Capri

Yesterday we spent the day on the Island of Capri. It's not surprising that this is a favorite vacation spot of the rich and famous, because it's a beautiful place. From Sorrento, we took a ferry across to the island, which has two towns, Capri and Anacapri. Jake and I really needed a day to relax and enjoy the scenery after busy Rome, so being in Capri was perfect.





We spent several hours on the beach. The beaches in Capri are made of rocks, which is pretty interesting (and painful) for kids from California like us. The water is also VERY warm and clear and pleasant. We spent a good chunk of our morning just watching Italians go about their beach day. It was endlessly entertaining. We saw old men (and young men) in speedos, women with deep dark tans and our personal favorite, little Italian children having precious little Italian tantrums... intonation included. MAMA!








After the beach, we had lunch at a little cafe and then wandered the shops looking for postcards and little souvenirs. Later, we hiked up to a higher part of the island and watched swimmers and giant yachts. We ended our day in Capri with another swim and went back to our hotel in Sorrento tired and happy.











Today we will be traveling all day as we move to the Port of Brindisi and take an overnight ferry to Corfu. We are a little bit sad to be leaving Italy, but are confident we will find our way back some day.

- Posted using BlogPress via my iPad from Sorrento

Sorrento

We left Rome yesterday and made the drive south to Sorrento. On the way, we stopped in Pompeii. Pompeii is such an interesting place... a look into how the people here lived 2,000 years ago! We enjoyed seeing the amphitheaters, an ancient version of a fast food franchise and the remains of a brothel where the "menu" was painted on the wall.











We arrived in Sorrento in the afternoon after a scenic drive along the cliffs. This place is beautiful! I was in love right away. In contrast to Rome, Sorrento is clean, romantic and laid back. Our hotel has a wonderful, open, beachy feel. The streets are bustling at all hours, not just with young people, but with families too. People here love children and dogs... they are everywhere. They produce a liquor called Limoncello. It is made with lemon rinds, alcohol and sugar and is DELICIOUS!











Jake and I wandered through the shops in the evening and stopped for dinner at a restaurant called La Taverna. We had insalata caprese, pasta with fresh produce, roasted potatoes, chicken and a delicious wine. Afterwards, we drank Limoncello and listened to the city from our balcony. Buona Serra Sorrento.








- Posted using BlogPress via my iPad from Sorrento

Buongiorno from Roma!

Hello from Rome! We arrived in Italy this morning after a long international flight that truly challenged our understanding of time zones. Our arrival into Rome wasn't exactly the most welcoming at first... Jake's bag was temporarily lost and finding the shuttle, an ATM and a cell phone store with a language barrier while hungry and tired in an unfamiliar city proved to be quite challenging. After checking in with our tour group, a nap and some dinner, though... things certainly turned around!

A few quick observations about Rome... it is NOTHING like we thought it would be. From photos I've seen, I thought it would be a clean, organized and historically preserved remnant of its former empire. But, after being here for a day, we would say that Rome is ANYTHING BUT clean or organized. The exciting thing about Rome is that you can see everything from its history and everything from its present all smashed and layered together like the strata in a rock formation. All the eras and examples of Italian design that I studied in art history are all mixed up together with a dash of modern life thrown in as well. All the streets and alleys twist together in an unintelligible pattern. Jake and I agreed that Rome is a lot like a colony of ants living in the skeleton of a larger animal that has since rotted away. You can see the niches in great stone buildings and the ancient aqueduct filled in with pizza stands and SIM card retailers.





The people are wonderful and good humored so far, although they usually won't address you first. I always try to use my limited Italian and in return they speak to us with as much English as they know. My secret weapon is "Parli Inglese?"... "Do you speak English?" to which they respond "Ah... Poco." and then seem to understand everything we say. We are amazed at how brilliantly bilingual everyone seems to be.





This evening we set out with a group to see some of the favorite piazzas and monuments. We visited the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and Piazza Navona. It was exhilarating to step out of some obscure alley way and suddenly be face to face with some of the most famous public works in the world. They certainly are beautiful and so very sincerely epic.











Tomorrow we visit the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and Vatican City. Our adventure is really just beginning! All our love from Rome!





- Posted using BlogPress via my iPad from Italy

Arrivederci!

We're en route to Rome! We're excited to be on the way after a year of planning and saving.


As for updates... we expect to be thoroughly connected from half way around the world, although we will spend plenty of time intentionally "off the grid". There's wifi on the plane... it's a whole new world!

"On this plane we do have the wifi on board for the access to the Internet. " -Delta Airline Stewardess

-posted via BlogPress for iPhone from the friendly skys

Packing for a Trip? There's an App for That.

We are leaving for our two week European vacation in just a few days. We've been packing and purchasing international phone plans and arranging house and dog sitting. It's a whirlwind of excitement and anxiety. I'm immersed.

