June 2017 Recap

June was a busy month! First there were epic paintball battles!

And then it was ladies’ paint night with the girls!

And then it was my trip to Panama….

Travel

Panama has been on my wishlist for a while, as I heard they had great beaches and good snorkeling! I decided on a longer trip that also went to parts of Costa Rica I hadn’t been to before. This was the first time I tried not to have everything planned and instead go with the flow!

Highlights

Going clubbing for the first time!

Relaxing views like this one! And it was the off season so very few people!

And amazing snorkeling! It was like swimming through an aquarium!

I loved having drinks in the ocean!

Did another “Adventure Connection” and had fun white water rafting to our next destination!

Challenges

I got SICK on this trip. Like “I wonder if my insurance will cover me if I leave now” sick. First I popped my eardrums badly, having trouble hearing for half of the trip. Then I got a head cold, complete with runny nose. Then I got Pink Eye/Allergic Reaction in BOTH eyes. The mucus would seal them shut. EEEWWWW. But I soldiered on and took lots of unknown medicine to get better. From now on I’m traveling with my cold medicine!
Hangovers and humidity and sun are not fun! I missed out on seeing some things in Panama City as I just wanted to sleep. Oh and when I did go back to the hotel to rest…well I can say the local marching band sounds really well practiced.
I missed out on two days of snorkeling due to weather, but at last the days I did do it was amazing.
I slipped badly on a spilled drink at a club, and ended up injuring a friend in the process.
I found out I suck at sea kayaking (you’d think I would have learned the first time) especially if its a 2 seater!

Recommended Reading

Lili on the Loose

My favorite post I worked on this month were tips on How to Avoid the “Lost Bag” Worst Case Scenario and remembering the amazing Tea Ceremony I participated in Japan. Also, if someone suggests Jorvik, don’t go! It’s nothing like Disneyland.

Other Blogs

I always have a soft for “Travel Misstep” stories from other bloggers. This month I enjoyed Never Ending Footstep’s blogging mistakes, and it was hilarious to read the original “money belt” purveyor Rick Steves getting pickpocketed.

On other stories, I went down memory lane with this article about Japanese Ryokan, and Y Travel’s Hana Road guide.

In preparing for Panama I came across these two great snorkeling articles: one on gear and the other on unique places.

Other articles I’m saving as references is Google’s Virtual Museum experinces, a list of great rooftop bars in Denver, and this really old article on what websites pay for travel articles.

Books

One of my favorite Travel Bloggers is Geraldine of The Everywhereist. Over the last few months she has discussed the process of writing a book on her travels. I’m not one to read non-fiction, nor other’s travel accounts that aren’t in blog form. So while learning about her process was interesting, I wasn’t planning on picking the book up. But right before my Panama trip, I figured, why the hell not? I have hundreds of books on my Kindle that are in some state of unread, so might as well support one of my favorite travel bloggers and get her book to languish on my Kindle as well.

So I purchased “All Over the Place: Adventures in Travel, True Love, and Petty Theft” and figured that would be it. Boy was I wrong! After being on my 2nd flight and having House of Cards weirdly skipping on my crappy 4+ year phone, I decided to read a book and her’s was the first to pull up. So I dove right on in. As I said I love her quirky travel blog, and instantly got hooked in. It was such a good book, that one day when I was supposed to go snorkeling I wasn’t that bothered that it was raining heavily and plans got canceled. Instead, in my sickened state, I made a nest in a hammock by the ocean and simply read this book the entire day. Here are some of my favorite quotes:

He knows that I like to board a plane as soon as our row is called (ostensibly because I want to have room in the overhead compartment to store my bag, but I think primarily because of hazy childhood memories of being picked last during kickball).
“Only criminals have lunch in random towns that they didn’t plan on being in,”
Living in the Pacific Northwest, my earthquake survival kit is incredibly well-appointed, except for when I get stoned and eat all the rations.
Rand has terrible ideas. […] Also, he thinks Oswald acted alone.
I have few regrets in travel, but failing to break into the grounds of the Smallpox Hospital remains one of them.
[About her mom] she has always been pretty enough to be a risk to national security.
If you’ve never traveled on London’s subway, it’s not unlike being a gerbil run through a maze, except there’s no one there to hand you delicious pellets when you go the right way. At least, I don’t think there is. I’ve never done anything but go the wrong way down there, so the positive reinforcement has never been a factor.
I looked like someone who needed astronomy, very urgently.
Every trip is just an opportunity to screw up on a grand scale.
“OPEN UP, I’VE BROUGHT YOU YOUR RELATIVES.”

But really, you need to read this book to hear her delightful (and sometimes a bit quirky/insane) stories of her mother trying to get through security, a rather interesting story about a clock, stories of getting lost, of revenge and theft, and of finding and dealing with love, and a whole lot more. As my trip had its ups and downs, this book was the perfect reminder that just because something doesn’t go exactly as planned, its not a failure, and instead focus on the little wins. I think if it was a book on “OMG I TRAVEL PERFECTLY AND HERE ARE MY AMAZING ADVENTURES” I would have chucked it into the ocean (bad idea when it’s an electronic Kindle) but instead I felt like I was chatting with a friend just as unlucky and klutzy as I usually am.

Watchlist

TV

As I was traveling most of the month, my watching was limited to more Death in Paradise pre-trip to get into the Carribean vibes! During the trip, I started watching Rick and Morty, and after the trip binged House of Cards, Doctor Who, and Orange is the New Black!

What’s Next

NOTHING! After a ‘relaxing’ trip, I have no plans for July. I might try to make it to some local museums and see more friends, but honestly need a vacation from planning anything.