Hey! It’s been a while and I’ve finally decided to look over my journal entries from the summer and put them online. This is the 1st part out of my 6-part traveling series, do you have any more bus experiences to add on to mine? The next one will be about why Canada–the second country I’ve ever been to–was cool to explore!

DO

-use the restroom at every stop or whenever you can because something may happen and who knows when you’ll be able to see another one (plus avoid the bus bathroom, I’m so grateful I never needed to use it but others told me it smells) 

-not care about how stupid you think it looks when you’re wearing it, a memory foam neck pillow is your best friend if you’re going to sleep on long rides… I mean, unless you like a sore neck

-bring an ebook device, get a head start on your summer assignments, or read that new dystopian book you’ve been meaning to!

-keep spare plastic bags, our seats didn’t have cup holders so it was a handy way to reuse it

-pack an iPod and headphones to help you think of better things than being stuck on a bus for who knows how long 

-buy yourself portable charger(s) this is a must, especially if you have an iPhone

-maintain an optimistic outlook

-bring snacks, both healthy and too-good-to-be-true ones

DONT

-be that person who turns their screen brightness all the way (and avoid using it in the dark), there may be people behind you whose eyes are being very discomforted by it, especially after a long day of being out and about

-meet back up at the bus late everytime