Yesterday afternoon I played my final opera performance as a tenured member of Opera San José.
Thanks to Bill Everett for this From The Pit photo!
After the concert I was honored at a reception, and then it was off to Il Fornaio where we had dinner. (MANY thanks to Pam Hakl for arranging this!)
Today we board a plane and fly overseas. What a time!
This morning I paid a hefty fee to our accountant, for his tax prep. I changed the bed sheets, washed all the towels, cleaned the toilets, straightened things up around the house, took the recycling and compost out, showered … all the stuff one must do before a trip, of course. Dan did a lot as well. Still, we were ready ahead of schedule.
My sister drove us to SFO … thank you, Carolyn! It took a few minutes to check our luggage (more on that later), and NO time at all to go through security. We are now comfortably seated in the Polaris lounge.
After our champagne we had a somewhat light meal, and now we are sitting back in some comfy chairs, waiting for boarding time.
I used to blog more about my trip planning. Maybe I’m just too lazy to write as much! Who knows?
But trip plans have been going on for quite some time. Flights were booked quite a while back. Trains were booked as well. Even one bus. Hotels are reserved. And now I’ve managed to do a number of restaurants. One area we are visiting has few options and I didn’t want to end up doing what one blogger had to do — going to a local store and buying food to eat in his room. And then, because we’ll be on a walk, restaurants for that week had to be reserved since the area gets crowded and people get turned away from eating establishments. Even simple, pub-like places take reservations, wouldn’t you know?
So the numbers:
Flights: four Trains: fifteen, including one overnight train Bus: one Rental car: eight days Lodging I reserved: fourteen Lodging for the walk, reserved by the company I chose: seven Restaurants reserved: twelve
Yep, lots of planning. Tons of research. And oh such fun! (No, I’m not being sarcastic.)
Flights, trains, and the bus are paid for, as is some of the lodging. The walk has also been fully paid for. I like getting some things paid up front so that we don’t have a crazy high bill when we get home. But who am I kidding? It’ll still be crazy high!
I’ve done my “trial packing” and it might stay as it is, but I have to wait and see what Dan does. If he moves from the Osprey backpack to roller luggage I will end up doing the same. Men’s clothes are more cumbersome, and so is all of his camera gear. While we prefer to do carryon, sometimes it’s simply not possible. I’m fine with whatever happens — our flights allow for checked luggage so there’s no fee added.
Prior to our departure, which is Monday, I have two performances of La Traviata to play (the end of my tenure with OSJ!), and four students to teach. Plus I have to straighten up the house and, the morning we leave, wash all the linens for our house guest. Better busy than bored, I always say!
We have some upcoming trips. I was telling Dan today that SOME day I’d like a trip that isn’t requiring extra “stuff”. Our first upcoming trip requires me to bring my oboe and reeds (but I will not bring my reed equipment because we are doing carryon). The next requires a good amount of warm clothing because we are heading to a very cold spot of the US. The final requires trekking poles and walking “stuff”. Yes, another walking holiday!
I dare not complain. And yet I think I just did!
But really … one of these days I’d love a trip with no “extras”.
Maybe.
The first trip is only one week long. Actually eight days and seven nights. When we pack for our long trips we really pack one week’s worth of clothing — as I’ve mentioned in the past, no one cares if you repeat an outfit! In fact, no one notices! So how funny that this short trip includes about the same amount of clothing and, actually, more underwear since we won’t be doing any washing.
With three upcoming trips I have a difficult time keeping things straight. Good thing our plane tickets will get me on the correct plane to the correct city.
Or at least one hopes so. (I always marvel at those stories you read about how someone ends up in the wrong place … how did they even manage to get on the plane?!)
Okay. That’s it from me. I just thought I’d better liven up this site a bit. HAH!
Here … have a photo … one I’ve shared on my photography site, but hey, it’s from our Portugal walk so why not?
Hearing from your credit card company that someone has used your card (in other words, the number was stolen somehow) only three days before a trip can be rather distressing. Especially when it’s the card you use due to getting miles and “pqp” from your airline. Being told that they will expedite the card to you is better. Hearing from your first hotel, telling you your credit card was refused and if you don’t replay and either provide a new number or get that credit card to work your stay will be canceled is more than distressing. Hearing back from them after you write, and having them tell you that under the circumstances you can pay upon arrival is a great relief.
