One of my favorite hotels is the literary themed Hotel Rex in San Francisco.  It’s a small boutique hotel with a fantastic 1920′s – ’30s vibe.  They have a cozy library bar that serves a free glass of wine every night, live jazz, an old movie night, inspiring excerpts from books painted on the walls, and an adorable 20 lb. resident pug that hangs out on the couch by the front desk. (His name is Maximo.)  The staff is always very friendly and helpful too.  The Joie de Vivre hotel group always seems to “get it” and after reading this post on Tim Ferriss’s blog, now I know why.

The CEO, Chip Conley has learned to become a “Chief Emotions Officer”.  He explains by using baggage as a metaphor, “Countless times I’ve seen people show up at our hotel front desks with all kinds of baggage, and only some of it the physical kind… Lugging that baggage around for years is noticeable in how that person shows up at the metaphorical front desk of life.  If you are a Chief Emotions Officer, you are more aware of all the bags you’re carrying and how to open your luggage up and make sense of what’s inside.”

In his new book, Emotional Equations, he uses equations (such as Anxiety = Uncertainty x Powerlessness) to help make sense of emotions that are weighing you down.  He says, “Creating your own internal logic regarding your emotional baggage will allow you to carry a lighter bag… one that’s eminently easier to unpack.”

Now I love Hotel Rex even more… (By the way, remember this old post?)

Photos:  My own (except for the one of Maximo)
Source:  Four-Hour Workweek

Did you read the Harry Potter books?  I couldn’t put them down.  I even had to read some parts while eating chocolate since they ate it so much in the stories!

So since my family and I are big fans, we drove over to Orlando during the holidays to spend the day at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  It was incredibly fun to see it all come to life.  I was amazed at how much effort was put into the details.  They had snowy rooftops, weathered shop signs, a smoking chimney, freshly baked cauldron cakes, moving portraits, floating candles, and moaning Myrtle’s voice echoing in the bathrooms!  We even lucked out with some cooler weather that day so it made the park seem more realistic.

I especially loved being there at night.  The atmosphere is incredible.  When the sun started to set, all the shop windows in Hogsmeade lit up with a warm inviting glow.  It was the perfect setting to bundle up, sip on a butterbeer, and pretend to be a wizard for a little while.

(If you can’t make it to the park in Florida, they’re opening one in Los Angeles in a few years!)

Most photos shot with my iPhone

You don’t have to fly to some far off land for an adventure.  Some of the best trips I’ve taken were no more than just a few hours drive away.  About a week ago, I got together with some friends and packed up the car for a weekend camping trip in Yosemite National Park.  Our objective was to take on the famed Half Dome hike.  It’s a big 17-mile day hike gaining around 5,000 feet in altitude and peaking out at 8,800 feet.  The final 400 feet to the top is the most famous thing about this climb.  It’s an ascent on solid granite at about a 45-degree angle while holding onto nothing but two steel cables.  Crazy??  Maybe.  It wasn’t nearly as bad as it looks, but it’s definitely dangerous if you’re not careful!

The beauty of a trip like this is that it’s so easy to do.  It’s not an expedition so you don’t have to pack like you’re going on one.  Your car is parked right at your campsite and you have access to clean running water and bathrooms (luxuries you’d kill for when camping in remote areas).  You can even drive a few minutes to the store to pick up some beer and Nerds on a Rope… very luxurious.

Do you have any road trips planned?  Maybe this will help get the wheels turning…

National Park Service
Wanderfly
Trazzler
Gadling

Photos shot with the Canon 5D mk II in Yosemite National Park.

Photo of Saturn shot with the Fuji X100 through the telescope lens.

Space coast is the best coast!  If you want to pretend to be an astronaut for a day, this is the place to be.  During a trip to Florida to visit the fam, we spent the day at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and the night at Brevard Community College to peep through Florida’s largest public telescope (it’s 24″ in diameter).

There’s tons to see and do at KSC… There’s a shuttle launch simulator, spacecraft on display, IMAX movies, moon rocks, Star Trek exhibits, and you can even have lunch with an astronaut or go through astronaut training!  If you plan it right, you can catch a rocket launch!  Watching the launch of the Juno spacecraft was the icing on the cake.  Since we were staying an hour away in Orlando, we had to wake up before dawn to be some of the first 2,000 people to get priority viewing access.  It was definitely well worth it.

