Tag: travel

Florence, Italy

by The Impatient Traveler, posted in Florence, Italy, Italy, Italy

Sometimes when you are on a trip with random people you’ve never met before and you have to share rooms with them, you learn quickly if they have different tendencies than you. One of the girls in our group liked to get up at the crack of dawn, and so, it was another 6:30 AM wake up to embark on our journey to Florence!

We got a later start on the road and hit some traffic, so our journey took 2.5 hours instead of 1.5, but it gave me plenty of time to catch up on sleep and my travel journal. We drove through the spine of the Alps, but it was hard to see through the fog. Finally, we arrived at our hostel in Florence! We stuffed all of our bags into a room, ran to the front door to start our exploration, and was confronted with torrential rain!

We bought some umbrellas at a shop next to our hotel and took off through an alley way to a tiny little deli the size of a closet for a delicious goat cheese, sun-dried tomato, and salami sandwich. It is amazing how every alley in Florence is packed with little gems of stores and restaurants.  After lunch, we walked past the gigantic Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flowers to the Palazzo Medici.

The Palazzo Medici is a huge palace filled with amazing architecture, views, and art. The ceilings are so ornate with gold lief, intricate carvings, and paintings. We were completely in aw walking through such a place. You can see the scale of the ceiling and how ornate they were in the photos below, plus my favorite painting of the tour.

We also tried to go to the Accademia Gallery to see the Statue of David, however, the line was around the block and we couldn’t get in. I definitely recommend buying tickets to the Florence museums in advance as both the Accademia and the Uffizi (one of the most acclaimed museums in the entire world), were sold out on the days we wanted to go.

Since we couldn’t do any more museums, we went to the market to shop for goodies. Florence is known for its leather and, while there are a lot of faux-leather in the market, you can find some good deals on the real deal. I bought a beautiful leather jacket and haggled my way to a great price! On the way back to the hotel with all of our new stuff, we came across this really interesting building that, starting at about 10 feet up, was completely covered in dollar bills:

Dollar bill building in Florence, Italy

You never know what cool things you will encounter down the non-touristy path.

We walked through the cobbled Florence streets to an adorable little restaurant for a group dinner. The wine, sausage pasta, and bruschetta made for an excellent experience, but the waiters really topped if. They were young men and, with the 40 women in our tour group and our tour guides teasing, their faces were redder than my wine! The waiter’s dad even let them off duty early to lead our group, like parade grand marshals, to the bar. Hilarious!

Dinner in Florence, Italy

We ended up at a space age style club appropriately called “Space” where all of the tourists apparently go. The music was funky and we had a great time people watching the night away on the dance floor!

Florence tips:

  • Bring an umbrella and shoes that can get wet.
  • Buy tickets to the museums and tours you want to take in advance.
  • Wake up and climb the Florence Cathedral’s Duomo as soon as it opens! The stair ways are super narrow so, the less people, the better. Also, the view is so much better without the crowds and the climb will take you half the time.
The view from the slopes of Snowbird, Utah

Snowbird, Utah – New Years Day

by The Impatient Traveler, posted in Snowbird Skiing, Snowbird, Utah

7:45 AM wake up! I was happy and ready to go until I put my feet on the floor and the soreness of skiing the previous day resonated throughout my legs! Ouch! Pushing through the pain, we got ready for the -8 degree ski day ahead of us. We had another yummy bagel breakfast at The Atrium before heading to our locker full of gear. I can’t reiterate enough how amazing a ski-in / ski-out hotel is. We popped our skis on and were immediately on the slopes!

The Chickadee slope goes right down to the mouth of the Creek Road green run which goes the length of the mountain and passes all of the lifts. We skied down the run, taking our time and soaking up every second, to the Mid-Gad lift. The Mid-Gad lift has two stops, one half-way up the mountain which has more green runs and an adventure park, and the second which reaches the top of the mountain’s advanced runs. As we are relatively new skiers, we stuck to the green slopes, our favorite being Second South. Second South leads both back to Mid-Gad and another lift called Baby Thunder. We went between both lifts throughout the morning, getting better and more confident throughout the morning.

Snowbird Mountain Trail Map

We need a snack break around 11. Thankfully, we had Quest bars in our jackets for extra fuel, however, mine froze because I had it in an outside pocket of my jacket! Pro tip: keep chapstick, liquids, lotion, and snacks in the inside of your jacket to prevent freezing!

A few more runs later, we skied to the base of the Mid-Gad lift to the Creekside Grill. Besides hot chocolate, there is nothing better than some warm, yummy, chili on a cold day! It totally hit the spot and some time off of our feet helped us gain our energy back for a few more afternoon runs.

Snowbird, Utah

There were a lot of little ski school groups on the slopes with kids from 4-8 years old! These kids would fly by us on 1.5 foot skis with no poles, in their super puffy ski suits, and I couldn’t get over how cute they were! Since there were more kids than instructors in each group, the kids needed “lift buddies” to help them on and off the lift. We were more than happy to help and I had some adorable conversations with some of these little pros. On the way up the Mid-Gad lift, I helped a 4-year-old girl up to the adventure park so she could go off of the jumps! We were talking about how long she had been skiing and I asked her where she was from. She said “Well, I don’t know where I am from but I DO know what planet we are on. EARTH!”. I totally melted – so cute!