But this is also why we travel with more than one card. In fact between the two of us we have five cards we could use.
We also have our debit cards through a company that will give back the fee we are charged when we take cash out. Having just read about all the tourists who were traveling and hadn’t thought to have cash on hand since most places accept cards and were pretty stranded during the power outage, we were also reminded to be sure and have at least some cash on hand.
Today I also heard from one of the train companies. Turns out one segment of a scheduled train is a no-go and for that part of the trip we will be placed on a bus.
I have been telling myself to be ready for these kinds of issues. They are bound to pop up, after all.
I think all of this is actually good for me: a reminder that I am really not in control, control freak that I am!
In other news: all bedding has been changed, the house has been dusted and vacuumed, bathrooms have been cleaned … and now I wait until we’ve both had our showers so I can get the towels washed and dried. I even, with all of this, managed to get a short walk in with my sister (a MUCH needed walk, and I’m glad to get to do this with her before we head out).
And here … have a photo of my travel PacSafe Purse. It’s cute. In case you can’t tell. It’s also pretty theft proof if I am smart about using it correctly.
Of course that doesn’t mean I won’t change my mind about something, but the two main bags are packed and locked, so I’m hoping that’s it.
Here is a shot of the clothing I’ll be taking:
In addition to what you see above there are pjs (in carryon in case the checked bag doesn’t arrive) and a raincoat (also in carryon since it looks like we will be encountering rain when we arrive). Not pictured is the one stuff sack of the clothes for our five day walk (hiking pants, shirts, hiking socks, waterproof cap, “bathroom” necessities when you have no bathroom, if you know what I imean!). The outfit on the left — black pants, “Sahara Dust” sweater, and short sleeved blue shirt, will be worn on the plane, along with the scarf The rest has all fit in one compression bag. Well, except for the hat! That’s a foldable hat, and it’s packed as well, since it’s a nuisance to have a hat on the plane.
I did do the “while we’re on the walk” packing job first today, and everything worked just fine. Then I took everything out and repacked for the flights and the rest of our travels.
Above is the “rest of the stuff” … but since I took that shot things have changed: the black bundle you see on the left was a raincoat I deemed just too bulky, despite my loving it, so a shorter, more casual raincoat took its place. The latter will also work for our walk, so I could delete the really light raincoat I’d packed for that. I also switched out the larger umbrella for a smaller one. Other things there: green compression bag full of unclothes and socks, meds (OH, and I managed to make those smaller as well, as I could peel the label off of one and put it on a tiny bottle), a very small backpack (that small blue ball you see), all my cables, an adapter, and other necessary things for devices in the red bag, my extra pair of shoes stuffed with socks, an electric toothbrush, a puffer jacket stuffed in its own pocket, my toiletry bag, my vitamin and pain med box, and my extra glasses. And gee, writing all this reminded me I hadn’t yet packed my AirPods! So off I go to do that after I post this.
Every ounce counts!
Yep, that’s my motto at the moment.
I have a small Pacsafe purse that contains passport, wallet, credit cards, chapstick, some sanitizing towelettes … exciting, I know.
I neglected to take a photo of my little camera bag (or my purse, for that matter) that fits into my carryon bag. But that camera bag holds my Fuji camera with two lenses – one zoom, one macro, extra batteries and cards … all things photo.
In any case, I’m packed and ready to head out on another adventure. I’m glad to have this distraction: yesterday I was on an audition panel for my replacement — and what a fabulous replacement we have! I’m overjoyed for the winner Adrienne Burg, and I know OSJ will be very pleased to have her. I have been principal oboe of Opera San José for what seems like forever, and this is a huge change. I thought I wouldn’t really react since I opted to move to second oboe for this past season, but I guess the finality of the audition did cause me to pause and ponder a bit. It’s the end of an era for me. I’m trying not to think that it’s the end of me!
When I begin planning a trip it seems that there is SO much time to do that, and time does seem to go slowly at first. My United app will tell me how many days to our trip, and that number is usually at least in the 90s.
Suddenly, though, time starts racing by. Go figure.
I have two students to teach (today), one opera to play (tomorrow), and one audition panel to be on (Monday). Tuesday will be packing day. Wednesday will be laundry day to prepare for our house guest’s stay. We leave Wednesday night.
