Month: June 2014

We’re On Our Way!

globegazers 1 Comment

The last few weeks have been quite a whirlwind! We both finished our jobs on June 6. Della had her last day of school, which was a little bittersweet. It is obviously exciting to anticipate our trip, but she will miss her students greatly. Even going back next year, there will be a class of students who have left PBA who she will regret not seeing off. Eric also enjoyed a goodbye from work. He is excited that his job also offered him a general leave of absence. The leaves allow both of us to feel comfortable knowing that we have a job when we return home and helps to make some goodbyes easier!

We had originally thought that we would be able to leisurely get ready, pack the house, and prepare ourselves in the three weeks following June 6. We also had great plans of being able to do some of the great CO stuff that one should do if not working during the day: visions of hiking, spending days at the cabin, and laying by Cook Park pool danced in our heads. However, we quickly realized that there was way too much to do and not enough time to do it in! I won’t rehash our to-do list, but we will reiterate that it was extensive! The worst part however, was realizing each day that we not only had to cross stuff off, but we had to keep adding and adding! Luckily, we are proud to report that all things got done! We were able to hand off the keys to a clean and packed house to our renter on Sat the 28th, feeling pretty good. (Special thanks to Della’s parents for help with the final packing and for overseeing the house while we’re gone, to Regina with her mad vacuuming skills and awesome vacuum, to Chelsea for her attention to detail and attacking the massive cleaning job of the kitchen, and to Elizabeth for braving the spiders to help make the basement presentable!)

People kept asking how we were feeling, so we wanted to address that a bit. It is a hard one to answer though! We were stressed obviously, anticipating everything we had to do to prepare. We were nervous, knowing that we are about to leave everything familiar behind. We were anxious to just get started! It was hard to predict exactly what we would need until we were actually on the road. At the same time, we felt like we needed more time to get ready. When the time came to leave, we were grateful that we have a few days in NYC to help ease our minds and repack
the absolute essentials.

We are happy to say that as of 5:50 am on Sun the 29th of June, 2014 (another thanks to Della’s parents for the early morning airport ride) we are departed from Denver!!! Let the RTW begin!

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Departure Date Update

globegazers 2 Comments

So, the countdown on the side of this blog is counting down till the day we leave the country. But we feel like we should update it a bit. We now (finally) have our ticket from Denver to NYC. The departure date from Denver is 6/29 – a mere 5 days away. We are equal parts excited and nervous. I’m sure it will seem more real as we actually get on the plane.

We have a few days planned for NYC – and then off to Africa… and adventure!

One Week: To Do

globegazers 3 Comments

So, we know the blog has been pretty quiet the last few weeks. When you take a look at our to-do list you’ll understand why! We have both been out of work since June 6th. We thought we would have a leisurely time packing up and knocking items off the checklist. Little did we know that we would be working all day every day to get everything done! If you look close at the list, you’ll notice a lot more things are marked DONE, but there are a lot more things on it too… things we didn’t know we had to do until now. ACK! But luckily, we are on schedule for our June 29th departure to NYC.

PLANNING

  • Contact and plan our safari – DONE
  • Make lodging arrangements for Johannesburg – DONE
  • Explore Travel Insurance Options & select/purchase policy – DONE
  • Add pages to both passports  – NOT NEEDED TILL ASIA
  • check visa/passport requirements for all countries – DONE
  • Get passport photos taken for visas (have several printed) – DONE
  • Scan all documents into digital format and save to both emails
  • Gather all CC contact numbers, embassy numbers, etc. – download app? – DONE
  • Get new international drivers licenses – DONE
  • Get family and friends setup with Skype/Viber – HALF DONE
  • set temporary change of address with post office
  • Finalize packing lists
  • Put together med kit – HALF DONE
  • figure out how to unlock Eric’s phone – DONE
  • Figure out what to do with Della’s phone – DONE
  • decide on final packs – DONE
  • decide on final plug options (give dad others to return) – DONE
  • purchase plane ticket to NYC – DONE
  • decide where to stay while in NYC – DONE
  • purchase plane ticket to South Africa – DONE
  • purchase plane ticket to Prague – DONE
  • purchase train ticket Johannesburg to Capetown – DONE
  • Collect travel planning documents (scanned/packed) – HALF DONE
  • Contact insurance company related to cars – DONE
  • fill out power of attorney documents (general and medical)
  • Copies of Safari Info to parents
  • Finalize Safari – DONE
  • Book Air BnB Prague