It took us about three runs to get back to the hotel and my legs were skiing like jello when I took my skis off in the locker room! We decided to jump into one of the three hot tubs located right next to the Chickadee slope at the Cliff Lodge. It felt so great on our legs and we were not even 5 feet away from watching the skiers on the slopes. We hung in the hot tub, making new friends from all over the States, for about an hour before heading to the room for a pre-dinner nap.

At the Cliff Lodge in Snowbird, Utah

We opted to go to the Cliff Lodge’s Mexican restaurant, El Chanate, for dinner. We were a little skeptical of how the food would be considering we are used to awesome Mexican food in Texas, but we were pleasantly surprised! We started with some margaritas (of course), chips, & a delicious salsa. I also had some yummy pork tacos and Ryan tried the Pollo En Rajas con Crema (chicken in a spicy cream sauce) which I probably ate 1/3 of. Apparently, the chef, originally from Chihuahua, Mexico, has been working at theEl Chanate for over 10 years and makes very authentic Mexican cuisine (not Tex-Mex).

Throughout dinner, we got into an interesting conversation with our waiter; a fellow traveler from the North East. He decided to uproot his life with one of his friends and bike / rock climb their way through the USA. They made it all the way to Utah before running out of money, so he decided to stay behind in Utah and work until summer. Apparently, the mountains in Utah are top-notch for rock climbing and hiking in the summer – who knew?

Looking back at this post, I realize that some of my favorite memories of this day were garnered by meeting new people and talking to them about their experiences. You never know what funny thing they are going to say, what travel tips they will have, or how amazing their life has been until you start that conversation. Meeting new people and making new friends is definitely one of my favorite things about traveling.

 

Plaza de Armas, Cusco Peru

Cusco, Peru

by The Impatient Traveler, posted in Cusco, Peru, Peru

Day three marked our second flight during the trip from Lima to Cusco. Cusco is in the mountain region of in-land Peru and it takes about an hour by tiny plane to get there. We had a quick breakfast and met our driver around 8 AM to head to the airport. Driving in Peru is an experience in itself as basically all traffic signals, aka stop signs, lights, yield signs, are merely suggestions. We were in 4 near death situations just on the drive to the airport. Eeek! Thankfully, we arrived in one piece, made our flight, and arrived in Cusco around 12:30 PM.

Our next tour guide, Julio, met us at their airport for our bus transport to the hotel in the upper section of Cusco. The ride was really interesting as Julio explained the local housing structure. Since Cusco has become a more popular tour destination, the cost of living has grown substantially. The locals make very little money and cannot afford to buy fully completed houses, thus, most of the houses in Peru are works-in-progress. There is a bottom floor, and sometimes a second or third floor, in each concrete structure, with metal framing wires sticking out of the roofs that were the hight of another floor. The families typically share the buildings with their siblings and add floors when they can afford it. It really made me feel blessed and thankful to have what I have.

Anyways… we were dropped off at the Hotel San Agustin – a beautiful hotel with a huge atrium and very comfortable rooms. The staff gave us some tea to help with the 11K altitude acclamation before we took off to explore the large square up the street known as the Plaza de Armas. The cobble stone square has an amazing fountain in the middle, is surrounded by shops and cathedrals, and has these adorable little old Incan ladies in traditional garb with baby lambs and alpacas. I couldn’t help by take a photo with one of them.

Plaza de Armas, Cusco Peru

We found a great modern burger place with a Peruvian twist called Papacho’s on the border of the square. It not only had a fantastic view, but the best onion rings we have ever had! In addition to the memorable onion rings, I enjoyed a veal sandwich and took a bite of my father’s alpaca burger – yum! Within a non-bug, reasonable scope, I always try to local food as you never know what deliciousness will surprise you.

With so much food in our stomaches, we took off walking to an alleyway off from the square where most of the local markets were. It was actually quite cold in Cusco, more in the 50’s rather than the 70 degree weather in Lima, so, in addition to gifts for friends and family, we stocked up on scarves, jackets, and gloves. You will probably notice my warm, new, knitted, and somewhat alpaca fashion moving forward in my future Peru posts. I say “somewhat alpaca” because the market sellers claimed their products were 100% alpaca wool but, considering the price and the fact the some of the labels read “30% alpaca”, I was skeptical. All of the items we bought were very haggle-able and we bought most things for $5-$10 USD – some great deals!

After an hour or two of shopping, we walked back to the hotel for a quick nap before our evening plans. The altitude and 7 AM wake-ups really take it out of you! We had reservations at Tunupa, a buffet restaurant in the main square with a traditional Cusco dance show. The buffet was full of ceviche and other traditional Peruvian dishes that were all quite tasty. On top of that, we had some Pisco Sours to lighten the mood and get us ready for the craziness to come.

