The Notorious Over Packer - Travel Relocation Abroad

The over packer's motto:

“I’ll take it.... just in case” 

GUILTY as charged!

I have travelled near and far and no matter where I go, I end up packing too many clothes. I really have the best of intentions because my desire has always been to take "only what I need".  However, even though I bought a fancy luggage scale - in the end I always have at least 2 suitcases full of clothing and have even found myself re-shuffling clothing from one bag to another at the airline check in counter - which is sort of embarassing, I might add -- especially since a good majority of those clothes I never end up wearing. It's a very stressful way to travel!

My packing process has not served me well in the past and for 2015 and beyond I have vowed to change my overpacking ways and travel lighter -- using only a carry on.  (all bets are off when relocating to a new country)

Here's why

You can save yourself some money!
The U.S. airline industry has made about $3.4 billion a year in baggage fees since most airlines started charging for checked bags in 2008. On one trip returning from Barcelona I added a 3rd bag and it cost me over $200! 

The BF says he wil not repeat the luggage debacle we experienced in France when he had to carry our 4 over stuffed suitcases up and down several flights of stairs (no elevator) in one of the train stations in France. All annoucements were in french and they kept switching the departure gate (we think). That was in 2010 and he brought it up again last week. Seems he will NEVER forgive me for that one - although I swear to you "it was not my fault!"

But beyond that, what is really driving this decision is our upcoming trip to Costa Rica because we will primarily be using various forms of public transportation. There will be 5 of us and we will each be repsonsible for our own luggage (meaning the BF won't be carrying my bag). Plus I am pretty nervous about letting my luggage out from under my watchful eye on the buses  -- as I have heard horror stories about luggage and personal items being taken in Cost Rica.  So, it's one bag for me. I might even let the bag have the seat  on the bus and I will stand! :)

Here are some of my tips 

AND.......Don't Forget

Be ready to go through screening and remove electronics and liquids and gels for inspection. If you can, place these items separately in the zipper portion in the front of your suitcase.

Use dryer sheets. Put one in each suitcase. Keeps it smelling nice!  Plus, reminds you of home if you are prone to homesickness. 

PACK YOUR UNDERWEAR LAST

Underwear is tiny.  It doesn’t need it’s own dedicated corner in your suitcase.  It doesn’t even need to be folded.  This might seem a bit haphazard but once you’re done packing you can literally just stuff your underwear into the gaps between your clothes.  Saving a bit of space sometimes really is that simple.

Last but not least

"i don't think you need to bring this"

After you've finished packing and repacking, have an impartial friend or family member go through what you've packed and give you their honest opinion of what you are taking.
Remove the unnecessary pieces.  Zip your bag and Enjoy your trip!

Costa Rica Here We Come!

Women lead the pack for relocation abroad - Relocation Abroad

The baby boomers rejected convention in their youth, and now they are reinventing old age – abroad. 

There’s something undeniably appealing about the idea of living an expatriate adventure in retirement. Striking out for foreign shores can seem both pragmatic and poetic.

Source

Anthropologist Liesl Gambold looks at the growing trend of retiring to a foreign country, especially among single women. 

Do you think more single women will retire abroad in the future?

LG: Quite simply, I think that the fact that pension funds in many places are being threatened, and fewer people have been rigorously saving for retirement. This will mean that, more than ever before, the baby boomer retirees will suffer from economic hardship. 

Since women outnumber and outlive men in this group, women will suffer proportionately more economically. While I think governments should do more to help assuage these hardships for our aging, unfortunately I do not think that there will be a rapid enough response from most governments to really make a difference.

Read the interview

Boomer Retirement Abroad - Paris - (TWB) Traveling While Black

My dream has alway been to live in Paris! I hear so many wonderful things about the city and when I am there, wow....I'm in heaven. But, when I'm there I am a visitor, a tourist, living in a fabulous rented apartment in Saint Germain for 10 days. Shopping in all the trendy boutiques, eating at the finest restaurants, sightseeing and staying out late and sleeping in. I don't speak the language that well, but good enough to get by for 10 days.

But, what do people who live in Paris really think about life in Paris?

I happened to be over on a blog I follow, called Imported Chocolate. Jennifer, the owner/blogger, travels quite a bit and I have communicated with her on a number of occasions about living in Buenos Aires. She provides really honest and informative feedback and the one BIG plus for me about talking to Jennifer, is, that she is also a black woman. Unfortunately, we do not yet live in a color blind society so if you are TWB (traveling while black) its good to understand the 411 in the places that you visit.

