Making Many Lists, Checking Them Twice

As our date of departure quickly approaches, there are so many things we need to do. It's extremely important and helpful to make lists and write things down whenever I think of them or read about them because with all the busyness of work, regular life and the holidays, it is easy for things to slip through the cracks.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

It's been an eventful week.  Here's what's been done trip-wise, and trip-related:

• Been diagnosed with Celiac Disease
• Booked our Galapagos live aboard diving trip and made payment
• Secured dive insurance
• Made an appointment for our immunizations
• Made a doctor's appointment for a checkup and to acquire Malaria pills (needed in South America and possibly other places we may be)
• Connected with other Celiacs on Twitter - even traveling Celiacs!
• Shared our plan, tentative destinations, and excitement with more family, friends and coworkers
• Began writing up a list of all of the things I do at work that the replacement will need to do
• Finalized the intern we will be hosting starting in January
• Crept closer to figuring out what flights we are going to book ahead of time so that we can make our flight booking appointment with Airtreks.com in the next week or so! (Can't WAIT to have our departure on the books!!)
• Finalized (for now) the things we need to purchase for the trip
• Visited other travel blogs to get packing tips, last-minute planning advice, and ever-growing inspiration and excitement from people who are living our dream right now!

On top of all that, we have to fit in decorating, shopping and wrapping for the holidays; weekends full of visits with family and parties with friends; researching and learning about my new Gluten Free lifestyle; and simply the back and forth and up and down of everyday life!

It's tough planning such an extensive trip at this time of year and with the big life changes I am going through. However, we're lucky because we're not planning TOO much; we're leaving a lot up to whim and decisions in the moment. Not to mention, I sort of thrive under pressure and deadlines and being busy. So, we're making progress, visiting with loved ones, and trying to enjoy every moment of this time of year all while that fabulous date of departure creeps, make that races, towards us. We both know it will be here before we know it and somehow it will all get done, because it has to!

How to Decide Where to Go on Your RTW Adventure

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

My Tips for Deciding Where to Go:

• Research, research, research
• List your "top ten" (or 15!) destinations (not even taking into account this trip and logistics yet, just in general) You may already see that most of your locations are close to each other and would make for a good trip or you might see that they are scattered all over the globe and you'll need to take more things into account.
• Decide why you are doing this trip. Is it to go to every continent? Get to know a specific region really well? Visit the wonders of the world? To literally go around the world? Once you have a true purpose and know what you want to get out of this adventure you can better formulate a vision and break it down into smaller goals.
• Look at your time frame and budget and start researching costs: flights, accommodations, food. Long haul flights across continents will add up fast. Certain regions of the world are just cheaper in general and your money will go farther. If visiting one of your "top" destinations is important to you because you want to do a certain activity or see a certain event, take those costs into account as well.
• Consider timing. If you are traveling from January to March and want to enjoy tropical weather, don't plan a Trans-Siberian trip from Russia to China!
• Talk to people. Again, more research. The more you learn, the easier it will be to figure out what you are OK with sacrificing, which brings me to my final point.
•  Focus on your main goals and be OK with sacrificing some places to save for later. Let's face it...at some point you're going to have to say, I just can't do that on this trip. It doesn't mean you'll never go to that specific destination or that your trip won't be everything you've dreamed of and more.

Happy travels!

Where to Go on Your RTW Trip: The Snowball Effect

For me, the hardest part of planning a RTW trip was not making the final decision to go, sacrificing along the way in order to save money, or even telling my managers about my impending departure and hoping they would want me back.

No, for me, the most difficult part has been deciding where to go. I want to go everywhere. Literally. I don't think you could name a place in the world that I would not visit. No, I do not want to go to Iraq NOW, but I would in the future if things become safe.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How did we finally come up with our tentative route?

Priorities and Compromises: I am not alone on this trip, so that can be both helpful and add to the difficulty of making decisions. We are two different people with different ideas and, at times, different priorities. Nonetheless, after we both wrote up our "top ten" lists (that quite interestingly turned into "top 14" lists for each of us) we were able to match many of our priorities and come to compromises on some destinations. Also, having another person to plan with helps because sometimes one or the other of us will get stuck and we can work together with unique perspectives to evaluate things and come to decisions. 