After a full day of mars landers, spacesuits, and alien flavored dippin’ dots, we drove 30 minutes south to the Brevard observatory and planetarium.  We were lucky to have a pretty clear sky that night and had an insanely awesome view of Saturn.  Looking at Saturn and it’s well defined rings through a telescope this large is probably one of the creepiest things.  It’s there, and I’m here… It makes me feel very small, which I love because it really puts things in perspective.

Will you boldly go?

Photos shot with the Fuji X100

How many times have you actually gone to the hotel gym while you were on a little vacation?  Be honest.  Zero?  Yeah, me too.  Getting your fitness on while on vacation doesn’t have to be a drag.  It can be an adventure in and of itself.  All you need is a little creativity… In my case, I was in Las Vegas so I had an opportunity here to use my location to my advantage.  There’s a big skyline, a fun vibe, a lot of big open sidewalks, and most important… gambling!  Running the Vegas strip while gambling from casino to casino was something my dad did back in the early 90′s and I was dying to try it for myself.  So I mapped out a course and named it the “The Blackjack Run”.  The goal was to run the whole Vegas strip while betting one $10 blackjack hand at 10 different casinos.

My adventure began early at 5:30am at the Wynn.  I snapped a picture of the sunrise, killed a Clif bar, hopped in the elevator, then headed straight to the cashier to get a bunch of $10 bills for each of my 10 bets.  The goal was to start running by 6am and be back by 9am to avoid the crowds.  After finding my way through the slot machine maze and stepping out onto the strip, I noticed that NO ONE was around….. just a few  joggers, street cleaners, and a handful of drunk people stumbling back to their hotels.  No kidding, I had the whole strip to myself as I worked my way down the east side to Mandalay Bay and back up along the west side (with stops at the Venetian, Paris, Flamingo, Tropicana, Mandalay Bay, New York, Bellagio, Mirage, Encore, and finishing back at the Wynn).  Although the casinos were pretty empty, I managed to find tables with some interesting people sitting at them.  I gambled with a group that had massive hangovers at the Mirage, high-fived someone at the Venetian after winning with a double down, and chatted it up with some cocktail waitresses at Paris.

In all, it was a 6.5 mile run and took me around 2.5 hours!  Most of that time was spent navigating the casinos, cashing out my chips at the cashier, and explaining my funny shoes (Vibram Five Fingers) to people.  Overall, I only lost two hands and won around $75.  Not bad!  The strip turned out to be the perfect place to run.  It’s kind of like a big obstacle course with all the staircases, escalators, bridges…. and you can’t beat the scenery!  Here’s the highlights…

The sunrise from our window at the Wynn at 5:30am.

Gearing up and the empty Wynn at 6am.

Not a single person inside the Venetian besides the floor polishers.

Flamingo was an easy one to navigate.  The entrances were right on the strip…. in one side and out the other..

Water break at the Tropicana!

Mandalay Bay bound… Crossing the bridge from the Tropicana over to the other side of the Strip… look, no traffic!

Skyline love.. the cards at the NY NY had red apples on them in lieu of hearts.

There were so few people out on the strip, I had no one to take a picture with but myself.  CityCenter is so confusing so I decided to skip it to make good time.

Bellagio, my favorite hotel on the strip… I had it all to myself.  I couldn’t believe how empty it was… I jogged through here to get to Caesar’s Palace.

Pretty sunrise behind the Eiffel Tower.

Empty tables at Encore.  I lost here, but at least I lost in style.

I wonder how many people have walked around Encore in Vibram Five Fingers..

Finally back at the Wynn with a win!  They only had $15 minimum tables but they let me bet one $10 hand after explaining the marathon I was on.  Going up…..

Resting the 10 fingers with a dip in the pool and a mojito (or two).  There goes about half of my winnings.

This is the map I created on walkjogrun detailing the exact route I took.

Would I do it again?  Absolutely!  Are you up for the gamble?

(Thanks for the inspiration, dad!)

You’re ready to pack a bag and take off for an international adventure, yeah!  But where to start?  The possibilities are endless… so first things first, bust out a map and a calendar.

