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One Day in Vancouver

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Amateur Traveler

If you aren’t familiar with Vancouver, it’s major port city on the west coast of Canada, famous for the mountains, the ocean and the year-round recreation in the great outdoors – due to the mild climate in comparison with the rest of Canada.

Our day began with some great dim sum at Fisherman’s Terrace Seafood Restaurant in Richmond. If you’re wondering why I’m talking about Richmond in a Vancouver post, allow me to explain:

Travel Tip: Richmond is very close to Vancouver International Airport, hotel rooms are generally more affordable than downtown Vancouver if you’re on a budget, and going to Vancouver is relatively quick & convenient with the addition of the Canada Line train in recent years.

Since we only had the day to explore Vancouver, we decided to take the train and see the sights in the downtown core. If you’re on a road trip or renting a car during your stay in Vancouver, you’ll be able to cover a lot of ground, but for us, sights like Kitsilano Beach, Grouse Mountain, Lynn Canyon or a scenic drive to Whistler Resort will have to wait.

Gastown

After taking the train to Waterfront Station, the first stop on our walking tour of Vancouver was Gastown. Gastown was the original downtown Vancouver when a guy named “Gassy Jack” opened the first saloon in the area in the late 1800′s. He got his nickname because he was very talkative and liked to tell stories. Thankfully, it had nothing to do with an extreme flatulence problem.

Among the historic buildings and cobblestone streets, you’ll find souvenir shops, upscale furniture and clothing boutiques, internet start-ups and plenty of restaurants and pubs.

The Gastown Steam Clock is a popular tourist attraction, although, I don’t think it really has any historical significance in the area. Instead of bells that chime on the hour like most clocks, it uses a steam whistle.

Travel Tip: The main tourist area in Gastown is Water Street and just a heads up; if you wander outside the confines of this area, looking for a shortcut to Chinatown for example, you may find yourself in the infamous district known as the Downtown Eastside around East Hastings Street and Main Street. From my personal experience, it’s not exactly tourist friendly. If drug addicts, poverty, and street crime make you uncomfortable, you might want to avoid this neighborhood.

On the Waterfront

After our stroll through Gastown, we headed back up to the waterfront toward Canada Place, Coal Harbor and Stanley Park. Canada Place is home to the World Trade Center, the Pan Pacific Hotel, the cruise ship terminal and the original Vancouver Convention Center with the white fabric roof that look like sails, a defining visual of the Vancouver skyline.

Beside Canada Place is the Vancouver Convention Center West Building and Jack Poole Plaza. The Olympic Cauldron from the 2010 Winter Olympics is on display here and there are great views Coal Harbor, the Coast Mountains and Burrard Inlet from the plaza.

Travel Tip: Vancouver is a pedestrian friendly city, but if walking isn’t your thing, you can see the sights on the hop-on/hop off buses like Big Bus and Vancouver Trolley Company, that make several stops around the downtown core, Granville Island and Stanley Park to name a few.

Stanley Park

After a stroll through Gastown, Canada Place and Coal Harbor; we realized we had been walking . . . a lot. According to the map at the entrance to the Stanley Park Seawall, it was about 9 km (5.5 miles) from where we were standing to English Bay Beach. It was time to change our plan and rent bicycles. There are a few rental shops across from Stanley Park at Denman and Georgia Streets. I recommend doing this – it’s a great way to get around the seawall and see the sights.

Stanley Park is by far the most popular tourist attraction in Vancouver. According to Tourism Vancouver, This 1,000 acre park on the border of downtown gets over 8 million visitors per year and it’s easy to see why. From the Brockton Point Lighthouse, you’ll get spectacular views of the Vancouver city skyline, Coal Harbor, Burrard Inlet, the Coast Mountains and the Lion’s Gate Bridge that connects downtown Vancouver to North Vancouver. On the west side of the Stanley Park Seawall, great views of West Vancouver can be had from Siwash Rock and the Strait of Georgia from 2nd & 3rd beaches.

