Thinking Travel

2008 is shaping up to be a travel year (yeah!). Which means I’m in the market for new travel gear (yeah!).

I’ve been searching for a carry-on backpack for about a year now. I have a wonderful REI travel pack that I bought back in 2000, but it’s not carry-on sized. For the past few years I’ve gotten away with using my decade old Eagle Creek back-pack, the one I bought during my first year in grad school with my tax refund money. That $50 pack was a fantastic investment because I used it all the way through grad school, and then when Aaron couldn’t find his own grad school pack, he used mine. He’d still be using it now if I hadn’t stolen it back for my work trips last year.

But now I need something that will hold work clothes, travel clothes, a laptop, handouts, and souvenirs. This year’s travel won’t be of the walk-for-20-miles-to-save-tram-fare-so-I-can-buy-bread-and-cheese-for-dinner-
so-I-can-afford-to-travel-for-two-months variety, so I don’t need a heavy-duty pack, like I’ve used for past multi-week/month trips.

The operative word here is carry-on.

In December I finally narrowed it down to two options:

1. Eagle Creek Explorer LT-Women’s Fit

Pros:

• Eagle Creek products are sturdy, practical, and not too ugly.
• I’ve loved every EC product I’ve bought. (And I’ve bought a lot of their products. I’m a traveling EC billboard.)
• This pack is designed for women, which means it might actually be comfortable to wear.
• There’s a detachable daypack that you can carry on the back of the pack or on your chest.

Cons:

• Do I really need a detachable daypack?
• It comes with separate a rain shield/straps cover that takes up precious packing space and is easy to lose.
• Save two wimpy side “water bottle pockets” there are no usable outside pockets.
• It’s $250.

2. Rick Steves’ Convertible Carry-on

Pros:

• It’s $99.
• It’s simple and has lots of pockets.
• Rick is an experienced carry-on backpacker and he designed the pack. He mentioned that he fits his laptop into an outer pocket, which is a huge bonus for me, since my backpack also has to serve as my mobile office.
• There’s a hidden security pouch.
• From the pic, there’s no huge Rick Steves logo on the front.
• It only weighs 3lbs.

Cons:

• The straps look wimpy.
• The pack reminds me of the very uncomfortable box of a backpack I bought before I studied abroad in college. I hated that uncomfortable pack before I’d even checked in for my flight.
• It’s one size fits all.
• It’s kinda ugly.

Which did I choose? Well, you’ll have to stay tuned for the next post to find out! (When I’m back from Costa Rica I’ll post a review of the backpack.)

When you travel, are you a suitcaser or backpacker?

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!

By the time you read this, Aaron and I will be in Costa Rica! (I wrote this post before we left.) We used a recommended Costa Rican travel agency to plan our quick trip. Here’s a brief overview of our plans:

Wednesday: Get up way too early. Fly to San Jose. Take shuttle to the Arenal volcano area.

Thursday: All-day tour to Cano Nego Wildlife Refuge for a 4-hour float tour and hopefully animal spotting.

Friday: Hanging bridges tour in the rain forest.

Saturday: TBA (probably visit the volcano and maybe the nearby town of La Fortuna)

Sunday: Shuttle to San Jose.

Monday: Aaron flies back to RDU, Cate works.

We’ll post photos and info about the trip once I’m back home!

The first time I went abroad I packed 22 pairs of shoes, my entire key chain collection, and a 12 inch inflatble palm tree.

Caveats:

1. My age = 16
2. I was moving to Germany for an entire year.
3. My exchange program suggested bringing a few things from home to decorate my new bedroom.

Well, the key chain sparked conversations with new friends (e.g. What the heck is this and why did you bring it to Germany?), and the palm tree livened up my new bedroom. But I quickly regretted the 44 shoes that screamed “YES, I’M AMERICAN!” (Sidenote: For the majority of the year, 42 of these shoes resided in the far reaches of my Kleiderschrank and didn’t see the light of day until I packed for my return to the US.)

I’ve learned a thing or two about packing since then.

Mostly that you really don’t need all that you think you’ll need.

