Craig and I have been traveling for nearly a month now, and there are a few things that we’ve discovered – unexpected learnings that have either made our trip easier, or have just been of enough interest to take note:

1. Google’s Live Translation
   As we prepared to travel, we knew that we’d have to translate things on the fly. I knew that Google’s app would let us take a picture of some text and would translate it. What I didn’t know was it could also translate live, as we were holding the camera up to some text. It’s amazing! Take a look here:
   This has come in helpful for street signs, restaurant menus, and monument descriptions, and there’s no doubt that we’ll find more use for it in the future.
2. Facebook’s Globe Icon
   On the top banner of Facebook, one of the icons is a globe. If you travel, look closely – it changes based on where you are!!
   
   
3. Always bring water and snacks
   No matter how hydrated and satiated you think you are, be sure to bring enough water and snacks for a long trip. We travel with a collapsible day bag that we can stuff with things. We decided to hike the Burren in Ireland a few weeks ago. Stupidly, we only packed two small bottles of water and a tiny bag of peanuts. We soon realized that we were on a four hour hike with not nearly enough water. After hiking we quickly got some more water and decided to take the time to drive to Limerick for dinner. Just as we got to a Pub and ordered a beer, we started to shake with hunger, only to find out that they didn’t have a food menu – just a couple toasted sandwiches. We ordered two, scarfed them down and went to another place for second dinner. Now, when we leave the place, we always bring plenty of water and snacks – even for a short trip. You never know when you’re going to get distracted and be out longer than expected.
4. Eggs and Milk are sometimes not refrigerated.
   While we knew that much of the world didn’t refrigerate eggs (a mixture of the US washing off a protective coating, and other countries vaccinating their hens), it’s still a little bit of a shock to see them on the shelves next to paper towels and cans of soup. On more than one occasion, we’ve had to ask someone where the eggs are, as they are not grouped with dairy items the way we’d expect. In Spain, we finally came across unrefrigerated milk – something neither of us are used to. We wandered the aisles for a while, unable to find milk, only to be pointed to an entire aisle that was stocked with it in boxes. This is something common in many countries – a combination of UHT and sterilized boxes can keep milk safe on the shelves for more than a month (just refrigerate after opening!)

Are there any odd things that any of you have noticed when traveling? Feel free to let us know via email or Facebook!