In Stanley Park itself, there’s no shortage of attractions. There’s the Vancouver Aquarium – the kids really like this attraction. The Stanley Park Totem Poles, Prospect Point and Lost Lagoon are a very popular stop for some photos and on the weekends, you can catch a Cricket match on field at the Brockton Pavilion. If you feel like getting away for the crowds and taking a hike, Stanley Park has 64 km (40 miles) of well maintained nature trails.

English Bay

As we reached the end of our ride around the Stanley Park Seawall, we found ourselves in English Bay, a laid back neighborhood in the west end of downtown Vancouver where Denman Street meets Davie Street, there’s a good selection of local shops and restaurants. This area is also known for it’s vibrant gay community. Here, you’ll find English Bay Beach and the Inukshuk Inuit sculpture.

What’s a JAPADOG?

My lovely travel companion and I rode back down Denman Street to return our bike rentals and made our way over to Robson Street. Robson Street is the main shopping district in downtown Vancouver and is home to the usual multinational chain stores and coffee houses you’d find in any particular city. However, we weren’t here for a cookie cutter shopping experience, we were here to try a unique Vancouver creation – the JAPADOG.

I suppose you could argue that JAPADOG paved the way for the current food truck and food cart scene in Vancouver when they introduced a new spin to the conventional hot dog cart – Japanese style hot dogs. The concept worked because JAPADOG became a Vancouver institution in just a few short years.

I ordered the Terimayo hot dog, JAPADOG’s best seller. This dog is topped with teriyaki sauce, Japanese mayo, and seaweed. It’s served hot & fresh and it’s pretty tasty. Besides, can you really call yourself a hot dog connoisseur until you’ve had one with seaweed and Japanese mayo? They’ve got several different hot dogs like the Kobe Beef Dog, the Yakisoba Dog, and the Tonkatsu Dog. Don’t forget to try the Ice Age ice cream sandwich with flavors like mango, black sesame, and green tea. JAPADOG (www.japadog.com) is located at 530 Robson Street and they have several hot dog carts stationed on street corners around Vancouver.

Richmond Night Markets

Like many of you, I’m a sucker for a good street market, so the night markets in Richmond are a must do if you’re in Vancouver during the summer. You’ll find lots of smartphone and tablet accessories, toys, gadgets, and clothes – like “Gangnam Style” socks. The real star of the night markets is the food. Bring your appetite and feast on assorted barbequed meat on a stick, bubble tea and Korean twister potatoes. You really can’t go wrong with Asian food on a stick.

There are two night markets Richmond, located just south of Vancouver. The Richmond Night Market is located at 8351 River Road, near the River Rock Casino. If you’re taking the Canada Line train, it’s a convenient location, since the Bridgeport Station is right in front of the casino. Parking is free, but there is a $2 cover charge.

The International Summer Night Market is located at 12631 Vulcan Way behind the Home Depot. You will need to drive or take a bus to get to this market. Parking is $4 and admission is free. You can find free street parking around the area as well. Check out their websites for more details.

Vancouver is a picturesque city; a good mix of natural beauty, outdoor recreation, shopping and a great food scene. One day wasn’t enough, it left me wanting to see and do more.

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A Food Layover in Richmond, BC

Posted on January 20, 2013 by Amateur Traveler

With some extra time to kill between flights on the West Coast of Canada, one usually thinks of spending a leisurely day in Vancouver, British Columbia – taking in the stunning city views from the top of Grouse Mountain, shopping on Robson Street, or strolling around the seawall in Stanley Park. But who really wants to do that in the middle of the cold, dark and incredibly rainy West Coast winter?

We decided to do something a bit different and headed into Richmond. Richmond is a small city of about 200,000 people, just south of Vancouver. Vancouver International Airport is located here, making it a short taxi or Canada Line Skytrain ride into the city center.

According to Tourism Richmond, 60% of the population is of Asian descent, with over 375 Asian restaurants cooking here. You you what that means, this layover is all about the food! What better way to spend a layover, than to chow down on the best Asian food outside of . . . well, Asia.