Our "top 14" lists are the reasons why, despite the cost, we are starting our adventure in the Galapagos. It is not your typical RTW destination due to costs and could easily be a two to three week trip all by itself. However, it was the number one destination on my list, and in the top three of my husband's list. Why should we put off till tomorrow what we can do now when it is clearly a priority for both of us?

Connections and Cuts: From there, since we will be in Ecuador, we decided to also go to Peru. Another place on each of our "top 14"s is Machu Picchu, so it would be silly to be in the bordering country and not go! (Of course, this logic is what can easily derail me because Bolivia is also so close... And if we're in South America we might as well go to Brazil and Argentina since I HAVE to see Iguazu Falls!) So you see, the list of "must sees" can quickly snowball. We could easily spend our entire four months in South America. Easily. But, that wouldn't satisfy my husband because he is not as interested in this region as some others, and it wouldn't satisfy me because I want to visit at least two continents on my RTW adventure, regardless of the length of time we have.

Which leads us to Europe. Croatia is extremely high on my list (Probably second after Galapagos). A couple Balkan countries are intriguing to my husband. So, we knew that Eastern Europe would be a destination for us and we could easily travel around these countries relatively affordably, and without a plan devised months before. Of course, if we are going to Croatia, we need to go to Italy because, despite it being more expensive, it's somewhere we both had on our "top 14" lists and it's a bigger hub to fly to. Again, the snowball effect!

Info Gathering and "Why Not"s? Speaking of flights, I recently began working with airtreks.com on our flight plans. I discovered that to fly from Lima, Peru to Rome, Italy requires a stopover in Madrid, Spain. I've always been very intrigued by Spain! If we have to fly through there and we can stay for some time for no additional fee - no brainer!  I am extremely interested in Gaudi architecture - which is in Barcelona - not so far from Madrid. Did you know that you can take a ferry from Barcelona to Morocco?! How cool is that?! We can see the Sahara, experience the colorful country of Morocco AND on top of it all - we'll be in Africa!  A whole new continent!

What's not to love?

So, as you can see, if you're like us, it's extremely easy to get overwhelmed with destinations and choices because it's very easy to say "why not?"

The only real answers to that question for us: time and money. 


In my next post I'll share my tips for coming up with a tentative itinerary.

Diving: A Secret World

We plan to start our adventure off of the coast of Ecuador, in the amazing Galapagos Islands which inspired Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. I love animals and learning about them and this incredible archipelago is home to the most unique creatures on the planet. I cannot wait to see them firsthand. Not all of energy is focused on the land animals such as the giant 150-year-old tortoises or even the airborne blue footed boobies. No, my greatest intrigue is what lies beneath the beautiful ocean and trail of islands. Therefore, we are spending several days on a live aboard diving yacht where we will complete up to four dives a day!

The hubby and I are advanced scuba divers and dive whenever we can, which unfortunately, living in Buffalo is not that often. We are vacation divers. But that doesn't make us love it any less.

There's something about diving that makes me feel so special; like I'm being let in on a secret that, unfortunately, many people will never experience. When I first enter the water I tend to feel like I'm intruding on the sea creatures' home and their world and maybe it's not quite right. But then, once I find my buoyancy and get comfortable, kicking my feet ever so slightly to propel myself along, arms at my sides, eyes excitedly scanning the sea around me, I no longer feel like an intruder. I simply feel like part of a secret, amazing world. There's very little sound down there, it's mostly bubbles unless the dive instructor is trying to get someone's attention by tapping on his metal air tank. I'm weightless and floating, propelling myself simply with my feet, or being moved along by the current. The sights are incredible; schools of fish that part when I swim toward them, breaking open the "wall" that they create and letting me pass through, colorful coral that has been around for thousands of years; and if I'm lucky, one of the big, exciting sights such as a turtle, shark or ray! These are the things that I hope to see on every dive!

If you dive...you get it. If you don't, I'd highly recommend you try it. If you're afraid and "stick to snorkeling," I applaud you for at least getting your face in the water, but I'd definitely urge you to try diving at least twice. The first time is guaranteed to be uncomfortable and possibly even difficult, but if you have a decent instructor they will make it a worthwhile and enlightening experience. By the second time you won't be completely overwhelmed by the new sensations and you  should have more time to simply relax and take in more of your surroundings.

Don't you want to be let in on the secret?

