8th Day in Paris…

I took another day off, my 8th day in Paris, because it was stormy and raining like crazy off and on all day. Stayed in the apartment and researched places to travel and things to visit, collected and saved new links into my travel bookmarks, got caught up on all my daily comics, did my banking, repacked my bags, showered and generally had a relaxing day. But I was getting a little tired of the tiresome rain! Gah!

It got very dark and dismal after that picture was taken. And the weather report didn’t show any letup all day.

Now some of you may be wondering why I didn’t take the regional train somewhere outside of Paris into a small distant village, the type of place I prefer over large cities? (Which is kind of what I’d planned for this day). Fair question. This is my first ever trip to France. Actually my first trip to Europe! I wanted to visit many of those historical places and museums I’d been reading, seeing on TV, and hearing about my whole life. Then sometime in the future, with the knowledge gained by my experience on this trip, find a nice house to rent somewhere in the countryside, rent a car, and explore. This trip was like a scouting expedition sort of. Of several places in Europe. AND, it was raining bad!

I think I will just make this post an informational post. No museums today. One thing I’ve been asked by friends and acquaintances about this trip is my luggage. Two full months? How much luggage did you take? Well, all I took was a carry on bag that I could store in the overhead on a plane, and my computer bag which you’re allowed to take aboard airplanes and store under your seat. That’s all the baggage I took, along with the clothes I was wearing.

It can be difficult traveling for 2 months in Europe with only a carry on bag, along with a computer laptop bag. But in my case, it turned out to be surprisingly easy. Carrying everything I hoped might be needed along with the paraphernalia picked up along the way, such as meds, souvenirs, collected receipts, maps, guide books, etc. wasn’t that difficult. I think the smartest thing to do when you’re traveling with only one bag is to plan things so you’re never in a hurry. Imagine how frazzled you’d be if you followed my path in Europe, instead doing it in two weeks. It would not be fun keeping track of several bags of clothes and sundries. I’d been in Europe just one day shy of a month so far. I could have rushed out this wet and dreary morning to visit another museum, but instead, I took another day off and got my new travel plans organized ahead of time instead. Also did the dishes. Watched some French TV. Lounged around.

Here’s where I’d been so far: Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Turin, & Paris. And still England, Ireland, with East Europe a possibility, to go. I did investigate perhaps staying in France on the west coast, renting a villa and a car, and just hanging out in France for a full month. I could drive several places I wanted to see. But I couldn’t find an appropriate villa on AirBnB in my price range. And the weather over there wasn’t any better than it was in Paris. But I found that the the weather WAS great in Marseille! Unfortunately, it’s the Riviera of France so the prices for rooms outside of more pedestrian places in Marseille were very, very expensive. Hmm, lemme think about this.

I just remembered, back when I was in Turin, I got a nice email from Chase bank. They knew my itinerary because they made me tell them about it before I left, so they wouldn’t be tempted to turn off my card for ‘suspicious activity’. I had to be exact with my itinerary too. Originally, I told them all the places I’d be going in Europe which after Ireland, meant I would be taking a train up to Moscow and traveling for 7 days on the Trans-Siberian Railway to Vladivostok. Than taking the ferry to Japan, staying there for a week, and flying back to Los Angeles from Tokyo. Well, around that time, Russia invaded Ukraine, President Obama yelled at them, and shut down the international banking system from the US to Russia. And froze some Russian assets. This pissed off a lot of Russians. Chase was letting me know that it meant that I could not use my banks CC or DC in Russia. So I’d have to get thousands of Euros before leaving Europe. Who wants to carry that much cash, then convert it to Ruples, while surrounded by millions of Russians who are mad at Americans? It wasn’t worth it. This is an example of how not pre-planning your entire trip turns out to be very sensible. If I’d made reservations for that entire trip, and paid all that money for tickets and such, it would have been a huge hassle. And although I had travel insurance, there’s always the chance I’d have to battle with them for a refund of that portion of the trip. So this time, not having prearranged and prepaid, paid off!

