My first top ten list: things we take advantage of when we're home!

A word about conveniences: We all have them, but sometimes fail to notice that they are indeed conveniences.

It wasn't until I got to my friend Tomas' house the other day that I could really articulate the list below. Sure, I'd complained about not having some things, but once I got them again, it was like seeing old friends for the first time in a long time. "Oh, I've MISSED you guys!!"

So below, some things I am currently enjoying and will be missing again as soon as I leave Santiago...

10. A hair dryer: Yes, a hairdryer. When your hair is as thick as mine is, sometimes it's nice to be able to blow-dry it for 15 minutes and have it all set for the day. Or how about when you take an evening shower before you go to bed -- do you think it's fun to have sopping wet hair all over your pillow? No, it's not. I miss having a hair dryer and have been thinking about getting one for close to 3 weeks now.

9. A closet or dresser for your clothes: Until I get back home to DC at the end of this year, I will be living out of a backpack. Said pack has a few things inside that act as my drawers, or really, as my way of sectioning off things: 2 vacuum bags that house my tops and bottoms (which are rolled up when traveling and let loose to breathe when I'm at a hostel), 4 large ziplock bags (for socks, underwear, bras, and soiled things), and that's it, everything else is just sort of placed in there.

8. A phone: Before I left DC, I was sure I was going to get an unlocked phone to bring with me around the world to use in case of emergencies etc. After finding out that getting one would entail me going to a sketchy part of town, I opted to not buy one and just stick with Skype on my laptop. But there are times I do

wish I had a cell phone or even a landline phonein my room that I could just pick up and use whenever I feel like it. It's like I'm back in the early 90's, when I had to get picked up from school and if my mom was late, I just had to sit there and wait (or if the timing was REALLY off, I'd have to find a pay phone to try and get a hold of her.)

*Side note: Yes, there are pay phones here, but they're big and scary and I don't know how to use them.*

7. Not having to be vigilant against theft: Do you sleep with your wallet, laptop, and camera? Do you live in constant fear that you forgot to lock your cheaply made wooden hostel locker and your stuff may be stolen? I do. It's part of traveling in general, but it's definitely part of traveling cheap: you must constantly make sure you have your big ticket items accounted for at all times.

6. Clean tap water: Sometimes I wake up at 2am and desperately need a glass of water. I usually get up, walk to the kitchen, grab a glass and pour some water into it from the tap. If I did that while traveling so far, I'd probably end up in the bathroom for the next day. Instead, I have to make sure I have one full water bottle at all times, otherwise you end up waking up and having the chug the 2 day old coca cola that has rolled under your bed.

5. Your own room: This one goes without saying, really. There's something relaxing about having your own room, your own space, where unless you let someone in, it's only your room. I miss this. When you share rooms, people walk in and out at all hours of the day making noise and reminding you that you basically live in a dorm again.

4. Sheets that you know are actually clean: A sleep sack is basically a sleeping bag made of silk. Why silk? Silk is impenetrable against bed bugs. When rolled up, it's small and compact, and I carry it everywhere. Personally, I don't trust most hostels so I use this sack every night. It's not terrible, but for those of us who shift constantly when sleeping, or sometimes like to throw one leg up and one leg back, it's kind of a pain. But I'd prefer that over beg bugs crawling all over me.

3. Hot showers: I miss searing hot showers! Burn baby, burn! I have taken too many cold showers over these past 3 weeks and just when you think you've had the worst one ever, the next day's shower beats it out. Terrible.

2. A toilet that you can flush toilet paper down and don't have to squat over: When I first wrote out this top 10 list, 3 of the items were about toilets. Seriously people, when you next see your toilet, tell it how much you appreciate it. I've never been a fan of public toilets. I've been known to run home to use mine instead of one at work or at a restaurant, but I knew I would have to get over that on this trip. What I didn't expect was not being able to flush ANY toilet paper down the toilets or not being able to FLUSH! So far, Tomas' house is the only place I've been able to flush toilet paper. In Lake Titicaca, we had to pour water into the toilet bowl after using it to produce a sort of "flush." This was fun. (I'm dry heaving now just thinking about all of my toilet woes. God help me when I actually get some kind of stomach issue on this trip.)

1. A variety of... anything!: I've already posted about the contents of my pack and I, at the time, thought it sounded like I had a lot of potential variety. But I'm realizing I don't. If I'm in a colder weather place, like I am now, that means I am rotating my 2 long sleeve shirts and wearing the only pair of closed toe shoes I have. Likewise, when I get to India, I'll be rotating the 3 tank tops I have. And it's not just the clothes that I don't have a variety of! How about the same makeup, same jewelry, and same forms of entertainment. It forces you to buy cheap

stuff that will help you get a little variety in your life, like the plastic ring and bracelets pictured above...