I'll take you in my backpack

--> Leading up to today I was warned about flying domestic, told about how flights are always delayed, and to anticipate hours of delays. I was optimistic however, and perhaps naïve. Needless to say I thought maybe my positive attitude had paid off because when we got to the airport and checked in, the flight was “on time”. Even all the way up to what would be boarding things looked like they would be going off without a hitch, all other flights on the board listed a delay, some hours long, but my flight seemed good to go. Until 11:40 (10 mins before scheduled departure) when they typed the dreaded words… “Delay” Thankfully the delay listed was only about 25 minutes (but that would soon prove way too good to be true!) Flying domestic is quite the experience in Nepal. When you go through security (I should have put that word in air quotes) you put your bag on the belt, I’m pretty sure they don’t give a shit what you have in it, I had small liquids and a razor, nail cl...

This morning started off super fun by dying Easter eggs with my friends kiddos. They can't get that kind of thing in Nepal so I brought over all kinds of Easter goodies, including a couple of egg dying kits for them! I haven't dyed eggs in years and the kits were way fancier than anything we ever used as kids, but still super fun! After the eggs it was off to lunch for traditional Nepalese food. I have been eating this style cuisine (or similar) for many years so I was excited to try it and see similarities and differences. The flavors were amazing and the spice level was great! We started with some "bites" then had a set plate that had a nice sampling of many different dishes. One of the "bites" was described to me as "deer" it came out looking like maybe jerky, with a few fattier pieces? It was quickly discovered that my friends Nepali translation was perhaps not accurate, and that the animal wasn't in fact a deer. When I saw the p...

So getting to KTM isn't horrible, but it was exhausting! I left at midnight from Tokyo, took the red eye to Bangkok where I had about a 6 hour layover before finishing the final leg of my trip on to KTM (another 2.5 hour flight). The last bit of the flight was technically 3.5 hours because when we reached KTM (at 15,000 feet) we then proceeded to do loops for an hour. What I didn't know is that KTM has only one runway at their airport, as you can imagine that causes some traffic on the ground with planes departing and in the air with planes attempting to land. What I also didn't know is that a week ago (in what seemed like a serious case of pilot error due to leaked communications between the pilot and the air traffic control tower) a plane crashed coming in to KTM and the majority of the passengers died. I'm glad I didn't know this, because I would have needed a xanax, and some alcohol. I'm told that usually when you fly in to KTM you can see beautiful views of...

Saturday morning I woke up and decided I needed a little adventure in my life! I have had the Chureito Pagoda pinned for a while as a "must see" place so this was the lucky winner for adventure time! Train time vs drive time was pretty close and after a debacle with getting lost in the tunnels of Tokyo the previous day, I decided to reduce my stress and take the train! The Chureito Pagoda is approximately 2 hours from Yokota Air Base via train. If you're taking the train the stop for the Pagoda is Shimoyoshida. I enjoy train adventures because it allows you to see some beautiful places, riding in to Shimoyoshida I passed through some beautiful mountainous terrain. At one point we were riding along with some of the most stunning shots of Mt Fuji. Times like this I'm constantly reminded of  how lucky I am, the beauty of nature, and just how small we are in this big beautiful world!  taken from the train, while moving. Speechless Shimoyoshida train station is TIN...

2/25/18 Find what you love, and never stop doing it! Yesterday I did something that I've wanted to do for a REALLY long time! I've seen photos and lusted over this adventure. Why it took me so long I have no idea, but I'm so glad that I cashed in on life'ing with this one! Seeing the snow monkeys in Nagano at the natural hot spring was something that I'll never forget. I highly recommend it for anyone who is in Japan (fun fact you don't have to go in the winter, they're open year round, the monkeys are always there (free range, not caged or contained). I would even venture to say that it may be better to visit during the "off" season because as you can imagine this place is riddled with tourists, which becomes annoying. My annoyance increased because some people literally have zero respect for animals, their habitat, and personal space. More often than not tourists would get uncomfortably close to the monkeys, babies, mamas with babies, in...

2/15/18 (Image taken from Google) Once you find your passion you should absolutely NEVER EVER stop chasing it! NEVER. For no one. And with that being said, I finally have booked a trip that should have happened MANY years ago but (thanks airline assholes) didn't...so now it absolutely will be...Nepal here I come! Probably about 10 years ago I booked a flight (I was living in the US then) it had a less than 24 hour layover in India, I did my research and if in transit with less than 24 hours you don't need a visa for India. I searched several sites and the embassy. Because I didn't want issues. Travel day arrived and I went to the airport my bags packed ready to go to Nepal and go on the adventure of a lifetime. The airline wouldn't let me board because I didn't have a visa for India. I explained several times even showed them online where it said in transit no visa, nothing, they still required me to have a visa despite the fact that I was there less than 24...

2/7/18 I've been meaning to write this post for a really long time. I've had it drafted in various forms, notes on post-its, memos in my phone, reminders set. I'll be honest, things just got away from me and I slacked! I always have people asking me for recommendations or seeing things on my Instagram story and asking me about them, so I decided to compile a list of my FAVORITES, my must haves! I try to travel carry on only, so these are all items that I have found either essential, or helpful in one way or another! I'll list them in no particular order! **Ebates. First and foremost whenever you're shopping online you'd be foolish not to use this! It's free money for some shopping you're going to do anyways! Sites offer various percentages back on your shopping trip. The sites change their percentages and sometimes offer bonuses so check back often! Just to give you a little idea, I've gotten $656 (don't judge I like to shop!) back from ...