Solo Trips and Safety Precautions

So Josh is leaving for Guatemala this weekend and has taken to telling me all the horror stories he keeps reading about on the state department website. Here's a tip people. Don't tell your spouse, partner, significant other that you're about to take a trip where X number of people have died by [insert horrible death]. We don't want to know!!!!!! But, this gets to my point of personal safety.

Saftey on trips should never be an afterthought. Despite Josh just now telling me these things, Im SURE (Im giving you the stink eye Josh) he looked into this beforehand. When traveling anywhere outside of the United States it's really imperative to check out the saftey reports from the State Department travel.state.gov website and also search for any recent news articles. These will provide you with vital information on where not to go, what not to do, and who not to talk to. Also, if you can, check with your hotel's concierge once you get there to get the low down on the area and whether or not there are any areas you should avoid.

It takes so little time to do these things but don't brush them aside. They could literally save your life!

Rethink that luggage tag

I have a subscription to Real Simple magaizine which I luuuuuurrrrrvvvvv with all my heart. If you dont have a subscription to it get one! Seriously it's awesome. But, I digress. Anyway, today I was drooling over this month's issue when I came across a little teaser telling me to check out the section on their website for travel. So, being the dutiful read that I am, I did and I picked up two very valuable tips that I had never thought of (among other things).

Tip 1. Call ahead to order room service

I can't count the number of times I've arrived at a hotel late at night "hangry" (yes hangry...that would be the raving lunatic stage when I get so hungry Im angry). Seriously, Im like the Incredible Hulk when it comes to food. I keep telling my husband "Don't make me hungry. You won't like me when I'm hungry" right before my skin turns green and I destroy the nearest physical object. Apparently you can call ahead to your hotel and order room service to be delivered to your room once you arrive. Not all hotels do it so be sure to call before you leave on your trip to make sure they do but holy fagioli, who knew?!

Tip 2. Be smart with your luggage tag

I, like everyone else, just slapped my address and phone number on my luggage tags thinking "Great, now if my bag gets lost they'll know where to send it!" According to Real Simple this is a no no and I agree with them. Putting your full name on your luggage 1. is a big neon sign saying "Hey this person isnt at home, go steal their stuff" and 2. can identify you as a female making it more likely that unsavory types would pick your bag to rifle through. Hey, it happens. Also, for contact information it's much better to list your hotel's address and a number you can be reached at while you are gone as opposed to your home address and home phone number. I mean, really, what are those going to do for you anyway? You're not there!

For more tips from the good people at Real Simple, check out their Travel Advice section

Oh and P.S. yes, I know I havent posted in 20 days. Im preparing for my wet noodle lashing now. :(

Baggage Claim

So one of my guilty pleasures is luggage stores. Yes...I'm that lame. I don't know if you've ever been to a luggage store or not, but I feel sorry for the weary traveler who walks into one. There's usually easily over 100 different options and not all luggage is made alike in quality or purpose. Then there's all the various things that go in the luggage. Oh and don't forget the 200 different kinds of carry-on bags.

Josh and I put quite a bit of thought into our last luggage purchase. We got the Heys 4 wheel 360 Spinner set made of lightweight carbon-fiber laced plastic. WHEW! Honestly, if Trunki made a grown up version of Trixie, I would have bought that. Sadly, I had to settle for adult luggage. But the Trunki is a good example of buying luggage that serves many purposes. It's hard-sided making it a good option for kids as they really could care less about how much wear and tear their luggage gets. It's relatively light weight and Towgo has more than one way of holding the bag. The inside is somewhat compartmentalized allowing you to open it without stuff getting everywhere. Finally, there is, of course, the fact that kids can ride on it which makes it fun for them and gives them something to do.

With the exception of riding on your luggage, these are all the kinds of things you should look for in your own luggage. Hard sided vs. soft sided is a bit of personal preference but if you travel a lot, I'd recommend a flexible hard-sided bag. They're like a Timex. They take a licking and keep on ticking. You'll also want to have more than one way to carry your bag. Our Heys luggage has 3 handles and I use all of them. And, again for our frequent flyers, lightweight luggage is a must especially now that they are cracking down on bag weights and increasing fees. The biggest mistake you can make is assuming that any old suitcase will meet your needs. That's the surest way to drop a wad of money on something you'll end up hating. Take some time to think about how you'll use it, where you're going to take it, what you're going to put in it, and how long you want it to last. If you do that, you're sure to find luggage that will last you a while.