Right now I’m packing for a 10-day trip to Costa Rica. Here are 5 easy things I do to simplify packing, and thus traveling:

1. Ditch the checked luggage. Go carry-on! While you’re at it, ditch the suitcase too. Buy a travel backpack and be hyper-selective about the clothes you bring. Make sure everything matches everything.
2. Use packing cubes. Eagle Creek offers cloth zippered cubes, folders, and sacs in a variety of colors for about $10 a pop. The folders keep shirts and pants fairly wrinkle free. Use the cubes to sort socks, t-shirts, and the like. Throw the cubes in your pack and you’re organized. Cheap-o version: Ziplock freezer bags.
3. Jewelry: maximize by minimizing. When I travel for fun I bring one pair of earrings and buy rings, necklaces, and earrings along the way as souvenirs. When I travel for work I often bring one silver chain and several pendants – saves space and avoids tangled necklaces.
4. Use hair elastics to wrangle cords. Digital camera. iPod. Laptop. Cell phone. Cords, cords, cords. I used to stuff all of my cables and various cords in a backpack pocket. But then they’d get all tangled up and I’d get annoyed. I have several thick black “ouchless” hair elastics so I’ve started using them to bind my cords. It’s so simple. Why didn’t I think of this sooner?
5. Tear up your guidebook. Unless you’re actually going to visit every city highlighted in your guidebook, there’s absolutely no reason to lug the entire thing around. Rip out the pages you really need, staple them together, and leave the rest at home.

Want more packing tips? Take a look at the Graffiti Wall at Rick Steve’s website.

What are your packing tips? What simple things do you do to make travel easier?

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!

Here’s a snapshot of a few books I’m currently reading:

1. Understanding Spanish-Speaking South Americans
   Part of my preparation for one of three intercultural workshops I’m giving in Latin America in a few weeks. This book gives depth and meaning to the things you hear about Latin Americans, like “They’re so family oriented.”
2. Listening is an Act of Love
   When I first unwrapped this book on Christmas morning I thought my husband had given me a book on how to be a better listener (something he tells me I need to improve on). Then I realized it’s excerpts from NPR’s Storycorps project, which I absolutely love listening to on Friday mornings as I drive to work. I’m a qualitative/ethnographic research type of girl so I love this type of stuff. I read half of the book in one sitting.
3. Fodor’s Costa Rica 2008
   In 11 days I’ll be in Costa Rica! It’s my first trip to Central America and I’m beyond excited. The first half of the trip is for fun (Aaron’s coming too). The second half is for work. We’ve booked our flight but haven’t yet decided what we’re going to do/see. I’ll update when we finally decide.
4. Costa Rica – Culture Smart!: A Quick Guide to Customs and Etiquette
   I bought this book a few years ago when I created a pre-departure handout for a group going to Costa Rica (it was full of culture learning, intercultural, travel, and journaling information, tips, and resources). Now I’m re-reading this book in preparation for my upcoming trip.
5. The World is Flat
   Yes. I’m just now reading this. Hey, I was waiting for the paperback version.
6. I am Charlotte Simmons
   A colleague loaned me this book but I haven’t started it yet. I’ve been assured that once you pick it up, you can’t put it down. So I’m taking it with me on the plane to Costa Rica.

What else have I read? I’m compiling a list of great books (mostly intercultural/travel/journaling) on my LibraryThing page. Check it out!

So, have you read any of these books?
Been to Costa Rica?
What’s on your reading list?

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!

My husband, Aaron, and I reached three major milestones this year, each occurring a few months apart:

• Finding full-time post-grad school employment
• Buying a house
• Adopting a cat

For us, the recurring theme of 2007 was Putting Down Roots.

For me, this was very much outside my comfort zone.

I’d always predicted that working a 9-5, owning a house, and being responsible for a life other than my own would severely cramp my style. I imagined a restricted, narrow, inflexible life. I much preferred a lifestyle that, while often financially unpredictable, allowed for extended travel and even living abroad. For me, flexibility equalled happiness.

Then October came to North Carolina.

Aaron’s brother’s cat, October, stayed with us from May thru September while his brother was in India. October hacked up hairballs. She shed all over everything. And her heart condition required that I restrain her front paws while Aaron pushed a pill down her throat every night, which meant we couldn’t go anywhere overnight for four months.

But none of that mattered.

Not once did I feel deprived or regret having her stay with us, even though we spent the summer home-bound instead of camping. Because when October curled up around my laptop when I worked from home, ran to the back door to greet us when we came home from work, or climbed onto my chest to purr while I watched Heroes, I was happy.

None of the other stuff mattered.

When October went home to Chicago I realized how much having her in our lives so greatly outweighed the negatives. And it dawned on me that it was the same with my 9-5 and owning house.

