I vow never to take toilet paper for granted again. Or napkins. I found out the hard way that it's customary in Hong Kong to bring your own napkins to restaurants. My Chinese friends picked me up at the airport after 18 hours of traveling and took me straight to a wonderful little authentic neighborhood restaurant.  I was the only westerner as far as the eye could see. We ordered up bowls of noodle soups, fried tofu and other delicacies that only my meat-eating friends would truly appreciate. 

I slurped and scooped and slopped food all over me, the table and anyone within firing range. Overcome with exhaustion, I put down my chopsticks and dangled my drippy fingers over my bowl and asked for a napkin. Boy, did I get a surprise.  "You are supposed to bring your own" my companion said.  Well that was a fine time to find out. My friends rescued me by pulling out a private stash of napkins from a purse. I never left home without them after that. 

There is a saying in China (and Hong Kong) that you should never travel without 2 really important kinds of paper. Money and napkins. These same rules apply in Peru as well. Here's my top 10 list of things that I am thankful for when traveling:

• Translators -  I attempted to go out alone in Hong Kong (which is supposed to be bilingual) and order food, shop in little stores and soak up the ambiance of the Mongkok neighborhood. The only word I could communicate was "coffee."  I couldn't order food because I didn't speak the local language and there were no recognizable food photos on the menu. But it was the best cup of coffee I had in Hong Kong!
• Redeemable frequent flyer miles -  apparently having enough miles to fly around the world 16 times in first class seats is not a guarantee that you will be able to do so.
• Free checked baggage - Remember the good old days, when you could take all the suitcases your husband could carry?  Not so much anymore.  Any bag weighing more than 15.25 oz, will cost you a nominal fee of $399 per ounce.
• Toilet paper in every stall, every squat toilet, every compost toilet and every outhouse on the planet - free toilet paper for everyone!  (if I were president)
• Wheels - I haven't quite converted all my luggage to wheels.  I still carry an old-fashioned backpack as a carryon.  I have the greatest appreciation for the inventor of the wheel.  Imagine carrying your stuff without wheels?  Need I say more?
• Forks - I confess this is a completely ethnocentric perspective, but it's the only one I have!  Chopsticks are very cool poking out of your hair and they look good in decorations and I have several sets in my house.  I almost mastered chopsticks in China (but not quite!) and I'm sure I caused many Chinese adults trying to eat a nice meal in their local restaurant, to bite the backs of the knuckles as they watched me try to pick up food with chopsticks.  Please pass me a fork!
• Flushing, sit-upon toilets - Listen, I am a dedicated master the art of "going" anywhere. Bushes, back yards, train stations and more ditches than you can shake an empty beer can at. If they were handing out awards for people (let's face it, I'm talking about women, because men have it easy) who knew how to do it in the bushes,  I would have a full trophy cabinet. Right next to my secret stash of toilet paper. I haven't purchased any of those devices that are supposed to make it easy for women to go while standing. Those are for sissies!  But shouldn't these gushing contraptions that we call toilets be more widely established on a global scale than they actually are? I'm just saying. And toilet seats are a welcome bonus!
• Traveling companions with small bags that fit in rental cars - (Marty, this is not just because your bags wouldn't fit in the rental car we reserved and we had to get a truck!)  I've seen women haul their huge bags like wagon trains through the airport, so I know the problem is worldwide.
• Salt-free, sugar-free, meat-free, Asian, Hindu, Kosher meals (with extra cheese)
• TSA Agents with warm hands.

Give thanks wherever you are.  Contact Adios Adventure Travel anytime if you'd like to set up your own travel adventure to Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia or Chile.