There are millions of travel apps out there that I have yet to try or even download. The thing is, I want to be tech savvy and have the latest and greatest app for my Droid so that when I travel I am always prepared. But the truth is, I just don’t. What I do have are a bunch of apps that everyone knows about, even me!

Recently though, I’ve had the opportunity to really put these familiar apps to the test, and I  discovered that I had been taking them for granted and not using them to their full potential. It wasn’t that I didn’t necessarily know about the many features that sometimes come along with one particular app, I just never took the time to try them – or I never put myself into a situation where I didn’t prepare, and therefore, didn’t need to rely on said feature.

I thought I’d share some of my little discoveries, in case you’re like me and you just never gave your apps a chance…

Use the Yelp app when you travel even if you don’t Yelp.

While I take advantage of it’s many helpful reviews, I don’t Yelp. It’s not because there’s anything wrong with Yelp, I’m just too busy blogging. I bring that up because despite that fact, I still find value in the Yelp app on my phone. Why?

Because with the power of GPS, and the tap of a finger, you can pull a list of nearby locations and narrow down your choices by restaurant, bar, coffee shop, drugstore and more. A friend of mine also recently introduced me to an amazing  little feature called Monocle. If you haven’t used Monocle yet, go try it, it will blow your mind.

When you click the Yelp Monocle, whatever is in front of you pops onto the screen, as if you just turned on the camera mode. But in the top right corner is a compass and nearby locations dot the screen. Point your phone North and the locations in that direction appear. Turn around and you’ll see new ones slide onto the screen. Conveniently, each listing gives you the Yelp rating, the number of reviews it has, how far away it is from you in mileage, and whether it’s closed or open! When you see one you like you can just click it and it pulls up the regular listing with more information.

Yelp is also a fun app for road trips. On our last trip to Philly, what started out as a quick search to learn what Yelpers thought of a particular restaurant, became an extended judge session in which we verbally “Yelped” all the Yelpers we could find. It can really get addicting. To get you started, the reviews that begin with “I really wanted to love XYZ restaurant…” [insert pretentious voice even if it wasn't intended] are gold.

Foursquare helps you even after you check-in.

Foursquare isn’t just about checking in. After you check in, Foursquare kindly shows you who else is in that location (which is pretty creepy, but can also turn into a fun game in which you try to find the stranger that shares the same affinity for Foursquare as you – though it’s more fun if you actually know the person!). I also like Foursquare because once you check in, it shows you tips. Yes, I know there are plenty of apps that tell you about a location – I just went on and on about Yelp – but I like that Foursquare offers this because let’s face it, it’s rude to be staring at your phone all day. Sometimes you just want to satisfy an addiction that has your friends asking you if you are checking in every time you take out your phone check in, read a quick tip and then put the phone away. Foursquare lets you do that.

Tweet your travel questions.

This one is no surprise, but I wanted to include it because it has really become a big part of my travel planning. Even before a guide, I go to blogs to find out about locations I want to visit and other travel tips. I read them on a regular basis. I have a personal connection with them and therefore, I trust them. But in a more instant way, you can tap your social community with questions that are as general or specific as you like. If you need advice quickly, Twitter always comes to the rescue, no matter where you are.

What are some of your favorite travel Apps?

It got me thinking about the fact that I don’t own a watch that I feel comfortable wearing everyday, and how that fact that never matters to me until I leave the country.

Like the declining trend according to NPR, Mike and I definitely represent a people that can get by on the gadgets around us rather than watches – but only while we’re home.

When signing up for tours and while traveling by bus between cities in Costa Rica, it became increasingly obvious that we needed a watch. By the time we got to Arenal we bought the cheapest one we could find and now it is our little souvenir.

Our honeymoon was no different. We lived in a bubble in Tunis and finally, while sipping cerveza in Costa del Sol, I took a beach-roaming vendor with a suitcase of merchandise up on his offer for a silver, sand infested watch. Now, due to our digital habits at home, getting our hands on the cheapest watch possible when we travel is a tradition.

When you travel, time is more than just scheduling a tour or checking into a hotel. It means different things to different people.

As a Bostonian I find that I’m always racing it – I walk incredibly fast for no reason and I hate long lines. In Ireland, tea time was reserved for tea and tea only and in Rome, it was almost bed time before dinner was served. Spain had probably the best philosophy on time, ensuring that a good portion of it was spent in Siesta.

I think the thing that made last night’s NPR piece stick was a quote from the owner of a clock shop called It’s About Time Shop in Alexandria, Va. Steven Halter enlightened listeners on the origin of clocks and how they impact our schedules. He said that making “appointments on time was not the idea behind the first mechanical clocks in the 1300s…you would just agree to meet someone by mid-morning” for example, rather than selecting something specific.