Anyway Jennifer recently posted 2 excellent interviews.I found them both très intéressant

"I decided to do something different this time around. I am doing Hot Chocolate with a Local from two different point of views this month. Today, it’s Paris from the point of view of a black woman, born and raised in Paris. Tomorrow, it will be Paris from an African-American woman’s perspective. I hope you enjoy!"

Read the 1st interview here

Boomer Retirement Abroad - Paris France and 90+ Ways You Know You're Becoming French!

I'd Rather be in Paris

Some may know that my most favorite city in the world is PARIS. Originally my retirement plan was to head off to Paris and set up a Parisian life there. After several years of investigating I found that sadly, Paris is much too expensive for me to move to in my retirement years.  But, I still LOVE Paris, so I regrouped and came up with a new plan.  Instead, I'll live in a more affordable country which will allow me to put away enough money to visit Paris at least once a year. To be honest, that works out much better for me as the winters in Paris are dreadful.

Anyway, while I was in Paris I attended an event called Paris Soirees, hosted by Patricia Laplante-Collins.  I had a great time. An invited speaker + lots of friendly international people to meet + great food in a 'real' Paris apartment!! It's a perfect meet up for ex-pats who live in Paris or if you're just visiting and you have some time. Stop by and check it out.

The upcoming Soiree is Sunday, January 19. The featured guest speaker will be author, Shari Segall.  Shari Leslie Segall, has been in Paris since 1985 and is the author of France-themed books and articles, teaches English and cross-cultural communication at the prestigious Institut des Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po) and at the French Military Academy. She is the founding director of Foreign Affairs, which provides linguistic and cross-cultural training and creates English-language documents for executives.

Books will be available for signing and purchase

From Shari:

"The French say that foreigners can never truly “become” French--no matter what legal status is inscribed upon what identity papers they carry around in their France-based wallets. Nor might newly minted citizens or official residents wish to swap their own cultural manners and mentalities for those of the local waiter who serves them their morning café au lait et croissant (to say nothing of totally being able to). But if you’re here long enough, your adaptation mirrors, those Escher drawings where columns of black geese or fish on the left fly or swim straight across the page, migrating and mutating by imperceptible degrees, melting into and finally becoming their white counterparts on the right. To a greater or lesser degree, whether you expected to or not, one day you realize that you’re crossing to the other side. How do you know that you’ve arrived?"

for more info and reservations 

visit Patricia's website http://www.parissoirees.com 

or 

reserve on parissoirees@gmail.com

Boomer Retirement Abroad - I will not be retiring in Saudi Arabia

Since I've been making my plans  to escape  from the U.S, oops I mean relocate, I've been following a lot of expat blogs.  I have even contacted some of the bloggers.

One of the blogs I follow is Black Chick on Tour. I have not contacted her (yet) but find her posts and her videos to be very funny and always informative.

Now, under NO circumstances do I plan to move to Saudi Arabia, but I thought it was very interesting to hear about her experiences as an expat in Saudi Arabia and I especially enjoyed her change of attitude regarding the abaya.

You know, I never really gave it much thought that there was any diversity in choosing one of these garnents. (c'mon and you didn't either) I figured they were just black garments that the women wrapped up in.

Right?

Wrong!

Just goes to show you - women are women, everywhere!

Here are a couple of things you might want to know if you plan to go to Saudi Arabia

What is an abaya anyway?

The abaya sometimes also called an aba, is a simple, loose over-garment, essentially a robe-like dress, worn by some women in parts of the Muslim world including in North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.

 Traditional abayat are black and may be either a large square of fabric draped from the shoulders or head or a long caftan. The abaya covers the whole body except the face, feet, and hands. It can be worn with the niqāb, a face veil covering all but the eyes. Some women choose to wear long black gloves, so their hands are covered as well.

Abayat are known by various names but serve the same purpose, which is to cover. Contemporary models are usually caftans, cut from light, flowing fabrics like crepe, georgette, and chiffon. Other known abaya styles are front open and front closed abaya. Styles differ from region to region: some abayat have embroidery on black fabric while others are brightly coloured and have different forms of artwork across them.

What is the difference between an abaya and a burka?

A burka and abaya are different. Both are undergarments worn by Muslim women to maintain modesty in public.

A burka is a head to toe covering worn by women. Their face is concealed by fabric that you can not see into but they can see out of. This style of Islamic dress is common in Afghanistan. They can come in different colors but black and blue (afgani) are the most common.

An Abaya is a body cover, often black in color (especially in the Gulf Region), that covers a women from neck to toe. There are many different styles of abayas, and they usually are paired with a matching shayla (oblong) style hijabs.

