you stylish traveler, you

In two weeks, I'm going on a glorious Middle Eastern tour with extended family, and I'm so excited I can barely stand it. I was thinking about it so fixedly this morning, that I caught myself trying to shave my legs with a toothbrush. Oy.

There's much to do before I leave for happy hummus lands. I should probably fold the laundry that's been heaped on the floor since August, and I ought to finally figure out how to unclog the second sink in our bathroom, and I definitely need to find appropriately adorable travel accouterments. Like iPod cases, baggage tags and passport holders.

I've been checking out the passport holders, at least, and am so amazed by all the adorable options out there that I can't believe I've gone this long without one. And if you're already stressing about Christmas gifting like I am, may I suggest a passport holder is an excellent gift option for the have-everything kind of recipient. They're affordable, cheap to ship, and a perfect blend of practicalness and whimsy.

Here's one from duct tape -- nice and urban.

I love the selection at buyolympia, which includes the crash position one above. They've also got a great pirate n' octopus fight on one of their passport holders; I imagine it would be very comforting to travel with. If you were afflicted by food poisoning, or an amorous taxi driver (ah, how I love the Middle East), or construction outside your hotel you could at least take out your passport holder and realize life could be much, much worse: you could, after all, be a pirate monkey being throttled by an angry octopus.

I ended up going with a passport holder that's slightly less twelve-year-old-boy: this great thrush one from buyolympia is my fave.

More fun passport holders can be found here, here, and here. Nothing says, Security! I'm a innocuous! like a passport covered in skulls.

Enjoy. I'm off to go clean Peter's toothbrush--hope he hasn't noticed yet. Turns out, he may not miss me at ALL.