Home, almost

I have time during a DFW layover to do a quick post mortem/conclusions on the 13-day/13-pound w/netbook trip.

• What I would have changed -  not much, maybe some more casual clothes for evenings. The wisdom of the approach was borne out by the temporary loss of my wife’s checked bag.
• Anyone can break the 15-pound barrier for one shoulder bag. Take away my netbook and I could have added a pair of shoes and a pair of jeans or another entire change of clothes. Operating with two-and-a-half outfits was pretty easy; jettison the netbook and add a little more clothing and it would have been a breeze.
• Always take a raincoat. I would have been soaked and freezing on the last two Scotland-like days in Paris without the Marmot Precip.
• The Stinkfighter laundry formula plus stain pen WILL remove incidental travel stains. My white ExOfficio shirt was looking nasty after a few days of helping to load and unload the bus but a little effort cleaned it right up.

More to come - after some sleep.

Comments

[Till]

Glad to hear you are back safely. Of course, we do need a more complete debriefing and travel impressions. It was remarkable that there were no updates to the special blog once you were in Paris. Certainly better things to do, no?

As for clothing, brown, grey and khaki will be the colors that show dirt and grease the least. So the white shirt was probably not the optimal choice for a trip like that. Yellow, white and pastels are the worst in my experience. Black isn't great, either. Dark blue is ok.

I am a great fan of the travel anorak approach. A good 3/4 length travel anorak with built-in hood is great because

- it replaces a daypack or purse, an umbrella, an overcoat
- but it is lighter to carry and to stow than those items
- it is not as cumbersome as a long coat, especially when you sit down with it but it will still protect your butt, when you need to sit down on a not so clean bench for example
- if you find the right kind it can be even worn over a suit and not look out of place

I found such a coat in the so-called Travel Anorak by Cole Haan. Fantastic piece. Review will come when I have traveled with it. Right now it is too frickin hot to wear it. I couldn't find this particular model on the net but they had it in the store on sale for $130 instead of $400. Great deal, too.