Check out Terri as she chooses her new abaya

A Journey of Reinvention

Mother, Daughter Road Trip

The Red Suitcase - Movie Trailer 

Ruth Whitney, a stoic, sixty-six-year-old woman whose husband unexpectedly abandoned her six years prior, quietly struggles to cope amidst a shattered world of financial and emotional adversity.

Once well-off, with a successful husband and close family, Ruth now lives in a dilapidated summerhouse in rural New Jersey, works a minimum-wage job in a local motel, and clings to her rigid and sometimes comical daily regimen.

Meanwhile, her daughter Liz, a phobia-prone thirty-something, is attempting to finish her Ph.D. in California, hoping to support both herself and her mother. Worried about her mother’s worsening situation, Liz convinces Ruth to move out west and begin a new life. Ruth agrees, but not without reluctance, as she tacitly carries with her a red suitcase full of her estranged husband’s clothes.

In a beat-up station wagon filled to the brim, Ruth and Liz begin an odyssey across America. Full of humorous adventures, colorful characters and dramatic revelations, the trip continually tests Ruth’s wavering resolve to start a new life.

Red Suitcase Films is dedicated to launching a Journey, that inspires Reinventing at any age.Our mission is to spark a revolution, by inspiring old and young alike to see aging as an exciting journey of discovery, proving that... It's never too late!

click for more info

French Women Don't Get Fat

Why?

French women don't diet and they don't spend hours and hours running around the gym either. They eat ice cream, pastries and steak frites and still stay slim. Despite a diet filled with cream, butter, cheese, wine and meat, just 10% of the French are obese compared with a whopping 33% here in the U.S. The French also live longer and have a lower death rate from coronary heart disease. 

So what's their secret? I will attempt to shed some light on this phenomena. 

I found that there are several contributing factors. For starters, never under estimate the power of sexy lingerie! Yes, that's right, and there are almost as many lingerie shops in Paris as there are bakeries. Sexy little undies are a constant reminder to French women to be mindful of the choices they make that will pay off in slimness.(Interestingly enough, this blog post was supposed to be a discussion about French lingerie and somehow it morphed itself into this - So, I'll fill you in on the lingerie situation later).
Let's move on-

And this Just in - Diets Don't Work! And they certainly aren't any fun. French women believe that the key to staying slim does not involve counting calories, fat grams or gym memberships. It's  really  about  personal  style. The French enjoy a sensible, sensual way of eating. They savour their food and are passionate about their food. And of course they do, they have a national heritage founded upon food and some of the greatest chefs in the world. Eating in France is a life enriching exploit, not a chore or a guilt trip. Ironically, the people most likely to be ON a diet are the least likely to be thin. Think about it. 

A survey conducted by the French Government's Committee For Health Education (CFES)found that "eating, is still closely linked, to a national heritage of consuming food for pleasure" In France 76% of all meals are prepared at home. The favorite place to eat lunch and dinner is at home and 75% of the French eat their meals at the family table. Compare that to the way we eat here in the U.S. I haven't eaten at the "family table" since my daughter was 7 (she's 27 now)

Eating in France is a social activity. The French typically spend about 2 hours over lunch. Most of us are lucky to get 30 minutes or even an hour while often eating at the desk while trying to work. The French secret is to sit down and enjoy your meal with family or friends and eat 3 times a day at regular intervals. The French don't eat in front of the television either. They eat slowly, enjoying both the food and the company.

Here's another factor, the French have a sort of built in PORTION CONTROL monitor. For instance, in France a croissant weighs 1 oz and in Philly it weighs 2oz.(and you know those HUGE muffins we eat that look more like a small cake? Well, not, in France) No super sizing or all you can eat buffets. The French focus on careful preparation of unprocessed foods. They shop as often as daily for fresh seasonal produce. Where preparation of food might take 2 hours in France, we can whip up a meal in 15 minutes (thanks to ready prepared meals whose sales are up more 33% in the U.S since 2000). Try to get a French women to eat any of our "invented" foods full of hydrogenated oils - Fuhgeddaboudit!!! She would rather eat ONE rich-dark-square of REAL chocolate. Fast food and junk food are not terribly popular in France either. 

Dr Baudier, of CFES, stated that one reason for the French fat rich diet is that it stimulates the production of cholecystokinin. This is a satiety hormone which promotes a sense of satisfaction after eating even small amounts of high fat foods. Hence brie eaters stay fuller longer.

And finally, the French woman sees herself as beautiful despite her physical flaws. She believes that she is worth the effort of eating well and taking care of herself. She deserves to be slim and healthy, and she wants that more than a piece of pie.

If you want to kiss your ass good-bye, you could take a lesson from the French!

You might also like "French Women Don't Date"

I'm Just Sayin