I should be cutting down on what I'm bringing,but....

Okay, I arrived in Florida with one backpack and now I have 3 to choose from...this is not the way that the packing should be going! I managed to get all of my stuff into the smallest backpack (the one that looks like a school pack) with extra room to spare. My dad was concerned about the lack of a waist strap, so then we considered the 60 liter pack. It has a waist strap, but it can't fit in the overhead bin...so we bought a 3rd pack and when I meet up with Jess we can figure out which pack to take...sheesh, if I am this indecisive about a backpack, imagine how long it will take me to figure any of the important life decisions (marriage, family, what to wear tomorrow, etc.)

Here it is...all of the stuff I will probably want to burn when I arrive home...aka...what I am packing on my trip. The only things I am missing are: a hoodie, a rain jacket, and hiking shoes. Otherwise, what you see is what you get. In all honesty, I think I did a pretty good job of packing light. I am maximizing space even more by taking all the medicines and toiletries out of their plastic packaging. I also decided to pack one time use products that can be thrown away once I am done with them. I am going to roll up all of the clothes and put them into airtight bags. Then I will decide which backpack to stuff all of this into. The light blue one on the right was my original pack. My dad did the research, found the best pack(of course) and then sent it to Va. Beach. Then Jess called and said that her pack was HALF the size of mine. She had consulted with her "outdoorsy" friends, and they said that the smaller the better. So once I roll up all this stuff, we'll see. I am kinda partial to the light blue one (It looks like one a "real" backpacker would use:)

TEsting 1,2,3...I am posting a short video from my camera in order to make sure that I can upload it correctly...I just arrived in Florida last night...so I feel like the trip is finally in full swing....it was hard to say goodbye to Larry, Mike, Mom, and especially Bella, but now my dad and I can get to his favorite part of the trip...the packing. Anyone who knows my dad knows that he lives for the packing part. I will post some pics later today when we lay out all the goods and see exactly what we are packing in this thing. On Wednesday we are meeting Jess in Orlando to help her get some shopping done. Then at 7:30am on Thursday, we are off to Guatemala!!

"DiorShow or I won't go"

When it comes to packing, Jess and I are on the same page...the less we carry, the better. All this week I have been skimming down the list of things to pack...I posted a list of what I am carrying and each day it gets a little smaller (I'll post the whole revised list right before I leave)...at first I packed 3 pairs of cotton shorts, until I discovered that it is considered rude to wear shorts in Costa Rica (who knew). So now I am down to one pair o' shorts and three pairs of capri pants. Yes, Jess and I agree on everything, everything except makeup. Now, by no means would I consider myself to be a glamour girl, but I do believe that a little mascara goes a LONG way. That little magic makeup wand transforms a sleepy, hungover, tired girl into a vibrant and wide awake looking woman. So I have decided that that the extra .50 ounce of weight is worth it for my DiorShow mascara...and who knows, I may even sneak some powder and (gasp) even a lip gloss into the pack:)...we may be roughing it, but there's no need to look rough!

1 week till departure!

Well, with one week to go before heading off to Florida to see my dad and meet up with Jess, I think I am in good shape. I have gotten all my vaccinations, transferred my funds to a travel friendly bank, alerted the credit card companies, but there is still one more daunting task I must complete....packing! And those who know me well know that organization is NOT my strong suit (and that is putting it mildly). With only one backpack, space is at a premium, so it is important that I only pack the necessities. However, it seems like everything is a necessity when you are packing for six weeks. I am trying to pack things that have a at least 2 purposes. Like a sundress that can be used as a bathing suit cover-up and as a "going out" dress, cotton shorts that I can wear during the day and can also be used as PJs, etc. Jess and I are keeping a list of what we are packing in our backpacks. When we get back, we'll update our blog and let you know what was useful, what was useless, and things we wish we had had. All of the "seasoned backpackers" tell us to pack up the backpack, then remove half of the items, and you will be ready to go....we'll see about that! ahhh, enough procrastinating for today, I am off to pack! If you can think of any good items that we should take or should not take, please leave us a comment. Remember it's me and Jess...we can use all the help we can get!

The one souvenir we don't want..check out this Costa Rican surprise!

Thanks to Lauren S. for sending me this disturbing video..now I have a concrete nightmare in my mind to obsess about until we leave for the trip...I feel like my head is itching already:)




35 days to go!!!!!!

One month to Go!

I am setting up this blog so that I can update everyone on our trip to Central America (how technologically savvy of me:)). Jess and I are not taking our cell phones so this will be our main way of keeping in touch:) ...hopefully there will be lots of internet cafes so that I can update our page frequently.
Five years ago, Jess and I took a cross-country road trip around the United States..we travelled in a 1994 Ford Escort Station Wagon and we made a giant circle around the United States. We lived on granola bars and the kind will of our friends and family (who let us crash in their houses and on thier couches). We survived 1 car fiasco, a buffalo attack, and lots of interesting characters. Now five years later we are taking on another summer adventure...this time to Central America. We are leaving on June 26th and will be home at the beginning of August. Hopefully this blog will help keep you up to date on all our adventures...check back later for more interesting details.
~Chris