One year I was booked on a walking tour of East London. The weaterh was really cold. Why was I so cold? In the USA at ski resorts I had walked around in snow and not felt so cold. The reason was, I was wearing padded ski jackets.
I hunted in the clothes cupboard. I found a ski jacket. It was dayglo colours. I looked absurd.
I arrived to join my group. They were all normally dressed, neat suits and coats and jackets. I felt silly.
However, at the end of the tour, an American lady said to me, "You were the only person dressed suitably for the occasion!" I was so grateful to her for saying that. I wished she had told me earlier.
So get out your ski clothes. One year I arrived in New Zealand with everything except a ski jacket which fitted. The shops were out of my size, had ridiculous prices, or were a bus ride away from my family's hotel. I walked around the shopping centre and found a second hand shop. Just the thing. Not as cheap as I wanted.
I took it to the counter. The assistant looked at it. He said, 'Sorry, it's missing a button, and this zip on the inside pocket is stuck, and there's a stain on the inside of the arm - nobody else will see it, but you might not like it. I could make a reduction, if you really want it."
I was so happy!
Feb 27 2020 It was snowing in London but not laying on the ground. The online newspapers showed white snow in the north of England. What does that mean for travellers?
It's good for ski resorts, if it's the right kind of slow, not turning to slippery slush which you sink into, nor freezing into slippery ice. Shoes with gripping soles are an advantage and you can buy overshoes and carry small slippers to wear indoors to protect floors from spikes and melting snow.
Food And Drink
I always like to have something to eat and drink with me. It cheers you up if you are waiting an hour for a train or bus or in the cold at a bus stop or on a draughty railway station.
If you are in a car you can stock up with food and water.
One year I made the mistake of putting it in the boot (Americans say trunk) of the car. Food, drink, and umbrella were all in the back. If you are in pouring rain you don't want to have to get out and get soaked fetching your umbrella and food and drink.
Emergency Toilet
In major motorway upheavals sometimes a toilet bus will go along the hard shoulder. Do you want to get out, in bear country, or after your car is cornered by an elephant in a safari park?
A large container with a sealable cover makes a makeshift toilet which can be emptied out later or immediately, from a door ajar if you are in the countryside and don't want to leave the car.
Yes, I was on a platform in Cardiff, Wales, recently, waiting for the train back to Paddington, London. I chose not to go into the waiting room, although that might have been warmer. Why?
Where To Sit
1 I wanted to keep away from others to avoid coronavirus.
2 The waiting room attracts people from both platforms. It is easy to sit tight because everybody else is doing so, when your train is going from platform one and they are all waiting for the train from platform two.
Years ago, in France, when I was a student, I snoozed in bed thinking that because I could hear the French girls talking, then breakfast had not started nor finished and my coach had not left.
When I eventually decided to get up, I had missed breakfast, and missing the day's outing, because they were not booked to go on the outing. They were the last half dozen friends of the previous week's course and were catching another coach home in another direction.
3 On the platform you can read the overhead signs. You don't have to rush out through a heavy door. You can rise and get ahead when the platform fills so that you are early onto the train steps and doors.
Dress warmly. My relative said, "I don't need to because I am going all the way by train."
Be prepared. As American Benjamin Franklin said, Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
If you end up taking a replacement bus you could have a long walk in the cold along the platform and outside across the car park, standing in a chill wind, waiting for your suitcase to be loaded below the bus, then into the bus sitting by the open door.
Warm Clothes
Even gloves and a hat packed into a bag or pocket can keep off the chill without taking up too much room. I always look for jackets with built in hoods, the sort you buy at ski resorts and in sports shops and even second hand shops (in the USA look for 'thrift' stores).
Tube Station Toilets
If you need a toilet in a hurry, it's handy to know which stations have toilets.
Singapore Stations
In hot countries you drink more water, which means you need toilets more often. In Singapore life is easy. Almost every station has a toilet near the ticket office. Look for the sign. It's outside the barrier, so you can use it even if not travelling by train.
The toilets are outside the station. It's a good idea to go before boarding and after getting off.
If you are caught short, you could always try playing the tourist card, asking for the toilet and looking woebegone. Maybe the office clerk will open the ticket gate and let you out and in again so you don't have to pay a second fare. This happened to me the first time.
Now I know to go in advance.
In London, the tube maps mark which stations have toilets. The print is very small. I suggest getting a magnifying glass, writing a big t alongside the stations with toilets.
Changing Trains
If you have a ten minute change from a train to a replacement bus, you cannot risk leaving the group. The bus won't have a toilet.
Go to the toilet on the train half or two thirds through the journey. Take your laptop with you.
GWR
On GWR trains from London to the West and Wales, you have large toilets big enough for wheelchairs. Everything is clearly marked.
Save Your Seat
You might want to leave something behind to reserve the seat, unless you have a reservation card, or ask the person beside you or opposite to keep your seat in case anybody else tries to take your place.
Planes To Ski Resorts & Back
On a plane going from a ski resort to a warmer climate you may find it convenient to get out of your seat and removed your warm jacket. if there's no room overhead, on a regular large plane flight you might be able to ask the smiling stewardess to hang up the garment and give it back to you at the end of the flight. Set an alarm on your watch on a 13 hour flight from New Zealand or Australia back to Europe or the UK. By tomorrow morning you will have forgotten your jacket. If you change seats, the person who stowed your jacket might have trouble finding you. Allow time to get back into your outer clothes before your hear the announcements to sit down and fasten seatbelt and prepare for landing.
Garage Toilets
Driving from London west towards Wales, we stopped to fill the car up with petrol and I went to the toilet at the same time. But some places the toilet is outside the shop, around the back, which is colder.
Hotel Toilets
More chance of getting warm water.
And a warm hand dryer. This dries your hands and warms you up.
If you are a mother, a secretary, a tour guide, in charge of a group, a spare hat and pair of gloves and even spare hot drinks might come in handy.
Tiny Canape Cutlery
I found some old small cheap metal spoons and tiny three prong canape forks which my family had discarded and were about to throw out. I rescued one set of tiny knife, spoon and fork, not to heavy to carry. This enabled me to cut up a sandwich and eat half later, cut an apple. Even cold food warms you up when you are feeling chilled.
Avoid Snow - Down Under
To avoid snow, go south, to the equator or beyond. Australia or New Zealand at Christmas and Easter.
To Find Snow - Indoor Slopes
To find snow in summer, we go to New Zealand (via tropical, hot all year Singapore).
Finally, you can practise your skiing at indoor slopes in the UK and in Singapore.
Happy travelling. Keep warm. Take care of yourself.
Useful Websites
UK
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakerloo_line
https://tfl.gov.uk/tube/route/bakerloo/
https://www.gwr.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Western_Railway_(train_operating_company)
https://www.visitlondon.com/london-app
https://www.skimagic.co.uk/the-top-10-dry-ski-slopes-indoor-snow-centres-in-the-uk/
SINGAPORE
https://www.sportquest.com.sg/pages/snowcity
singaporeair.com
USA, EUROPE & WORLDWIDE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indoor_skiing
About The Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please bookmark and share links to your favourite posts.
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