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When in Rome, do as the Romans do, right? When I travel, I do my best to blend in. I try to speak the local language and I try to observe local customs. I find this fun, partly from a fashion perspective. I love to see how people dress, and the Italians are pros. Even Pat, who is not all in to fashion commented on how well everyone was dressed, and that he might have been under dressed for Italy. So, here are a few tips if you'd like to blend in a bit. 1. Tailored. Italians look like ever piece of clothing was made specifically for them. Pants hit at the right spot, sleeves are the perfect length, and clothes are not baggy. They are wrinkle fee, and perfectly put together. 2. Polished. From their hair, their manicures, and their squeaky clean shoes, they are polished from head to toe. I was surprised by the number of men that I saw who clearly had their eyebrows done, and who probably spend twice as long getting ready as I do. Men and women both give attention to even the smallest detail of fashion. 3. Classy. Think "Would Audrey Hepburn wear this", rather than Kim Kardashian. There were plenty of slim cut pants and all that, but Italian fashion is classic beautiful, not gaudy. Think coordinated outfits, and classic cuts. 4. Comfort. While I did see women wearing heels, the majority wore sensible shoes. They walk a lot, and heels and cobble stones don't always mix. Plus, if you're on vacation, you're going to be walking a ton, up a million stairs, think comfort and sensible first, but also stylish. Just say no to crocs and Uggs. 5. On that note, don't worry about blending in too much. There are going to be tourists everywhere, and unless you speak fluent Italian, you're going to give yourself away at some point. Here are some things to not do, if you want to not draw attention to yourself as a foreigner, but also don't want to buy a whole new wardrobe:
1. Don't wear white socks with sneakers. If you're wearing shorts, wear no show socks. If you're wearing pants, match your socks to your pants. 2. Don't wear baseball caps, or halter tops. Halter tops are generally a no, because many churches, museums etc have dress codes. Baseball caps are just more of an American style. 3. Anything too casual. Here in the U. S. you can go out anytime of day and find someone out in their pajamas. I never saw anyone even remotely that casual. Don't wear workout clothes as clothes (yoga pants, baggy tanks, tear away pants). If it could be worn as workout/pajamas/a day at the pool, reconsider it. 4. Don't go overboard with trying to be someone you're not. In the end, you are on vacation, have fun, and be comfortable...but not too comfortable. In the end, most of us can't buy a whole new wardrobe for each trip we take. But, we can always put our best foot forward, and be respectful of the places we are visiting. Have a great week, and happy travels! Skeeter
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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
So, packing can be hard. How can you possibly know what you want to wear 9 days from now, when it's already hard to pick out what you want to wear every morning? In case you're wondering, today's outfit is called Green with Envy....anywho, I digress. If you are planning a trip, I highly suggest packing everything in a 1 carry-on. It eliminates extra baggage fees, time waiting at the carousel for your luggage (if it hasn't been lost or crushed) My father in law actually had one of his bags wedged underneath those carts that they use to haul all the luggage to the plane, by the time he got it, the bag had a giant hole burned through it and had lost a good portion of it's contents.
This though requires some amount of planning, but lucky for you, I've done that already. I started with what would be the perfect bag. This girl, had a good post about the bag she chose, and it does look like a nice one. It costs $250 though! That seemed like a lot to me. The bag to the left is the one I went with. It's from Ebags, and it is going to be awesome( it has over 3,000 reviews). It was only $79.99, which is a heck of deal compared to many other bags out there. I got it in the mail the other day, and I'm pretty convinced that it is going to be awesome. It's convertible from backpack to shoulder bag, has lots of compartments, and compresses and expands depending on how much you've packed. In addition to the bag, I also got some compression bags, like these. I don't think it's going to be super critical on the way there to compress everything. But, if you're like me and you want to do some shopping on your trip, you're going to need additional room on your way back. Here is what will be going in there: Note, It will be in the mid 70's for a high for this trip. I will do a "how to pack for a winter trip" later, because that's a whole different beast. Anyone can pack for 2 weeks at the beach...swim suit: check, flip flops: check...end of list.
