Travel Tips - securing pockets, jackets, bags and cars

Access To Emergency Funds

Have access to money so that if you lose your wallet, leave it behind in the hotel safe, or find all the online systems are down, you can still find a source of money. 

I remember as a teenager, I travelled around the USA on a student ticket on a Greyhound bus. I ran out of money. Luckily my father had a business contact in the USA. He was able to transfer money to me on my father's behalf. I expect my father took his friend out to dinner, as well as repaying the money.

Return Tickets, Cancellation

We like to pay a bit more for a return ticket whic is refundable if you cancel.  Often somebody is holding a party or event just after your return. What a blessing to have a journey whose date can be changed.

Have a return ticket. Then if your money goes, or you are not well, you can still get home. 

Also some countries won't let you in as a tourist unless you have a return ticket to prove you intend to leave. 

Denied Entry to India\

My husband arrived in India with a one wway ticket. The travel agent had told him that he could buy a return ticket in India when he knew his return date. However, when he arrived at the airport, he was not allowed to enter the coutnry. 

An anxioud time. Luckily, a member of the airline was able to go landside and buy him a return ticket. 

Security Pockets

You can buy jackets with inside pockets. Ski wear for example.

 If not, or using old jackets without pockets, you can add your own pockets. One easy way is to sew a thin but large zipped pouch into the inside of a coat which fastens securely. Add a second smaller zipped pocket inside, underneath or behind.

Make sure all pocket have a zip or button. Even if you are not robbed, items can fall out. I bought a large number of small zips to add to outside pockets. A quicker way is to use aaa zip up purse and safety pin it into the pocket.

Protect Luggage and Cars

Luggage attracts thieves. It doesn't matter how secure your suitcases are, if somebody steals your entire car. When travelling, secure your car overnight. 

Bags, Jackets and Pockets in Restaurants

Secure your jacket and pockets and bag in restaurants. It doesn't matter how secure your pockets are, if somebody steals your whole jacket. 

A jacket left in a coat check room can disappear. 

So can a jacket on the back of a chair. We lost a wallet from a jacket on our chair back in a busy restaurant in Prague, capital of the Czech Republic. We were there New Year's Eve. The hotel wrned us to move our car off the street outside the hotel into a car park.

We could tell the owner. But what could he do? People were coming and going all the time, coming in asking for a table and being turned away because they had no reservation, so there was no track of them.

Watch out for anybody approaching your table to chat. Move your phone off the table. They put down a newspaper on the table, then lift off the newsapaper with the phone under it. 

Chase after them, but they have already handed it to somebody else on foot or a motorbike.

It's not just buyer beware - of pickpockets. It's diner beware.

Bag Loss in London

A friend of ours had her bag on the floor under a large round table in a busy Chinese restaurant in London, England, UK. The strap was around her ankle. Somebody managed to cut the bag off the handle.

Spain - Bag Loss

I had a bag pulled off my arm when I was off-loading the boot of the car (trunk to Americans) in Marbella, Spain. A car drew up beside me.The back seat passenger leaned out of the window and used a Swiss army knife to cut the straps.

Spain - Second Bag Loss 

Later, our car was parked outside the zoo in Madrid. The empty and torn bag was under the back seat with the handle showing. Somebody smashed all the car windows. The first one to get the bag.

The second window smashed out of annoyance when they found the bag empty. We knew it was empty. The thieves didn't. 

It was a nice bag, too. I was hoping to get it repaired.

We had to remove all the broken glass. Drive slowly because of open window frames and wind. Then to wait in Madrid hours to get a garage, order windows, arrange a rental car to get to the ferry. Rebook the ferry, and stay overnight at another hotel waiting for the next ferry with a space. A whole palaver.

Now we leave nothing visible. Not an empty jacket or bag. You know there's no money in it. The thief doesn't.

We made other trips to France, Spain and Portugal this year., 2024 We were very careful. We lost nothing.

So, remember, buyers beware. diners beware, when parking beware.

Useful Websites

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The Birkin Bag - big, beautiful, perfect for travelling (first class!)

  Jane Birkin who died in July 2023 was known for her erotic song, Je T'aime. The man she sang with was a singer-songwriter and although they never married, they were close all the time they were together and after she married somebody else.

Wiki article on Jane Birkin

Jane with Serge.

She is also known for the Birkin bag by Hermes. She was sitting next to the VIP from Hermes on a plane when her basket fell down, scattering the contents! She apologized and said she could not find a suitable leather bag for her travels. 

He sketched out a possible design of a bag on the back of the airline sickness bag, with her imput. He produced it, and named it the Birkin bag.