Lots of people just pack jeans and t-shirts when they go on vacation. If that is you and you like it that way... stop reading. No judgement or issue with that... just not my style.

My best friend Megan and I have deliberated at length about the problems that come along with traveling in style... unless you have a stylist, in which case... get lost. To pack lightly (something our boyfriends and husbands seem obsessed with), you have to spend a lot of time planning your outfits and by the time you arrive you're overwhelmed with seeing the sights and you've forgotten what you picked out. Some pieces end up getting worn everyday (and in every photo... shoot) and some things just get pushed to the bottom of the bag and end up being a waste of space. No body wants to wake up at 6:30am during vacation to deliberate over an outfit. During my last few trips, Megan and I have developed a system to avoid all that... I'm about to give away trade secrets here.*

We've come up with a way to make sure you have a cute outfit every day you travel with zero hassle in the mornings. It involves planning, so if you can't bring yourself to be prepared, then you're out of luck. If you can, though, you'll save yourself a lot of stress on your vacation.

Megan & Tobi's Foolproof Guide to a Stylish and Effortless Vacation

You will need a camera, phone and computer for this method. The process will be different depending on what type of phone/computer you have, but my directions are for iPhone/Apple people. If you don't have Apple products, then I'm sure you can figure out something similar with your phone/computer. Good luck!

1. Tally It Up: Make a list of types of outfits you will need (ex: daytime, semi-formal dinner, going out, beach, etc.). Then, go through the itinerary for your vacation and make a tally mark next to each type of outfit every time you come across a day when you'll need it. In one day you might need a couple different types. For my trip, I needed 14 day outfits, 8 dinner outfits, 5 going out outfits and a couple other random outfits for the beach, travel days, etc. As always, I must thank my best friend and style guru Megan Smith for helping me style these looks!

2. Start Styling: Here's the fun part. Start styling your trip! Start with the outfits you will need the most of and work down from there. Remember to take the weather into account and that you'll want to take pieces you can wear more than once, especially for long trips. I was able to make 14 day outfits with only 5 pairs of shorts and 9 tops. After you've matched up the pieces, make sure you take note of the details, like what and jewelry goes with the outfit, or what type of camis, bras or panties you'll need. Pick out shoes for each outfit, but don't take a bulky pair of pumps along if they only go with one dress!

3. Photograph and Organize: Lay out each outfit, complete with jewelry and shoes and take a photo. I do this part with my real camera (for quality) and I like to upload mine to iPhoto and crop them, so they look nice. Then, in iPhoto, I create an album for each type of outfit (day, night, going out, etc.) and drag each of the photos into the album or albums they belong in.

For a quick and dirty version, you can also just snap a photo of each outfit with your phone and keep them in your camera roll, but I don't like the clutter personally.

4. Sync: Plug your iPhone into your computer to sync. When iTunes pops up, make sure you select your outfit albums under "photos". Sync and voila!

Now you should have an album in your "Photos" app for each type of outfit you will need. When you are ready to get dressed for the day, you can just flip through the photos until you find what you want to wear. You won't need to try to throw something together, just put on what you've already laid out, complete with accessories.

Other Tips:

• Use the good old "Day to Night" trick as much as possible. Accessorize a top in the day with a belt and shorts and bring it into the night by adding jewelry and skinny jeans.

• If you won't have access to a washer/dryer during your trip, try not to plan easy-to-soil items like white shorts into too many outfits... just in case.

• Make shoes fit! I wrap mine in packing paper to prevent them from getting scuffed and put them in the bottom of the bag. For pumps, I place them in rows on either side with the heel facing out, so that they form a v in the middle of the bag where you can pack your clothes.

• If you are only bringing a carry on bag to avoid extra charges, you won't be able to bring big bottles like sunscreen. Make a list of items like this that you'll need right away but couldn't bring and pick them up on the first day.

• Don't forget a little pill case or baggie with band aids, pain relievers, etc. Going without can really ruin your day!

Let me know if you have any other tips or tricks to share!

HAPPY TRAVELS!

*Just a couple hours before I was going to post this, I found out that my friend Janna does this too! Alright, maybe it's not a trade secret... but it is helpful!

Adore Home

{Image via Adore Home}

Check out Adore Magazine online. Based out of Australia, this online magazine runs every two months and features some gorgeous products and inspiration. I love the repetition of hot pink accents this month, the incredible kitchen on page 38 and the fun feature on travel to Sydney near the end.

Peek at My Pinterest!

{Image via Pinterest from Design*Sponge}

Have you peeked at my Pinterest? Every day I select and post lovely ideas, inspiration and objects of desire! I have boards for home goods, parties, clothes and lots more. I'm adding a link in the side bar, but until then... go take a look!