Even with the modern aids we have these days, like GPS and mapping programs in our laptops or, like in my case, in our 9.7″ Android tablet computer, it’s still a chore to find addresses in strange cities. Often, I’d write down travel instructions and procedures that I’d find online, or hear from my new host. This saved my butt more than once. I had brought a note pad, but found that notes on two full 8.5″ X 11″ sheets, folded up and stuffed in an inside jacket pocket worked best. I’d write the info; addresses, phone numbers, bus or train numbers, and instructions on how to get places, on a few lines, then when I’d made it where I was going, cross it out. Next travel day put new instructions below it on the page. Simple method not requiring a computer. Keeping these handwritten note sheets also helps organize the postings to this blog. And helps me remember the names of my hosts along the way.

One thing that was always a worry was the possibility of theft, money, passport, luggage, cards. I found that the Rick Steves Civita Hidden Pocket was one of the smartest pre-travel purchases I’d made. Kinda spendy at $15+ shipping but well worth it. I spent a couple hours online trying to find something equivalent at a lower price but couldn’t. After I received it, I was very happy with the purchase. Just the right size for my passport, with two compartments, zippered, and made with ultra-soft polyester blend fabric so it was soft on my skin all day. Important since it would be put inside my pants. It had two sewn in loops, I cut off the larger one and used the smaller to attach it to my belt. I could put the bulk of my money in the zippered compartment, (while carrying a few Euros in my pocket). It carries a photocopy of my drivers license, with listings of my next of kin, home address, etc. in the event of an accident. I kept all my two credit and one debit cards inside the hidden pocket, so if a bad guy tried a mugging, all I’d have in my pants pockets would be a few Euros. It’s water resistant so no worries about being caught in the rain. And of course it held my passport. Since it’s under my pants, attached to my belt, there was never the time when I’d be freaked out about where my important stuff was. Especially when someone in a crowd would ‘bump’ into me. And it was not that difficult to flip it out, unzip, and hand my passport to an official or my CC to a clerk. Or to pull out a couple 20€ notes without anyone noticing. I also put my pre purchased train tickets inside. The best part about it is that I had all my ‘valuables’ under my pants so had my bags been stolen, I’d still have money, cards, and my passport.

The suitcase and computer bag were a bit different. Can’t stuff those under my pants. I had considered getting a lock or two for some of the pockets on the bags but that seemed like an invitation to a thief…”Hey, there’s something valuable in this particular compartment”, easily opened with a sharp knife. So I didn’t bother. And really, during the entire trip, the carry on bag had nothing of great value inside. It would, however, have been a real drag if it were lost or stolen. All my clothes, my meds, sandals, etc. You all know what I mean. I didn’t want it stolen. So I followed the most basic of rules; when traveling, never let it out of your sight. Always hooked my arm or leg in the handle when waiting for a subway train or plane to discourage a ‘snatch and dash’ thief. Often waited with my legs crossed over the bag. Fell asleep waiting for a bus once with my arm hooked in the handle. Can’t be too careful.

Back about a year before in the states when I was just ‘considering’ a trip to Europe, I was browsing a thrift store in Flagstaff Arizona and happened to find an unopened Back2You luggage tag kit for $2. Naturally, I bought the kit. This is a system of tags and stickers for your bags and personal items, like a camera, where if you lost something you might be able to get them back if they have the tags or stickers. Someone who found one of your items could go online and enter a number to notify you. When I got close to the trip departure date, I just put the stickers and tags on the luggage and items I knew I would be taking, went online to their website and listed everything on their site. Particulars like serial numbers, or just a description. I don’t know if they still supply them but my kit had two tiny stranded wire cables around 4″ long when opened with tiny screw sleeve connectors used to attach the stainless steel tags to your luggage. It was around this time in my trip that I thought, hell, why can’t I use those neat stainless cables to hold my computer bag to the pull out handle of my suitcase so I wouldn’t have to struggle every few minutes to get the flopped over computer bag back atop the suitcase? Yeah, why can’t I? So I removed the SS tags that used those neat little cables from outside the bags and put them inside the bags, then used those cables like a boss to hold my computer bag to my carry on bag. Look at how cool they are in the below picture:

