As long as humans have found transcendent meaning in earthly places, they have made special journeys to those places. Traditionally, a pilgrimage is an act of religious devotion, but lately the word is used to describe a trip to any place that is especially inspiring to the traveler. Continue reading
Are you still shopping? It’s okay, so am I. Here are some more ideas for travelers, all from our favorite TravelSmith.
TravelSmith’s 360 Degree Spinner Ultra-Organized Rolling Carry-On – $129
carry-on bag and matching tote
It’s so nice to have pretty luggage, and if it spins, well, there’s beauty AND talent! What more could one ask? This lovely, nimble bag is also fit on the inside, with space for all your carry-on needs, and it possesses a light and trim frame, which rolls easily down the aisle and fits under the seat. Choose from several colors and textures. The matching tote comes free with the spinner!
15″ H x 15″ W x 8″ D including wheels; Overall Carry-on Dimension: 41″.
Free Fold-Up Tote: 14″ H x 22″ W x 5″ D; Overall Carry-on Dimension: 41″.
Able Planet Traveler’s Choice Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones – $69 (great price!)
sound-cancelling headphones
Is anyone else as horrified as I am at the possibility that the ban on in-flight cell phone calls may be lifted? If that happens, I predict a run on sound-cancelling headphones. Get a pair while they last! Better yet, buy a dozen and sell them on flights with a nice profit margin.
Overboard Waterproof iPad Case – $60
waterproof iPad case
This travel pillow looks funny but it’s perfect for stomach or side-sleepers, whose instinct is to protect their soft middle when unconscious, especially in public. Added bonus – if you’re sleeping on your face, your mouth can’t hang open, as much.
Check out our previous posts for more gift ideas:
Travel Gifts for Comfy Plane Rides
Real Housewives of Ancient Egypt (historical novels about ancient Egyptian women)
Stocking-Stuffers for Your Travelers
My picks for stocking-sized travel gifts from TravelSmith.com:
All suitcases look alike, especially after emerging from a 12-hour flight into a strange airport with thousands of other disoriented people. These bright tags from TravelSmith stand out against all that circling black so you’ll spot your bag in time to lift it off the carousel on the first pass and be on your way to a hot shower and soft bed.
Bright bag tags with your initial.
Are you planning a trip to Egypt? Cuba? Morocco? Jordan? Dubai? …
Two words: personal fan. Yes, blowing your face with a tiny fan on a lanyard is less than dignified. Believe me, you won’t care. Dry heat or not, when it’s 120F in the shade, dignity is your last concern. Cool off and enjoy the sites. Even Hades is no match for the intrepid traveler armed with a tiny yet powerful fan on a lanyard.
personal fan
Once I rode in a motor coach from Tiberias, Israel on the Sea of Galilee, below sea level, up about 5,000 feet into the Golan Heights on a very windy road. Throughout the ride, it took all my powers of concentration to hold my lunch down, but I did. Just behind me, a woman and her seatmate were not so lucky. The lunch of one ended up in the lap of the other. Pity none of us were wearing PSI bands.
PSI bands to combat motion sickness
Ever cry and stomp your feet like a frustrated toddler in the Musée D’Orsay? I have. Standing mere inches from Renoir, Cézanne, Manet, Van Gogh, there was no joy; jet lag sucked it away. I would have given anything to go back to my hotel and sleep but my mean travel companion wouldn’t let me (you know who you are). He insisted we stay up all day our first day in Paris, to acclimate to the time change. I purposely lost him at one point, found a vacant corner and just leaned into it. If I thought I could get away with it, I would have been horizontal on a bench. I hated the masterworks of French Impressionism for standing between me and sweet, sweet sleep. I hated the splendid, converted train station that is the museum. I hated the happy, time-adjusted people all around me.
This was many years ago, either before jet lag remedies existed or before I knew about them. Now, jet lag is just unnecessary. These No-Jet-Lag tablets work.
No Jet Lag pills
Smell pretty across the globe with these leak-free, TSA-approved, travel atomizers.
pocket atomizer
Merry Christmas!