Anyways, back to business
Clothing: 2 light weight dresses (that can be dressed up or down) 2 pairs of skinny slacks( not jeans, because jeans are heavy and take forever to dry) 1 pair of leggings 2 pairs of shorts 5 tops 3 tank tops for layering 2 cardigans one pair of sneakers, these one pair of sandals,these And there you have it, and a bonus two of the tops and both dresses have only been worn once. Leaving you even more options in case you spill pizza sauce all down your shirt. Now, this is more than some other posts I've seen have suggested. I read one where it suggested 4 tops for 2 weeks. That means you're going to have to wear every top 3 times. Unless you know that you are going to have access to a washing machine, that is a recipe for a smelly disaster. I mean, on vacation, you're walking around, hiking, at the beach. Your clothes are going to get dirty and sweaty, and if you're anything like me, will likely spill food on yourself... or is that just me? I've also allowed for changes in weather. If you are going somewhere like Miami that is pretty consistently warm even in the evening, then you don't need the leggings, the cardigans, or the long pants. But in Italy in May, the weather will range from about 55 for the low to 75 for the high. Also, a lot of museums like at the Vatican will not allow you to enter if your knees and shoulders are not covered. So, you're going to want to layer so that it the morning or at a museum you can put on or take off a light layer to adjust for changing temperatures and entrance requirements. As you can see I stuck with similar colors, but I still feel like each outfit is different and unique. Accessories: I will pack one scarf and wear a second, same goes for earrings and necklaces. I will also have my Ipad and earbuds.
Toiletries: I will have two small bags, one with liquids and one without
This liquid one meets the 3-1-1 rule (3 oz in 1 quart bag, 1 per person) Some of the notable items are: tiny bottle of perfume, sunscreen, and smoothing serum. You'll have your favorite items, but just make sure to not over pack the 1 quart bag. It's not that big and you don't want it busting open. If there's something that you HAVE to have, but can't find it in a travel size, consider using a generic 3 oz bottle like I did (pink one) for my smoothing serum. For my non liquid bag, I have the basic make-up items. There's no bronzer, or highligher or primer, or whatever are all the other things Pinterest tells you that you need to use. Keep it simple and basic. It will be less stressful and you don't have to worry about sweating all your make-up off and looking like a crazy person half way through the day. Some of the notable items: Olay water activated face wipes. These are great, they are 4in1 (cleansing, toner, moisturizer, and exfoliater) and eliminates the need for a liquid face wash. I prefer the water activated ones rather than the pre-moistened ones. Then you can take just a small amount with you and pack it with other items (like my deodorant and tide packs) without getting everything wet and goopy. The tide packs for washing items in the sink if I manage to spill wine and/or gelato on myself everyday...I'm being real with you, this could happen. A separate bag for bobbi pens, earrings, etc.
In my purse, besides the obvious wallet, I will also have my passport (make copies and put them in a separate bag, sunglasses, tissues (for bathrooms with out TP...that's the worst) A Go Girl which I will admit seems a bit strange. But It has saved me on a number of occasions, without giving you TMI, I'm pretty sure I didn't go camping enough as a child. Italy and lots of other places in the world sometimes only have squat toilets, as in, only a hole in the ground. If this looks like something you want to keep your bum as far away from as possible, I would get a go girl. I am also going to carry a water bottle. Italy has a lot of clean public water fountains, and bottled water is super expensive and not typically served complimentary with meals.
The bag is a cross body which I picked on purpose. This decreases the chances that someone is going to try and snatch it off your shoulder, and it's just super convenient. I am not taking a curling iron or blow dryer. This would require that I buy a voltage converter, like this. They often are around $30 and are a bit bulky. Be careful to not just buy an outlet converter, like this if you are using any electrical items that cannot handle 240 volts. The outlet convertor just changes the plug size and shape, not the voltage. Most laptops and cameras can, but check first. If it can't and you plug it in, it could explode or catch fire=the worst. After fully packing it, with iPad and everything, it only weighed 12.8 lbs. Not too shabby! It might be hard to tell in the picture, but I have TONS of room left. Which will be great for buying pretty things for friends and family and I'll be honest for me too! Most importantly, keep things simple, because |
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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