7 Things You Only do on Vacation ...

One of the things you only do on vacation is buy useless souvenirs—things like a coconut bra, a jester’s hat, a tacky paperweight or a bobblehead Queen’s Guard might seem fun at the moment, but packing them to bring home might make you decide to leave them behind. Then, if you get them home, you will simply stuff them into the closet along with the other useless souvenirs from other trips, or you may gift them to lucky friends or family members who will forever feel obligated to bring them down from the attic when they know you are coming.

Better: Buy souvenirs that you can pack easily and enjoy later, such as books, maps, or small pieces of jewelry.

It’s almost a cliché - vacationers suddenly have no idea how to dress themselves. The Hawaiian shirt that hides away at the back of the closet gets brought out and pit in the suitcase, and it suddenly seems like a great idea to pack those capris that are so thin that people can see the pattern of your underwear.

Better: Pack practical things you can mix and match and that don’t need ironing, be sure your clothes are comfortable, and dress up outfits with accessories.

On a normal weekday you may only eat a bowl of cornflakes or oatmeal. However, when the breakfast buffet is laid out when you’re on vacation, suddenly it’s like you’ve never eaten before. Bacon, ham, biscuits, gravy, pancakes and waffles smothered in sticky syrup mysteriously find their way onto your plate. And then, there’s the orange juice, milk, AND coffee. And that’s just breakfast!

Better: Try one thing you normally wouldn’t eat then fill the rest of your plate with fruit or vegetables. That way, you can feel like you’re treating yourself but also getting a healthy amount of nutritious foods.

When on vacation, not only do we overeat, we sometimes eat really weird things. Locals don’t often eat these delicacies much, but are likely amused and somewhat enriched when they can convince tourists to partake. Thus, crickets on a stick, chocolate scorpions, fried spiders, fermented shark meat, and bird-spit soup suddenly sounds inviting.

Better: Go ahead, be brave a couple of times, and be sure to take pictures. And a couple of antacids.

This is one of the most common things you only do on vacation. It’s only natural; you want to record every moment of your life that you think you’ll never see again. However, it’s quite possible that while you are involved with photographing the minutiae of a beautiful garden or taking your 17th photo of your family in front of a fountain, you could be missing the atmosphere of a place. Vacation spots are full of not only visual wonders but smells, colors and local flavor. Take a few moments to stop and get the feel of a place. Besides, you’ll probably never look at all those photos or that video footage, and you don’t want to scare your family and friends away because they know they’ll have to watch 6 hours of video.

Better: Leave the camera in your bag so you have to reach into it every time you want to take a photo. It will curb your insatiable appetite for snapping.

No matter what the Surgeon General says about it being bad for your health, most vacationers want to come back from vacation looking tan. And you’ll take foolish risks to get that golden glow. You may hold back on the sunscreen, rubbing on tan-intensifying lotions, and forsaking protective garments and hats. However, few want to suffer their whole vacations nursing a sunburn.

Better: Get a spray-on tan before you leave home.

A cute kitty comes up to the back door of your hotel room, or a puppy looks at you with big eyes through the restaurant window. Before you know it, you’re saving scraps to feed the poor little guy and despairing if you don’t see him every day. Suddenly, a thought creeps into your head, “I wonder how much it would cost to bring him home.” The answer? A LOT.

Better: Adopt a pet from your local Humane Society. They may have once been strays too.

How many of these things you only do on holiday are you guilty of? Food and drink is my weakness. I have to try everything!