Airplane travel is not fun, let’s face it. But I’m always careful to balance my grumbling with sincere gratitude. If it weren’t for a few cramped hours on airplanes, I probably would not know the weight of the air in a pharaonic tomb, or the light inside the Hagia Sophia, or the night-sky in the Sahara Desert, or a thousand other first-hand, unique sensory experiences found many thousands of miles from home. Honestly, I hardly remember all the hours I’ve spent on airplanes. It’s the places and people at the end of the ride that leave the lasting impressions. Still, it doesn’t hurt to pimp that ride as best you can. For me, that means swaddling my body in warm, soft things so it thinks I’m at home on the couch watching a Homeland marathon.
The foundation for a comfortable plane trip is comfortable clothing. Basically, you want jammies that you can wear in public, proudly. Your feet need to be warm and free to do what they do on planes. Socks don’t cut it. You need slippers. Then you need a blanket, not only for warmth but for privacy and to define your space. It’s a security blanket really, to make up for the vulnerability and lack of control we feel on airplanes. The protective powers of the blanket increase many fold when you know that blanket and where it has been. (Am I too attached to my blanket?) Finally, you need pillows to support the inevitable floppy-head and slouching back. (Is it really so hard to build a chair with lumbar support??)
My essentials, from Travelsmith:
Soft, stretchy, breathable, wrinkle-resistant, cling-free, machine-washable fabric, keeps its shape so you don’t have to.
$99 on sale from $149 through December 18, 2013
3-piece knit suit
A blanket disguised as clothing, 100% merino wool, 65″L x 27″W.
$69 on sale from $99 through December 18, 2013
merino wool wrap
Women’s Nufoot™ Mary Jane Slippers
soft, water-resistant, with protective sole for visits to the loo
$15
slippers
soft, breathable, lightweight and all yours
open 70″L x 55″W; folded: 7″L x 3 1/2″W
$35
travel blanket
Super Snoozer Memory Foam Pillow
I like the combination of memory foam, for just the right amount of neck support, with inflatable areas for less packing bulk.
16½” x 11″(inflated); 5 1/8″ x 5 7/8″ (closed & folded)
$19
neck pillow
17″W x 5″D x 9″H; folded: 8½”W x 4½”H. 8 oz
lumbar pillow
Check out Travelsmith.com for these and other gift ideas for all the travelers in your life.
When I was a kid, I loved packing because it meant we were about to travel somewhere. I also loved flying. How times have changed… Now flying is plain agony for me and packing is a chore. Journey schmourney. Sometimes the joy is in the destination and the best we can do is survive the journey and arrive with everything we need, neatly packed in an efficient and organized fashion.
So, without further ado, I present my favorite packing accessories fromTravelSmith, three tools that make packing fun, almost.
Shelves to Go
This is brilliant – a hanging shelf unit that collapses into your suitcase. Hang it in your closet, pack the shelves, put it in your bag. The shelves keep their contents contained and organized. At your destination, lift the shelves out of your bag and hang them in the closet. Your clothes are out where you can see them and access them easily, without having to unpack.
Large Shelves To Go
Open: 20″L x 12″W x 23″H. 1 lb. 12 oz
Small Shelves To Go
Open: 18″L x 12″W x 23″H. 1 lb. 8 oz.
Shelves to Go 
Shelves to Go
Packing Envelopes
These not only organize your bag but keep clothes neatly folded and wrinkled free. They come with a folding board, very helpful.
Large TravelSmith Smart Envelope
18″L x 12″W. 14.3 oz.. Holds 4-5 jackets, skirts or pants.
Small TravelSmith Smart Envelope
15″L x 10″W. 10.7 oz.. Holds 6-8 shirts, skirts or pants.
packing envelopes
Compress-it Cube
Compress a 5″ stack of clothes to 1″ with magic zippers. You can take five-times more clothes!
KIVA® Large Compress-It Cube
10½”W x 1½”D x 13½”H. 5.75 oz.
KIVA® Small Compress-It Cube
10″L x 7″W x 5″H. 4 oz.
Compression Cuba
Travelers with Ya’lla Tours get a discount on TravelSmith purchases!
The winner of this week’s drawing is Terry from the Hawaii General Store & Gallery in Seattle. You too can be a winner! All blog followers are entered. We draw a name every Wednesday. The current prize is a $10 Starbucks gift card.
The Ya'lla Blog 