Kelocity.com

A runner with an appetite for adventure!

The Europe Essentials–Packing Part 1 August 25, 2011

Filed under: Travel — Kelocity @ 7:15 am
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We’ve got a big trip to Europe on the horizon that we’re getting pretty pumped about. We have been looking forward to this trip since our last trip 10 months ago! Can’t believe we’re already in the packing stage now! Our annual international vacation is almost here! We try to go abroad at least once a year, and so far so good! This year is taking us to Eastern Europe with Contiki Tours.

Click to enlarge. Blue Dots are where I’ve been, Pink Dots are what’s next!
map

Our most recent international trips together:
2010 – Egypt; Dubai
2009 – Russia & The Baltic; Iceland
2008 – Italy

I was so excited to come home from work today to see that Irving’s already begun pulling out all the travel gear and piling it up in the corner. It made me giddy! I don’t really like packing, but I love oogling over travel gadgets. I thought I’d share some of my favorite essentials.

Travel Sheets
Anyone who has ever slept on a train or in a hostel knows how important these are. We each have a set and they have been lifesavers. We’re always the envy our tour when we are able to cozy up without getting the heebie jeebies at night. They fold up really small and stash in the bottom of your luggage. We don’t travel without these now.
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Adapters and Converters
We have a collection of plugs for all over the world. The little ones on the right are for Europe and can charge cameras and phones. The big guy on the left is big enough to charge our laptop. Check your devices before you leave to make sure you have the right ones.
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Travel Wallet
I know these sound kind of nerdy, but they’re essential. Mine is on the right and goes around my neck under my shirt. It will hold my passport, money and credit cards. Irving’s on the right hooks to his belt and goes under his waist band. We LOVE Eagle Creek products. These have a dri-fit back to them so they won’t chafe or rub on your skin even in the heat. They’re super light weight and pretty indiscreet.

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Travel Locks
Just tiny TSA compliant locks for your luggage. We’re not so worried about the airlines as much as leaving them in hotel lobbies and train stations. Sometimes we’ll check our luggage and it just gives us a little peace of mind that no one is snooping. It’s not a fail-proof method, but it’s a deterrent and we’ve been lucky so far.

We also travel with a copy of each other’s keys in case one gets locked inside. (This happened to me once in Spain! Some guy came with a hack saw to cut my lock off for me when I locked my keys inside my bag!)
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Sleep Mask and Ear Plugs
I use my mask and ear plugs on the plane, busses, trains and even hotels. It can pretty much guarantee a good night’s rest. Some airlines provide them for you, but I bring my own just in case.
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Luggage Tags
Goes without saying, but label your stuff. Checked and carryon bags should have your info on it just in case.
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Luggage Scale
We don’t travel WITH this, but we use it before we go. Most airlines and tour companies have strict weight restrictions so using one of these handy scales at home can help prevent an unpacking frenzy at the airport.
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Passport
Duh. We also carry a copy of each other’s too in case on of us loses it. An embassy can reissue a passport in a pinch, but having a copy of it will expedite the process.
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Tour Book
Just ONE book. Not seven. We do lots of research before we leave. We love knowing about the history, culture and art in the places we visit.
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But when it’s time to jetset, we only bring ONE book. And that one book almost always is a DK Eyewitness guide. We LOVE their books. Great pictures, maps and city highlights.
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Eagle Creek Pack-It System
Ok, so this isn’t a necessity to some, but it is the way we travel. We LOVE using these travel folders, pouches and cases. Everything from clothes, toiletries and chargers gets packed in it’s own case. It makes it easy to find things when you’re in a rush in the morning. It keeps everything organized and together. An organized traveler is a happy traveler! (Full Disclosure: I learned everything I know about organized travel from my husband. He is the KING of suitcase packing. <3)
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We’ve got tons of different shapes and sizes so everything has a place.
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I swear this post isn’t sponsored by Eagle Creek (but it should be! We love their stuff!)

Speaking of Organized travel…
I bought Irving these packing lists for Christmas, it’s got almost everything you can imagine and it makes packing a breeze.
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Travel Gnome
Don’t leave home without it!
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For a few more ideas on what to bring, here’s a post a wrote a few months back.

I plan to post about clothing packing later. Stay tuned.

 

Have any tips of your own? Or questions about packing for a 17 day trip for a later post?

 

My Skydive Video! June 25, 2011

Filed under: Europe,Switzerland — Kelocity @ 1:29 pm
Tags: , , ,

In 2003, I lived in Europe for a semester and each weekend, we headed off to a different country to explore.  I was open to all kinds of adventures, but the one thing that I just HAD to do was skydive. So my friends and I took an overnight train one weekend and headed to Switzerland. If you’re going to skydive, you might as well do it in the Alps!
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If you want to read the whole story, click here!

 

I FINALLY uploaded my video and it’s here if you want to see it!

 

To read more about my European Adventures, visit my travel page!

 

An Arabian Game….with a Prize! November 10, 2010

Filed under: Dubai,Europe — Kelocity @ 2:00 pm
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We are having an amazing time in the Middle East. We love it here so much, we wanted to invite YOU to have a little fun with us!

Below are some common companies and logos that you know in English, but can you figure them out in Arabic?

Email me at kelocity@gmail.com with as many answers as you can figure out and on November 14th, we will reveal the answers and randomly pick a winner.
(Don’t leave a comment with any hints, we want to see how many people can guess correctly!)

We bought a sweet prize in Egypt that we will mail to the winner. Good luck and have fun! Ready, Set, GO!