Think Before You Pack

This week's theme is Packing! Since I didnt get a chance to make my video last week about packing your carry on I thought I would dedicated this week's posts to packing bags of all sizes! I may not be able to get a video done and I'm without a regular camera this week because Josh is in Peru but I'll try to paint pictures with my words :D.

Today we're going to talk a bit about packing and how to plan for packing. Yes, I said plan for packing. There's a lot to consider when you're going on a trip, especially if you're taking small ones along. It's easy enough for you to make it without your favorite shirt, but that might be a devastating blow to a child. OK maybe not devastating, but enough to make the little ones unhappy and no one wants that.

When you're thinking of wardrobe choices keep in mind that taking coordinating separates with maybe one or two pairs of shoes (and this applies to children as well) really is the essential thing. So for a 10 day trip you can take say 4 shirts in the same color range and 3 pairs of pants, also in that color range. Then take two pairs of shoes that will look good with all of those items and that's all you really need. Unless you're going someplace where you're going to sweat more than Elvis giving a concert in the 70s all of your items can be worn more than once. The caveat to this kind of planning is that kids get their clothing dirty much faster than adults do. Maya, as with many other kids, loves to wear her meals. In this case, you may want to take a few extra outfits just to cover your bases.

Other things to consider when you are planning your clothing choices is not only the temperature but also the elevation of your destination and whether or not you'll be someplace windy. I dont know how many times Ive been caught freezing my behind off because I didnt bring a sweater with me on a day when we ended up going up in the mountains or on a cruise with the wind whipping around me. When you pack your day pack you may want to take a quick glance at the things you know you will be doing or the things you are considering doing so you can be sure to get everything in.

When things go sour

Sour stomach that is! Yes my friends, I'm talking about air sickness. Even worse is air sickness in kids because kids love nothing more than to say "I feel sick" which is always instantly followed by proof that they do, in fact, feel sick. One of the worst culprits of air sickness is getting over heated. In planes where there's lots of people and even less air circulating, it's easy to get overheated. For children, whose bodies haven't fully developed the ability to regulate their temperature well, getting overheated is an easy task. Here are some tips for keeping that queasy feeling at bay:

• Keep a t-shirt in easy reach if they aren't wearing one already for a quick change if your child starts to get too hot.



• If they start getting that special feeling, put a cold, damp paper towel or wash cloth on the back of their neck.



• Look for warning signs of dehydration which can lead to nausea and overheating. Flush cheeks, sweating, and dry lips are all signs that your child needs more fluids.



• Keep some mint or ginger flavored items with you, both of which have been shown to help with nausea.

If the worst happens and your child gets sick, try not to despair. It happens to the best of us. Try to calm them down, take them to the bathroom if you can and try to cool them off. Check with your child's doctor beforehand to see if you can give them any over-the-counter medications in the event your child is suffering from food poisoning. If you can give them medication be sure to pack it in your carry-on so it's available. If food poisoning is the culprit, it is essential to give your child as many fluids as they can take as they can very quickly get dehydrated.

You don't need the kitchen sink...really

I was recently talking to a friend of mine who was stressing out a bit about taking his young son on a long international flight. One thing I told him about was my 8 hour rule. Take what you will need for the length of the flight plus eight hours and THAT'S IT. I'm also a big proponent of not taking too many toys and things. If it's your child's first flight they will probably be more interested in exploring their surroundings than playing with a bag filled to the brim with their toys. Toys are old, planes are new and everyone knows that new always trumps old with kids. Even if it's their second or third flight, they are probably still going to be more interested in the novelty of flying than in anything you take.

When Maya was a baby my carry on looked a lot like this

• One diaper for each hour of the flight plus 5 more (hey this is one area where less is NOT more)


• Two changes of clothes


• Three or four small soft toys (soft because they can be squished into small spaces)


• Toiletries for me (in case my bags got lost)


• A baby first aid kit (baby Tylenol, teething gel, band aids, itch cream, alcohol wipes, q-tips, Neosporin, etc.)


• A few bibs


• Pre-measured formula packets (each packet made 2 ounces of formula); enough for the flight plus 8 hours


• Unopened jarred baby food


• One feeding bottle with disposable bags, two nipples

This was pretty much it. Surprised the list isn't longer? That's because the thing to remember is that anything you need for your trip can be procured when you get to your destination and there's no reason to take everything on the plane with you. If you want to take more toys than this for your trip, pack the rest with your checked luggage or, if you all your bags are carry on, put them in the bag you don't plan to get into. You just don't need a lot of stuff because all it does is weigh you down and make everyone, including your child, miserable.

