travel, life in a tiny house and all things "small"
Our bodies protested going down to breakfast, despite how delicious we knew the “full Scottish breakfast” awaiting us would be. We were quite sore and our thigh muscles didn’t seem to be very willing to allow our knees to bend. We pressed on and just used bagging a Munro as our excuse for appearing as though we aged fifty years in one day. Today was one of the few things Ben actually added to the plans of our trip.
Continue reading “Glens, Trains and Waterfalls- Scotland Trip Day 4”
Today we searched for a mountain. To be more exact, we searched for a specific part of the path near the Am Bodach peak on the Aonach Eagach ridge. This was one of our first views of Scotland growing up. It was home to the scene in Braveheart where Mel Gibson runs across the mountain and looks all around him. Ambitious, we knew, but others had done it, so we wanted to try.
Continue reading “Scotland Trip Day 3- Finding the Mountain Scene from Braveheart”
Bonnie Scotland indeed! So much happened on day 2. We were still exhausted from our travels and majorly sleep deprived. It’s not a terribly great foot to get started out on. As the cop on the Royal Mile told a lost Ben (who was trying to get to an April that was grabbing bags and checking out of the hotel) we carried on. And what carrying on we did!
Continue reading “Scotland Trip Day 2”Our first day was one of the longest of my life. I of course couldn’t sleep very well, despite having been fully packed two days beforehand and my house being clean (which for me is a necessity before a trip). We even tried to sleep and wake up on Scotland time. I was very excited to wear my Very Hungry Caterpillar socks through security, although no one else seemed to notice.
Honestly, however you pack has to work for you. Because everyone is different, there is not one tried and true way to pack.
One thing I always do is start with a few good lists. One for clothes, one for all other items, one for last minute items and one as I pack each suitcase.
My clothing list consists of activity, each person’s outfit and PJs, miscellaneous items and accessories and a column to check for socks and underwear for each person. Writing it out by hand helps calm me down from my usual pre-trip anxiety.
I also create a list for which items are in my checked luggage, in case a bag happens to get lost, stolen are delayed. I send a picture of this to myself.
When it comes to what actually goes into the bag, that depends on what kind of trip we go on. When we flew to Arkansas via 36 hours in Denver, my husband and I shared a carry-on for 5 days. Going to Scotland for 10 Days we each checked a bag and had a carry-on. It’s all up to you and what you feel like lugging around.
Less is more.
It all comes down to your individual packing and travel style! If you want tips on how to pack less for your trip, follow my blog! That post will be coming soon!
This post is a little bit of writing therapy for myself. You have been warned.
For me, getting ready for a trip and planning it is half the fun. My everyday self is pretty much in love with charts, plans and lists of all sorts. As you can probably imagine, my travel self is almost obsessed with them. I pour over maps and research places. I plan for efficiency. I plan for the fact that something could go wrong. I plan for leaving time free of a plan. I plan the buget. All of that is thrilling to me! But as I get closer and closer to departure for any trip, I go into a pre-trip panic of sorts.
Deep down inside I know what is left on the to do list and the packing list. I know how many days are left to accomplish those things. I know there are areas of my trip that I am not as familiar with as I could be. I lose my map I bought and can’t stop thinking about it. (Wait, did I take to the ER? Is it in a bag somewhere from that night?!)
For me, it’s like a rollercoaster. I am the type that freaks on in line, but not on the ride. Once on the ride, there is nothing more than I can do. That is when I relax and enjoy it to the fullest. We are 6 days from departure for an international trip. Here I am, standing in line, freaking out. But I can only think about one thing right now.
Excuse me while I dig through all of my tote bags…
Continue reading “These Things are a Must for International Travel by Plane”
If you do an online search for “best flights”, “flights to”, “cheap flights”, “airline deals”, or something similar, you will be inundated with dozens and dozens of websites that will advertise their cheapest flights. Once you get on the site you will realize there are a very limited selection of flights that are actually that cheap.
Story time! Our best flight finding tip came from getting stuck flying standby from Asia to the US. We were returning from a mission trip. There had been a typhoon that disrupted hundreds of flights and thousands of people. This led to no empty seats on any flights. The airlines began to get people out of Asia to anywhere they could in the US. This led to a majority of those stranded being dropped off in Honolulu with no prospective flights to the mainland. Bit by bit, a group of 30 found themselves stuck together in the airport. Some of us had been shuffled from one airport to another, many had been stuck for a week or more. One of these stranded airport campers told us they had broken down and purchased a flight to the mainland using the “On the Fly” App.
While the mobile app that saved us from further airport camping no longer exists, the main software that was the heart of the app still does. It should come as no surprise that the king of search engines, Google, is one of the best when it comes to searching for flights. Enter Google Flights. It offers a multitude of tools and customizations for finding flights. Below is a walkthrough of the most basic of searches from a smartphone. http://www.google.com/flights
Tips for Finding the Best Flights
It all comes down to how you like to travel and what is most important to you. If this process is too involved, but you are afraid of missing out on a good deal, try one of the sights that agrees to reimburse you if the price drops.
For me, the less money I spend on getting there, the more room in my budget I have for being there.
Even though I have those familiar places you will never see me turn down, whenever I am asked “What do you want to do?” my answer is almost always “Something new!”. Traveling is one of the easiest ways to experience something new.
I can’t pinpoint when my passion for travel began. I can tell you that my dad has an occasional streak of wanderlust that is better described as cabin fever, so at least I know I get that honest. I can also tell you that my sense of adventure and desire to experience new things was sparked and fanned into a flame by my Mama. It was often the little things she did that shaped this in me.
She fostered a spirit of discovery in me. Without ever leaving my home city, we were able to experience a plethora of international cultures. We explored their food, their culture and their languages. The international corridor meant yummy treats, friendly people, vivid sights, strange words and beautiful colors. International festivals were part of our homeschool curriculum. We even adopted a country booth every now and then at the kid’s festivals. She taught me to have an open mind and respectful heart.
My Mama loved to clean the house with the TV on. So, I grew up watching Samantha Brown travel the world, among other shows entirely dedicated to travel. I was transfixed by all of the places in the US and abroad that just cried out to my young little heart “come see me”. As I grew older, I longed even more to see the beautiful buildings, try the foods, meet the people, but most of all I longed to see the natural places. I wanted to stand in awe of the masterful creation.
So I explored! First with my family and then as an adult. Moving around during my high school years was tough, but I experienced many parts of the country you wouldn’t go out of your way to visit if you didn’t live there. We saw what the locals appreciated and experienced the “bucket list” places too. I went to some of those places I never thought I would get to see. Those little things she did led to pretty big adventures!
Sometime the small things make a bigger impact than things you would expect to.
The “top 10 places to (insert here)” are great, and some are a must see, but often it is the small things you remember the most. On a trip to Mt. Ranier, the vast wilderness and the mountain itself were very impressive, but the memory that I treasure the most is walking the nature trail beside the hotel. We found an old cabin and pictured what it would have been like to live there ourselves.
Whether you explore your own neighborhood or travel thousands of miles, the unexpected is often found in the nooks and crannies and usually just off the beaten path. Take time to slow down and enjoy the “small things.”