 

1.)
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2.)
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3.)
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4.)
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5.)
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6.)
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7.)
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8.)
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9.)
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10.)
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11.)
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12.)
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13.)
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14.)
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15.)
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Good luck! You have until November 14th to email us your answers!
The winner will be announced on the blog on November 15th.

 

Cupcakes and Castles August 14, 2010

Filed under: Europe,Food — Kelocity @ 1:09 pm
Tags: ,

  So yesterday, Irving sent me a rather strange gchat message:

dingdongs

I responded: “No those are gross, I haven’t had a ding dong since I was in 3rd grade, ew”.

I was a little curious as to why he would be asking me this in the middle of the work day. A little random, no?

But then when he came home from work, he was armed with a pre-birthday surprise!
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SPRINKLES!!!!!
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From the Sprinkles Truck no less!
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Inside was the cutest little box any girl could hope for! (No, not this kind of box)!

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And inside:
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The red and white dot means this:
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It’s Belgian Dark Chocolate Cake and Marshmallow cream with bittersweet chocolate ganache.

(Click here to see the other flavors)

 

…or as Irving calls it: A Ding Dong cupcake.

 

But for the record…

This… is not the same as this. IMG_5359 .

 

I’m saving it for dessert tonight. YAY!!!

~~~~~

In other news, last night, my friend Erica and I got together to reminisce and share stories about when we lived abroad in The Netherlands! I lived in a 12th century castle for 4 months in 2003 (Erica was there the semester after me).
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When I was in Europe, I visited 9 countries while taking 4 classes. It was such an amazing adventure.

I visited:

 

Last night, Erica showed me her awesome video she made of all the places she went and it was so fun to share stories.

Some of my favorite European stories:

  1. Meeting the Scottish Soccer Team and spending the whole night bar hopping in the South of France!
  2. Irving surprising me in Paris on Valentine’s Day
  3. Skydiving in the Swiss Alps
  4. Skiing the Italian Alps at the site of the 2006 Torino Olympics
  5. The Sound of Music Tour in Austria

So many amazing memories!

While we watched, we dined on some amazing food she made!

Pasta, Chicken, Broccoli and Tomatoes! YUM!
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I picked up a cauliflower medley from Trader Joes, but we weren’t impressed.
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And I made brownies!
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PS… I promise the Skydiving Video will make an appearance on the blog soon!

 

Accidentally in London! September 30, 2008

Filed under: Contiki,Europe,Travel — Kelocity @ 10:02 pm
Tags: , , , ,

This post was also featured on TwoBoosWhoEat.com!

I’m so excited Andy and Amanda asked me to guest post! I’m SO jealous they are in Europe right now, hopefully eating gelato as we speak! I’m Kelley and I blog over at kelocity.com!

I’m a type-A planner. I like to research, gather information and make informative decisions. This is especially true when it comes to planning vacations. My husband, Irving, and I rent videos, go to seminars, and read lots of books to learn more about the destinations we plan to visit.

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In 2008, we planned our first real international trip together: a two-week Contiki tour of Italy. We booked it a year prior, and used those 12 months to vigorously plan our vacation. We scheduled our flights to arrive into Rome a day and a half early. We wanted to get acclimated to the time change, and get a lay of the land. The extra hotel nights were booked, and so was a hop-on/hop-off bus tour once we landed.

The plan was to fly from LAX to London and then London to Rome. We settled into our British Airways seats and enjoyed the flight. Once we arrived in London, we had a two-hour layover. We had never been to London, so we immediately got giddy we were here. Even if it was just the airport.
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We found a hokey British Pub and enjoyed a leisurely dinner. People all around us were hustling about, but we didn’t think anything of it. Everyone seemed to be walking in the same direction, but we ignored it. After our dinner, we saw employees passing out chocolate truffles! “The British are so nice” I exclaimed! “Look Irving, free chocolate!” We were completely oblivious to the chaos that was starting to form around us. And then we got wind of the news…. Heathrow Airport was shut down indefinitely. (Thus the reason for the free chocolate… to appease the passengers!) We were told to get in line with thousands of other people.
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Everyone around us was calling with their cell phones and making alternate arrangements. When we travel internationally, we leave our phones at home. So by the time we got to the front of the lines, we were told to come back the next day. After a little more waiting, we were given free hotel vouchers, along with credits for food, transportation and a small stipend. Our flight to Rome would leave the following night. What? 24 hours of free time in London? I didn’t plan for this! I don’t know what I’m supposed to do or which landmarks to see. I haven’t done research on restaurants, hotels or neighborhoods!

But we did what any world traveler would do. We hopped on the underground and made the best of it!
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We checked our bags at a train station, got a tourist map from an information booth, and set out to discover London! First stop: Buckingham Palace!
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And the changing of the guards!
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Big Ben and the London Eye!

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Westminster Abbey! (What’s up Will and Kate!)
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The British Parliament!

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Shakesphere’s Globe Theater!
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The London Bridge!
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And of course, Harrods!
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Not bad for just having ONE DAY in London, right? And we did it all without a tour book! When we realized we were stranded in London, we had two choices: sulk and stay on the phone for hours pleading for the next flight out…. or seizing an opportunity to enjoy a FREE TRIP to London! The airlines paid for our hotel, food, transportation and baggage costs! London hadn’t been on my “Top 10 places to visit” list, but I can already check it off anyways!

And by the way, we did make it to our Contiki tour on time! And it ended up being an amazing trip.

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Sometimes it’s nice to get out of your comfort zone and let the “type-A” in us go. The best moments in life happen that way. It was a great lesson for us, especially since it was our first trip together. We both went with the flow, and made the best decisions we could, enjoying the journey as it unfolded. Bon Voyage!