So after two years and numerous comments (that I still get) I have revamped the Travel Journal Review for 2010.  This has been one of my most popular posts, so I sat down and completed the task.  There are a total of 26 online travel journal/travel blog sites that I evaluated and ranked in my favorite order.  Based on numerous categories hopefully this will help you decide which online journal you wish to use for yourself.  Be assured I do not claim that this is 100% accurate or perfect.  I spent 8 days registering, evaluating, and ranking these sites, and everything was starting to look like the same toward the end.  Nevertheless, in order to be as accurate as possible, if you feel something is entirely wrong just send me an email (info@izunodesign.com).  You can read more about the sites and ranking by clicking on the salmon colored “i” circle.

Click here for the 2010 Izuno Travel Journal Review

Izuno Ranking (please note this is just my personal opinion…nothing more)

1. TravellersPoint.com (very powerful, do everything and more with this site, great travel content)
2. MapVivo.com (very cool mapping)
3. TravelPod.com (great usability)
4. OffExploring.com (I found very fun)
5. TravBuddy.com (great social network for meeting other travelers)
6. GoAbroad.net
7. FuzzyTravel.com
8. RealTravel.com
9. MyLifeOfTravel.com
10. Blogs.StaTravel.com
11. HostelWorld.com
12. Traveloblog.com
13. TripnTale.com
14. TravelJournal.net
15. GetJealous.com
16. TravelJournals.net
17. NomadicJournals.com
18. MyTripJournal.com
19. TravelBlog.org
20. TripDiary.com
21. CheckOutMyTrip.com
22. BootsnAll.com
23. TripsLog.com
24. TravelBlogr.com
25. FootStops.com
26. TravelPost.com

Click here for the original 2008 Travel Journal Review (now outdated of course).

Happy Valentines Day from IzunoTravel.com.  Love Travel.

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Okay, so this wasn’t my idea.  It was taken from DesignSpongeOnline.com.  However, outside from just being a fun project, I thought travelers would appreciate a post on Terrariums.  A Terrarium is a simple self contained eco-system that you create and just let sit….no watering long lasting if done properly.  So you can be on the road, country-hopping, and still have plants that are watering themselves back home that will not be dead upon your return.  That’s what makes them so perfect for travelers.

Inspired by the post from Design Sponge, I set out to make my own.  I’ve attached more pictures after the jump to sort of show you the tools and nature elements you might want to use.  Originally, I was thinking there was no way these are going to work, but after just 4 hours, the moisture is still forming on the inside, so I have hope!

Read more and View more pics after the jump

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re pack has a little extra room, I think any of these items would be a good addition to your packing list.  So, here is the rundown:

1.  Athletic Tape:  A staple in any bag I pack for just about any trip.  The versatility is endless, and of course it’s good for injuries.  Just wad up a facial tissue or t.p., strap on the tape and you’ve got a band-aid.  I’ve had to do that more than once.

2.  Design Go LED Slimlight:  More than having a bright LED for those dark hostels at 2:00 in the morning, it folds up or can be clamped on a book.  Actually Design Go has some very travel friendly products that are worth a look.

3.  Spoon Sisters Travel Towel:  About the size of a dime, all you need to do is add water and you can have an instant towel.  Maybe not a necessity, but they’re so small, it’s worth it’s weight.

4.  Marmot Precip Travel Jacket:  Probably one of the best water proof and lightweight jackets you can get.  If you’re heading to foggy town, pack for wet weather so you’re not stuck at the hostel all day.

5.  Creative Travel Sound Portable Speakers:  I’ve done some research on portable speakers for a while, and for sound and size, Creative is going to have your best option.  Unfortunately at the time of this post, they are sold out.  Speakers are great for watching that illegal copy of ‘Apocalypto’ on the laptop with your mates.

6.  Rick Steve’s Travel Wash:  Sure Rick is a dork, but he’s probably more well travelled than you and I combined.  So I’m sure he knows his stuff when it comes to sink laundry.  This is designed to be low on suds for easy rinse and gentle on the body.

7.  Muji’s World Travel Plug Adapter:  If you don’t already have plug adapters, this wouldn’t be a bad option, as it is all one piece and designed to cover 150 countries electric standards.  I like just about anything from Muji…good store.