It's Survive a Plane Ride Week!

First, wow I have fans! Sometimes I thought I was writing into the great ether, but Im so glad to hear that at least some of what I've written has helped! Sorry it's taken me a bit to get back but things have been a changin here in the Young household. Soon after my last post we packed up and went to a wedding in Seattle, then Maya started kindergarten and my brain went to mush adjusting to having to actually think about fixing food for someone a day before they're going to eat it and making sure she hasn't squirreled anything away in her backpack. Darn you mommy brain!

In an effort to make the blog a bit more coherent Im trying out a new idea which is theme weeks. This week is Survive a Plane Ride Week because it is indeed something you have to survive through to get to where you're going, sometimes barely surviving. I've heard and experienced all kinds of horror stories about traveling so hopefully this week I can help you survive a few of those horrors.

My first tip of the week is a little something I like to call a "plane pack." One of the tips I always give to other parents is to put together a pack of toys, games, etc. into a small, mesh bag or other kind of bag you can quickly take out of your carry on and put underneath the seat in front of you. This keeps you from having to get into the overhead constantly which is both annoying and a safety risk. The size of your plane pack will depend on the length of your flight. Something like the one pictured below would be good for a flight of several hours...well for Maya at least lol.

This is Maya's plane pack closed up. I prefer to use mesh zipper packs so I can see exactly what I'm looking for. This is a small version. Maya has a slightly larger one that she takes on international flights that holds more but this will give you an idea of what Im talking about. This pack is about the size of a 5x10 photo so it's small but it has a lot in it.

As you can see, these plane packs can pack quite a bit. I can fit Maya's dolls (and yes, I have great personal shame for the brand of dolls *sigh*), a zippered bag of markers and crayons, a mini watercolor set, and a small pad of construction/scribble paper. It's enough to give her several different things to do while not taking up a lot of space.

Obviously, now that she's 5, Maya's needs are different than a smaller child but you can easily fill a plane pack with toys appropriate for any age. The key is having them in one pack that you can quickly take out of your carry-on. Believe me life is much easier when you dont have to have stuff all over the floor at your feet or up in the overhead where you have to scoot in front of the guy snoring away in his seat.

Later this week I'll have a video on packing your carry on and some more tips and tricks to get you through so keep reading!

Shipping bags? Really?

I keep seeing article after article suggest that people pay to ship their bags rather than pay to check them. Now, I agree that paying to check bags stinks but really...shipping? I've got several problems with this but mainly it's the cost. Using my trip to Tunisia as an example, to ship a 30lb bag (the average weight for an international trip for us) it would cost $667.84 ONE WAY and it would take 6 days to get there. Being a bit more realistic I tried seeing how much it would cost to ship it to Seattle for my brother's wedding. The cheapest option is $126.83. The big bad airline United charges $15 for your first bag and $25 for your second for a whopping $40 if you check 2 bags. Hmmmm which one will I pay.

Cost aside, who wants to have to send off half their clothes up to a week ahead of time to a destination? And if it gets there early will the hotel accept it? What happens if it gets stuck in international quarantine? There are just way too many ifs and, frankly, way too many decimal points for me to justify doing this. Maybe this will be a good reason for everyone to learn to do my favorite thing...pack less!

Travel Immunizations, Better Known As Evil Pain Sticks

So today I took Maya to get her one and only travel immunization for this trip. I got her vaccinated for Hepatitis A. There are no required vaccinations for travel to China, only recommended ones. They are Yellow Fever, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Typhoid, Rabies, and Malaria (through taking anti-malarials). I chose to only get Maya the Hepatitis A because it's water and food borne and is much more damaging than Typhoid Fever. The travel consultant actually told me that many pediatricians are now adding Hep A to the list of regular vaccinations for children because it is becoming so prevalent in places like daycares so Im glad I got it for her. All of the others can be avoided through simple but very important procedures such as hand washing and wearing insect repellent that is at least 30% DEET (which is generally safe for children over a year old as long as you wash it off every night).

