Travelling light? Carry-on baggage: overseas travel

[Crankin]

Yup, I agree. When we went to Italy, we first spent a long weekend in Berlin, visiting our exchange student son. It was April, but still cool. Then, on to Siena. The first 2 days were cold, rainy and raw. Then it became beautifully sunny and 65 degrees. We rode up into the Tuscan hills on crappy mountain bikes, walked miles around town with our son who was studying in Italy, and ate in countless restaurants. Then we spent 2 days in Florence, where it was 75 degrees. When I go to Europe, I make a point of dressing like a native. No running shoes or fanny packs, or anything that brands me as a dumb tourist.
What I'm trying to say is that if I hadn't had my "big red" suitcase, I would not have been prepared for all the different weather conditions, or situations that required nicer clothes as well as casual stuff, along with my cycling clothes and shoes. Sure, we had to lug those damn things up stone steps at the Siena train station, but, we managed.

[jobob]

Might not have been the original intent of this thread, but your stories are giving me wanderlust!


mmmm ... Belgium beckons. And if we go, rest assured, some might be amused by the amount of crap we manage to bring with us. And the rest would be having too much fun to give a hoot.

[indysteel]

Might not have been the original intent of this thread, but your stories are giving me wanderlust!


mmmm ... Belgium beckons. And if we go, rest assured, some might be amused by the amount of crap we manage to bring with us. And the rest would be having too much fun to give a hoot.

DH and I so want to go back to Belgium and Ghent in particular. What a pretty city. Sigh....

[Reesha]

Speaking of traveling light, packing for my summer cross-country bike adventure should be an interesting challenge. The packing list is truly impressive, but in past years they made people send stuff home because of weight issues with their truck.

I've got get my bike accessories, bike clothes, camping gear, casual comfortable clothes, electronics, etc all into enough bags that I can take on the train. i suppose I could ship some of the stuff along with my bike. Anybody familiar with recent domestic bike shipping rates? :ughhhh:

[OakLeaf]

Anybody familiar with recent domestic bike shipping rates? :ughhhh:

When I shipped my bike in December in its Thule box with some various extra gear, FedEx Express Saver, it was $230. I want to say it was 65 lbs total, but that's a guesstimate.

You have to ship express to get the best insurance, and to be able to hold it for pickup at a FedEx location.

If you log into FedEx you can price a shipment regardless of whether you wind up sending it or not. Enter dimensions, weight, which service you want, origin and destination, and it'll give you a price.

[Reesha]

DH and I so want to go back to Belgium and Ghent in particular. What a pretty city. Sigh....

Have you been to Brugge? ...It's a notch up from Gent (former Brugge resident, perhaps take it with a grain of salt). I'd also argue Antwerpen is even prettier. If you ever bike tour in Belgium, definitely hit Damme, which is a quaint medieval village just outside Brugge. Also Sluis, NL just on the border

[Marquise]

I loved Belgium when I went there many years ago with my sister, who was living in Germany at the time. We went primarily for the art because I was studying art history and specializing in Northern Baroque but there was much more than just the art to love. I think it was in Ghent that we were heading for the train station and this being before wheeled suitcases were common (yes, that long ago), my sister had some sort of little folding cart that could barely hold our two very small bags. Something went amiss - couldn't have had anything to do with the cobbles! - and a little old man riding by hopped off his bike and said "Let grandfather help!" He secured things with a bungee cord and was back on his bike in a flash.

[indysteel]

Have you been to Brugge? ...It's a notch up from Gent (former Brugge resident, perhaps take it with a grain of salt). I'd also argue Antwerpen is even prettier. If you ever bike tour in Belgium, definitely hit Damme, which is a quaint medieval village just outside Brugge. Also Sluis, NL just on the border

Yes, we've been to Brugge, but we spent more time in Ghent on the advice of nearly everyone we spoke with, including a native here on TE. We much preferred Ghent. Much less touristy and crowded, but every bit as pretty. Brugge was wall to wall people when we were there in May of 2010. It was also more expensive than Ghent. We did go to Damme, too. It was lovely as well.

[Reesha]

Yes, we've been to Brugge, but we spent more time in Ghent on the advice of nearly everyone we spoke with, including a native here on TE. We much preferred Ghent. Much less touristy and crowded, but every bit as pretty. Brugge was wall to wall people when we were there in May of 2010. It was also more expensive than Ghent. We did go to Damme, too. It was lovely as well.

Probably a good point-- I had Brugge to myself for a whole year and got to see it during the quiet cold times, as well as the touristy crazy times. As it is, I lived in the tight little suburbs and spent my weekends riding the countryside. I'll have to remind myself not to do a bike tour of Belgium in the peak touristy areas and times. I'm hoping to do one with DBF in 2013

[malkin]

I'm just starting to think about packing for a trip to my parents in Switzerland. Essentials for this trip include robe, slippers, Ibex sweatpants, Kindle, knitting...