Where, When, & Weather – The first thing I do is open my Google maps and calendar with a list of my top destinations and find the best time of year to go.  I do everything I can to avoid peak season since the rates are always significantly higher.  When I planned our trek in Peru, I looked up the weather patterns since I didn’t want to be trekking in the mud during the rainy season. I ended up reorganizing a fall trip to the following spring since the mountains would be lush and green with minimal chance of rain (above photo).  Seasonal climate info is listed on Lonely Planet.  Weather Underground gives a more in depth weather report and you can compare to the previous year.  It helps to do a date and keyword search on Flickr to see what the area looked like when other people went during that time of year.  You really get a true taste of what an area is like by checking out other’s travel photos.

Books – I am not above a travel guide.  There’s a pile of guide book companies out there, but I always grab a copy from Lonely Planet. It has everything you need in an easily digestible format.  If you don’t want to spend money on the entire book, you can just download specific chapters directly from their website to read on your ipad, iphone, computer, etc.  Instead of bringing the entire book with you on your trip, save space by just stapling the pages together that you need.  Check out mine, I put it through the ringer!

Forums & Reviews – Real advice from people who have been there is priceless.  The Lonely Planet Thorn Tree forum is where it’s at. You can see other people’s itineraries, get good advice from people who know first-hand, and get insider information that may not be listed in a guide book.  TripAdvisor is my other go-to for reviews, photos, and personal opinions.  The hotel room you booked may look great on the company’s website, but you get the true story from an actual traveler’s experience.  Above is one of our rooms in the city of Ollantaytambo, Peru.

View Larger Map
Google Earth/Google Maps – I can read about how to get from point A to B, but seeing it on a map is the best way to judge time and distances.  When I arrive, I like knowing which way is north.

Budget – I’m always looking for the best bang for my buck.  I use my credit card points or redeem miles for flights whenever possible.  Checking exchange rates and finding out how much my hotel room costs per night gives me a good idea of what I’ll be spending on a daily budget.  You can download an app like XE to get current exchange rates on your iPhone or other mobile device.  I give myself a buffer and overestimate how much I will be spending.  It will cover unexpected airport fees, tipping, and that extra train you didn’t know you had to catch.  Always expect the unexpected!

Fare Alerts – When I have an idea of when I want to leave, I create an email fare alert on Kayak.  I start looking as soon as possible on Kayak since you can see pricing from a large range of dates.  Supposedly the airlines don’t track your search history, but I beg to differ.  I’ve seen flight costs change right in front of my eyes. Airlines jack up the prices on the weekend so I never buy my tickets on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. That’s when they know you are not working and have the time to shop.  So I ALWAYS buy on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday and also try to fly on those days since it can be significantly cheaper to fly midweek.  Buying direct from the airline website can be cheaper than a travel booking site and it’s nice having the peace of mind knowing that I have a confirmed seat.

Folders – I keep physical copies, but I also create a Google document to store scans of all of all my paperwork, itineraries, confirmation numbers, tickets, permits, and important personal documents that I can access remotely from any computer.  You can set it as a private document or share it with people you specify.  My emergency contact gets a copy of my passport, credit cards, and itineraries.

Visas & Passports – Does your US passport expire in six months?  If it does, you won’t be able to go anywhere without renewing it first.  Also find out if the country you want to visit requires a visa and apply – VisaHQ.

Language – My Spanish is rusty so I brushed up on it before we left for Peru.  Being able to communicate made the biggest difference in our trip even if it was on an elementary level!  At the very least, you will be in business with the basics. Learning the numbers 1 – 20 and the greetings (hello, goodbye, thank you, please, yes, no, how much, and where is) will get you such a long way.  The Google Translate app for the iPhone saves important phrases for easy access and hey, why not learn the basics right there on your mobile device while you’re on that long 12-hour flight.

