Gadget suggestion

Jennifer & I have been using a GPS unit during our travels, which has been infinitely useful traveling places that we haven't been before. It's like Google maps without needing an internet connection or a printer to print your directions. We use a model similar to this one, but ours has bluetooth for hands-free phone, which is a bit of overkill (I like it but Jennifer likes to talk hands-occupied).

There are a lot of models out there of course, but one nice feature to keep an eye on is if the unit reads street names or just says "Turn left here." (The fact that ours can speak in a British accent is purely superfluous, but more fun to imitate.)