What to wear!!
 

We are traveling soon to Italy,Malta and London...what is the weather and what do I wear?! Dress conservative or jeans... colors or darks?? Thanks!!

It's really a function of what you'll be doing, where you'll be going in those places. See www.twenj.com/tipsclothes.htm <BR> <BR>Dark is more common than bright in Europe as a broad generalization. <BR> <BR>You'll find current and historical weather at http://www.wunderground.com/ and http://www.usatoday.com/weather/basemaps/wworld1.htm <BR> <BR>Rome.Switzerland.Bavaria <BR>www.twenj.com <BR>

Bec, <BR> <BR>From my own experience the best dress for general touring is to go as basic as possible. There are lots of "stretchy" slack styles available now that come in many colors and are much more dressy than jeans of any color. Also they take up less room and weight in your suitcase. Lots of nice "walking" shoes too. Throw on a nice shirt, sweater, or jacket and you are set. Unless you have a specific formal to attend, just take along one long black skirt and blouse with heels.

Hi Bec <BR>For what it's worth I'll reprint here my comments from the current question about budget dressing for the hotel Sacher. <BR>Pick up some slacks at the Gap, Banana Republic, or perhaps even Walmart. Khaki, black, navy, other darker colors are best for travel, for fitting in in Europe's sophisticated cities, and for dressing up a bit. Put them together with polo shirts, cotton blouses or shirts, or non-logo tee shirts. If you are a woman, add a necklace or one silk scarf that goes with everything. Man or woman, you can add a blazer or nice cardigan, and comfortable flat shoes if you want. Presto, you're dressed for everything but formal occasions, you have clothes for a week, and you can leave the heavy, hot, impossible-to-wash-out jeans at home.

Thanks for the responses... you really helped me!! I have started packing and now I have to take a few items out! I love bright colors so I think I will rule out some... but I have a job where we do have to wear conservative clothes so I'll pack them! More comments coming!!! This is my first trip to Europe and I really do not know what to expect!!! Thanks!

I'm not a big fan of jeans for traveling (too heavy, don't dry quickly enough) though if I were hiking or horseback riding for long distances, they'd be my first choice. <BR> <BR>We like leggings and stretchy pants (not the icky polyester ones that the women on "Cops" wear); I did try a pair of khakis on the last trip, but they had more wrinkles than Keith Richard's face so no more. T-shirts (think embroidered flowers vs Megadeath) with short- and long-sleeved shirts over work well (too hot, tie the shirt around your waist; too sunny, put it over your shoulders). A nice sweater or blazer-type jacket and a raincoat (I'm torn between mid-calf which keeps you very dry, but then gets in the way when climbing stairs, and mid-thigh length which doesn't keep your legs dry but won't trip you on the stairs). <BR> <BR>On the Loons first trip to the south of France, we brought white and tan pants. Oy, we soaked them in the bathtub....and the water was filthy. Since then, black and navy are the basic colors with maybe a pink tshirt once in a while - in cooler weather, we wear turtlenecks (black or navy). <BR> <BR>We also bring the onthelastlegs items; black turtlenecks that have faded to charcoal; polo shirt with a blotch of something on the hem...we toss things out as we go so that we have just an item or two left and lots of souvenirs instead (we wear our souvenir tshirts along the way, too). Same thing for underwear. <BR> <BR>Maltese women were very nicely dressed, leaning toward conservative in color and style.