what's in my bag

in just a few short days i will be headed on the trip of a lifetime.  three weeks of vacay from sf--> london --> johannesburg and throughout south africa to safari, wine taste, roam all up and down the coast and even shark cage dive. i am beyond excited to take this trip and in preparation i've cooled my packing anxiety by coming up with my must-haves for the long journey.  

1 kindle - the plan is to get a ton of my must-reads done on our insanely long travel time (don't worry i've got my mac backed up with scandal, true blood and walking dead just in case...)

2 an adorable passport holder i found on etsy (also love this kate spade one)- not only does it protect your passport, there is also a slot for cash, plus the bright color makes it easy to find in any bag

3 nike frees- i wanted a pair of simple black and white running shoes that were light enough to carry around with enough support for a long day of walking and cute enough to wear with anything!

4 noise canceling headphones- not only are these frends headphones gorgeous, the sound quality is nothing short of amazing, blocking out all of the busy airport and plane noise 

5 neck pillow- i'm not normally one to travel with a pillow, but this petite pillow is small enough to throw into my bag and worth the space in the amount of pain it will save my neck and back after all that plane time (over 25 hours of flight time!)

6 longchamp- by far my favorite travel bag of all time; the medium size tote is perfect for fitting all of my travel essentials and big enough to use for weekend trips

7 face wipes- one of the worst parts of travel time is the dive your hygiene takes... 12 hours trapped on a plane?? having these guys handy at least allows me to wipe off my makeup and feel refreshed

8 kiehl's lip care- i always love kiehl's products and lip balm is a MUST spending so many hours in the dry airplane air 

while most of the things i purchased to prep for the trip were strictly carry on essentials, i snagged a few other items i'm excited to throw in. this mikoh dress for laying out or exploring and these adorable dv 'cymbal' heels; i wanted a little something cute other than my sneakers for wine tasting and going out so they were a must, but the low heel keeps them casual enough for my surroundings and comfortable after a long day on my feet exploring. i think this is the earliest i have ever packed a bag for any trip i am that excited! less than a week until i'm posting from half way across the world!