Holiday Prep

With my holiday departure less than a week away, I figure it's sensible to make sure I have everything I need. So I henceforth went shopping earlier today and bought many exciting and unusual items. Well, ok then, maybe not that exciting or unusual, but they are (mostly) definitely items. What did I buy?

1. A plug adaptor to ensure that I can plug my various rechargers (phone, iPod, camera, GBA etc) into daft European two hole sockets. Last time I tried to do this when I went to France, either I accidentally had the wrong adaptors or the place we were staying in was just weird, and I had to borrow someone elses. Hopefully this time I'll have more luck...

2. A notebook. Nice (probably fake) suede effect cover. Since I won't be taking by laptop away with me, I need to ensure I have some other means of recording my life and any thoughts (or maybe even songs!) that enter my head. I also need somewhere to take blog notes. Maybe I should just let go for a while. But that would be dull.

3. A set of three gel pens to write in the notebook with. First rule of non-electric writing: make sure you have a writing implement. Second rule of non-electric writing: make sure you have spare writing implements. I like gel pens. For reference, I tend to use Uniball Signos. And they were half price too.

4. Foreign Money: Euros and Swiss Francs. I never really know how much to get, but I should be able to make things work by using my credit card appropriately and ensuring I spread cash spending wisely. And if I have too much left at the end I can always just buy bottles of booze on the cross channel ferry.

5. Sun Tan Cream. I've been told that old stuff loses it's effectiveness. This is irritating as I've been using the same bottle for the last 5 years or so. Got a new bottle now, so all I have to do is remember to use it (easier said than done!).

6. Some new clothes. To be precise, two shirts and five pairs of boxer shorts. The shirts are (1) a light blue short sleeved cotton thing, with buttons all the way down the front and (2) a kind of stone coloured polo shirt. The underwear comes in a variety of patterns.

7. Bathroom scales. I have a 20kg luggage allowance, but I have no real grasp of how heavy that is. Hence I have had to purchase some scales. Sounds a bit overboard, but they were only three quid, so I'm not exactly breaking my bank there. And it seems I still weigh the same as ever. Got a bit of a shock at first when I tried them in the living room and I appeared to have put on two stone, but I think that's because they don't work so well on carpet.

That concludes the shopping. Also today I finished my big doorstop of a book - it would have been very very annoying to have to cart an 800 page hardback around for two weeks if I only had 50 pages left to go when I left. And I also moved by suitcase from the living room (where it has been since I purchased it on Monday) to the bedroom (where most of my clothing lives).

I think I may still have several important tasks ahead of me, including the processes of luggage choosing, luggage packing and miscellaneous general fretting.