Am I ready? Well, of course I could leave today if I had to. But I still look at what I have sitting out and wonder, “Can I do without that? How about this? Do I need to add one more thing?” We are doing a walk, so I have to take trekking poles (Darn, that means checked luggage), and we’ve been told there is a possibility of rain in some locations so a light rain jacket is included. Our walking company says to bring a “fleece” (well, mine won’t be fleece, but it will be warm yet very packable). If I didn’t travel with a camera things would be even lighter, but I’m not quite at the place where I’m willing to give that up. Yes, the iPhone is great, but if you print something large you can sometimes see some issues, and I don’t like what the macro setting does to the background.
Because we are doing a walk again I also have to pack twice. First I pack for when we are on the walk: anything I don’t want in my daypack (side note: mine is black and it appears they no longer sell that) has to fit in the bag the transport company picks up for us (we are only allowed one bag per person). If I can’t get everything in (and I’m planning on bringing the Osprey Sojourn Porter 46L this time) I have to rethink things. THEN, once I know that will work, I pack for the rest of the trip. I did a trial of both of these a week ago, but of course things have changed so now I’ll do that again. Maybe today, in fact, for the “walk packing”. We shall see. (If it fits for the walk it will definitely fit for the rest, so that part can wait until I really must pack for the flight.
Anyway, it truly is countdown time, and I’m distracted by that and have a difficult time thinking about teaching and performing, as well as judging auditionees for principal oboe in the opera, but I know once I’m in my studio, in the pit, or sitting in the hall facing a huge screen so I can’t see the players, I will click into work mode rather quickly.
I have to constantly remind myself of this: no one will care what I wear!
I’m not a fashionista. Heck, I dress for comfort, and I am not terrifically stylish. Plus I’m lazy. I don’t get my nails done. I don’t color my hair and rarely cut it. It is, in fact, “wash and wear” hair. (Yes, I promise you I really am that lazy.)
But when it comes to trips I tend to go a bit nuts figuring out what I should bring. I usually end up buying more clothing just for the trip, which is entirely unnecessary since I have enough to wear.
More than enough. (I just filled the clothing bag for Ridwell to pick up tomorrow, in fact. I do NOT need all this stuff!)
So how much do I bring on a trip anyway?
I’m working on this plan for now: 5 tops 3 pair of pants 2 “toppers” (one hoodie, one lightweight sweater) 1 dress … maybe 2 pair of shoes
Of these, of course, I will wear a top, a pair of pants, a topper, and my larger pair of shoes.
But just now I put things out to see how it all went together. All the tops match all the pants. That gives me a lot of options. I think I’ll bring a black sleeveless dress that can be worn as a jumper as well if I put a top underneath. So even more options.
And then what happens? I second guess myself. I think, “Oh I look drab! This is just so boring!” And I want more “stuff” so I start searching online for things I simply don’t need. I just did go through an Amazon search (meanwhile I’m trying to swear off Amazon) looking of scarves that are colorful. I opened a ton of windows. Then I closed them all.
So I am reminding myself here, in order to stick to the plan.
We don’t leave for slightly more than a week, but yesterday we packed.
Yep. Really.
But then we unpacked, so you can breathe easy after all.
We just wanted to see how things were fitting. I was pondering one more warm shirt (of the wool sweatshirt sort) but I’ve decided I don’t want to add any more weight to my bag. (Of course my mind can be changed. I’ll only know for sure when I’m heading out the door!) I went through all the devices and narrowed down how many cords I need. I count how many of my prescription pills I need and only take a few more than that (but they stay in a prescription bottle so if they get inspected the powers that be can see they are legitimate things!).
As always it’s merino wool for the win in most cases. That and a couple of cashmere sweaters and I think I”m pretty set. My wool tops are turtlenecks. I’m bringing a wool sleeveless sheath sort of dress and the turtlenecks can be worn under that. Darn Tough socks are the socks of choice, and tights for the dress. Oh … and I bought a new scarf. A MEN’S scarf. What makes it a men’s instead of a woman’s? I guess fringe turns a scarf into a woman’s. Go figure. I don’t care for fringe in the winter … it gets caught in zippers!
Some suggest only one pair of shoes, and I would have done that, but since we are going to concerts I do want to look a bit nicer, so I have a pair of dressier shoes and then some low boots (or booties … you choose). I can’t tell you how many shoes I’ve ordered to find the right things (I actually could but I’m too lazy to look things up!). Some didn’t fit well, some made my huge feet look even larger, and some had soles that were far too slippery and the last thing I want to do is take a fall while on vacation. (Okay, okay, maybe dying on vacation would be the last thing I’d want to do … and would, in fact, be the last thing I did! Hah!)