Initially, I wasn’t sure these commitments would be worth what I thought I was giving up, but it’s turned out to better than I could have ever imagined. For example, through my work I went to Jamaica and visited a local school, something I doubt I would have done on my own. And because we have a house with a guest room, my parents decided to spend Thanksgiving with us, a holiday we haven’t celebrated together since I was in college.

And so, Aaron and I decided to take another leap. On December 22 we adopted 3-year old Otto. Already he’s peed on some important papers and misjudged where the litter box ends, but when he races up the stairs to greet us, already purring, when he hears us get out of bed in the morning, nothing else matters.

For me, 2007 was a great reminder that when I push myself outside of my comfort zone, my life opens up to excitement and deepens with meaning.

What’s your comfort zone? How will you push yourself out of it in 2008?

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!

A CNN travel article noted that more US American travelers are “sight-doing” rather than “sight-seeing”, meaning that many travelers are moving beyond simply looking at tried-and-true sights like the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, or Big Ben.

Instead, travelers are learning something new by doing something interesting, whether it be taking a cooking class while in Paris or booking a special tour focusing on knitting.

I haven’t ever signed up for a cooking class in Paris, but I’m pretty sure I do more than just look at things when I travel. I just read this article a few minutes ago, so I’m still thinking thinking about whether my past travels lean toward sight-seeing or sight-doing.

What about you? When are you a sight-see-er? A sight-do-er? Which travel experiences would you characterize as sight-seeing vs. sight-doing?

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!

Something to read before we head into 2008…

• Travel Skills: I’m Getting Better at Them
• Journaling Prompts: Globalism
• Coffee Talk
• Bridging the Academic/Business Divide
• ORYGUN
• Hot, Hot, Hot
• Serendipity in a Car
• Happy 4th of July
• Another View

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!

In its previous life my home office was a little girl’s room.

The monkey and lizard you see are one of two murals. It’s cute and looks hand-painted, so I feel terrible every time I think about sanding it down and painting over it. I’m sure someone put a lot of time and effort into it.

But it’s just not home office material.

So, today I devised a cheap and easy way to temporarily cover it up – and finally do something with the zillions of postcards I have hidden away in travel-themed boxes.

Here’s what I did (see photos below):

Step One: Found some purple wrapping paper with very faint stripes that happened to be just slightly larger than the mural. Taped it to the wall.

Step Two: Used these nifty little fotoclips to make a postcard collage.

Step Three: Pasted postcard collage onto purple paper.

Result: Instead of a little girl’s room, my home office looks like a college dorm.

I created ThinkingTravel.com about a year ago as a new way to explore the intersection between travel, journaling, and culture (learning). I had just completed my dissertation research on culture learning during short-term study abroad and wanted to gather and share ideas, insights, and tips on how to become a more culturally aware and effective traveler – both at home and abroad.

Early on I decided to give myself 2007 to tinker with the blog, read other blogs, and simply figure out where I wanted to go with ThinkingTravel.com (I’m definitely a trial-and-error/learn-as-you-go type of person).

Now that we’re on the cusp of 2008, I’ve decided to recommit myself to ThinkingTravel.com. My goal for the coming months is to take ThinkingTravel.com to that proverbial next level, whatever that level may be.

New Posting Schedule

In the coming weeks I’m instituting several blog enhancements. Getting on a regular posting schedule is the first one. Here’s the plan.

ThinkingTravel.com is fuel for your journey to becoming a more reflective and effective traveler – at home and abroad.

To this end, I document my own journeys: travel, journaling, cultural, and being a first-time home owner. I also gather and share insights, tips, and resources to help others on their journeys.

I post at least three times a week. And I encourage your involvement in ThinkingTravel.com – leave a comment, share your ideas, provide feedback, subscribe!    

I’m mulling over several other ideas for this blog (series topics, interviews, podcasts…), which I’ll roll out in the coming year.  

I’ll be in Florida for about a week (for work, not the beach) and will have limited Internet access.

I’ve got lots to write about but it will probably have to wait until next weekend, at the earliest. I always have the most to write about when I’m the busiest and have the least time to write. *sigh*

While I’m away I’ll be thinking of ways to get myself on a regular blogging schedule that’s more predictable than what I’ve currently got going. I have five themes/categories so maybe I’ll blog about each one on a certain day of the week. What a great excuse to do more traveling and coffee drinking…

Feel free to leave a comment while I’m away (comments are moderated so they may not be visible right away)!