pragmatics - but sparkly ones!
Last weekend I blitzed through town for stuff I might need on my trip. I've held off on sunscreen and other things whose chemicals should be at their freshest and instead lucked into sales at the camping store and various mall-type places. Among my purchases:
a waterproof stuff sack and ultra-absorbent, microfiber towel (this might be a completely useless purchase, but I have no idea what monsoons are like and it seems like being able to dry something off might be handy at some point)
a very lightweight cotton skirt - conveniently designed to be a bit wrinkly! - that is trendy enough that if I lose it in transit I won't care
shower shoes - please note their Bolly-appropriate beaded, sequined flowers. And yes, I am wearing flannel sheepy pajamas in this picture. It's 6:03 pm but I am exhausted and ready for bed, which means tonight was the wrong night to try my new bread machine to make pizza crust.
So far I have spent $601.12 on this trip. Yikes.
posted by Beth Loves Bollywood @ 5:55 PM
8 comments
8 Comments:
It sort of depends on *where* in India you're going to be when the monsoon hits.
Oh and I hope you like rain a whole lot!
:)
Good call on the microfiber towel! That is awesome.
p.s. How have you spent $610 on the trip?!
Holy cow. I haven't even started thinking about what to take yet, and I'm leaving in...oh god...a month.
I heard on NPR the other day that this was expected to be a late monsoon season, which means I am going to die in Jaipur. High of 109 degrees there yesterday!
Beth,
Have you tried your new shower slippers in water yet? I ask, as I bought a similar looking pair from a local Chinese store (black, and they looked SO pretty) - but I wore them outside - and one rain is all it took for them to fall apart :( All I did was walk through one puddle by accident, on the way to the car! Of course, that *could* have been the reason they were on sale for $2 a pair :-)
The skirt is very pretty....you know, with the current style for "bohemian" clothes, you can buy yourself a WHOLE LOT of clothes in India! :-) Especially in Jaipur...mmm...I want to go!
:-)
Regards,
Bitterlemons
How Many Roads - good point! I don't know where I'll be when. I'll be moving all over throughout July, although I don't think anywhere further south than Chennai.
Nick - phew!
Si - you and me both. Go to Champaign Surplus - they've got a sale on.
Bitterlemons - I haven't! What a great idea! Mine were a whole $5 but I have no faith in them whatsoever. I really hate flipflops, though, so I'm going to have to find something non-thong-y to wear. And I am eagerly anticipating shopping....
Hey Beth:
I was browsing through your site and saw some of the stuff you intend to take with you....shower slippers might not work in India...they will be sodden and kind of sorry looking within the first few minutes. Best bet is to get flipflops...you get them in India too and they are called hawaii chappals. They cost a couple of dollars.
Think white and pastel colors when you are travelling in India at the height of summer...black absorbs hear and will make you all hot and bothered.
If you intend going to Bombay be aware and be forewarned that the monsoons there can literally drench you and leave you like a bedraggled (sp?) cat. You ain't seen anything like this in Chicago or Urbana. The heavens literally open up and it pours, and pours and pours.....
Other than that....do try and catch a movie at a local theatre...it is fun!
Kamla
Beth,
if you dislike flip-flops, another option may be the sandals that my local CVS pharmacy has in the "summer" aisle...like slides, but made of waterproof material (plastic, I think) - they're also in the $5 range...and now that I think about it, the local Wal-mart has similar styles, as beach sandals (so hopefully, amenable to dunking in liquids) and they're sparkly as well!
If you can hold off on buying these here though, you can get *indestructible* sandals in Bata, when you land in India. (Bata Shoe Co...stores all over) - they have several styles of water-proof sandals, not just the flip-flop style, and like Kamla said above, should be in the neighbourhood of $2-$3.
But a very good point about your non-shower sandals...make sure they are waterproof as well, especially if you plan to be outside much...I don't much care for the style of Teva sandals, but there's no denying they're very waterproof.
Regards,
Bitterlemons
I just bought a pair of navy-blue and white shower sandals like the swim team wears for $5 at Target. You can spend more for the Nike brand, but I couldn't much tell the difference, and they both looked like they'd work in the shower.
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