Go With The “Flo”

Just a short walk from the hotel in Central Richmond, we found Flo Tea Room at 7771 Westminster Hwy. This was a good thing because we were tired, hungry and just wanted something quick and easy. Flo is a casual, Hong Kong style cafe restaurant with Cantonese, Western and some Malaysian dishes on the menu. The Malaysian style food was looking good so we ordered the Satay Beef Rice Noodles and the Chicken Curry with Steamed Rice. The beef dish consisted of thinly sliced pieces of marinated beef, peppers, pineapple and satay sauce over rice noodles fried in a hot wok. That charred wok flavor seared onto the noodle with the strong satay sauce was a good combo – very tasty. The Malaysian style curry wasn’t too spicy so you could really taste the rich flavors in the curry. Both dishes included a hot drink and the tab before tax & tip was just under $15. That’s what I like about these cafes; it’s fast, it’s cheap and the food is good. Then, it was back to the hotel to rest up and plan an exciting day of eating our way through Richmond before our next flight.

Dining Tip: Expect basic service in some casual or “Cafe” style Asian restaurants in Richmond. For example: the server may pile your chop sticks, forks, etc. at the end of the table, instead of doing individual place settings. There’s no intent to be rude, that’s just cafe style service.

Dim Sum

What trip to Richmond would be complete without Dim Sum? Fisherman’s Terrace Restaurant, located in Aberdeen Center at 3581 – 4151 Hazelbridge Way, is well known around these parts for having some of the best Dim Sum outside of Hong Kong. I totally agree with that. In fact, it ranks as some of the best Dim Sum we’ve ever had the pleasure of consuming.

First up was the BBQ Pork Rice Roll. This is a sheet of thick rice noodle rolled up and filled with BBQ pork and topped with a lightly sweetened soy sauce. I’m already addicted to Hong Kong BBQ; which is everywhere in Richmond by the way. Nevermind, I’m getting distracted. The second dish was Shrimp & Eggplant with Black Bean Sauce. Oh yeah, black bean sauce is yummy on almost anything. Put in on fried eggplant that’s topped with a huge ball of sweet shrimp; you’ve got a winner! Next up was the Shrimp Bean Curd Roll. This is similar to the Rice Roll except you have shrimp and pea tips wrapped and pan fried in a sheet of bean curd. I can’t forget the dipping sauce which I believe was a dark vinegar based sauce that really added some fantastic flavor to it. Our fourth dish was Bean Curd with Pea Tips in Broth; a vegetarian dish. It was very fresh and delicious. Of course we had to have Egg Tarts for dessert. Egg custard in an light, flaky tart? Yes, please. All these great dishes and a pot of strong Jasmine tea for only $30 before tax & tip.

Dining Tip: Reservations are recommended at Fisherman’s Terrace and be prepared to wait for a table, especially on weekends.

We worked up our appetite for lunch shopping around Aberdeen Center, a modern Kong Kong Style shopping mall, with boutique shops, jewelry stores, and electronics stores. Be sure to check out Daiso, the Japanese Dollar Store and H-Mart, a Korean Supermarket. This mall also has a great selection of restaurants and a food court with Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Taiwanese, Thai, Malaysian, and Shanghainese food.

Vietnamese Pho

Thai Son Restaurant, located at 2215 – 4653 Garden City Road, is kind of hidden off the main shopping and food streets in Richmond, but it was still easy to find with some locals guiding us. The Beef Pho is the most popular item on the menu, judging by the volume of bowls coming out of the kitchen. Everyone at the table of 6 next to us ordered it because they make such good soup broth.

Of course, we had to be different and went for the Seafood Pho and the Lemongrass Chicken. The seafood pho was loaded with shrimp, squid, fish balls, and crab . . . imitation crab – that would be an expensive bowl of soup with real crab. Also, it came with a side of fresh bean sprouts, cilantro, basil and a wedge of lime. It made for one delicious, colorful bowl of soup. The lemongrass chicken was a generous portion of marinated chicken, fried egg and rice with a side of soup and that fantastic dipping sauce. It’s made with fish sauce, rice vinegar, chili, garlic and pickled carrots. Fish sauce in certain parts of Southeast Asia is like ketchup in the West; they use it on everything. You can dip your chicken in it, or if you’re like me, just pour it all over the chicken and rice and let the flavor soak in. Before tax and tip – under $15.