So back to the appointment... I thought things were going well. When we got to the office Maya realized that everyone was wearing lab coats and asked me if it was a doctor's office. I said "It's a special doctors office for people who are taking trips." She asked me if she had to get a shot and gave me that "Dont lie to me" look so I told her that yes indeed she had to get a shot. She seemed to take it well and was joking and laughing. That is, until we got back in the office and she felt the alcohol swab on her arm. Once she felt the swab, she totally freaked. It eventually took three of us holding her down to give her the shot. I felt so bad. I thought she would get somewhat upset but nothing like how she reacted. It was almost as if we were coming at her with a red hot poker. I was really taken aback by her reaction and now Im dreading getting her up to date on her regular immunizations next week as she has to get 4 shots. She might be getting a tranquilizer for that one because I dont think even numbing the area will work. The very sight of the needle seems to set her off. Ugh. Thankfully after this she should be done with the exception of getting one more Hepatitis A shot which will cover her for life.

Three Weeks Until China!

So our big trip is just three weeks away!

Ive decided Im taking very little clothing and I'll just wash it out a lot. I'm taking three shirts and two pairs of pants. Im taking all long sleeved/long pants that can be rolled up because I want to make sure we have protection in Guilin but I dont want to be taking extra clothing. I was going to buy stuff at REI but man it's just so expensive and old navy has a sale goin on so I got these in this color and a dark grey



and this in khaki, olive grey, and a rusty red color called Indian Clay


I definitely want to get some good quality sneakers though and those might cost a bit. Im also considering getting a travel vest so I'll have something to put my shiznit in while we're walking around. I got Maya two pairs of roll up pants, I just need to get her some lightweight long sleeve shirts. She an I both will benefit from the long sleeve/long pants stuff too because we are both very fair skinned and burn at the very sight of the sun.

Maya has to get at least 6 shots in the next 2 weeks, poor thing. I'm definitely getting her a Hep A shot but Im waffling on the Typhoid. I just dont know if she REALLY needs it but since it's water borne I guess its better to be safe than sorry. They're $80 a pop though so ick. She's already got Hep B and all of her other regular vax I just need to get her her last booster shots which is where the other 4 shots come in. Even with the shots I'll be like the hawk I always am. No fresh fruits or veggies, bottled water only (even for teeth brushing), no ice, no street foods, all meat cooked to within an inch of its life and lots and lots of hand sanitizing.

Most places we've been I havent been too worried about sanitation. Egypt I was a little worried but we did just fine. China has me a little on edge when it comes to sanitation but Im sure it will be ok as well. I think China is a lot like Egypt in that there is this kind of shellac of niceness that is put up for the tourists but without much work you can get to the really ugly underbelly of grossness. We just have to be careful. That statement has nothing to do with the actual people of China, it's just a reality when you are dealing with a rapidly growing, industrialized nation. We went through it too.

So anyway, I feel like I have so much to do!

All Roads Lead to China!

Ack! I never did update about my second day in Lancaster. My friend Jes is never going to forgive me. Well real quick, the second day there consisted of waking up late, eating a glorious breakfast complete with a caramel macchiato procured by Mr. Wonderful himself, Duane (Jes' husband). Then we drove around the surrounding area and even stopped to take a look at a bald eagle's nest. That thing was huge!!! Of course, there was more Sonic but after that it was time to go :(. I had such a great time and I can't wait to go back!

Now onto our next adventure...China. We leave in just about three weeks. Wow, three weeks. I never thought I would ever in my life say "In three weeks Im leaving for China." Im excited and nervous all at the same time. Josh has been happily procuring more and more photography equipment for the trip, mostly at my encouraging. He's got a great lightweight tri-pod, a new fisheye lens AND a brand new Nikon D300.

I have been busy planning what to take. We are planning to pack extra light on this trip so I think Im going to invest in some good quality travel clothing that can be quickly washed out and dried. Good quality travel clothes can be expensive but, if youre like me, they can also be worth the cost because the quality is so much better. Paying more once for something that will last for years through trip after trip after trip is much more cost effective than buying cheaply made clothes that fall apart after one or two trips. I put clothes through their paces so I want something sturdy. Today I was looking at both Cabella's and Columbia Sportswear who both seem to have some great items like zip pants that can turn into shorts and long sleeve shirts with tabs so you can roll up the sleeves. Also, they are all made from good quality, breathable materials which will be really important. So Im off to do some shopping!

