When I first invited the lovely Sam Reitmayer of style/SWOON to participate in Boarding Pass, she was a bit hesitant, reflecting on the fact that she can’t recite a laundry list of places she has visited. I assured her that was not at all what I was looking for. I’m often underwhelmed by people who travel to see what they think they’re supposed to see, rather than experiencing the mundane or finding their own niches. For me travel is much more a mindset than a checklist of places. In fact, I love that she says her travels are for vacation and to relax – so many people travel and come back needing another vacation! And better yet is that her favorite thing to bring back from a trip is her sanity! So in honor of travel as everything you think it’s not, I hope you enjoy today’s post! {Thanks, Sam!}
last trip taken:
Santa Fe, New Mexico for a full week. I think it was one of the longest trips I’ve ever taken. I’m usually not gone for that many days from the office. My parents joined my fiance and I for half the week. A wonderful friend let us stay in their casita. With my parents we did all kinds of touristy things that I have never done in previous trips to Santa Fe. But we also just relaxed and went to the Tesuque Flea Market a lot. It’s small but we couldn’t seem to get enough of it. We were also lucky enough to be there for Zozobra, a Santa Fe tradition of burning the gloom man. It was wild, the whole town shuts down to burn a 55 ft boogie man with people of all ages yelling “BURN HIM!” – it was pretty wild.
next trip on deck:
I’m headed to New York in a couple of weeks but it’s really more of a business trip. Not to worry, it’s always so fun so I’ll get a good day in of shopping and Christmas windows. My next vacation is to Park City, Utah for the Sundance Film Festival in January…can’t wait for that.
one place you would go back to again and again:
If it’s a vacation, I’ll go again! I love them all. Relax/Spa/Art/Food, Santa Fe : to get inspired and my blood pumping, New York : to get a tan and relax…Dominican Republic? but I even love a little place in Florida called Captiva. It’s small, quaint and the sunsets are just beautiful.

place you’d most likely recommend a friend go visit:
Seattle, we just went this summer for the first time and I wish we had stayed longer. There is so much to see and do. Just don’t go in the summer when there is a heat wave. No a/c! — being from Texas this baffled us.

preferred method of transportation:
flying! must be quick and easy, unless I’m visiting a small Texas town which I love to do!

place you’ve never been but dying to go:
California Wine Country, I know, not exotic but I can’t sit still so international travel isn’t my fav. Love it when I get there but getting there is my less than favorite activity. I’m a wino and I’ve been dying to spend a week just toodeling around the wine country.

place you’d never go back:
Can’t think of one! I love them all!!
most memorable trip in 2 sentences or less:
This is impossible!! I just got back from Santa Fe (hence the two Santa Fe references above) and it was the first time I had traveled with my parents in years. It was so wonderful to get to experience a place I love with people I love so dearly. And last March I went to Belgium to oversee the printing of a book in Brugge. We worked most of the time we were there (day and night) but we got to have amazing but quick dinners between press checks and the last night there I had truly the most amazing meal of my life. I have no idea how many courses… 10 maybe?? Crazy delicious. The restaurant is called La Tache.
how do you prepare for a trip?
so last minute… I’m terrible. I’ll do good to make the plane. Thank goodness I always have good traveling companions…
how do you record your travels when you’re traveling?
Photography and then posting via the blog what is your favorite thing to photograph in a new place? stores… I love to explore and shop cool places in new cities and see how they compare to where I live.
on an average, how many pictures to you take on a trip?
Since I started my blog I take so much more gathering content. I used to be terrible about taking photos but now I would guess 300 but my fiance takes a ton and he usually shoots about 1,000

what’s in your “designer travel kit” ?
I don’t sketch but I do usually have my moleskin and then my camera, Canon Powershot

what do you do after a trip? how long after a trip does this happen?
I blog about the stores I found and the highlights, usually the following week or while I’m there.
favorite souvenir/thing to bring back?
My sanity! and if at all possible I love to pick up something for my house on my travels. Usually something small but memorable.
BONUS: Why do you like to travel? for fun? for adventure? for relaxation?
Newflash – I’m not a travel guru. I would call my traveling more vacations… to relax. I like to take more frequent trips that are easy and stress free so I don’t typically travel internationally (There’s still so much I haven’t seen in the country I live in!!) although I have enjoyed my international excursions when I’ve been. Taking vacations is so important and I used to rarely take them. We all work so hard it’s important to take a deep breathe every once in a while and escape your everyday reality, get rejuvenated and re-inspired.
links:
blog: style/SWOON

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