Dining Tip: Some casual Asian restaurants in Richmond only take cash, so make sure you have a few Canadian dollars in your pocket before you eat.

Afternoon Snack

Just down the block from Aberdeen Center is Parker Place, another Chinese mall, with lots of food. We found this food counter called Lai Taste serving up some rather large sandwiches, you’ll see it right next to Yummy Yummy – such fun names. We ordered the Fish Fillet Sandwich topped with lettuce, cucumber, fresh cilantro and a tasty, sweet cream sauce. Look at this thing, it’s a large baguette and it still can’t hold the crunchy, fried fish fillet! We washed down our sandwich with some Hong Kong Milk Tea, which was included with the sandwich for only $3.95. By the way, this fish filet sandwich makes the the Filet O Fish look like a sad little fish burger.

Sushi Rolls

For dinner we headed over to Alexandra Road, also known as Food Street. There are dozens of seafood restaurants, noodle houses, cafes and hot pot restaurants lining this street. The selection was overwhelming. We didn’t want anything too heavy because we had an evening flight, why not do some sushi rolls Matsuyama Japanese Restaurant at 110 – 8500 Alexandra Road? The specialty rolls caught our eye so we went for the Matsuyama Roll; filled with tempura prawn, cucumber, avocado, tuna, and tobiko. The other was Bob’s Roll; with tuna, salmon, tobiko, scallops and grilled salmon skins on top. These rather large rolls were completed with a side of pickled ginger and wasabe. For our second dish, we ordered the Teriyaki Chicken Box. This box had a salad with that tasty Japanese dressing, vegetable tempura, california rolls, tuna & salmon sashimi, and the crispy chicken with sweet teriyaki sauce on rice. The box also included a bowl of miso soup and a complimentary pot of green tea. All this for just under $30 before taxes and tips.

After yet another great meal, sadly, it was now time to leave Richmond and head back to the airport. In a way, the timing was pretty good – we were absolutely stuffed, we couldn’t eat another bite!

The next time you find yourself in Vancouver, try something a little different. Spend some time in Richmond and experience the vibrant Asian food scene. You’ll find delicious food, from casual to high-end dining, at a great value. In my opinion, Richmond is a well kept food secret that needs to shared with the rest of the world.

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Posted in Canada, Food | Tagged Asian Food, British Columbia, Canada, Canada Travel Notes, Food, Richmond, Richmond Travel Notes, Travel, Travel Notes, Vancouver | 2 Comments

New Year’s Fireworks in Phuket

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Amateur Traveler

In the past, New Year’s Eve was never that exciting to us. We’ve bought overpriced tickets for boring New Year’s parties, drinking the cheapest champagne from plastic cups, or, house parties filled with people you don’t know and don’t particularly like, and noticeably absent; good fireworks.

We’re from Canada and maybe it’s the weather there; the extreme cold or extreme rain if you’re on the west coast, that contributes to the lack of festivities. Maybe it’s because Canadian officials seem to be pretty uptight about fireworks in general. They are heavily regulated and the sale of fireworks are outlawed in some cities. When certain cities actually do put on a fireworks display, they’re so bad it makes you wonder why they even bothered in the first place.

We always ended up watching clips of other amazing New Year’s celebrations on BBC World News – places like Sydney, Paris, Hong Kong, Rio de Janeiro and New York; wishing we were there because it actually looked like fun.

This appears not to be the case in Phuket. There are fireworks for all . . . literally.

Our New Year’s Eve in Phuket began with a party at the hotel. It was a good mix of tourists and expats exchanging wonderful stories of travel & adventure, with music, finger food, drinks, and a healthy dose of good cheer to go around.

From there, we moved on to Patong Beach to find a good spot for the fireworks show. We settled on the north side Patong Beach where we found a restaurant table on the sand to enjoy some delicious local food and drink before the stroke of midnight, while random lanterns and fireworks lit up the night sky. So far we were off to a good start; sitting on the beach, 50 feet from the surf, with cold drinks in our hands and a gentle tropical breeze.

Local vendors roamed the beach selling fireworks to thousands of happy, intoxicated tourists and locals converging on the sand to ring in the New Year. They had everything from sparklers and lanterns, to fireworks resembling large explosive devices that could level a city block with ease.

