I can't travel without clean underwear in my carry-on

Here are four things I can't leave home without.

clean underwear in my carry-on
My luggage never gets lost. Even on complicated multi-national trips. Last year, however, when I traveled to Australia on a business trip, somehow my luggage did not arrive for four days. Each day, the airline promised me it would arrive the next day. When it didn't, I had to run out and buy a new outfit (or borrow one from a colleague). Lesson learned: pack underwear!

herbal tea
I can't leave home without my herbal tea. Great for soothing upset stomaches and homesickness, chamomile tea is always with me. (I also learned recently that if you order tea in many countries, it will automatically be black tea. To order herbal, you must order an "infusion.")

hot water bottle
A hot water bottle again helps soothe my stomach. And since I use one at home every night, having it when I'm away from home helps my get to sleep. A bonus is that it can double as a teddy-bear!

water heater
Two items above require a water heating device. Many hotels have coffee pots, which will work in a pinch. For making a single serving of tea, however, I have an electric device that plugs into the wall and has a metal coil that sits in the tea cup. It heats the water to boiling in moments! (I've heard this is not a new invention, that it has been around for a while, but it is new to me!)