The Map Pin Junkies 12 Days of Christmas - Gift Recommendations - Day 12

It's that time of year when we exchange gifts to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or just the joy we feel towards friends and family. 

Today, the last day in our 12 Days of Christmas Gift Recommendations, the gift is cash....but not in the 'oops-I-forgot-to-get-you-something' way. This cash gift is for a specific purpose!

Anyone who travels a lot (or even a little) will appreciate the gift of an expedited experience through the airport, right? Right, so give your travel the gift of Global Entry for $100. Of course, you cannot apply for the recipient, but you can creatively package the money in a box wrapped with a world map or tucked inside a globe ornament. There are a lot of creative ways you can designate the cash for the gift of Global Entry. Even cooler, is that approved Trusted Travelers get TSA PreCheck designation included in Global Entry!

To learn more about the program or to show your traveler the great gift he/she just received, click here! Heck, even Santa has Global Entry!

Santa courtesy of http://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-entry

 

 

 

Thanks for visiting our 12 Days of Christmas Gift Recommendations. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas, health, happiness, and a beautiful New Year.
peace, love, and travel,
The Map Pin Junkie

The Map Pin Junkies 12 Days of Christmas - Gift Recommendations - Day 10

It's that time of year when we exchange gifts to celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or just the joy we feel towards friends and family.

Day 10 is all about the aviation enthusiast on your list. A handy tool for home or the road, today's recommendation is the Pan Am Boeing 707 Bottle opener, $135, on uncommongoods.com. Their copy is better than I could do, so read what they have to say:

Bring a touch of the friendly skies to cocktail hour with this industrial bottle opener, crafted from the fuselage top from an authentic Pan Am Boeing 707. Hand polished to highlight the shimmering aluminum, this opener still features the iconic rivets, integral to the airplane's construction. Handmade in Berkeley, CA. Get it here!

Happy Gift Giving!!
all recommendations are mine alone and I have not received any money, product, or perk from any of the companies listed.

Destination Dash - Melbourne, Australia

Destination Dash post features my latest city crush, Melbourne. I was lucky enough to start my Antipodean adventure in this cosmopolitan yet charming city. I spent 4 packed days exploring all parts of the city and fell in love with it. Victorian and Edwardian architecture coexist beautifully with steel and glass structures to create a modernity tempered with antique elegance. The vibe is upscale but not pretentious.

Name: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Population: 4.5 million (2014)
Flight Time: from LAX, US 17 hours non-stop; from London 20+ hours, 1 stop
Get Started:  If you will be coming from the airport while on a layover, take the SkyBus into the city. It's not that expensive and gets you downtown in about 20-25 minutes.

My write-up will not give you a moment-by-moment day, but gives you the highlights I'd recommend seeing while in the city. The list covers indoors and outdoors and provides stimuli for kids and adults, but only you know your physical limitations, tolerance to things, and schedule.

The total time for my recommendations comes in at 11 hours, but remember that is because this is what I like to do. You may want to devote more time to sport venues or get out of town for a fast trip to the Dandenong Ranges (about an hour drive outside the city). If you want to build in time for meals, I recommend choosing two or three things from this list. This is just a guide, so read on an enjoy!


Site recommendations:

1. Queen Victoria Market - on the corner of Victoria and Elizabeth Streets. Crowded with people and an impressive array of produce, groceries, dry goods, souvenirs the market is full of locals and tourists. If you can stand the crush of people, stand quietly and try to count the number of different languages being spoken. My best was 14! Recommended time - 2 hours or more.
2. Melbourne Zoo - Elliott Ave, Parkville. Gorgeously laid out and surprisingly diverse, the zoo is a great way to spend 1 hour or 4 hours. It is located in a quiet part of town and just off the 25 tram stop for Melbourne Zoo/Royal Park. Many travelers think of the Australia Zoo in Brisbane and the go-to zoological experience but Melbourne is equally interesting and entertaining. It makes a great destination on its own or as a companion experience to visiting the Werribee Open Range Zoo. Recommended time - 3 hours.
3. Old Melbourne Gaol - 377 Russell Street. Whether you are a history buff, lover of the macabre, or have a few hours to kill and don't know what to do, make a beeline for the Old Melbourne Gaol. It provides a facsinating glimpse into prison life of the mid-to-late 19th century. Grab a docent and walk the bluestone corridor to learn about such notorious criminals as Frederick Bailey Deeming, Elizabeth Scott, Martha Needle, and folk hero Ned Kelly. The interior harkens the Green Mile or Shawshank, but has a pervasiveness darkness probably made all the more so during the night tours they offer. A thought-provoking look at prison life, the territorial judicial system and impressive collection of death masks. Recommended time - 1 1/2 hours.
4. Royal Botanic Gardens - Birdwood Ave, South Yarra. There is nothing to dislike here. It offers soothing vistas, lush vegetation, and beauty around every turn. Go early morning for a misty stroll through the gardens. It is empty of crowds and full of cockatoos, parrots, magpies, and pukekos. We got there about 45 minutes past sunrise and it was otherworldly. I felt like I'd fallen into a storybook illustration. Recommended time - 2 hours, 3 if you take a picnic.
5. Melbourne Museum - 11 Nicholson St, Carlton. Home to a vast selection of geological, cultural, and anthropological history, this museum is one of the best natural history museums I've visited in my life. It is easy to meander from one hall to another and offers a wide variety of subject matters, enough to keep visitors engaged whether they are 3 or 103. My visit was made even more special due to the WWI Centenary Exhibition, which offers an in-depth and emotional look at WWI and the contributions made by ANZAC forces. Recommended time - 3 hours or more.