Photo taken by Wings Diving Adventures out of Airlie Beach, Australia from our dive trip in August 2011

Niagara Falls Part 2 - Niagara-on-the-Lake Wine Trail

A few minutes later we are on our way to the Niagara-on-the-Lake wine trail. Several miles away from the tacky tourist shops and wax museums that are Clifton Hill, the countryside and fall leaves take over the view out my window.

We visit several wineries today including Inniskillin, Peller, Jackson Triggs, Stratus, Trius at Hillebrand, Between the Lines, and Pondview. At Inniskillin we meet a nice woman from Poland who serves us our tastings and recommends we visit Pondview and Between the Lines. At Jackson Triggs we converse with the server from England before she takes her lunch break. And at Trius at Hillebrand we chat with the young Frenchman who moved to Canada to be with his girlfriend. Again I marvel at how easy it is to find people from around the world while doing "touristy" things so close to home, and yet how these small interactions increase the feeling of "getting away" no matter how short or superficial. 

View off the back patio at Jackson Triggs Winery

In addition to wine tastings, we get a special treat as we pass by a brewery and decide to stop. We walk in, unknowingly, to the first day of tastings at the Oast House Brewery. It is a red barn-looking building, with an empty interior except for the tasting bar and a small table with t-shirts available for purchase. We try a flight of their four available brews - I enjoy a pink grapefruit infused brew which was created in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month in October.

After our wine and beer tastings, it is close to 3:00pm and we head to Chocolate F/X where we have a voucher for a tour (the last tour is at 3:00pm and we decide to skip it). We enter a busy sales room with heaps of treats lining the walls such as dark and milk chocolate covered blueberries, cherries, and ginger, gummy candies, and even licorice. There is a sample bar which we visit several times before picking up a few things for purchase. While standing in a line that barely moved for several minutes the buzz of our wine tastings wears off and we decide that we can do without these overpriced, though delicious treats.

Now we're ready for our final destination - the Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, NY. After a short wait at customs we arrive back in the US of A and enter the casino. Having never spent much time there before, neither of us had ever "registered", so not only do we each get the $25 of free game play that we expected from our Travelzoo voucher, we each get an additional $10 free! With $35 on each of our cards our confidence in the free money leads us around the slot machines until a couple special ones call us in opposite directions. I quickly lose $5 and then win about $2 and go to find the hubby, who has just cashed out $27! Not too shabby. I sit down at a machine around the corner...a Playboy machine, really? I ignore the big-breasted cartoon women alongside Hugh Hefner that bedazzle the machine and insert my card.  A stroke of luck is mine and I win $20 on one spin!  A few minutes later we reconvene to cash in all of our winnings for a total of $88.01! Success!

And with that, we're on our way home...reinvigorated and rejuvenated from less than 24 hours "away"!

Niagara Falls - Part 1 - Falls, Food and Touristy Feelings

Just 30 minutes away from my home in Buffalo, NY, is Niagara Falls, ON; a great place to obtain that "traveler" feeling that I crave! Maybe it's because I have to pull out my passport and cross the border into another country. Maybe it's the plethora of tourists swarming off of buses, gawking at the Falls, or tripping into the streets with maps in hand. Niagara Falls is very familiar to me as I've been there many times. However, everywhere I go in the area I seem to be surrounded by people from around the globe, whether tourists or workers, giving the place a unique energy that is hard to find during my day-to-day life.  There's a spirit that surrounds this place (similar to many highly touristy destinations) that can be either draining or exhilarating, but on this visit it was exactly what I was craving.

Fall Color @ the Horseshoe Falls

The hubby and I left work a little early Friday and were in Canada by 5:30pm. We arrived at the Oakes Hotel Overlooking the Falls and checked into our seventh floor room with a pretty spectacular view of the Horseshoe Falls, the American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls. We toasted to "life and travel" in the cheap plastic glasses we found in the bathroom, filling them with wine brought from home; visited the 14th floor of the hotel to gaze at the Falls from the "Observation Area"; and headed to dinner at Remington's of Niagara which was included in the Travelzoo deal we booked.  

View of Horseshoe Falls, mist and Niagara River from our room

The restaurant was casual enough for tourists in their jeans and puffy winter jackets who had been wandering along the cheesy neon light-filled Clifton Hill area all day, yet we felt comfortable dressed up for the evening as well. I enjoyed a flavorful strip loin steak with bland school-cafeteria-scoop-shaped mashed potatoes. Hubby had chicken penne rustica, which was creamy and hearty. Our waitress was friendly and enthusiastic, she was also the singer of the evening (apparently singing is a part of the job interview) and left serving us at one point to serenade the restaurant with some Celine Dion (her favorite, she later confided).