Halter also told NPR that “we began personalizing time in the late 1800s with the wristwatch.” Before that, “Time was considered a general idea.”

When Mike and I travel, there is a need to be armed physically with time, and not just any time, time that dictates our journey and how we’ll remember our trips.

It’s no wonder that as the clock got smaller and more mobile, time became more personalized – which is what I think is bringing back the wristwatch.

Whether it’s antique jewelry, luggage, kitchenware, art or furniture, I’m a sucker for it all. Antiques come with a nostalgia that regular belongings just don’t have. The pattern on a particular set of dishes looks so much like the one in your grandparents’ house. And there are black and white photos of strangers that catch your eye because somewhere – probably in your parents’ attic – there are a few just like them of a people related to you.

On Sunday, Shannon and I perused the Cambridge Antique Market, a place where I could spend all day. It has five levels, including the basement, all filled with vintage pieces that will get memories you didn’t even know you had flowing like crazy. It’s a place that reminds you where you come from, with old sports memorabilia and paintings of local towns.

But I also love the place because it’s simply exotic.

On every single floor you’ll find pieces that touch all parts of the world.

In addition to the classic suitcases and priceless glassware and jewelry, I took some shots of an old Finland Stamp Dish and ashtray made of Mexican coins.

What is most fascinating to me is wondering what kind of journey and adventure these strangers set upon to get these pieces and bring them back.

Have you ever been to the Cambridge Antique Market?

Do you like antique shopping in your town?

Plus, I was thinking about how the first stop of our honeymoon will be a bit unconventional, so it will be nice to be adorned with some corny stuff to, you know, make it known exactly why we are traveling together…

Aren’t they pretty and fun? They are Wilton Bride and Groom passport cases and Anna Griffin Mr. and Mrs. luggage tags. I adore them.

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This was my “I’m too busy working and wedding planning to blog” cop out post. I wish it wasn’t so.

How are you guys doing?

As you may have noticed, I haven’t been giving your blogs much attention either. I’ll be back to my regular schedule soon!

To be honest, even though the decision to get a new phone was on a whim, my thought process wasn’t quite as hasty. I did quite a bit of research and compared and contrasted the different kinds of Droids that are out there. Though I must admit, in the end I hoped that all signs would point to the Incredible because the design is so sleek and the device overall is just plain pretty.

I perused numerous review sites and gadget blogs and watched probably a half a dozen videos before making my decision, but in the end, all signs did point my way. Also, Bonnie Cha at CNET seemed to think pretty highly of the Droid Incredible and I trust her, so I took her advice and ran with it.

I have been meaning to try out all of the apps, but I have only had it for a weekend, and let’s face it, wedding planning is getting in the way of my entire life. But, one app that I have been able to try is slowly becoming my new addiction.

The Retro Camera App is probably the coolest technology tool I have at my fingertips these days. I’m sure the high quality of the camera on the actual phone plays a large part, but I have found that the quality and the coolness of the photos that I can take with this app, for a phone, is nothing short of Incredible.

While visiting my parents last weekend we were fortunate to sample some good old Pennsylvania Lager thanks to my sister, who recently picked some up in her travels. This was the first photo I took to test out the app and I literally put no effort into it. I was shocked at how well it turned out. Now it serves as the wallpaper for my phone.

Last weekend I also decided to capture my mediocre cooking skills (note: I like bananas in my pancakes and Mike does not). The lighting in my kitchen is horrendous and there is absolutely nothing photogenic about my stove or my cooking, but this app somehow made my breakfast seem rustic and made from scratch, even though it came from a box.

If these are the kinds of shots that I can capture day to day, I can’t wait to get out there and test it out on some cooler scenes.

Do you have a Droid? What other apps do I need to test out?

One week from tomorrow, Lisa and I will be boarding a plane for Mexico for Beth and Bobby’s destination wedding. We will only be gone for 5 nights and our goal is to make it there and back with just a carry on – and I think we can do it.

To make that goal a reality, I have been searching for a small, lightweight, no-nonsense piece of carry on luggage that will get me through this trip and my regular weekends away. The task was a lot harder than I anticipated. I wanted something stylish, cute even, that was also practical. I scoured Etsy and found myself lost in, and falling in love with, retro bags and modern suitcases. I even researched Lug because they had already provided me with the most adorable “personal item” for the trip. At some point I realized that if I wanted something that was affordable, that would definitely last, and would also arrive on time for my trip, I had to buckle down and get serious.

I finally found this lovely American Tourister (which doesn’t seem to exist on their actual website)….