Vaccinations – You can get the scoop on vaccinations and health warnings for every country on the CDC.  It helps to ask around to see if any of your friends have been to that specific location and find out what shots they had.  Your local hospital will most likely have a travel vaccinations office.  Another option is Passport Health which is an independent company that specializes in travel vaccinations with locations all over the US.  I called around to get price quotes and found out that some places charge an ‘injection fee’.  I’ve also seen the Yellow Fever shot fluctuate in price by $50.  The shot is the same everywhere, it’s just the price that changes!  They will give you a yellow card with all your current immunizations on it that you will need to bring with you to certain countries that require the proof.  I always keep a record of all my shots including the date I received them, where I went, how much I paid, and in which arm it was given (in case I have an adverse reaction).  Shots are not cheap and some require a booster administered within several months of the first dose.

For me, planning and learning all about the destination is all part of the adventure. Hopefully this starter guide will point you in the right direction.  I’d love to hear all of your researching tips and tricks, post away in the comments!

A little video edit of our adventures in Peru. Sometimes you just have to get completely out of your element and go explore.

Once again, I found myself staring into my closet wondering what to pack.  This time was a little different since I was headed to Peru for a 3 week expedition and I didn’t want to dress like I walked out of a camping store… blehh.  The big challenge was that I had to pack light (using just a backpack) for two drastically different climates, a cold high altitude trek in the Andes and a trip into the hot Amazon jungle.  So I was looking for pieces I could count on to get me through extreme conditions without losing my personal style.  Surprisingly, there’s some great performance apparel out there that mixes right in with the rest of your wardrobe, you just have to do a little digging around for the right pieces.

Here’s what I brought:

Bottoms
Denim – 2 pair, one boot leg, one skinny
Hiking Pants – REI
Thermal Underwear – Patagonia

Toiletries
One small quart sized bag filled with (Nalgene bottles) – to get you on any airline without checking your bag.
Small Makeup Bag – Filled it only with the basics.
Mini Hair Straightener (Conair)- My hair loves to absorb all the moisture in the air.  Since I would have access to plugs in the hostals, I bought the smallest straightener I could find at the drugstore.  It doesn’t get very hot, but it served it’s purpose.

Underwear
No Cotton Underwear – (Patagonia recylced polyester), lots of thongs (they take up less room!), and 2 hipsters
Low Cut Socks – one small pair
Sportsbras – 2 + 1 regular bra

Head + Neck
Hat – You only need one so make sure you love it.  I brought a wool blend that I’ve had for years.
Beanie (Icebreaker) – For the freezing cold high altitudes.
Neck Warmer – (Smartwool)
Scarf – I didn’t bring one because I knew I’d buy a pile of local made alpaca scarves.

Shoes
Kicks (Olukai Cross Trainers)- One pair that will stand up to all the punishment in the airports and on the streets.
Boots or (Vibram Five Fingers) – We had mules, we weren’t going to be in the snow, and we would only be carrying the bare minimum on our backs on the trek.  This meant I could sub my big heavy backpacking boots for my VFF’s.  This saved a tremendous amount of weight both in my pack and on my feet.  I had my VFF’s for about 2 years and trained in them beforehand so I was prepared.  I wouldn’t bring any footwear that you haven’t broken in or trained in.

Shirts
2 Longsleeve + 2 Shortsleeve (Icebreaker Merino Wool) -  Form meets function.  I had to avoid cotton so I went with merino wool for all my base layers since it keeps you warm, cool, and stink free.  It can be worn for days without having to be washed.  See photo below.

Sweater
1 Lightweight Sweater – I brought my fav staple I’ve had for years that I can wear on it’s own or just as a layer.  It’s a blend of wool and alpaca… again, try to avoid cotton.

Jackets
I get cold verrrry easily.  My down parka doubled as a pillow in the tent and it warmed me up in the ice cold hostals.  The red insulated wind blocker turned out to be that one thing I wish I didn’t bring…
1 Down Parka – Patagonia, 1 Rain jacket – REI, 1 Insulating Wind Blocking – Patagonia, 1 Shell – The North Face, 1 Merino Wool Layer Zip (this served as a heavy base layer most of the time) – Icebreaker

Other Tops
One long sleeved woven button down – One of my favorite key pieces to wear anytime, but the practical use is to keep the bugs from biting in jungle.  Lark & Wolff – Urban Outfitters
2 Tanks + 1 Cotton Tee – One simple tank to base any getup, one Icebreaker merino wool tank to beat the jungle heat, and one basic soft cotton tee because you’ll miss the touch and feel of cotton.

