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Hi there! Skeeter here! So, I'm prepping for a trip to Italy soon...I want to apologize right now, because I have been telling everyone about this trip for MONTHS! But that's the joy of writing a travel blog, is that I get to share all these trips and tips with you. One of the biggest things I hear people complain about when traveling, especially on trans continental flights, is jet lag. Travel can be tiring, and when you've been traveling for hours and hours, and finally get to your destination and it's 8am there when it would be 10pm at home, it can throw your body clock for a loop. All your body wants is sleep, but all you want is to get out there and start exploring. Here are a few tips to arrive refreshed and have a great trip. 1. Adjust your sleep pattern: As early as you can, start adjusting your sleep time closer to your destination's. This isn't always possible, especially if you need to arrive at work not looking like a zombie. You can try and do this on the plane though. So, for my trip to Italy, when I board my last connection (and longest leg of the flight) at 7pm, it's going to be 3am in Italy. At this point, I'm going to take a couple of ZzzQuils and sleep for as long as I can of that 9 hour flight. When we land it will be around 9am Italy time, and I will have hopefully had a descent amount of sleep. I tried some ZzzQuil the other night just to make sure I slept well...I totally did! And it's not habit forming and shouldn't cause you to go sleep driving, like some other sleep aids do. Sleep driving = the worst. But, always try something out first to make sure it agrees with you. For me, I slept all night, and woke up feeling pretty good. 2. Hydration! Drinking plenty of water is always important, but even more so when you fly. The air and elevation really dehydrates you, so drink lots. I know some people avoid drinking water because they want to avoid those tiny sometimes smelly airplane bathrooms. But trust me on this, drink lots of water and don't over do the alcoholic drinks. With the tiny amount of food that they give, the dehydration, and the elevation, it's going to go to your head a lot quicker, add to your dehydration, and make it hard to hit the ground running when you touch down. Also be careful with when you are drinking caffeinated beverages. I'm weird and can fall asleep right after a cup of coffee. Others though will be up for hours later, know yourself and plan around your new sleep schedule. 3. Dress comfortably: The decreased air pressure in a plane makes our bodies expand, so if you're wearing something tight, it's going to get tighter. When I flew to New Zealand, I was wearing tennis shoes. I took them off when I fell asleep, and went to put them back on shortly before landing. I almost couldn't get them on! So, wearing something with a little extra room will help you feel more comfortable while you're sleeping and as you're getting ready to land. 4. Hydration 2.0: Along with drinking plenty of water, don't forget about your skin. Applying lip balm and some light moisturizer can help you feel more like a human after a 15 hour flight. 5. Prep before you depart: Not only do you want to arrive at your destination refreshed, but you want to arrive home feeling great as well. This all comes down to prep. Do some laundry and light house work before you leave. This way, as soon as you get back and are recovering from post vacation grumpies (or is it just me that get those?) you won't have to do laundry before you have to go back to work and you can relax for a couple of days. Don't forget about the smelly items either: take out the trash, do the dishes, don't leave fruit out that will be moldy and gross when you return. 6. Get Comfortable: This is one of the hardest things. Even the window seat where you can rest your head....is not comfortable. But planning ahead can help. I like to us a large scarf to wrap up in and block out some of the light. You can use a sweatshirt as a make shift pillow. I see lots of people toting around neck pillows (which are probably comfortable) and their own blankets. But all I can think of is what a hassle it is to shlep that thing around the world. I am all about minimizing the things I need to carry. 7. Prep your body: If you don't already, start taking a multi-vitamin and vitamin c before you leave and during your trip if you can. You probably won't be eating like you usually do, and you'll be exposed to a whole host of germs (especially on the plane) so try and avoid getting sick while you're away. And making sure you're getting all your vitamins will help you have more energy as well. 8. Power down: At least an hour before you've schedule yourself to fall asleep, stop using any electronics. Don't watch the in flight movies etc. If you're one of those people that have to finish a book once you start, put it down. Give yourself some time to wind down and prepare to sleep. It's hard doing this on a plane because other people have their lights on, are talking, moving around etc. So eliminating all distractions will help you fall asleep faster. 9. Force yourself into local time: If all of these didn't work, and you find yourself needing sleep when it is day time at your destination. Try your hardest to stay up for a while. Go outside in the sunshine, walk around a bit, and see if you get a second wind. It might make day 1 suck, but it will help the rest of your trip go much better. If you don't make yourself get on the right time, and you keep sleeping when it's night a home, you're going to miss a lot of what you want to do. But the biggest rule is to just listen to your body and have a great time! ~Skeeter
