quick safety tip - let people know where you are when you travel

When i say to let people know where you are, I do not mean to publicize your whereabouts via facebook or twitter, etc. to people you barely know.  You certainly do not want to announce to random people that you will be away from home since that would be like inviting or daring people to burglarize your home.  What I mean is to let select family/friends know where you will be simply because it's a safe and smart thing to do.

I travel alone quite frequently - mostly for business and a few times for fun.  In any case, I always take the same safety precautions.

• I make a copy of my itinerary including flight, hotel, contact and other information and email a copy to myself, my mom and my best friend.... I guess now that I'm married I should add my husband to the list, but old habits are hard to break. 
• When I land and take a cab by myself, I will give my mom/friend/husband a call to let them know I'm in a cab.  If I'm in a less savory locale or feel uneasy, I will clearly tell whomever I'm calling the cab info (or even take a picture and text it).  My main objective is to let the driver know that I've told someone that I'm in their cab just in case....
• When I check into my hotel, I will call or text my mom/friend/husband and give my room number and let them know that I've arrived safely.

None of this takes a lot of time, but it provides peace of mind for your loved ones as well as for yourself.  You certainly don't want to be unreachable in an emergency or worse, if something does happen to you, this will make it easier for people to retrace your steps and find you.  This i learned from years and years of watching Law & Order.