Friday 29 August 2014

Packing light for France?

We're starting our holiday tomorrow morning.  We will be spending one night in Alicante before boarding a train to Barcelona, where we will have time for a leisurely lunch before catching the train from Barcelona to Toulouse. The good news is that we are travelling by train so we don't have to worry about the weight of our cases or put all our liquids into a small clear airline-approved bag. There isn't any bad news, except for the fact that the apartment we are renting in Toulouse is on the second floor and there isn't a lift!  Still, weight training is supposed to be good for women of a certain age.

This is my capsule wardrobe for our holiday in France.


As we aren't having to travel with hand luggage only, I decided to indulge myself and so I've included a top for every day of our holiday.  You may have spotted my new patterned trousers, pink short-sleeved shirt and blue camisole, which I will wear for going out in Alicante on our first night. At the top on the right I have shown a striped dress, with a red belt, which I wore in Paris for my 65th birthday. I always feel chic when I wear this dress, so I'm taking it to wear for dinner on my 67th birthday in Toulouse.  I am packing the white pair of trousers and will be wearing the black pair for travelling, with one of the tops and possibly the cascade cardigan.

I am hoping that I won't need to wear the Mango jacket, however it will be colder in the evenings in France, so it's being packed "just in case". Next to the jacket is my navy cascade cardigan, which is lightweight and ideal for slightly cooler days. The white wedge-heeled sandals are comfortable for walking but smart enough for evenings, whereas the grey pair of Decathlon shoes are ideal for walking around town in the day-time when we're doing a lot of sight-seeing. I'm also taking a pair of navy ballet flats and the navy shoulder bag.

As well as the above items I will be packing underwear, nightwear, toiletries, jewellery and other essentials like my tablet and camera.  Plus - don't tell my husband John! - there is still room for any purchases that I may make in France. I have noticed that there is a Monoprix in Toulouse as well as a branch of Longchamp!

6 comments:

  1. Sounds lovely. I overpack when traveling by car. But it's nice to indulge in that sometimes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Robin, as you say, it's good sometimes not to have to worry about taking too much. Although we had seen in the comments that the apartment we had booked in Toulouse was on the 2nd floor with no lift, so I didn't want the case to be too heavy. John did offer to carry it downstairs when we departed, after I had bought a couple of things in Jacqueline Riu and Monoprix!

      Delete
  2. Your wardrobe looks colorful, well thought out, and appropriate for France---have a great trip! I love traveling by train.
    Andrea

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Andrea, my favourite method of travel is by train as you can sit back and relax, enjoying the scenery. Even better, on two of the trains we were travelling first class with meals and wine included!

      Delete
  3. Have a wonderful birthday trip! Your wardrobe looks lovely and I understand packing a different top for each day. I did the same for my recent birthday trip and ended up wearing all of them but not all of the bottoms I had packed. Isn't it great to have a husband who will heft the suitcase at times?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lady wishing you a tres bon voyage to France and a very happy BIRTHDAY!

    ReplyDelete