This is what makes New Year’s in Phuket so exciting. This is not a controlled event where 15 minutes of fireworks are set off on a barge in the middle of the bay, this my friend, is a do-it-yourself fireworks extravaganza where every man, woman and child can participate if they have the ability to strike a match and light a fuse.

As the countdown to the New Year commenced, the entire 3.5 kilometer stretch of Patong Beach erupted with the deafening blasts and the blinding lights of thousands of fireworks exploding overhead, illuminating the waters of the Andaman Sea. It was absolutely fantastic! Aside from having to dodge the flaming spray from the odd rogue firework shooting through the crowds, to my knowledge, nobody in our area of Patong Beach was injured . . . well, nobody was seriously injured anyway.

At last, we were able to experience a New Year’s celebration we had only seen in photos and news clips. It lived up to the hype, New Year’s in Phuket was truly a great time and it has inspired us to seek out the spectacular New Year’s Eve events happening all over this great world.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!

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Posted in Thailand | Tagged Beaches, Food, Patong, Phuket, Phuket Travel Notes, Sightseeing, Thailand, Travel, Travel Notes | Leave a comment

The Art of Packing Light

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Amateur Traveler

I know people who approach the fine art of packing for a trip like this: find the biggest pieces of luggage in their house and dump half of their closet into that luggage. When they arrive at their destination, they open their luggage and it literally explodes all over the hotel room. Personally, I like my trip to go smooth and easy, so I don’t understand this approach to packing for your travels. Maybe you know someone who packs like this, or maybe you lean toward this packing style and you would like some simple tips to make your luggage more manageable. With a little planning and organization, the art of packing light will save you a bunch of time and pain when traveling.

Pack Your Bags

Instead of dumping all your worldly possessions into your luggage or worse yet, trying to figure out what you are going to wear for every single minute of your trip, keep it simple and stick to the basics. Select a few articles of clothing – pants, shirts, shoes, etc. that you can mix and match on rotation. Generally, I’ll pick out several articles of clothing I want to take and cut the pile in half – for starters. It might seem extreme, but you’ll be surprised at how little you really need to travel well. This exercise will dramatically cut down on the volume of clothing you need to pack and free up more space in your luggage.

Packing cubes and those bags that suck out the air – to compress your clothing, are useful products to organize and maximize space in your luggage. I prefer to use a simple tool that everyone has in their households; plastic shopping bags. My shirts, pants and socks are organized in shopping bags and to compress them, I sit my butt down on the bags for a couple minutes.

A good shoulder bag, handbag, laptop bag or small backpack are great for packing your electronics and other small items. Usually, you can bring one of these bags on the plane with your other carry-on luggage. I use my shoulder bag to carry my electronics like laptops, smartphones, and cameras. It also carries other accessories like wet naps, sunglasses, and travel documents.

Zip Lock Baggies

For toiletries and cosmetics, go with travel sizes, you’ll save a lot of space in your bags and they won’t clutter the hotel bathroom. If you can’t buy them in travel sizes, get some empty travel size plastic bottles and fill them yourself. As always, make sure all of your liquids and gels are travel sizes and placed in the regulation sized, resealable clear plastic bag. Keep your bag of liquids in a side pocket of your carry-on, or in your shoulder bag so they are easily accessible for airport security. Not only can you use zip lock bags for your liquids and gels, they are great for organizing your other travel accessories like a/c adapters, electronics cables, and travel documents.

Information Overload Online

Another issue around packing light that I wanted to address is information overload. In the internet age, it’s easy to get carried away with oversubscribing to blogs, bookmarking travel sites, packing too many electronic gadgets and loading up your bags with travel guides. You can run the risk of spending all your time reading about the places you are traveling to and not exploring them for yourself.

I recently read another blog about a guy traveling the world for 6 months and he was subscribing to dozens of travel sites and buying all these expensive electronic gadgets to stay connected while on the road. It’s total overkill and in my opinion, takes all the fun and adventure out of traveling.

