Road Trip 101 Or: How I learned to stop worrying and love the road

MANILA, Philippines - Let’s consider your options: take to the air, hop on a train, set sail, or get on the road. All these will take you places and give you stories but one more than the others focuses on the getting there. The thing about road trips is this: it’s the adventure you have to earn. It takes planning, literal street smarts, an epic play list, and having that one point when you realize that you are actually in the first five minutes of a horror movie. But you will figure it out. It’s called the long and winding road for a reason.

Setting aside all the many ways one can wax philosophical about being on the road, actually getting on there is pretty darn simple. Summer is here, you (or someone else in your group) have a car, you’re itching to get out of the city and everyone is game. Also, there is the promise of booze.

Just Go, Or Stop Over-Thinking It And Just Get In The Car

The hardest part is over once you actually decide to go. Find a couple of days when the gang’s all free, find a destination—pick a random point on a map if you have to—and load your gear.

Get your engine and your tires checked, and gas up. Figure out how everyone and everything is going to fit. If you’re going to be on the road for a day or more, set up the driving shifts. If you’re traveling during sleepy hours, make sure someone stays up with the driver. That someone should have a very specialized set of skills. Think navigator, personal comedian, and cheerleader.

Leave early. Set a meeting time and stick to it. There’s no point starting a road trip pissed off because someone was 30 minutes late. Set a meeting place where you can grab breakfast, and if possible, at a place where you can buy last minute things you may have forgotten to pack.

Once your vehicle is ready and everyone is psyched, you’re pretty much good to go.

Get Packed, Or Things You Might Forget

As to what is in your trunk, you can choose to have nothing but junk food and a change of underwear, or you can pack your entire house. Whatever you decide to pack, a few essentials make those hours in a cramped space a little easier.

Food – Let’s face it, having the munchies on a long stretch of road where the only thing you can eat is grass, or the carabao currently grazing on it? Not something you want to experience. Hydration is key, don’t forget water, either.

First aid kit – You can find a list of what you need online. Make sure you pack prescription medicine and maybe a couple of Bonamine, too. Travel sickness is neither pretty nor fun.

Pillow and sunglasses trash bag – Hurling your garbage out the window—not cool.

Malong – It’s a towel! It’s a blanket! It’s a bag! It’s a dressing room! It’s a sleeping bag! What can’t a malong do?

Playlist and accoutrements – So you’ve spent more time than you probably should have making the most excellent summer playlist. The last thing you want is to find out that the car doesn’t have an iPod jack.

Whatever else you need to pack depends on where you’re going. 

Navigate, Or What To Do When You Actually Hit The Road

There are two schools of thought on figuring out how to get to wherever the heck it is you’re going. You can go old school and stock up on maps. There is nothing quite like marking your route with a pencil. This is an excellent time to unleash your inner hobbit and trace your path from the Shire to Mordor. You can also just use your smart phone. 

On whichever camp you land, make sure you pay careful attention to signs, and get ready to roll down your windows to ask for directions. You don’t need mad navigation skills. Be polite, smile, and more often than not, people will be more than happy to point you to the right track.

It’s always a good idea to stop every few hours and stretch your legs so make a few stopovers. You’ll never know what you’ll find on the road, so be willing to stop when you find some place interesting. You might just fall in love with the in-between-places as well. Having a plan is good but if you’re lucky and you look a little closer, you’ll find that one place that wasn’t online but ends up being amazingly awesome.

Have fun, be safe, sing. You’ll figure the rest of it out. And don’t forget your toothbrush.