HOUSE/STUFF

  • Rent our house – DONE
  • write a lease for our house rental – DONE
  • Donate stuff not worth selling – HALF DONE
  • Make arrangements for storage of the amount we plan to keep – DONE
  • Pack up the house
    • Study – DONE
    • Master Bedroom – HALF Done
    • Guest Bedroom 1 – HALF DONE
    • Guest Bedroom 2 – DONE
    • Kitchen – HALF DONE
    • Living Room – HALF Done
    • Basement big room – Mostly Done
    • Basement sound room – DONE
    • bathroom 1 – DONE
    • bathroom 2 – DONE
    • master bathroom – HALF DONE
    • garage
    • utility room – HALF DONE
  • Sell extra clothes on ebay – HALF DONE
  • discontinue utility services – DONE

PETS

  • Texi to vet – DONE
  • Texi to TX – DONE

MEDICAL

  • Make a visit to our travel doc for meds/vaccines – DONE
  • Dentist appointments – DONE
  • Final doctors appointment – DONE
  • Eye exams – new glasses (della) – DONE
  • figure out when insurance ends – DONE July 1
  • Della – get new orthodics – DONE
  • Fill prescriptions – DONE

MONEY$

  • Finish up credit card minimum spends – DONE
  • Cancel unnecessary credit cards – HALF DONE
  • decide which cards to continue gaining miles on – DONE
  • notify all cards of international travel – HALF DONE
  • set up venmo – DONE
  • Get updated credit/debit cards – HALF DONE

TO BUY

  • External Hard drives – DONE
  • wire padlocks (TSA) – DONE
  • space on the cloud for storage (decide what spaces we will use: dropbox, google drive, other??) – DONE
  • rain covers/travel covers for packs – DONE
  • drain plugs – DONE
  • extra camera batteries (della) – DONE
  • buy more camera memory cards – DONE
  • Good walking/hiking/zumba shoes – DONE
  • good sandals – DONE
  • travel clothing – DONE
  • New phone for Della – DONE
  • VPN – DONE

EVERYTHING ELSE

  • Get website up and running – DONE
  • Photo website up and linked into our Blog – DONE
  • Della – figure out how to pack/transition classroom – DONE
  • Buy new washer – DONE
  • Buy new dryer – DONE
  • Install washer/dryer – DONE
  • Have going away party – DONE
  • Eric – learn/practice driving stick shift
  • Eric – transition to shaving with bladed razor – DONE
  • Eric- get LASIK – DONE
  • Della – new driver’s license – DONE?
  • Eric- New driver’s license – DONE?
  • Della – renew license plates – DONE?
  • Modify Netflix Subscription
  • Clean house
  • Clean cars

One Month: To Do

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As of June 2, we are one month from our departure date! Here’s an updated to do list! There is still A LOT to get done, but we are hoping to ramp up our speed once we are both done with work – THIS FRIDAY!!!!!

PLANNING

  • Contact and plan our safari – DONE
  • Make lodging arrangements for Johannesburg
  • Explore Travel Insurance Options & select/purchase policy – HALF DONE
  • Add pages to both passports  – NOT NEEDED TILL ASIA
  • check visa/passport requirements for all countries
  • Get passport photos taken for visas (have several printed)
  • Scan all documents into digital format and save to both emails
  • Gather all CC contact numbers, embassy numbers, etc. – download app?
  • Get new international drivers licenses
  • Get family and friends setup with Skype/Viber – HALF DONE
  • set temporary change of address with  post office
  • Finalize packing lists
  • Put together med kit
  • figure out how to unlock Eric’s phone?
  • Figure out what to do with Della’s phone
  • decide on final packs
  • decide on final plug options (give dad others to return)
  • purchase plane ticket to NYC
  • decide where to stay while in NYC
  • purchase plane ticket to South Africa – DONE
  • purchase plane ticket to Prague – DONE
  • purchase train ticket Johannesburg to Capetown – DONE
  • Collect travel planning documents (scanned/packed) – HALF DONE
  • Contact insurance company related to cars – HALF DONE
  • fill out power of attorney documents (general and medical)

