Travelling through Asia - Travel Shoes

I'm writing this still a little undecided about whether I'm packing too many or too few pairs of shoes for my trip, but I will share them anyway. Normally I live in flip flops in the summer and I find them comfortable enough to wear for most activities, but since we plan on doing a bunch of different activities on this trip, I've decided to bring a few more pairs.

I'm packing a pair or Birkenstocks, the Arizona's, this is my first time wearing Birkenstocks and so far they have been really comfortable (I'm working on breaking them in before I leave). Im also packing a pair of Nike Free running shoes, they are the most comfortble runner I've ever worn and they will be great for hiking and biking and exercising (if that happens :P ). The flip flops that I'm bringing are the Sanuk Yoga joy sandal (they are made from the same material as a yoga mat and are really comfortable). I'm bringing a pair of converse sneakers too for casual days, and a pair or simple leather sandals. I tried to keep them all pretty neutral so I can match them with almost anything...I may be crazy to bring white shoes, but they look better a little dirty anyway, right? ;)

-M

Ali's Travel Shoes

In a post from last week I talked about the torture of trying to find a comfy and cute travel sandal. This week I will show you all of the other shoes I decided to bring and why each one is essential for the destinations I am going to. This spring I will be visiting Iceland, the UK and Italy. I decided on 5 pairs of shoes...I know it seems kind of crazy to bring that many pairs but I am only counting it as three since my flip-flops and leopard flats are so tiny they can squish or fold up into nothing. Last year when I went to London and Paris for 2 weeks I only brought two pairs and was perfectly fine the entire trip, but this year the trip is so different and I am going to so many different climates, I just couldn't limit it down anymore. 

1.

The first pair of shoes is a good sneaker, mine are etnies but Converse shoes are really popular and cute as well. They need to be a comfortable shoe that you can plop your orthotics into and be good walking for up to 7 hours in (yes 7 hours! The first day I was in London last year I walked for that long). As a pharmacy student that needs to stand 8 hours a day when I'm working, I really know how to appreciate a comfortable shoe that can fit my orthotics. These shoes are cute with jeans or some shorts and are still comfortable without making you look like a grandma. Make sure they match the majority of clothes you are bringing, I am packing mostly neutrals since I don't have that much room for clothes (with my 5 shoes and all) so I decided to bring a pair with more colour to spice up my outfits. These will be my main shoes for London and Iceland since it might be too cold or rainy to wear my Birkenstock's there.

2. 

The next pair of shoes are my leopard flats. Normally, I wouldn't even bother bringing flats to Europe because for me they are not comfortable enough to walk for miles in as they have almost no support and not enough cushion. This year I decided/needed to bring them because for the course I am taking in Italy we have to have a nice pair of closed toe shoes that can be worn to the dinners my classmates, teachers and I have together. My course is also in a small town with not many miles to cover so I figured I would be able to wear them around town when I was going to the market and not walking very long distances. They will look cute with jeans, dresses and shorts and I can even wear them when we go out.

3. 

Runners. Runners are key for pretty much all trips. You can use them for moderate hikes, caving (like I will be doing in Iceland!) and for exercising. Usually I am not motivated to exercise while on holidays but since I will be living in Italy for 4 weeks, I thought I should probably try and burn off some of the pizza and pasta calories I will be consuming. Although runners are probably the most comfortable pair of shoes they are not really stylish enough to wear as your sole pair of shoes when travelling to Europe, which is why I needed my sneakers as well.

4. 

Flip-flops are essential for any holiday where you will be staying in hostels or sharing your showers with a bunch of people. After learning about all the foot and nail fungi this semester, this is one shoe that I would never eliminate from the packing list. Flip-flops are not very useful for walking long distances in but besides just the shower I can also make use of them when I go to the beaches in Italy. 

5.

I talked about the comfortable walking sandal last week in this post. I can use these in the warm climate in Italy when it might be too hot to wear my sneakers, for light hikes and walking for hours around the different towns while still being comfortable and having good built in arch support. These will be my main shoes in Italy when I need something comfortable for long term use but it is too hot to wear sneakers.

-A

The Dreaded Travel Sandal

Although Mel and I made our blog to include everything we were interested in, it was never meant to be a travel blog, but since we are both lucky enough to be able to travel this summer, we won't be able to keep up with our postings during the week and want to keep our families in touch with what we are up to, so we will be posting about our travels. I am taking a pharmacy course in Italy and Mel decided not to take the course and instead travel across Asia.

Picking the perfect travel sandal is a dilemma every girl has gone through, unless you are some type of goddess who doesn't get blisters or sore feet from walking all day. I am unfortunately not a goddess with my high arch that needs supporting. What is sexy about that...nothing. If you are just going to Hawaii or Mexico, you can just pack up your flip-flops and be good to go, half the time you are no even wearing any shoes there. Unfortunately this is not the case in Europe. In Europe there are so many sites to see and you want to squeeze in as many as possible in one day while still looking utterly glamourous. This is where the dilemma comes in, how often do you hear someone saying you look glamorous and comfortable in the same sentence.

A few months ago I thought I had finally found a cute pair of Merrell's to bring with me-the Merrell Henna, and had them shipped, but discovered the straps were too big for my narrow feet, so it was back to shopping for me.

While online shopping with my sister for travel sandals the other day, after endless pairs of ugly uncomfortable sandals we started to catch ourselves saying "those look cute." We realized that we were just getting jaded and forgetting the end of that sentence, "those look cute...for travel sandals."

After hours of looking, I was ready to bring my classic Birkenstock or Merrell sandals with me. There is nothing wrong with these sandals but they aren't particularly feminine. This is when I finally found the sandals I wanted- The Tatami Kairo Birkenstocks. Tatami is just a sister company of Birkenstock that uses the same patented sole. I only could find my size and the nice brown colour on Amazon UK, but I ordered them and they luckily fit! So far they feel pretty comfortable, but it's hard to tell when you just walk around the house and your feet are so cold from the Canadian weather, but I will keep you updated as I travel. I like that they have a back strap as well, which will be useful for more vigorous walks. I have to admit these aren't the CUTEST pair of sandals ever but strike the perfect balance between cute and comfort, which we all know is difficult to find.

-A