Last September my childhood friend and her new husband set off around the world, trading their corporate London lives and pricey flat along the banks of the Thames for countless hostels/inns/b&b’s and a rolling closet with zippers.  I don’t think they have ever been happier.  I am also pretty sure that they have added another decade to their marital longevity: if you can travel for that long on a budget you deserve a million dollars a la The Amazing Race.  Being a corporate number strategy monster, my friend planned her bohemian jaunt in a decidedly uptight manner.  Spreadsheets, schedules, budgets, you name it there was a tab in that Excel doc for it.  Lucky for me, she sent her tentative year long itinerary over so that I could decide which continent to join her on (and possibly serve as a much needed third wheel?).  I chose the South America portion; I chose wisely.  I instantly became ambitious with my travel plans, Peru is right near there why not?, Bolivia is next door, shouldn’t I go for it? And so on and so forth.  Next thing I know, I was planning a way to enter the Amazon on a freaking river cruise from Iquitos, Peru.  In the end, I didn’t have the time nor the budget for the Amazon but a dream trip was born.  The moment I saw this boat (the M/V Aria), I knew that someday I would sipping a pisco sour on my way to hobnob with some howler monkeys.

After hiking through the Amazon with leeches draining my life juice these things stuffed into my red Lipault Trolley (soft for easy storage on board of course) will keep my stylish and happy:

The Packing List (clockwise from top left):

Patagonia Lightweight Capilene, Mara Hoffman Sexy Dress, Rosamosario bikini, Gucci Panama Hat, Thierry Lasry Sunnies, Lipault Trolley, Pamela Love Necklace, Luzern Laboratories La Defense, Ultrathon Insect Repellent, La Sportiva shoes, Lulu Lemon pants