Packing

There are very effective ways of packing light, but they don't really apply to an All-Inclusive holiday.

If we were going self catering, it would be pretty easy. Assuming an absence of convenient laundry facilities, I would take one top per day and a small selection of 'bottoms', shorts for the day and skirts/trousers for the evening, plus appropriate amounts of underwear.

But I'm thinking. Okay, suppose we spend every day on the beach - we won't, but suppose. I ought to be able to get away with just beachwear and evening wear. But then I think, I'll need t-shirts for breakfast and lunch. Frankly, I do not regard it as an assault on hygiene to pull on last night's top for breakfast, and shower afterwards. Or, indeed for the half an hour it takes to eat lunch. But there's a part of me that thinks 'people will notice'. Do I actually care of people notice? No, not really. But right now, packing, I do.

I'm looking at my selection of bottoms. Thinking, those trousers are way too scruffy for dinner. I know that that won't be the case when I'm out there. And, again, do I really care, do I really think that people will be inspecting my trousers for smartness? And if they do, if they make remarks amongst themselves, will I know? If they make remarks to my face, that is their rudeness.

The magazines always have these articles, basically pick one colour and stick to it. Have one magical skirt you wear every night, with a selection of tops. Perhaps one could get away with two of everything, wear or wash. But who wants to spend their holiday washing?

And then there's the electricals. Not so much the gadgets, as the chargers. Camera, phone, mp3 player. Not taking the lappy or the palm. Yes, it's fun to load up the holiday photos as part of the entertainment, but is it worth having two days of backache and constant niggle about room security.

And reading stuff. I shall pack a selection of magazines; I shall buy some bonkbusters airside. But reading material does add the weight.

I do wonder about the point of going on holiday. Waste an entire day packing and organising. Waste two days travelling. Arrive back in the wee sma' and take a week to recover from the return journey.

Norfolk or the Lakes has a definite appeal.