Travelling for work

[Yoni]

So with my new job I am doing a shed load of travelling... Last month France, Netherlands and Finland, this month France, next month Finland, France, Norway... You get the picture.

What do the other regular travelling Freddie's do to combat not only the time ( ie what gadgets do you take especially when you don't want to put luggage in the hold), how do you cope with lack of space when travelling between different climates and finally what do you do to help counter the way travelling saps energy?

I have managed on this trip just with a backpack, but this morning I half regretted that decision when I left the house and the light rain turned to heavy rain and I am dressed for Paris...

I am in a good routine now in that I pack my bag the night before, I leave (when in my control) in plenty of time to avoid stress and always walk with purpose ( but not run) between connections as if there are two things I hate and they are; people who bimble about, especially in rush hour and people who cross the flow of traffic....

To keep me occupied I have my IPad which I load with a variety of tv and music, a book for takeoff and landing and if I want to work I have my work laptop.

My biggest issue is how tired I get and I am wondering how I can combat that a little, should I only stick to certain foods, cut my caffeine levels, drink more water?

 

[old.Tohtori]

Think it was in pacific, to some degree; why run when you can walk, why walk when you can stand, why stand when you can sit, why sit when you can lay down, why lay down when you can sleep.

Basically concerve energy. If you follow your actions during the day, you might ntoice that you stands around waiting for connections, instead of sitting and waiting and so forth.

On "boredom", try and enjoy the view of different countries, you always notice something new. Be a tourist, not an employee

 

[DaGaffer]

TBH, I think you're doing all the right things, pack light, give yourself plenty of time, and for me, a tablet has been an absolute godsend; I always load it with enough books and video for flights, airports and hotel rooms. Bottom line is that business travel on your own is often boring (I can still remember how excited I was going on my first business trip and my Dad, an old hand at business flying, giving me that "you'll learn" look).

The only thing that I always try to do is go for a walk after I've checked in to my hotel for the evening. I like to get a feel for my surroundings, and sometimes you can turn up a nice restaurant or cafe so you're not stuck with the hotel's offerings. This is not so much fun if you're stuck in some soulless place out by the airport or an industrial estate, but I still tend to give it a go, even if I'm travelling with colleagues I'll often go off for a wander and then surprise them by knowing where the pharmacies and ATMs are.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

I find commuting into central London from zone 4 bad enough. Would hate to have to travel even more.

 

[Scouse]

Exactly* what Gaff said tbh


*with a laptop rather than some tablet wank

 

[TdC]

just back from a one-day trip to Londinium but was still tired as hell tbh. for the first time in my life I considered purchasing a tablet by the way, because it's just a shitload lighter than books+notepads+laptop in my shoulderbag. though I did see the latest luxury problem where all the biz people were anxious in the security scans that they got the correct iPad back lol.

Anyway, what I do these days:
- take time, or make time by staying in a hotel the night before either on location or at the airport/s or whatever. What I did on this trip was pre check in for my return flight immediately, so I could basically arrive airport, walk straight through to security, have time for a glass of water and look at the silly priced watches in the lounge and then pass that and get on the plane all within the space of 40 mins rather than hanging about forever or being rushed. ideal imo.
- drink friggin gallons of water, and *fresh* fruitjuices when I can get them. I've convinced myself that the extra vitamins really do help, and when you're like me and get colds at the drop of a hat you put up whatever defenses you can.
- like DaGaffer says, I like to invest some of my gained time into going for a walk outside. Otherwise, I will really have the feeling I'll have been inside all the time -you know that odd feeling you get- and that makes me feel bad so I try to avoid it.
- drink the complementary water in the hotel room before I go to bed. the climate control always fucks me about and the extra hydration helps.
- I also bring a chapstick or labello or lip balm and a moisturizer for my face. this may sound a bit ott, but being in climate controlled air -especially the uber dry air on planes- really gives me a rough feeling and tight skin in my face. I get the exact same feeling when I'm about to have a cold, and because I don't want to walk feeling or thinking I'm about to get ill, I do something about it.

 

[Yoni]

Slept for 14 hours in my return, those who know me at all will tell you this is totally out of character.... I think this had more to do with the schedule.... Although it was fun ie we didn't return to our hotel until midnight due to team building (cooking our own 3 course dinner, carefully instructed by 2 Michelin chefs), followed by an early start in Friday. I felt sorry for my colleague from the states, he flew in Thursday morning and looked exhausted by the time I left on Friday lunchtime.

 

[TdC]

yeah, jetlag prolly killing him o0

 

[MYstIC G]

Glad this thread came up. Got about 4 hours worth of train journeys tomorrow which presently I'm not looking forward to. I shall make sure now to take my tablet (as I find browsing can often pass the time) and a book because I was just going to go down the route of taking my headphones and relying on iPhone supplied music.