If you fly to your locum tenens assignments, you obviously have to take luggage with you, but you don’t have to check it!  A single, tightly-packed bag that fits into the overhead compartment is all you need to avoid unnecessary fees. 

To help you pack smart and travel light, we turned to the web and found helpful advice from a couple of personal packing gurus, Doug Dymant and Susan Foster.  Among their tips:

Start with a personal packing list.  A packing list serves a couple of purposes, says Dymant, who writes at www.onebag.com. First, it helps you remember what to bring.  More importantly though, he says, the list acts as “a sort of contract you make with yourself, an agreement that if it’s not on your list, it shouldn’t be in your bag.”

Try bundle wrapping your clothes. This unusual packing technique is best explained in greater depth by Dymant on his website.  It purports to have a couple of benefits.  First, he says, it reduces wrinkling.  Bundling also takes up less space in your bag as compared to traditional folding and stacking of individual garments. 

Plan your wardrobe.  Let go of the idea of wearing a different outfit each day, writes Foster on her website, SmartPacking.com. Instead, she says, pack interchangeable pieces based on one basic color and plan to wear each piece more than once.  Two pairs of dark slacks plus one jacket plus four shirts/blouses should get you through a week on the road.

Choose thin items over thick. A turtleneck plus a cardigan sweater is warmer, more versatile, and packs smaller than a sweatshirt or bulky sweater, writes Foster.

Both authors also stress that you check ahead of time to ensure that you know your airline’s requirements for checked and carry-on luggage sizes and weights.

The Clear card is no longer honored at US airports

Just hold up your Clear card (purchased for an annual subscription fee of about $200) and bypass the long lines at airport security.  That was the promise of the largest so-called ‘registered traveler’ program in the U.S. operated by a company called Verified Identity Pass.

Until this week.

The company abruptly shut down on June 22, closing down Clear lanes at 18 airports and leaving confused and angry subscribers in its wake.

Additionally, some travelers have raised concerns about the security of their personal data, which they shared as a requirement of applying for the card.  In a brief statement on its website, the company posted its privacy policy and gave an assurance to former customers that their data were secure.

In search of some quick pointers to help you shoot better travel photos, we came across sound advice from the Brave New Traveler website.  Among their tips:

Use your flash outside. Using flash outdoors brings a new dimension to your photos and can help eliminate harsh shadows created by high, strong sunlight.

Move in close. When photographing a person or something roughly the same size as a person, take a step or two closer before taking the picture and zoom in on your subject. Your goal is to fill the picture area with the subject you are photographing. Don’t get too close, however, or your pictures will be blurry.

The rule of thirds. Bring some added dimension to your photo by simply moving your subject away from the middle of your picture. Imagine a three by three grid in your viewfinder and position your subject within one of the intersections of these lines.

Go vertical. If you have never turned your camera sideways to take a picture, you’re missing out! All sorts of things look better in vertical. From a lighthouse on the edge of a cliff to the Eiffel Tower blazing with lights to your dog splashing around in a puddle.

Need more inspiration?  Check out the website of Naomi Liu, the photographer who authored these tips, as well as the beautiful travel photography of physician Bill Yeaton, a longtime locum tenens physician.

Bluets dot the Appalachian Trail in NC

Bryson’s sojourn through NC found him waiting out a snowstorm in a rural hotel to great comic effect.  Snow shouldn’t be a concern, though, if a summer locum assignment brings you near the 300+ miles of Appalachian Trail that hug the state’s western border.  Colorful wildflowers will be in view and hiking highlights include the 5,300 ft. Wayah Bald in the Nantahala National Forest, which offers a panoramic view of  Georgia peaks and the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.

Beaches Await
On the opposite end of the state lie the sandy islands of the famed Outer Banks.  Atlantic beaches beckon you to sunbathe, swim, and explore charming villages like Swansboro, on the Crystal Coast. Beautiful waterfront views are complemented by a quaint downtown filled with boutiques and wonderful seafood and barbecue restaurants.

There’s more to explore as a locum tenens in North Carolina, including the historical mystery and recreational activities of Roanoke Island. Some 400 colonists disappeared from this 16th century English settlement, and archaeologists, historians, and scientists have not yet solved the puzzle, staged as “The Lost Colony,” the longest-running outdoor theater production in America.

Classic Golf Courses
If golf is your game, North Carolina offers luxe resorts as well as surprisingly affordable public courses.  Golf Magazine’s list of the “100 Top Courses you can Play” includes four courses from the TarHeel state topped by the challenging Pinehurst (Number Two).  GolfLink.com is another helpful guide to top NC courses.

Whether you prefer to walk 18 holes or hike the Applachian trail, do take Bryson’s classic along with you.  A Walk in the Woods is quite simply the most hilarious book I’ve ever read.

Santa Fe
The charming state capital of Santa Fe shows off its historic architecture and welcomes visitors with a hospitable town plaza and extraordinary concentration of arts, music, and fine dining.

Founded in 1607, Santa Fe is the oldest and highest capital in the United States. The elevation of 7000 feet can be a serious challenge to the lungs of visitors, particularly those coming from sea level. Acclimatize yourself by taking it easy the first few days and enjoy Santa Fe’s remarkable museums.

• Palace of the Governors is a 17th-century adobe building that houses the state’s history museum and shop, and is the oldest public building in the United States (www.palaceofthegovernors.org).

Ghost Ranch: Georgia O’Keefe’s Santa Fe, NM Home
• Georgia O’Keeffe Museum is devoted to the 20th-century American Modernist and includes a large body of her paintings and photographs, plus her Abiquiu house, library, and property (www.okeeffemuseum.org).
• Other museums:
  New Mexico Museum of Art – Collections of Southwestern Arts
  Institute of American Indian Arts Museum – Native American arts with political aspects
  Site Santa Fe – A contemporary art space known as the forefront for contemporary art presentation in the Southwest
  Museum of International Folk Art – Showcasing folk art and craftsmanship from around the world
  Museum of Indian Arts and Culture and Laboratory of Anthropology – Exhibits Native American arts
  Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian – Native American art and history
  Museum of Spanish Colonial Art – Arts during the Spanish-colonial era

Albuquerque
A lively and sprawling metropolis of 900,000 in the center of the state is New Mexico’s largest city. Albuquerque is home to the region’s only major airport, plus the University of New Mexico and the state’s largest businesses. It hosts the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, the largest ballooning event and one of the most photographed festivals in the world (www.balloonfiesta.com/).