HOUSE/STUFF

  • Rent our house – HALF DONE
  • write a lease for our house rental – DONE
  • Donate stuff not worth selling – HALF DONE
  • Make arrangements for storage of the amount we plan to keep – DONE
  • Pack up the house
    • Study
    • Master Bedroom
    • Guest Bedroom 1
    • Guest Bedroom 2
    • Kitchen
    • Living Room
    • Basement big room
    • Basement sound room
    • bathroom 1
    • bathroom 2
    • master bathroom
    • garage
    • utility room
  • Sell extra clothes on ebay
  • discontinue utility services

PETS

  • Texi to vet – DONE
  • Texi to TX – DONE

MEDICAL

  • Make a visit to our travel doc for meds/vaccines – DONE
  • Dentist appointments – SCHEDULED
  • Final doctors appointment – DONE
  • Eye exams – new glasses (della) – DONE
  • figure out when insurance ends – DONE July 1

MONEY$

  • Finish up credit card minimum spends – DONE
  • Cancel unnecessary credit cards
  • decide which cards to continue gaining miles on
  • notify all cards of international travel

TO BUY

  • External Hard drives – DONE
  • wire padlocks (TSA)
  • space on the cloud for storage (decide what spaces we will use: dropbox, google drive, other??)
  • rain covers/travel covers for packs – HALF DONE
  • drain plugs – DONE
  • extra camera batteries (della) – DONE
  • buy more camera memory cards – DONE
  • Good walking/hiking/zumba shoes – HALF DONE
  • good sandals – DONE
  • travel clothing – MOSTLY DONE

EVERYTHING ELSE

  • Get website up and running – DONE
  • Photo website up and linked into our Blog – DONE
  • Della – figure out how to pack/transition classroom – ALMOST DONE
  • Buy new washer
  • Buy new dryer – DONE
  • Install washer/dryer
  • Have going away party – SCHEDULED
  • Eric – learn/practice driving stick shift
  • Eric – transition to shaving with bladed razor – DONE
  • Eric- get LASIK – DONE
  • Della – advertise student blog – HALF DONE

Texi Goes to Texas

globegazers 1 Comment

Once upon a time there was a little cat who needed to travel from Denver, CO to Dallas, TX. There was much discussion on how she should travel.

“Which would be better” the Sorcerer Eric asked, “flying upon an aeroplane, or driving overland?”

“Tis difficult to decide,” replied the fairequine Delic. “Flying costs more in gold press latinum, but traveling by car requires more time as Dallas is 14 hours to and hence from Denver.”

“Upon my magical consideration,” replied the sorcerer, “flying shall be best.”

Flying a Cat

Fairy tales aside, we did need to transport Texi to Texas and we did decide, upon careful consideration, that flying was the most appropriate option. While we had never flown with a cat before, we discovered that it is quite possible, though definitely a bit stressful.

We had heard that many airlines required pet health certificates from the vet in order to board the plane. We did not think that American Airlines did, but we took Texi to the vet within 10 days of the flight just in case. We were never asked to present the certificate. We did, however, get her a clean bill of health and secure a prescription for kitty drugs to keep her calm during the flight.

Texi has never enjoyed being transported and this time was no exception. Despite taking a double dose of the drugs, she never did completely zonk out.