When I travel, I do some research ahead of time on a handful of sites and blogs like Wikipedia, Trip Adviser, Lonely Planet and some tourism sites like Tourism Thailand as an example. My iPhone has some apps for hotel bookings, airlines, weather, currency converter, etc. as well.

When I need to stay in contact with the real world via my laptop or Skype, I stay at hotels with free wifi, or find wifi hotspots like a coffee shop or an airport. Since my iPhone is locked, I have an old mobile phone that I had unlocked and use prepaid SIM cards for local calls in the countries I travel to.

Start Packing . . .

Whether you’re flying solo or traveling with the whole family, the art of packing light can work for you. All it takes is a little planning and preparation ahead of your trip. Less baggage and organized baggage means you’ll breeze through baggage check in, baggage claim and airport security; leaving you more time to spend enjoying your travels. Not only that, you’ll have plenty of room left in your luggage to bring home all those new clothes and souvenirs you bought.

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Posted in Travel Tips | Tagged Luggage Tips, Packing Tips, Travel, Travel Notes, Travel Tips | 1 Comment

My Top 10 Travel Essentials

Posted on July 14, 2012 by Amateur Traveler

We’ve all seen conventional travel packing checklists and overall they are very helpful and comprehensive. Because I like to pack light, I find most of the lists are too long and somewhat outdated. It’s surprising how little you really need to bring with you on your trip, but there are some things you just can’t afford not to take on your next great travel adventure. Here are some of the things in my luggage that I never leave home without.

Smartphone:

I can honestly say that I am addicted to using my smartphone when traveling and it’s become an indispensable travel tool. My smartphone addiction of choice is the iPhone and this wonderful little device basically kills a thousand birds with one stone, so to speak. It’s an iPod, e-book reader, video player, world clock, calendar, notepad, alarm, calculator, web browser, email, camera and a phone in the palm of your hand. There are a ridiculous amount of apps to choose from for travel resources like booking & checking in to flights, booking hotels, maps, weather, city guides, news, travel tips, Skype, currency converter; you name it. Most tourism authorities in the countries and cities you’re traveling to, now have apps with useful travel information and tips as well.

If you need to make and receive local calls while abroad, an unlocked phone is a good idea. This way you can buy a prepaid SIM Card in the country you travel to and avoid crazy roaming charges. For most people, buying an unlocked smartphone can cost several hundred dollars and may not be in your budget. Keep one of your old phones, get it unlocked and use it overseas with prepaid SIM cards.

Passports and Visas:

Well duh, this seems so obvious but the reason I bring it up is that many countries have different rules for passports and visas. Before your trip, check your expiry dates and check the visa rules for countries you are traveling to. Many countries require a minimum of at least 3 to 6 months time left on your passport before it expires or you could be denied entry when you arrive. That would suck if you were turned around at your destination or got detained for “questioning” because you didn’t have enough time left on your passport.

Check for visa requirements for countries you travel to. Find out if you need a visa, if so, do you need to get one before arriving, or can you get one when you land in that country? Also check how long it’s valid and if there are expiry dates on the visa. If your plans change and you don’t use it within a certain time frame, you may have to reapply and pay for it all over again.

Since we’re on the topic of travel documents, keep copies of all your docs. Take a photo of your passport in case of emergency. For the important things like boarding passes, hotel vouchers and itineraries, I go with paper copies. For everything else, I’ll keep soft copies in my webmail and on a flash drive.

Travel Insurance:

With the high cost of healthcare worldwide, travel medical insurance is a no-brainer. If you ever got sick or injured in another country, you don’t want to be bankrupted by huge medical bills. A good plan with comprehensive coverage is relatively inexpensive, although if you need coverage for travel to the USA, it can go up significantly.

You can get optional coverage for trip cancellation/interruption, baggage insurance, or pre-existing medical condition insurance. Review your options so you know what coverage you will feel comfortable with and review the policy terms so you what is covered and what isn’t. Also, check with your credit card company and your benefits plan at work, you may have coverage with them already.

Digital Camera:

With the rise of the smartphone, many travelers are using them to take pictures and video. When it comes to preserving my vacation memories, I still prefer to have a point & shoot digital camera with a good zoom, that can take quality photos in all conditions and shoot video too.