8.  Ohso Tooth Brush:  A very cool product that takes a normal everyday item and turns it into something better when used for travelling.  This is not just a toothbrush where the handle is used for the carrying case.  This actually holds toothpaste and packs down at the same time…genius.  Price isn’t unreasonable either.

9.  Havainas Sandals:  These aren’t only good for the beach, they’re good for hostel showers.  Havainas actually grip just as good when they are wet…that’s why they made the list.

10.  Sigg Water Bottle:  I’ve posted about Sigg for a while now.  They’re the new nalgene…and I’m sure they’ll be replaced someday as well, our society is very ‘pop’ when it comes to drinking water.

Most travelers and backpackers I know aren’t into collecting souvenirs.  Face it, there comes a time in everyone’s life when they take down their collection of shot glasses.  Also, as a backpacker carrying home breakables and added weight is a burden especially on a month or longer trip.  During a bar visit, I noticed some well designed coasters that were being used.  Most beer companies and restaurants use a coaster that has a front and back, and more often than not, the two sides correlate with each other.  This gives us a perfect opportunity to use a free souvenir to decorate the pad back home.

Step #1:  Collect 3 coasters from wherever you may travel.  Make sure they have different front and backs.

Step #2:  Go to your local art & craft store and pick up a cheap framing mat board.  They usually don’t cost more than a couple of bucks.  (And they are big so you can often reuse them).  Using black or white mat board creates a little better contrast to most coasters I find.

Step #3:  Line up three (art lesson 101 – odd numbers usually work better than even numbers) of the coasters and space them about how you want it to appear.  Then…cut the mat board with a utility knife so that the three coasters fill most the space.

Step #4:  Glue the coasters to the mat and hang in desired location.

So there we have an idea that is cheap, reminds you of that special place you visited, and adds decor to the apartment walls when you’re not travelling.  Cheers.

I’ve been working on this project for about two weeks. Tweaking and such. I call it “Long Live Shantytown” inspired by my favorite musician Jehro. When you see the image larger there is an ‘X’ located on each piece plus you can get a little more detail than what you see here. I’ve posted larger images of each on my FlickR photostream here. I’m so hooked and intrigued by how much I’m hooked and intrigued on coastlines right now. It might be an issue….but honestly I think I just miss the water at the moment. I’ve been asked to do a pastel version of this instead of these bold colors, so I’ll post that if I get around to it.

I decided to create some icons of a few of the more traveled countries.  You can download them here.
I’ve been using them as folder icons for my pictures of the corresponding country.  I’ll be making more general travel icons in the future, and I will add more countries.  It takes a little while to create them.

When did it become a rule that icons must be corny, hack, cheesy, and soppy?  Travel icons especially bother me…you always get the 1980′s camera, the standard desk globe, palm tree is a staple in most icon sets, and the classic suitcase style luggage that no one has used since as long as I can remember.  I think travel icons should be more truthful…represent the realty travelers face today. And perhaps not so kid-friendly.

As you can tell I’m disappointed by the cheeriness represented in these standard travel icons found EVERYWHERE…so I’ve decided to develop/create my own travel icons. Perhaps more truthful PG-13 rated travel icons. I will be making them available for download in time to come. For instructions on installing on PC, click here.  For mac, click here.

And of course you know I just had to create an IzunoTravel.com icon to get things rolling.

Download Here

I’ll be spending some time this weekend coming up with a pretty good set I hope, so check back Monday.

Okay, I’m not completely in love with it yet, but it’s a start. If you are on a social network, you can add this mini-application to your page and get quick updates. I will be adding custom posts and store items to this, not every daily post though. Click the “share” link on the lower right and you can add it to now.

I’m going to try hard to do one custom a month. Customs will be just about anything nobody else has online, and that will always have a strong design aspect to it (all while keeping backpackers and travellers in mind).

For March, the custom is a new traveler oriented desktop wallpaper. I created it in 4 different sizes, hopefully it will fit your monitor without looking skewed or stretched. Click the links below to download (the pic above is just a sectional cutout, not the desktop). I’ve tested and used this graphic logo for a while, and it’s surprisingly popular. I resketched a new version this week to use on the desktops. It was the main logo for izunotravel.com version 1.0. I hope you like it because I plan on using it for future posts.

Also, I’m thinking about making an interactive packing planner checklist for next months custom post, I’ll see if that pans out or not and keep you updated.

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