More Italian Thoughts
In a fairly random order…
Synthetics. Avoid them in the summer heat. Duh. Before our trip, I bought a “travel dress” that turned out to be mostly synthetic. Sure, it dries quickly if you wash it in the hotel room sink. It also causes every part of your body to sweat when you are wearing it — even parts you didn’t know HAD sweat glands. Don’t. Be. Taken. In. Don’t. Do. It. Linen. That’s what I’ve learned, partly from looking around and partly from my own sufferings. Linen. Linen dresses. Linen slacks and shirts. Linen. Linen. More linen. Wonder if I can buy any today?
You’ll be amazed what can make you feel at home/miss home. I walked into the breakfast room this morning, and the first words I heard were Oh-oh. I immediately smiled and felt at home, looking around for the Filipino I knew had to be nearby. Yupp. One of the breakfast room waiter guys was talking on the phone and was clearly Filipino. Made it feel just like home. Hubby had nearly the same experience, except it made him miss home.
Don’t underestimate the importance of a good map. The Rick Steves books have pretty inadequate maps. The free one the hotel gave us was pretty good, but the one Miss Claudia lent us us great.
When the guide books tell you to bring a spare pair of eyeglasses with you, DO IT. As I lay down to relax and air out after sweating…I mean walking…around the city last night, I saw a little screw from my glasses fall out, and the left sidebar (OK, I know there’s a real word for it, but I don’t remember it) fell off. Thank goodness I had a spare pair in my suitcase.
Newskin. Buy a bottle. Keep it with you at all times. About 10 minutes before we made it back last night, a new hole ripped open on my left foot. Painted it up with Newskin after we got back, and now I’m good to go.