Sure I could have just slung the bags shoulder strap over my shoulder, but that simply was not that comfortable when walking all those miles in airports or train stations. Much more comfortable if it’s attached to the roll around luggage. And the cables completely solved the problem of the bag flopping over to the side. Yea! Have no idea where to find a replacement if I lose one though.

Than one of the most important items I purchased for the trip, a Columbia Men’s Watertight Rain Jacket. Cost $54 bucks with tax. Fairly spendy but worth it in the long run because of so many reasons I’ve discovered while having it on this trip. The zippered inside pockets were probably the handiest features. That’s where I kept my current bus, plane, or train tickets, directions, and my camera. The deep, zippered outside pockets are where I put the small umbrella I carry, and quick access items like entrance tickets to museums, bottle of cough syrup, snacks and such. Then the storable hood kept me dry during several rainstorms. It’s not exactly the warmest jacket in the world but I found it to be adequate along with my other cold weather gear. So this jacket came in handy throughout the trip, and I was happy to have chosen it. Then when I wasn’t wearing it, but was traveling, I would drape it over my bags, tie the arms around the handle shafts of the carry on, and it would hide my computer bag. One less thing to be noticeable to a thief.

Here’s what my setup looks like, computer bag on top, carry on bag below:

I got the carry on bag years ago from a kids school supply rack. It only has 2 wheels. I see now days carry on bags all have 4. More comfortable to just push a little when waiting in lines instead of having to drag it like my 2 wheeler. I like all the compartments on the outside of the bag, great for quick access. Also has inside compartments. Than it has backpack type shoulder straps and a waist strap so if I have to cross country with it as a backpack, I can. And it is just the right size for a carry on…so far. I purposely bought those ugly colors so I could spot it on the carousel easier.

The laptop bag was much bigger than my Android tablet required, which made it handy for carrying odds and ends. Such as my bag of snacks, pencils, paper, medicines of the moment, sometimes my travel ticket, all the numerous cables and power supplies I needed to carry, the European power adaptors, etc. Then I have these small wire cables as shown above that I can open and thread through loops on the laptop bag and around the pull up handle of the carry on bag for added security. So that when I was running to catch a train, it wouldn’t fall off the carry on. Or if someone tries to grab and dash with my computer he would find himself trying to lug my 55 pound bag along with it.

Inside the carry on, 4 pairs of underwear, 4 pairs of socks, 4 polo shirts, 1 dress shirt and tie in case I go to the opera, 1 down jacket (I could have left this home because I never made it to Switzerland), room for my light jacket with hood (it wasn’t always raining), 1 long sleeve warm shirt, cargo shorts for hot weather areas, sandals, flip flops for showers at hostels, a paperback book, vitamins, aspirin, spare glasses, my medications, several water resistant maps of different European countries (hardly used), toiletries in mini bottles, disposable razors, etc. All the stuff you’d think you’d need on a two month long trip. Whatever I used up, I could buy new. Then there was the stuff I was wearing of course. That made it like 5 full changes of clothes. And when showering every other day, 10 days worth of clothes. In a pinch, 20 days worth. I only carried one pair of black jeans because if they got tore or something, I could always buy a new pair anywhere in Europe. Saved room in the bag. Plus I had my cargo shorts for warm weather areas or wearing around inside buildings.

I did have to find room in my luggage for a towel because it turns out that many hostels charge you for them, so I bought my own at one hostel I stayed at. Usually stuffed it in the computer bag.

Spent most of the day busying myself with internet searches, cleaning out, refolding clothes, and repacking my bags, than cooking a nice dinner. C’est la vie.

So that’s all I did my 8th day in Paris. Nothing.