Things you Need to Know to Fly a Cat

  1. You can choose to take your cat as a carry-on. The pet carrier counts as your personal item that travels beneath the seat in front of you, so plan accordingly.
  2. Buy a soft sided pet carrier as there are rules about the size of the carrier. The soft sided gives a more flexible option and will likely fit under the seat while giving your cat more room to move around.
  3. Visit the vet within 10 days of flying to secure a health certificate. Many airlines required this, though it did not turn out to be necessary for us.
  4. Book your flight online to save phone booking fees, but after you do that, you will need to call to add your pet to your flight information. Some airlines only allow a certain number of pets on board each flight so you need to make sure that your pet will be welcome.
  5. Be prepared to pay a pet fee. We were a little frustrated that Texi cost more to fly then we did. We chose to fly American Airlines because they offered 1 free checked bag (with Eric’s status as a credit card carrier) and offered a direct flight to Dallas. Their pet fee was $125. In comparison, the 1 way ticket for me cost only $95.
  6. Know that you can ask for a private TSA security screening. You will need to remove your cat from her carrier to go through security. The carrier will have to go through the X-ray machine, but your cat should not. We were concerned that (despite the drugs) Texi may squirm enough that she could get away if we removed her from the carrier. Visions of her dashing through DIA were not exciting. So, we requested a private screening. I was able to take her into a small enclosed room where she could not get away. The TSA representatives took the carrier out and ran it through the X-ray and then returned it to me. This whole process is easier if you are not traveling by yourself. Eric had to take care of all of my bags while this was occurring.
  7. Take advantage of the family restrooms which are available at airports. We used two at DIA and one in DFW to let Texi out of the bag for short moments so she didn’t go stir crazy. It allowed us to let her relax a little while doing the waiting thing at the airports.
  8. Don’t worry too much about the noise the cat will make. Due to the general white noise on an airplane and the fact that the carrier is under the seat, it is difficult to hear it. We also covered the carrier with Eric’s fleece just to make sure. We’re not sure anyone on the airplane even noticed we were carrying a cat.
  9. Beware that takeoff and especially landing may be difficult. We guessed that Texi had pain in her ears much as everyone does when going up and down in the airplane. She was mostly OK on the way up, but landing was a different story. She freaked out a bit and ended up pawing and biting at the top of her carrier, potentially trying to get out. We had to hold it closed (velcro may not be the best option). It was difficult for about 10 to 15 minutes, though she calmed once we were back on solid ground.

Overall, the entire ordeal went smoothly. We were grateful that our plane ran on time and we did get Texi to Texas in an orderly fashion. She even seemed to feel comfortable in her new home rather quickly.

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Shots, Shots, Shots: Our Visit to a Travel Clinic

enjean2013 2 Comments

Part of our trip preparations was to get some shots!

Actually Lil Jon, we don’t mean those kinds of shots. We mean vaccinations!

There are a lot of nasty diseases out there in the world that we don’t want to contract. So, we decided to get ourselves preotected from those dangers.

Rather than try and figure out on our own what we needed, we decided to visit a travel clinic. They wanted to see us six weeks before our trip, so we went and visited the second-to-last week of May.

During our visit to the clinic, we first went over our itinerary with them to identify the different entry requirements the country might have and the different risks we would be exposed to while in the country. Once we had gone through all of the itinerary, they gave us recommendations of what we should get, and we decided what to accept. In the end, we went with most of their recommendations.

  • Hepatitis A: Eric needed this one. Della had it in 2007
  • Typhoid: Both of us got this. It is actually taken as an oral vaccine now
  • Japanese Encephalitis: Both of us had to get this one. We felt a little unprepared to decide on whether we needed it, but we decided better safe than sorry. We will need to get a second dose of this in June
  • TDAP: Eric needed this one. Della had it in 2007
  • Polio: Required for entry to Israel and India, so both of us got it

So in the end, Eric got four shots (two in each arm) and Della got two (one in each arm).

We also got a few prescriptions for some pills:

  • Doxycycline (malaria): this seemed like the best choice among the different malaria pills. Still going to be a pain though. Based on the time we will be “at risk,” we have to each get 220 pills!
  • Cipro: Anti-diarrhea antibiotic treatment outside of Asia
  • Zithromax: Anti-diarrhea antibotic treatment in Asia
  • Diphenoxylate (Lomotil): Anti-diarrhea treatment similar to Imodium

There were a few immunizations we declined:

  • Rabies: they said we only needed this if we would be outside reach of medical care for over 24 hours. We don’t think this will be the case very often, so we declined. Plus, this was a pretty expensive shot…
  • Meningitis: recommended for group living situations. We will be in hostel dorms some nights potentially, but we didn’t think this would be often enough to justify the cost

In the end, the cost of this was quite high, but this was mitigated somewhat by the fact that we each have an HSA that we were able to use for payment. Also, probably better to pay the high cost than get the disease later!