The band was made up of a singer and two instrumentalists and there were two female and two male dancers. The dancers would dance a traditional piece for a song, run back and change, and then dance in a different style. They did this 6 or 7 times and got the crowd up and about to dance as well. It was a roaringly fun time, especially since they played a catchy song called “Pacha Mama” or “Mother Earth”, which we thought said “Punch your mama”, that we kept singing all night long. My mama loved it so much she bought the CD…

With warnings of the sun’s face-scorching capabilities in the thin Cusco air, we stopped to get some colorful hats for the next day’s ruin tours. My sister and boyfriend came to the conclusion that I look funny in hats, a fact I’ve come to accept over many years of trying, so naturally I bought the brightest hat I could find just for fun! With hats in tow, we walked around the square and admired the city lights before heading to the hotel for much-needed sleep.

Plaza de Armas, Cusco Peru

 

 

At the top of Hidden Peak, Snowbird, Utah

Ski Trip Packing List

by The Impatient Traveler, posted in Ski Trip Packing List, Snowbird, Utah

There are two main components to any ski / snowboard ensemble – a base layer and a top layer. There are also two important rules to both – comfort and style (of course)! Below are some of my favorite items for layering up, as well as a guide to packing for the perfect trip!

Ski Trip Packing Guide

1) Boulder Gear Hepburn Jacket   2) The North Face STH Pant  3) North Face 4) Denali thermal beanie 5) Bolle Volt Ski Goggle, White Dots
6) Spyder Essential Ski Gloves 7) Totes Womens Cam Snow Boot

Ski Trip Base Layers

7) Nike Pro Short Sleeve V-Neck Women’s Top 8) Stance Kora Socks 9) Lululemon jacket 10) Nike Shield Leggings 11) Champion Absolute Cami Sports Bra

A few other packing essentials:

  • Make sure your leggings, like the ones above, have a zipper at the bottom to put over your ski boots. You only want your seamless socks in your boots as any other seams or edges can cut off circulation in your legs causing tingley, cold toes.
  • Bring a stick chapstick and mini-lotion for your ski jacket. Chapstick and lip gloss can freeze if you do not have the stick kind.
  • Advil for soreness.
  • Quest bars or any other bars to snack on while you are on the slopes. Pro tip – keep them in your inner layers so they do not freeze or become hard.
  • Bring a nice pair of gloves and a scarf for going out at night.
  • Ditch the heels – wearing your snow boots everywhere is the best thing ever after a long leg day.
  • Pack comfy sweat pants and fuzzy socks for the hotel room. Walking on cold tile bathroom floors is never fun!
  • Use your ski jacket pockets as your wallet, chapstick, and mini-lotion holder during your time on the slopes. A small side bag will do the trick the rest of the time!
  • Don’t forget sunscreen! The snow reflects the sun and burning is easy.
Skiing in Snowbird, Utah
Outfit look familiar?

 

At the top of Hidden Peak, Snowbird, Utah

Getting to Snowbird, Utah

by The Impatient Traveler, posted in Snowbird Skiing, Snowbird, Utah

After a very hectic first three days of New Year’s week, I finally wrapped up at work, grabbed my keys, and jetted home to embark on our long-weekend getaway to Snowbird, Utah! As we packed the night before, it was a grab the bags, energy drink, and go situation to get out of the house. Expecting holiday rush hour traffic at 4 PM on a Wednesday, we planned for lots of traffic time, but the travel Gods parted the highway seas for us and we arrived at the airport, checked our bad, and passed through security with 2+ hours to spare. Pros of being early – no stress. Cons of being early – spending 2+ hours in an airport…

Anyway, we squeezed into a two-top at the airport Chilis for a quick bite. I spent the majority of that dinner eavesdropping on the two single travelers next to us that serendipitously made a love connection over chips and salsa. Yay, airport entertainment!

Our plane boarded on time and I spent most of the 2.5 hour flight catching up on the gossip magazines and looking out of the window at all of the city lights. Flying over cities at night is pretty, but doing so while people still have their Christmas lights up is a completely different experience. There is something so enchanting about twinkle lights and it was just that much better once we landed, hopped on our Canyon Transportation van, and drove through the city where the twinkle lights combined with the snow’s reflection. Oh to live in a state with snow…

While we did have to wait about 30 minutes for our transport van to show up, our shared ride there was easy and warm, which was especially good because it was 0, yes 0, degrees out! We had some good conversations with the local driver and other fellow Snowbird travelers during the ride, arrived at the Cliff Lodge around 10:30, checked in, and then unpacked for our first day on the slopes!

Utah travel tips:

  • Bring eye drops, lotion, and chapstick as the air is very dry.
  • Hydrate starting the day before your trip and drink lots of water throughout. The elevation and dryness in the air will be much worse if you don’t.
  • Ask your hotel if they have a humidifier in the room. Most hotels have them and it makes a huge difference when you are trying to sleep.
  • Decided if you want to rent a car or get a transport to the hotel. If you feel safe driving in snowy conditions and want to go to multiple slopes / places, renting is a good option! If you are not a snow day driver and / or are only staying on-location, do the transport option.