So as if sorting your wardrobe wasn't enough of a hassle, there's also everything else you've got to take with you. Even before you get onto all the swag you'll be dragging down Autograph Alley at some point, you have to make decisions on which charger cables you can fit in your suitcase, how many laptops, some light reading for the journey down...then you take into account that the weather might be bad, so you've got to prepare for every eventuality. Even worse is catching a plane to a con, where you're limited in how much you can take and what you can take. That's when you've got a real issue. Who can predict what's going to happen at this con? You have to sketch out a whole hierarchy of importance for your luggage. Man, this is already giving us a headache, and we're not even there yet.
16. Finding Your Way There
If you're lucky, you'll be headed out to one of the big daddy conventions - San Diego or New York - where the entire city gets taken over by the event, and you can simply follow the steady stream of Chewbaccas, fanboys and heavily-branded PR people to the convention centre. If you're slightly less lucky, you'll be headed to a convention that's a lot of fun but less of a big deal, which means it'll be taking place in a hotel or conference building that none of the locals have ever heard of. And why would they? Has anyone been to London's ExCel centre, except for the novelty of riding on Boris's cable car? Why would a permanent resident of a city have a clue where the hotels are, especially when they're always on the outskirts of wherever you find yourself? Don't expect it to be well sign-posted, either. I hope you found room to pack your phone charger and there's 3G around, because you're gonna be busting Google Maps out as soon as you set foot in the city.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