Anyway … the boots are Easy Spirit and the dressier shoes are Dansko, and both look rather nice. Even on my large feet!
I’m still trying to decide if I wear a coat on the plane or if I stuff them. “Them?” you say? Well yes. If it rains I need my light raincoat. If it’s freezing I need my down coat. And if it’s a bit wet and very cold I can wear the raincoat over the down coat. Both are close to knee length and I think will be great for a winter trip. I had actually thought I might bring a wool coat as well, but since that would never pack easily I’ve opted to be a bit more casual and only have the other two coats. Both are tremendously lightweight, which is a Very Good Thing when you do carryon only!
Now, because I purchase my wool from particular companies I’ve decided to add links to those on the left side of this site, as well linking to some travel sites and other spots I’ve visited or want to check out soon. They just might be handy for others … never know! Stay tuned for those links.
OH … and I never wrote again about a travel pack. Well, turns out we purchased the newer Osprey packs, and gave our old ones to our daughter and son-in-law. It was a win-win, right? Pictured below is the color I have (Dan got black).
I realized I’ve not written here for a time. But that doesn’t mean I’ve not been making plans for an upcoming trip! I have, in fact, gotten all our planes and trains set, and hotel reservations are also complete.
Today I pulled out the clothes I thought would work, and I do believe I have what I will need for a trip during winter.
Yes, in fact, THIS winter!
Let’s see … what will I bring? Down jacket. Rain jacket. Cashmere sweaters. Several merino wool turtlenecks. And merino wool pants as well. Merino wool leggings to wear under pants. Tights. Warm socks. Warm hat.
The big word for winter travel is layers. I will have those. And yes, I plan on carryon only (except for one bit I’ll fill you in on later). Easy-peasy!
I also conversed today with our houseguest. Thus I’m feeling comfortable blogging about the trip. I will share our destinations as we go, though. Gotta keep some surprises, after all!
The last thing I had to find were shoes. I wanted some low boots (otherwise called booties) for walking that would be comfortable and, with my nice Darn Tough socks, warm. I also need a pair of shoes I could wear with my dress, because we are going to four concerts while we are out and about! Yesterday those shoes were purchased.
I hope.
I always buy shoes, get home, and wear them for a time to be absolutely certain they will work. I’ve gotten a wee bit smarter, too, and I now have shoe covers I can put on to protect said shoes until I know they are a done deal.
UPDATE: Yes, I have taken the original images down. I realized it was just a bit too much info to share. I’ve now put up a new photo without all the $$ info. Because. Privacy.
The process of finding lodging is, for me, a very time consuming project, and I’ve set up a spreadsheet. Otherwise I could never keep track of places, costs, and all.
Below, for instance, is some of our 2023 Europe trip. The hotel in bold is the one we ultimately chose. The greyed out are the ones that were on the list but we opted not to choose. I compare prices between the hotel site (usually the best price, but not always!), Booking.com, and Expedia. I compare ratings as well. Well … I don’t need to tell you all this: you can see it on the screen shot! I am only sharing the Venice and Milan. I did this for ALL the cities, which included Paris, Porto, Lisbon, Seville, Cordoba, Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, Florence, Arezzo, Orvieto, Siena, Bologna, and Venice. Yep. Lots of work!
One other thing. The hotel we chose in Venice was initially cheaper via Expedia or Booking. I contacted the Inn and they said they’d not only match the price but beat it AND if I paid in cash they’d lower it even more. Contacting the hotels directly is always a worthwhile thing to do. Sometimes they’ll want to match or beat prices, sometimes not, but you only know for sure if you contact them!
I hope you can see these images well enough. I’ll save them as a pdfs as well and post them below these images and I am fairly certain that will be easier to read.
(No, we don’t choose the 1 or 2 star places. We are picky that way.)
If you click on the pdf names (not the Download option) you will see a better image.
MORE INFO ADDED: You might notice I don’t always fill in every box. If I realize a place just won’t work I don’t bother checking all the price options. If a place is non-refundable it’s out. Period. I want to be able to cancel without penalty until at least a few days before we stay, and frequently it’s cancelable up until the day before. If I can pay AT the hotel/inn I do that as well. I prefer not to pay in advance whenever we are able to do that.
