink caffeinated beverages, take them in the morning when traveling west, or between 6 and 11 pm when traveling east. Going west, you may fast only half a day.
3.Break final fast at destination breakfast time; no alcohol on the plane. If the flight is long enough, sleep until normal breakfast time at destination, but no later. Wake up and feast on high-protein breakfast. Stay awake and active; continue the day's meals according to meal times at destination.
Note: Feast on high-protein breakfasts and lunches to stimulate the body's active cycle. Suitable meals include meat, eggs, high-protein cereals, beans.
Feast on high-carbohydrate suppers to stimulate sleep. Suitable meals include pastas (without meat), potatoes, other starchy vegetables, and sweet desserts.
Fast days help deplete the liver's store of carbohydrates and prepare the body's clock for resetting. Suitable foods include fruit, light soups, broths, light salads, unbuttered toast, half pieces of bread. Keep calories and carbohydrates to a minimum.
Use a virtual mailbox
If you have an email account that you can check from an Internet café or hotel computer while you're traveling, you can provide yourself with an information storage system that you don't have to pack. Simply email yourself, just before you leave home or after you have downloaded your incoming mail for the last time, with a list of addresses, phone numbers, passport numbers, or whatever else you might need if you lost your paper copy of this information. The message will be in your "virtual mailbox" and ready for you to open and read whenever you have access to the Internet.
Climb slowly
If the symptoms of headache, nausea, and fatigue seem to you, as they did to me, to be just a case of too much traveling or a reaction to unfamiliar food, you could be right. But you might be missing another ailment with a fairly simple remedy. I did not consider altitude sickness when I traveled to a relatively small mountain and spent the first night at about 5,000 feet. It's not a significant altitude for most people, but for someone who lives near sea level, as I do, it's apparently too much of an increase. The ailment was mild altitude sickness and the remedy (which can also confirm the diagnosis) was to go to a lower place. Finding relief when I went to the nearby town in a valley gave me the clue. Acclimatizing for a day or so is what's recommended, and drinking green tea can also help.
Check with someone who's been there!
Descriptions of hotel rooms and destinations can sound enticing, but to find out if the real situation measures up to the prose, I look for reports from people who have been there. A handy way to do that is to look on the website , where consumers voluntarily write reviews, both positive and negative. These reports and ratings can also steer travelers headed for unfamiliar places to lodgings that fit their needs. Travel agents rely on this input, too!
Drive somebody else's car
You should do this legally, of course, and you can do it easily through a drive-away service, a match-making business that connects drivers looking for transportation between two points in North America and vehicle owners needing their vehicle transported between the same two points. The service fee is charged to the vehicle owner, so as the driver you would pay only for fuel and your own road-trip expenses. It's a great opportunity to take that cross-country trip, visit national parks, or seek a warmer climate for a while. You might be able to find a drive-away deal in both directions, or you might make more than one arrangement to complete a circular route, if taking a flight back home doesn't work into your plans. Check out the possibilities at
Check car rental details
It's well worth the time spent to look up insurance coverage information before you make your car rental reservation. There's a lot of fine print on that car rental policy, and you probably don't want to be digesting it at the counter when you pick up the car. Rental company agents will offer you a standard package of insurance coverage options on the vehicle, and you could end up paying extra money needlessly.
In most cases, the coverage you have on your own vehicle applies when you rent a car. Many credit card companies also provide insurance coverage when you use their card to pay for the rental, but they may require that your own policy and its deductible be applied first. If you own an older car, you may have dropped comprehensive and collision coverage, and you could be liable for a huge bill if the rental car is damaged or stolen and you have not purchased additional coverage. If you are renting a vehicle for more than three weeks, different rules may apply.
In addition to insurance charges, there are fees and surcharges to be considered, many of which are mandatory, that can add a significant amount to the basic rental charge. Also, take note of the extra hour and extra day charges, as you may want to return the car before the extra time is charged. Ask for details when you make your reservation; most companies will readily give you an estimated total price including fees. Check with Earth Routes for comparison pricing.
Photograph your baggage
It’s easy enough to tie a recognizable ribbon to the handle of your suitcase, so you’ll see it coming on the airport baggage carousel, but how easily could you recall what’s inside the bag if it were lost and you had to file a claim? Take a photo of your bag and its contents while you’re packing, and you’ll have a quick reference. Of course, it’s not a good idea to put anything very valuable or irreplaceable in your checked luggage. For more details on dealing with lost luggage (or avoiding the problem!) visit /