 Peace, love, and travel!

*As a reminder, these photos are solely mine and not to be used without prior written permission. Thanks!

Ticking off my 6th continent. Melbourne, by the port.

Downtown split by the Yarra River

Interior of the main cell block.

Interior of a cell.

One of many lovely vistas in the garden.

Laugh Kookaburra, laugh.

The 5 Essential Items You Didn't Know You Needed In Your Carry-on Bag

I am one of those people who believe in being prepared for as many situations as possible and this slight obsession escalates when I travel. To that end, here are the top 5 items I always toss in my carry-on tote. 

Let's break it down, we have (clockwise from left) mini rolls of duct tape, gallon zip top freezer bags, wooden clothes pins, a spork, and 4 mini bungee cords. Each one of these is multi-purpose and takes up very little room in a carry-on or small suitcase. All the uses below have been tested personally, except where noted.

Duct tape can be used to:

- repair bags

- tack a hem

- brace a twisted ankle

- secure your bag (after security) by taping down zipper pulls

- mend a ripped tent

- bandage a wound (after its clean, but always have cloth or gauze between the wound and tape and seek medical help Immediately)

- secure valuables to your body (it helps to tape the bag of valuables to a hairless area to avoid the prior use of duct tape 😁)

- remove lint

- baby proof a hotel room (haven't personally tried this)

Gallon zip top bags are useful to:

- store wet bathing suits 

- keep passports, maps, and papers dry

- segment socks/underwear

- contain smaller items so they aren't rolling loose around a bag

- use as an air sickness/motion sickness bag (thankfully, I haven't had to test this but my traveling companion did when our catamaran decided to bounce across the water instead of float)

- cushion souvenirs (blow some air into one bag as you're sealing it and then, place that in another bag)

- separate jewelry (use smaller bags, suck the air out to avoid necklaces tangling, put in the larger size)

- act as a tiny washing machine for your underwear (fill it up a little less than halfway, add soap and garment, close it tightly and shake)

- protect your camera from mist or rain

Wooden hinge-style clothes pins are great to:

- close pesky hotel curtains that always seem to have a gap

- corral a mosquito net when not in use

- secure electronic cords

- raise a toothbrush off the sink

- weigh down the edge of a shower curtain

- seal up non-resealable bags (chips/crisps, loose tea leaves, etc)

- hang clothes up to dry (obviously 😉)

While not as multi-purpose as the other tools on this list, a Spork can be used to:

- eat anything for which you'd need a spoon or fork

- stir beverages or soups 

- comb/fluff your hair

- cut soft fruit

-retrieve small items from a pail of water of indeterminate quality (just be sure to sanitize the spork afterward)

Mini bungee cords are handy to:

- serve as an emergency belt

- stretch across a doorway as clothesline

- keep an auto-closing sliding door open

- add extra layer of security to a bag/backpack in crowded areas

- bundle things in a towel (sunblock, cover-up, book, etc go in a beach towel then, fold it up and secure it with a bungee cord)

- secure your door from the inside (sort of like a sliding chain lock)

There you have it, the 5 most useful travel items I take with me. I hope this list helps you prepare for your trip. I'd love to hear some other uses for these items or what items you find essential, so leave a comment below. 

Peace, love, and travel!