Musings

At the moment we are spending a Rainy Day and Sunday indoors.

Some thoughts on future blogs and questions to present. First of which will be a blog on specific articles about our clothing and gear. Some items were already worn moderately prior to travel, weren’t in enough quantity and other exclusionary criteria in our minds. Beyond those, there is a line of Columbia brand polo shirts that I have worn repeatedly and soon through all types of weather with Winter nearly here. Our shoes. The specific socks I have exclusively worn etc. We have identified pros and cons with some items to share.

Another blog may be on the effect of mass transit availability in slow travel and travel in general. When staying in one city for weeks, mass transit is a must. Shorter stays you can get by with only walking or taxis because your time and range are limited. The cost of transportation is second only to accommodations when slow-traveling and is still one of the most expensive even if you are merely taking a two-week vacation somewhere. How the lack of mass transit infrastructure in the USA is a complete barrier to a much less expensive slow travel experience there, creating inflated budgets in a country already over-priced and over-touristed in most locations by comparison. We’ll have actual numbers to show from our over 9 months of travel by then, along with observations and experiences that have caused us to both proclaim that mass transit is our desired way of getting around in the countries we have visited. It is nowhere near the experiences most think of after riding a bus or train in the U.S. Except for a few occurrences, it has been clean, cheap, reliable, cheap, relatively easy to figure out, cheap, fun, interesting and cheap. Like 0.40 USD for a bus ride across town compared to $30-40 USD for the same distance via taxi.

Questions come to mind today too. After months of travel and living out of a carry-on suitcase and a backpack each, we know how to “live small” now. We each have enough clothes to wear once for up to one week at best. That is why our AirBNB stays all have washing machines. The question comes as I sit in our very nice (pun intended), moderately upscale apartment in Nice, France. This place is easily around 400sqft/37sqm. Tiny one bedroom with a ‘wardrobe’ or closet fixture for clothing. Between the 2 of us, we have virtually filled over half the fixture with our meager belongings. This is extremely common in Europe in general. Homes are mostly apartments with very little storage space, especially when it comes to clothing.

So, what are you/they doing with their clothes? We have traveled to a dozen or more towns and cities now, and many Europeans aren’t wearing the same clothes over and over and over like Shannon and I are. Being virtually next door to a few of the most prominent high fashion cities in the world, we observe outfits to-die-for every time we go out. So again. What happens to last year’s vest, blouse, slacks, multi-layered outfits when you upgrade so often? I am curious.

Time for some more coffee and maybe a pastry we snagged from a nearby bakery. The thunder is rumbling, and the rain is falling steadily. I predict our time will be filled with some YouTube videos from our favorite travel folks and maybe a nap later. Ahhhh.

For now, it is Ciao, Mirupafshim, Adios, Tchau, Au Revoir.