2020 Travel Must-Haves

By on

I love traveling. What’s more, I love celebrating and sharing life with friends and family. We just spent 12 days with 3 fabulous couples in one of our most favorite places on earth, Isla Mujeres, México. This place has it all...the people, the food, the beaches, and the mezcal. We had 12 luxurious days to play and we lived life. Here is my must-have travel list for 2020.

Have Your Bun

All us women not only coveted Nicole’s thick and luscious locks but her foldable straw visor with a large brim. This hat was perfect for keeping her hair piled high and dry while bobbing around in the warm Caribbean Sea.



Unpack In 0 Seconds

While I needed several bags, including a packing cube, to pull all my makeup, skincare, and hair products together, Nicole enthusiastically said, “Voila!” And showed me the answer to life, the universe, and everything, all neatly packed and organized in a lovely waterproof lightweight bag.



 Unpack in 5 Seconds

The second “voila” moment happened when Rose showed us Brian’s hanging bag by Rise. Brian took all of 5 seconds to unpack simply by opening his bag and hanging it in the closet. Later, Brian told me he can pack so much in his bag that he could be comfortable indefinitely. Wow! A big statement for such a compact bag! Click this link to get a discount.



Unpack in 10 Seconds

I have a smaller version of Brian’s bag, but mine, by Pack Gear, cinches up with compression straps making it so I can pack way more than I really need. While Brian’s bag can actually function as a suitcase, mine needs to be packed inside a suitcase and therefore pulled out and uncompressed. Clothing comes out relatively unscathed. It’s a good option if you absolutely must pack an extra pair of shoes, snorkeling gear, and bags of toiletries (because you don't have toiletries bag like Nicole's.)

Rough Life

We all know what saltwater does to hair. Add humidity and wind, and you’ve got yourself instant dreads. Kathleen was the only one who didn’t seem to be fighting with her hair. Her Aveda Damage Remedy kept her hair soft and manageable. Her hair seemed to be asking to be touched. Question. Where did you get that amazing product? A recent birthday gift you said? :-)



Now That Doesn’t Stink

Have you ever had a high-tech workout shirt that permanently smells like BO, even after washing? Well, Karl has found the opposite. Nice, light, colorful button-up shirts that don’t smell after spending a day in the hot sun and humid air. This same company makes swim shorts that dry fast and look good.


No Dull Moment

Brian also had wonderfully fun shirts. His colorful collection of Tommy Bahama shirts with pineapples and Christmas cocktails gave everyone shirt envy. Between him and Karl, I’m not sure who got more compliments.

Now You See Me

I say you don’t really know a person until you see them in their PJs. Somas Cool Nights PJs are perfect for traveling because they are so soft and comfortable. They’re so cozy, you'll want to wear them all day...at least in your air-conditioned casita. Click here for a discount.

It’s All in the Lips

After you spend all day on the beach, how do you get ready quickly for dinner? Throw on some vibrant Fenty Beauty lipstick. All us girls agreed that the Fenty Poutsicle in Hot Blooded looked stunning on each of us, and the lipstick, while extremely moisturizing, somehow managed to stay on all night. Even after many rounds of tequila and karaoke.

Winding Down

After several days of waking up early for yoga, drinking margaritas and tequila shots for breakfast, listening to local bands and singing karaoke into the wee hours, or some other combination of craziness, one quiet night at the casita was needed. So what did we do? We played online games.

The Spaceteam app by sleepingbeastgames.com (available for both Android and Apple devices) is a hillarious shouting game for 2 - 4 players (of course, we played with 8) in which everyone is assigned a random control panel with buttons, knobs, switches, sliders, and doodads that they have to operate. Each person is also given instructions that they have to relay to the team so that the person with the appropriate control panel can perform the task. The team has to perform some number of tasks within a given time limit to prevent the ship from falling apart. I love how the website says the game's features are confusion, untimely demise, and auxillary technoprobes.


Jackbox Games makes "packs" of games that players access using a web browser and a code on their mobile device. Specifically, we played Jackbox Party Pack 5, which was just as insane and loud as Spaceteam. Besides playing trivia, we created inventions to bizarre problems that we had to present to the team and had a rap-off competition which, if I remember correctly, won with my "bumpin, thumpin, rumpin, rumpin".

Travel Failures

It wouldn't have been an epic trip without some failures to laugh about. We discovered that the DJ Airhorn sound effect doesn't make a good morning alarm. What about a ring tone? Oh yeah, and neither does a faulty air conditioner.

Also, in my effort to reduce toxins in my life, my homemade bug spray made from doTerra oils and a recipe I found online, didn't quite cut it. Karl is the only one that stood by it. Funny enough, when talking to our yoga instructor, Michelle (the best yoga instructor on Isla Mujeres), about mosquitos, she said she likes her natural bug spray. What do you use, I asked. She replied, doTerra Terrashield Spray. Watch out mosquitos, I'm coming prepared next time. (If you like doTerra products, I can hook you up with a wholesale membership.)

Well, that's it. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and safe travels!!!



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The West Coast Trail Kicked My Butt!

By on
Image
How’s your life going? It has been a while since I checked in. Are you living a life of joy and passion? Are you living your values? There’s nothing like shaking up your routine or getting out of your comfort zone or confronting your demons to get you back on track to living your best life. On August 26th, Karl and I, and five of our dearest friends, finished the West Coast Trail hike in British Columbia, Canada. We started the hike in the north at Pachena Bay and ended at Gordon River across from Port Renfrew. We walked 75 kilometers over 8 days. And, EVERY SINGLE day was a challenge of mind and body. I’m pretty sure if I asked each person in our group whether the hike was hard, each person would say a resounding YES. But, I’m guessing the challenges would be slightly different for each person. Some confronted their fear of heights as they climbed up tall ladders with missing or slimy rungs and walked over tree trunk bridges one foot at a time. Some might say trying to figure a way ar...
Read more

Overcoming Itty Bitty

By on
Friday morning on my way to work, I was overcome with joy and gratitude to be living in Portland. The trees were dressed in an array of beautiful fall colors gracefully posing against a backdrop of mist-covered mountains. This incredible sight reminded me of how, at the beginning of the year, I had decided to be more thankful and present in the moment so I wouldn’t miss out on everyday gifts like this. Over a year ago, on a group motorcycle trip, I had an enlightening conversation with Karl and a good friend of ours, Chris. The three of us were mic’d up. As we rode, Chris introduced Karl and me to the Itty, Bitty, Shitty Committee. The Itty, Bitty, Shitty Committee, which I’ll just call Itty Bitty, is that negative voice in your head that tells you how terrible you are and reminds you of all of your shortcomings, whether real or imagined. Since that day, whenever we get together with Chris, we continue where we left off, sharing our progress in trying to rein in Itty Bitty and chan...
Read more

A New Year, A New Me!

By on
Image
I’m one of those people that wants to start off the new year with a new beginning, a new lease on life. Not necessarily to throw away what I’ve got going, but to shed what’s not working and make life even better. I generally love the excitement of a new year. For me, it means new experiences, people, and opportunities that I’ve not had before. Things to learn. Fun to discover. And a way to have even more joy in my life. Karl and I spent our last days of 2022 skiing in Golden, BC with some dear friends, one from high school, and I, unfortunately, ended up with food poisoning a few days before January 1st. I slept through New Year’s Eve. I usually spend the last week of December appreciating and thinking about all the adventures Karl and I did throughout the year and celebrating my personal accomplishments. This year I was too busy keeping water and food down. Today is my first day back to work after the holidays. My stomach is finally, for the most part, stable. And, I’ll be honest, I’m...
Read more