I was hunting around in Google Images for some tourist maps and came across this great website... Mappery. It is dedicated to maps and created by lovers of maps. Contributers from all over the world scan and upload their maps. It's obvious that some are direct scans of travel worn (and wrinkled) maps direct from people's own voyages. All sorts of maps are on the site--tourist, hiking, topographical, historical, even a fantastic biking map of Rome and the surrounding countryside. I was amazed at the large selection for Italy. A great find. Enjoy. --Jerry F. While organizing all the different gadgets we would be bringing to Italy, I felt I had to look for some way to lesson the number of cables and power blocks that I'd need to bring. In our home we have pretty much one whole shelf in our kitchen with a multi-outlet surge protector with all sorts of things plugged into it--and we often still run out of space for those darned power blocks.
Then I discovered this beauty: This is the LEPOWER 40W, 5 Port Desktop USB Charger. This thing replaces all those power blocks... most of them nowadays come with USB cables for each device that plug right into the block. Well, instead of taking all those blocks, take just this one. The beauty of this thing is not only the 5 USB slots, but that two of them (on the right) are super chargers (higher power). When I plug my Kindle into one of them it charges in less than 15 minutes. We've tried our Motorola Droid phones (3 different models), Ipads, cameras, you name it. They all get charged with this one charger. Plug the larger devices into the two right slots, the rest (like smart phones) into the other three. Also, the thing has some sort of circuitry that speaks to each device and gives it the correct amount of power needed for charging. So far, it works with every type of device and I haven't fried a single one. For Italy, all I have to do is plug in one of those European adapters into its power cord and we're good to go (it works with 120 or 220 volts). So, even though we might still have to bring a mess of cables (some cables are dedicated to one specific device) not having to bring all those power blocks fantastic. --Jerry F. UPDATE: One of the best tech gadgets we brought along with us. It charged every device we had (aside from an older camera) and in most cases, charged them faster than normal. A very valuable tool for travel! It's been about three months since I started researching and planning our grand voyage. I'm going to try and give you some tips and advice based on what I've learned.
Here's the first big tip. Google Earth. I can't tell you how valuable this tool has been in researching places to stay, sites to visit, the best viewpoints for vistas, the best scenic drives, where to park, and how to avoid the dreaded no drive zones found in most tourist towns (zona traffico limitato). Google Earth is easy and free to install. While Google map is best for planning driving routes, Earth allows you to save pin maps sorted by folder for each region or town you will be visiting. I have a folder for Puglia a folder for Rome and so on. I've pinned the best parking spaces, best views, hotels, bakeries, delis (salumerias), cheese shops, Hertz locations, and of course, all the sites I'd love to see in a given area. And the best thing about Google earth is dragging the little man to see the street level view, in 360°! This can prevent you from booking and agriturismo that looks more like a factory, how seedy a particular neighborhood really is, or how thick the crowds really are at all popular tourist site so you can plan accordingly. You might even discover areas worth visiting you had no idea about before actually seeing them on Earth. Try exploring with Google Earth months before your trip. It's both addictive and enlightening. My son doesn't want to see too much on Google Earth because he wants to be surprised... But after all, I'm the grown up and realize that surprises while traveling is not necessarily a good thing. --Jerry F. Okay, the title may sound stupid, but you'll find out why I titled it that. Mom (Lisa) found this travel site called Travelsmith, which basically has things made for flight to save space. (I was thinking about getting an airplane tray extension which can hold 2 cups and a laptop). Mom also found some homeopathic pills called No-Jet-Lag ($12.99 On Travelsmith, but on Amazon we found it for seven bucks). The package is only sufficient for like 50 hours, and you're supposed to take 1-2 every 2 hours, so I think that's wrong.
Every day I think about one thing that I'm looking forward to: getting back to the States. I'm not really an airplane person. I'm frightened of just the thought of looking out the window of the plane. My first post!! Lucas (Needed To Make My Name Bigger) UPDATE: This duffle proved to be invaluable. It rolled well, could take another bad (my messenger bag) on top, held lots of stuff and looked like new at the end of the three week trip. A. Saks proved to be the perfect luggage for us.
We will be posting interesting and practical travel products and services we've come across while researching our voyage. Keep checking back to see what we've found.
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