Adapters:

A universal travel adapter plug to charge your electronics will save you a lot of headaches especially if you’re jumping from country to country. Although many hotels do supply them in their rooms, it’s best to have one of your own to avoid any inconveniences if you pin your hopes on someone else supplying it.

Wet Naps:

Wet Naps are perfect for a quick clean up on the go after dining on some messy street food or if you can’t get to a washroom right away. Travel packs are inexpensive and they don’t take up a lot of space in your bags.

Not all places in this world supply you with napkins, tissues or toilet paper either; it’s the “bring your own” rule. So it’s good to have a travel pack of tissues and a couple rolls of toilet paper depending on where you’re heading.

Carry-On Luggage:

As a traveler who packs light, I travel with carry-on luggage only, whenever possible. It’s convenient, it saves time, and I don’t worry about my luggage being lost. Not only that, it saves money. The air travel experience is bad enough already with airport security rules, now airlines have found a way to make it truly miserable by charging extra fees and service charges on just about everything. Carry-on luggage is my way of protesting the stupid checked bag fees.

Be aware of the rules that airlines have for carry-ons though. Most airlines will allow 1 luggage not exceeding 22x14x9 in. (56x36x23 cm.) and not over 7 kg in weight for economy class. You are allowed one more small bag like a handbag, backpack or laptop bag as well. My luggage does go overweight most of the time, but I get away with it . . . most of the time.

Have a good day pack to bring with you , something that is light weight but not too big. I use a small shoulder bag with several pockets and secure inside pockets that is just big enough to hold an iPad or an 11″ laptop. When the laptop is locked in the hotel safe, the bag has enough room for everything we need for a day of sightseeing and exploring like water bottles, snacks, shades, the camera, wet naps, ID, cash, etc. It works out well.

Take Your Pills:

Check with your doctor for any applicable vaccinations and medications you may need while traveling. Some areas you may be traveling to are at high risk for infectious diseases or they may have vaccination requirements for entry. Be healthy and be prepared when you travel.

For minor things, I prefer natural alternatives to prescription drugs. Generally, I’ll bring a good multi-vitamin, something for jet lag like melatonin or those no jet lag tablets, Fisherman’s Friends throat lozenges and a natural intestinal or parasite cleanser supplement for travelers diarrhea.

All About The Money:

Before I leave on a trip, I like to change some of my dollars into foreign currency so I have some spending money when I land. It’s a good plan if you can’t get to a currency exchange or a bank right away. I travel with cash – cash is still king, a debit card for backup and a credit card for larger purchases like flights and hotels. Travelers checks work fine too; I just never got into the habit of using them.

Keep your cash & cards safe from pickpockets and consider investing in a money belt, neck wallet or a hidden pocket wallet. Some friends who recently went on a European cruise told us stories of fellow passengers getting pick pocketed at the ports of call because they didn’t secure their wallets properly.

Travel Size It:

Buy travel sizes of all your toiletries like shaving cream, toothpaste, skin cream and shampoo. This way you won’t have any problems getting them all in your zip lock baggie and clearing airport security with no problems. If you can’t fit them all in and you don’t want to check your bag, you can buy the balance of the products at your destination, unless you’re going way off the beaten path.

Bonus Travel Essential! – Anti Monkey Butt:

Monkey What!? When you stop laughing, I’ll explain, there is an actual product called Anti Monkey Butt. It’s a great product for those times when you are sitting on your butt all day in an airplane or you’re spending time in hot, humid places. This powder absorbs sweat and prevents odors, chaffing and heat rash. Anyway, it helps me travel with confidence and avoid any potentially embarrassing situations with my fellow travelers. If you can’t get your hands on Anti Monkey Butt powder, baby powder is a reasonable substitute.

Tell us about the travel essentials & accessories you don’t leave home without, right here.

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Posted in Travel Tips | Tagged Travel, Travel Accessories, Travel Notes, Travel Tips | 2 Comments

One Day in Vancouver

A Food Layover in Richmond, BC

New Year’s Fireworks in Phuket

The Art of Packing Light

My Top 10 Travel Essentials

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