At Amazon it costs way less than the listed price and it arrived within two days, which was such a pleasant surprise – I had it for our New York trip last weekend, unexpectedly! While it hasn’t made it through a flight with me yet, it made my normally chaotic road trip much easier. I didn’t have to worry about my shoes, toiletries, hair dryer and clothes being in separate bags, and it has wheels! It’s also eco-friendly. And by that I mean, it is PVC free, 100 percent cotton and has a Bamboo floor.

So now I have my carry on, any advice on how to get all my Mexico necessities into it?

Three little toiletry bags that are perfect for travel – and for our upcoming trip to Mexico for their wedding! I loved this idea. They were beautifully tied in a pretty bow, placed on our individual chairs, and they are gifts that we will continue to use again and again.

You’ll have to excuse all of my wedding talk lately. Last weekend it hit me that my wedding is only four months away and it’s almost all I can think about.

I immediately remembered why I always try to avoid it. Everything in there is so adorable. I always leaf through each shirt and blouse, pick up every cute passport holder and sleek piece of luggage, and I can instantly picture myself wearing, holding and lugging it all around with me. That store has unique items but they all meld together into one tempting selection of style that begs… “you want to be uniquely stylish when you travel, don’t you?”

Why do I avoid that, you ask? Because once I look at the price tag that euphoria evaporates and I am reminded that I am in fact, in a boutique in Harvard Square. Not this time though.

This time, I got a Lug Travel bag.

Isn’t it so cute? And it’s my absolute favorite color. My purchase was justified because the last time I flew, which was my Costa Rica trip, I realized I didn’t have a good carry on bag. I ended up taking some big purse that I got for free at DSW for spending $20.

This bag though, wasn’t a splurge at all. The suggested price was $72 and it was marked down to $50. That was still too much for me, but it was low enough to pick it up and walk around the store pretending it was mine. And as I did that, a sales associate told me that it was 40% off the lowest price so I got this sucker for $31.

It’s small enough to not get in the way, but it seems big enough to carry all that I would need on a plane. It’s also packed with many pockets and has many sections for things like a magazine, my iPod, and even a couple of snacks – which I always bring with me because I can’t bring myself to pay a fortune for a terrible sandwich on the plane.

And it also fits a pretty kitty…

When you travel, do you end up winging the carry on bag like I usually do? Or do you have a special go to?

If you’re not familiar, Foursquare is a mobile application powered by GPS that lets users “check-in” to various locations. By checking in they can earn points for visiting a place for the first time or for the most times. As they go, badges are unlocked like the “Newbie Badge,” which is pretty self explanatory, and the “Bender Badge” which you earn when you go out four nights in a row.

Foursquare pushes us geeky, blog-loving and tweet obsessed internet addicts to be more social than ever – and I love it. One of the coolest stories I’ve heard was when the Chicago Office of Tourism announced an official partnership with Foursquare, in which they have created a game where locals can download Chicago-based badges, like the “Bueller Badge,” when they “check-in” to certain locations.

According to Tristan Walker, Head of Business Development at Foursquare, “By partnering with a city entity, we’re offering Foursquare players a new angle on discovering the city around them…”

I think the idea of a city engaging with its locals in this way is creative and apparently more cities are catching on. I will definitely be looking out for the day when Boston decides to hop on board, if they ever do.

My other favorite feature of Foursquare is its serendipitous nature. You can allow your “check-ins” push out to your friends in addition to Twitter and Facebook. When your friend is in your same location and you both tweet, your tweet will let you know.

I experienced this at a recent Boston Bloggah Happy Hour…..

I actually arrived early, sat at the bar and when beccajane and Kristen arrived I didn’t even have to turn around to see them sit down. When I “checked-in” it popped up on their phones, I heard them say “Susan is here” and then I turned around and joined them.

Foursquare can also bring friends together when you least expect it…

Last week Susie of We Are Not Martha and I were apparently on a date!

While Foursquare is a bit hard to understand at first, once you dive in, you really can’t deny its addictive powers. For a new badge on my profile and especially for that extra connection with friends, I find myself checking in again and again.

Do you Foursquare? Do you have any fun serendipitous stories?

My friend Sue currently works there, one of her many jobs, and a couple of weeks ago she brought me a gift for no reason, other than she is extremely thoughtful.

You may remember that before I left for Costa Rica I procrastinated on purchasing a quality toiletry bag and sprung for one last minute at Target. It fell apart immediately, though Mike claimed that I filled it way too much, which is probably true.

The bag that Sue brought me is so fun and pretty and best of all it is sturdy. While I haven’t even had the chance to use it for travel yet, it does keeps me organized at home. For someone who sporadically goes away for weekends, whether for a girls weekend or another wedding, it is nice to be able to just pick up and go.