Hello to all of you beautiful nerds and welcome back from traveling the vast nerd universe! I am back with a new post. 

What We Learned from Traveling to Atlanta

 I am still writing the RangerStop & Pop review, must add the links for the artists that appeared at the convention, so I decided to do this one as a buffer before that one. So, it was our first time traveling to a new state and city and we did learn some things and wanted to share with you guys in case if you need additional tips and might want to hit a convention out of your own state or country if you haven’t already. Let’s see what we got!

Create a Check List!

First up is creating a check list. During the packing process, I felt like I was packing all I needed and same with RJ but day of the flight we realized we left some items. We left our name tags I had created last year thinking we would cover press at one convention but never got that chance, so we finally got it and left them behind. RJ left his electric toothbrush and toothpaste which electric toothbrush! Also, realized he left his copy of Devil May Cry 5 so he could have it signed by Johnny Yong Bosh. I am thinking for now on I will have a checklist to make sure we packed everything for an out of state or inside Florida convention. Ever since we became a full-on website, we can’t forget the important items to use for our press ventures.

Doesn’t Hurt to Pay for Extra Room

What do I mean by this? Well, we had a bit of a small space when we got on the plane and of course had double beds at the hotel when it was just the two of us. I didn’t know that Comfort Plus on the plane meant we would be a part of First Class and would have more space to stretch our legs and arms due to how compact our seats were. I did try to get aisle seats for RJ, worked for the trip going but not the one back. I did feel some claustrophobia when we got into the airport after landing in Atlanta. So, we will be looking into First Class next time. While the hotel room, we did remember how we did have that sweet King Size during Holiday Matsuri 2018 and it was perfect. It looked like a bit extra but should’ve upgraded after seeing that option but felt more at budget. I guess I will investigate the king beds if it’s just us for now on.

Just Rent a Car in Person

So, all thanks to Nightly News, I figured to rent a car in advance due to how much people are starting to travel again and heard how rental cars would be scarce and expensive to rent. So, I downloaded Priceline and hoped to get a good deal and pay at the counter. What we thought was a good deal ended up having a deposit we were not expecting. So, RJ had to rent from Hertz and glad he had his AAA discount! Good thing that it was not penalized that we didn’t pick up the car in the end. For now, on, we are either renting in person when we get there or if we are placing a reservation then I will make sure I have the AAA discount code with RJ since he is driving the vehicle and I can’t of course! I may use Priceline for airline deals instead.

Get In Shape Prior to Travel

This is best for conventions since you will be on your feet most of the day or walking marathons all over an airport. I am going to focus on this since I was bent out of shape and even my feet were killing me and had to miss a day of work because I couldn’t walk. I used to be in good shape and able to walk all over just fine but after not being able to go to the gym after graduating years ago and of course the pandemic, I lost the ability to be on my feet very well even with this convention. I am always used to sitting at a desk all day and that didn’t help, and my watch even cried at me on Sunday after having a greasy burger for a high heart rate, that is why I will be doing my best to prepare myself for the next convention by being able to move and take the stand alerts more seriously. Once the gyms start opening again, we will be heading there again.

Add Something to Suitcase for Distinction!

What I mean by this is that is that everyone can have the same suitcase. A year ago, I had to replace my suitcases, yes, I had more than one due to my mom giving me the set of suitcases we used on the cruise back in 2007 and I used them and wrecked them. Our buddy Kristen even had a moment where the bar where you hold when pulling the suitcase broke during one convention, Holiday Matsuri by the way, and they left the bar in the parking garage. When we passed by it, RJ asked me if I want it back and said no and got rid of the suitcase. The final one broke after going to RangerStop 2019 in Orlando and decided it was time to buy a new suitcase. I got myself a Walmart card and got myself a purple rolling suitcase and was not expecting that most people would go for the same! Even Molly Berk also gets different colored ones for her mom to spot wherever they land. Apparently, more people had purple suitcases to do the same thing since everyone would have the same black cases and RJ saw other purple suitcases besides mine and found it after twenty minutes. I will be putting a Sanrio luggage tag on mine so it would be more distinct due to how bright it would be against my suitcase. Putting a distinct mark would help in finding the luggage since the tags they put are hard to find and sometimes the suitcase can fall in a different angle down the belt.

Double Check Battery Charger Packs

During the trip, RJ’s big battery charger ended up being broken. This tends to happen since I’ve noticed how my little Pikachu charger was no longer working when it came to charging my I Phone and didn’t want to go and test that on my lovely 12. It’s best to check and see if the battery pack is working fine before you travel and holding a charge while something is plugged in because parts do wear out over time and would help from waiting until you have some free time during the convention to go to Target and get one, which we felt we had hardly any. Which that grins me to the next tip.

Check Shipt Early On for Business Hours!

When we got to our hotel, we were exhausted from the flight and getting the rental did take a lot of time due to getting the long line and decided to see about getting items delivered the first night since we didn’t want to hit any stores now. I tried Shipt with Target and saw I was too late and same with other places. If we go anywhere and I need to use Shipt, I will make sure I do it early enough and get it delivered during dinner if we order in.

Well, that is it for this post now! This was our first trip out of state and who knows where it will lead us next with other conventions. We do have other goals to hit conventions in other parts of the states and even Canada but don’t mind the ones here in the Southeast even more in the 

Atlanta. Next would be our review on RangerStop & Pop as a whole, still working on getting the links and doing my accessibility skills for anyone who is using a screen reader. Just follow us on Twitter @ Nerdy Shique for the latest updates! Until next time!