MandarinTube: Learn Chinese From the Comfort of Your Own Home

So I was poking around on the Chinese Embassy's website and saw this link to ShowChina.org. It's actually a pretty interesting website that has all kinds of information about China. On there I came across a link to MandarinTube.com, a site where you can sign up for free and watch all kinds of videos to help you learn Mandarin. At first I thought it was just a bunch of videos of people in everyday situations speaking in Mandarin with English subtitles. Not very helpful. BUT then I looked around some more and it's actually a really good resource. In addition to the video they have a link to another video called "Understanding Video" where they go through the dialogue step by step showing you the written words, the English translation and slowly going through the pronunciation.

We'll see how actually learning this language goes. I took Japanese in college, but this is much harder. Spoken Japanese is pretty easy as the romanji (the way of writing Japanese in western letters) actually looks like what you are saying. Their language is made of fairly simple phonetics such as ka, sa, ro, ni, etc. Mandarin, on the other hand, is a whole different bag. Even though you can write it in western letters it still doesn't sound anything like what it looks like. Then there is the trouble that you can have the same word but depending on your inflection it can mean several different things. I can only hope I don't tell someone their mother looks like a monkey's butt.

Hold me up

When I was in Turkey I mentioned how using a scarf sling saved the day, allowing me to carry Maya on me without having to wear out my arms. She loved being in it and I loved having an alternative way of carrying her. Well, today, I dug through my closets and found my original baby sling that I had gotten when she was a baby. We had gotten it for traveling around without the aid of a stroller and it worked well. After a while I thought she was too big for it but after the trip to Turkey I decided to dust it off and see if it would still work.

There are many brands of slings and carriers out there so you kind of have to find the one you like. I had no idea what a sling was when we bought one but I ended up loving it. I have the NoJo Baby Sling by Dr. Sears*.

NoJo Baby Sling

It has extra padding at the shoulder and around the edges to keep the fabric from digging in which as a bit of a problem for me in Turkey. It's what's referred to as a ring sling because it has the double rings which you weave the strap into to adjust how tight the fabric is around you. I tried holding Maya several different ways and all of them seemed to be comfortable, even when we tested it while wearing our heavy jackets (a true test of what it will be like when walking around Estonia). I could hold her resting on my hip, in a lying down position across my front, and we were even able to figure out how to get her piggy-back on my back (though that position did end up being a bit uncomfortable). Again, she loved being in it. I think she just likes pretending to be a baby but it also allows us to be close to each other a lot which we both like. She's actually almost 10 lbs over the recommended weight limit for the sling (oops) but it still seems to work and she still sits safely in it.

Here's a few pictures of me wearing her when she was younger


*Just to clarify, my opinions are my own and Trunki is in no way affiliated with selling or promoting the NoJo Baby Sling. I just like it.

Embrace Your Inner Onion

• As I walked around downtown D.C. freezing every exposed portion of my body off, I realized that in about three weeks I'll be even colder as I walk around in Tallinn, Estonia all day. This brings me to the point of my title for this blog. One trick that I've learned through my years of traveling is layering. Now, I'm not talking about the cutesy layering where you put a lacy camisole under a nice sweater. Oh no, I'm talking backpacking through the mountains kind of layering. Now you may think to yourself, why would she want me to bring more clothes rather than less? There's actually several reasons:

• Suitcase space: OK before you say I'm dreaming, I promise you it will in fact save you suitcase space. Rather than packing several big, bulky, space devouring sweaters you pack several thinner tops which together will still probably be less than the sweater.
  


• Temperature control: I happen to be one of those people who gets sick to my stomach if I get hot so being able to cool off is a must. The same goes for your kid. Kids aren't happy campers if they are too hot or too cold so being able to adjust how warm or cold they are will make everyone happier in the long run.
  


• More outfits with less clothing: Here's how it works. Say you wear two (or even three) shirts one day. A few days later you can wear the same exact outfit just in reverse, wearing the shirt that was closest to your body on the outside and the shirt that was on the outside now will be the under shirt. You've now got two outfits but are only taking up the space of one sweater in your bag. Obviously this wont work if the undershirt from the first day is on the "ripe" side in which case you could either air it out, wash it and hang it up to dry, or just wear the outer shirt from a previous day as an undershirt.

If you travel in winter a lot, like I do, you can also invest in some "second skin" thermal shirts. These are ultra thin shirts and leggings that keep you warm while not bulking up your outfits or your suitcase. They also make for great sleepwear which will also cut down on the things you have to bring. Best of all, because they are so thin, they will dry in a jiffy if they need a washing so you can wash them in the sink at night and they'll be ready for more walking around the next day.

So, with all that said, everyone enjoy freezing to death in this wretched cold!