Close your eyes, here it comes…

Hiking Pants - Ughhh, I know…. Unfortunately, there really is no other way around wearing them on an expedition trek like this since you’ll find yourself in extreme climates and situations.  I tried on every style at REI and they all made me look like I was wearing a garbage bag except for these from REI.

The key things you want to look for are:
Durability – are they going to rip or tear anywhere?
Water resistance – would you be able to walk through rivers, mud, and streams?
Leg room – walk around in them – can you lift up your leg high enough for hours on end?)
Leg length – try them on with and without your boots/footwear
Roll up leg – zip off is okay as long as you can roll them up instead and they’ll stay rolled up
Lots of pockets and zippers – to stash the small items you’ll grab for the most

Left – The North Face “Emily” Jacket, I used ALL of the pockets at any given time on this jacket including the 2 on the inside for secret storage.  It’s lightweight so it’s not going to keep you warm on it’s own.  I just piled on the layers underneath – thenorthface.com, bloomingdale’s, or backcountry.com
Right – (Icebreaker wool jacket), wear it as a jacket or underneath another.  Layers that zip are easier to get on and off with a quickness.

Pack – Osprey Talon 33 pack – Packs come in all sizes and shapes.  Since we weren’t bringing our camping gear (sleeping bag, tent, etc.) a giant pack wasn’t necessary for this trip.  This medium sized one by Osprey has all the features I need including a water bladder insert and little pockets on the chest straps to hold my 20 tubes of lip balm.  Don’t skimp on your pack, it will be going through the ringer.  Choose wisely and have yourself measured at the store to get a proper fit.

Shades – Kaenon Polarized – Serious lenses for serious altitudes and conditions.  I’m not a fan of shades that discolor my view of the world.  These act as a natural window while protecting my peepers and not coming across overly ‘sporty’.

The easiest way to fit it all in your pack is to roll everything up.  It also keeps the wrinkles at bay.

Here’s my gallery of Peru if you’d like to see the rest of my photos.

Overall, I definitely could have left two or three things behind… but I was happy to have the right gear when my legs wanted to give out at 15,000 feet and when I found myself sleeping on the cold hard floor of an airport in South America.

Do you have any favorite key pieces you can’t live without when you travel?  What works for you?  Packing light is one thing, but would you ever travel with no baggage at all?

Tons of fun shooting with the Holga and Mini Diana (or Mini D as I like to call it) in Key West.  There’s a photo op around every corner… people almost killing themselves on scooters, great architecture, six toed cats at the Hemingway house, and even the southernmost point of the continental US.  That photo of the southernmost point buoy was a tricky shot.  There was a line of at least 20 people waiting to have their photo taken in front of it.   I just stood there for about 10 minutes patiently sweating in the heat for that exact moment of people walking away and people about to walk up.  The first photo was with my point and shoot… it’s funny, if you count my phone, I’m carrying four cameras around with me everywhere these days!

Here’s more shots from Key West. It’s hard for me to look at the key lime pie on a stick pic without drooling.  Going to find a recipe for that asap.

The Map Room at the NY Public Library (Photo: Peter Aaron/Esto)

Codrington Library, Oxford England -curiousexpeditions.com

Strahov Monastery Library, Prague – pixdaus.com

Wren Library, Trinity College, Cambridge -wiki commons

Austrian National Library (Wien Prunksaal Oesterreichische Nationalbibliothek), Vienna, Austria – wiki commons

Lawrence of Arabia Screenshots

I’m collecting maps for my future map room.  Charting, graphing, plotting… whenever I plan a trip or adventure, I spend countless hours absorbed in my research.  How far is Lima from Cuzco?  Should we do the glacier or jungle trek?  I dream of sitting at an oversized table loaded with huge unraveled maps in a big open space.  After finalizing the details for our Peruvian adventure I have a pile of notes that are in desperate need of a real home.  My bookshelf just seems to grow exponentially with travel related reads.  Good excuse for a map room, right??

If I had my own, I’d fill it with globes, books, compasses, and at least one big authentic worn in leather chair.  I can just smell the old books and hear the echos in these gorgeous old libraries.  I’m taking design notes…