After dinner we drove the mile back to our hotel and walked next door to the Fallsview Casino to observe the gamblers, listen to the slot machines' bells and sirens, and meander around the shops, stopping for a fudge tasting. After a long week at work we didn't stay out too late or feel the need to "hit up the clubs", and instead got a good night's sleep to prepare for our activity-filled Saturday!

With a relaxed start to the morning we checked out of our hotel around 10am. On the way out we shared the elevator with a delightful couple from Christchurch, New Zealand. The baby boomer-aged couple was in the middle of two months abroad, having traveled to Hawaii, LA, Las Vegas, Toronto and now Niagara Falls. They shared a few stories of their adventures and I recounted my travels in the South Island of NZ, including Christchurch.  We discussed the lingering effects of last year's devastating earthquake in the city and I was very sorry to hear that things are still not back to normal; they are still rebuilding. In this five to ten-minute interaction that feeling of travel I love so much was reignited. How wonderful that a few friendly words and a simple question of "where are you from?" could lead to a conversation that leaves both parties fulfilled, energized and connected in a simple, yet unique way. People are amazing, and why is it that only on vacation do I take the time to ask a stranger in an elevator with an accent about themselves instead of just wishing them a pleasant day, or worse, staring silently at the elevator doors in front of me? The resulting conversation brings so much joy and a jolt of energy that only human connections can. I'd like to do this more in my day-to-day life.

After our encounter with the friendly Kiwis we prepared our bellies for the day of wine imbibing ahead by filling up on simple, but delicious breakfast of omelets, hash browns and coffee at Applebee's, which was also covered by our Travelzoo deal. To help our food digest we braved the cold wind blowing off of the Niagara River and took a stroll behind our hotel and the casino to take in the power and majesty that are Niagara Falls. My apologies on the quality and small amount of photos - we forgot our camera at home so these are from my phone, plus it was super cold so we didn't go down next to the Falls - we weren't dressed for getting covered in the ice-cold mist and kept our distance!

The American Falls and Rainbow Bridge to the US

The Horseshoe Falls and Niagara River

The Horseshoe Falls and Niagara River

Next time:  Wineries, breweries and chocolate, oh my! (Plus WINNING! at the Seneca Niagara Casino!)

Niagara is for Regrouping

We are racing closer to our estimated departure date (early February), and yet we are still struggling to finalize our route! It's been difficult because:

1. We want to go everywhere and do everything!
2. We want to make the most of our time.
3. We have a budget that we need follow.
4. We want spontaneity and adventure.

Some of these things directly conflict...so it's all a balancing act.  Plus, I am tending to do a lot of the planning, yet I am horrible at making decisions until I feel completely informed!  Luckily, I work well under pressure!

We are both ready to have something officially booked (as in, at least our plane ticket to our first destination.)  Unfortunately a lot has been happening in our personal and professional lives, leaving us with limited time to talk through our choices, make decisions, and plan.  

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

In order to step back and regain some perspective, the hubby and I took advantage of one of those discount travel deals and are driving across the border to Niagara Falls tonight. It's just over 30 minutes away from our home, but still allows us to get away, and in addition we get to see one of the most beautiful wonders of the natural world and be reminded of the power of nature and the simple things in life. It's easy to take Niagara Falls for granted when it's been under an hour away from my residence for most of my life, but no matter how many times I stand in front of those waterfalls I am left in awe.

We are both looking forward to this small "adventure along the way" where we will get to reconnect with each other, nature, and our love of travel and discovery. We will visit the falls, enjoy some delicious food, taste wine at some beautiful wineries, sample chocolates at a chocolate factory, and (hopefully!) win some money to put towards our BIG trip with our $50 voucher for slot play at the casino!

And hopefully we will be able to make some more decisions and move forward as we anticipate and construct the large adventure that is quickly approaching! I think sometimes it's easier to focus on long-term goals when the day-to-day routines and concerns are hidden from view.

Here's to spur of the moment getaways, creating your own adventure, spending time with your best friend, and experiencing the beauty of nature!!