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It's Friday, and you know what that means...dancing on the table and the Friday Travel Deal Alert! I've found a couple of great ones for you today. If there's ever anywhere that you want us to keep our eyes on for deals, let us know. Travel deals are pretty much our favorite thing. So, without further ado, here are today's deals. 1. Los Angeles: You can fly from Salt Lake City to LAX on June 13th and return on June 17 with Delta for a quick getaway for only $168 round trip! Not too shabby! With all the money saved, you'll have extra to hit up the city's amazing food trucks, beach side attractions and go people watching for celebrities. Those things not your speed? Then hit up a baseball game, concert, and soak up the nightlife. There's really something for everyone in L.A. 2. Hawaii! You can fly from LAX to Honululu for $401 round trip on May 17th and return on May 25th with Allegiant Air. This picture of a sea turtle doesn't begin to capture everything about Hawaii...but I just love his face! If you do make it to Hawaii, I'd suggest going island hoping. Each island has a distinct feel and so much to offer. The Big island has volcanoes, Oahu has great surfing for both beginners and the experienced. No matter which island you go to, you'll be soaking up the sun, drinking tropical drinks and maybe having a swim with one of my sea turtle friends. It's guaranteed to be fun! Summer is just around the corner, where are you headed this year? Have a great weekend! ~Skeeter So, I've been in kind of a funk lately. I've decided to blame the long winter though, because it can't argue about it. I realized though, thanks to Pat, that I have so many great things happening and I have nothing to feel but thankful. Then I got to thinking about writing this post about "loving every moment". If we're being honest though, that is impossible. That's contrary to all of the messages that we're being bombarded with to constantly to keep calm, be happy, live life, etc. There are plenty of moments that you simply can't love: speeding tickets, realizing you're out of coffee, the seemingly endless wait for the next season of Downton Abby...am I right? Seriously though, I wouldn't want to program myself to be some constantly smiling robot. Sometimes it's the sour that makes the sweet taste so sweet. All of these messages telling us to be happy all the time ends up just making people feel like they're not doing something right when they simply can't keep calm. What we can do though is make sure we are truly appreciating all that we can. That delicious cup of coffee first thing in the morning, the way the sun lights up the spring flowers, the joy from complimenting a stranger, taking a trip somewhere new, accomplishing something you didn't think you could, a hug at the end of a long day from the person you love the most, I'll be the first to admit that this is easier said than done. It is so easy to get caught up in constantly working to make your life everything you dreamed of, that you lose sight of how truly spectacular life is right now. When things don't fall in line just as I hope they will, its easy to immediately write it off as a failure. That's not fair though. It's not fair to you, to your friends and family, or to world around us. We are not meant to be perfect on the first try, or the second, or the third. And when you've failed for what seems like the 100th time, it's ok to have a little cry about it, and then as Elisabeth Taylor said" Pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together". It's only through years of work, study, and progress that we will ever find that perfect 10. And my perfect 10 may look very different from everybody else's perfect. Perfect does not exist, and that's ok, it's great in fact. So don't pay a bit of attention to everybody else's idea of perfect, go find your own. And while you're at it, stop and smell the flowers, and soak up some of the beauty around you. ~Skeeter |
Skeeter
Hi there! I'm Skeeter. I grew up moving a lot and that makes me a bit restless for travel and exploration. I started this blog with my husband Pat when we decided to backpack New Zealand for a year. We are always looking for the next adventure and are loving life. We're just your average couple with two sassy dogs and a love for travel. We're sharing our travels and the tips we pick up along the way. LIZHello! I'm Liz. Blogging is very new to me, but I'm so excited to finally write as much as I talk! Archives
December 2016
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