The bag became sought after by celebrities. The price went up, so it was also bought as an investment.

Go to the Wikipedia entry and you will be astonished at the number of films, (movies), and TV shows which featured this bag. 

It is outside my price range, but I am interested to see what all the fuss is about. It can be ordered in an assortment of leather to suit the buyer, with gold plated locks and keys and trims, even diamond encrusted. And in varied colours.

Wiki article on Birkin bags

Wiki

From Wiki

Most of the bags you see are plain on the outside, without extra pockets. However, there are so many of them, that eventually you find one with pockets.

Style

Apart from the fact that it locks, and has a soft lining, I cannot make out what kind of pockets or interior finishes it has. 

I am wary of locks. Danger of losing the key. However, if you can afford a key, the keys are numbered, I am sure you have a personal assistant who can contact the company for another.

Jane herself apparently complained about the weight of the bag. I do find that leather bags are heavy, and big bags tempt you to cram a lot inside. You can order it in assorted sizes.

Colours

The colours are lovely, especially the red, green, and pink. More unusual is the one which is triple coloured.

If I can't have a Birkin, what are my favourite bags? Ones in multiple colours which go with everything. 

A reversible bag. 

A bag which has a lanyard with a convenient  key-ring attached to a long string so you cannot lose it and can retrieve it in a hurry. I now just add one to whatever bag I have.

A mini-bag, an organizer with multiple pockets, for your essentials, cosmetics and more, which you can move from one handbag to another. 

Useful Websites

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Birkin_Bags

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birkin_bag

https://janefinds.com/collections/birkin?page=2

https://www.hermes.com/uk/en/content/106191-birkin/

Great pictures of celebrities with bags matching their outfits

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-12304389/The-ultimate-Bag-chance-meeting-Jane-Birkin-plane-created-Hermes-legend.html

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A Travel Jacket With Handy Pockets

 

Angela Lansbury wearing navy waistcoat or gilet. Photo by Trevor Sharot.

Angela wearing navy gilet at Toastmasters International, Singapore, speech contest. Photo by bystander.

Wearing amd matching waistcoats

You can  see the dark navy gilet on my right shoulder. Your gilet or waistcoat has to be short enough to hide under the hem of your jacket, or the jacket must be long enough to cover the gilet. 

Waistcoat Styles And Colours

Traditionally, a man's suit consisted of a waistcoat which ended at the waist and had two outside pockets ending at the hem, whilst the jacket was longer. I have a waistcoat which has to be worn on every journey with every outfit.

This is the jacket which I wear daily, so as not to keep moving items from one garment to another. I have previously lost my UK train pass and my Singapore NRIC because I changed jackets or changed bags.

Securing Pockets

I have several traditional waistcoats inherited from my uncle, but the pockets have no zips. Not safe for doorkeys, credit cards, lipsticks or anything of value. The pockets are small, just large enough for a small hanky (tissue) or business card or credit card or lipstick. But I still need to find a tiny zip or to sew on press studs.

Gilet

What is a gilet? A French word for what the British call a waistcoat and what the Americans call a vest. 

 I thought my gilet came from Patra, but they made the light, silk, navy hooded jacket. My lightweight, navy gilet is from LA men's Collection KOYO.  

Patra

Patra in the UK sell clothes in silk, bamboo, cotton and mixtures. Lots of lightweight clothes.

Koyo

I found them on Facebook.

Advantages of Jackets With Pockets

Why am I wearing a man's gilet? I think I bought it from a shop in Cambridge, England. I recall thinking it was expensive. I went away. I walked all around the city, in and out of many shops. I saw lots of souvenirs and garments which I did not want. I went back to the shop. 

A lightweight jacket with pockets is always handy. You can have your travel pass or bus or train ticket in the top chest pockets or the lower waist height and handy hand height pocket. You can keep valuables such as credit cards on you for quick payment. You can keep a small passport or national identity card on you. That way you find it quicker at check points. If you leap out of a plane or coach in an emergency or breakdown and are told to leave your luggage behind you still have your identity card, credit card, or door key with you. If your handbag is stolen or falls, you still have your vital documents. If you need a  pen and paper or tiny notebook, it is to hand.

your paper hanky (tissues) or toilet paper are nearby why you wash your hands, not on a hook.

Male Jackets?

Why buy a male jacket? They don't seem to make jackets with multiple pockets for ladies. Well, except for cooks, waitresses and restaurant staff, gardeners, and skiers.  There  is much more choice of styles, colours and weights if you look for the words photographer, fisherman, sports. Pilots. Pockets!

Disadvantages Of Men's Clothes

Men's clothes may be in huge sizes. The jacket might be too heavy. It is clumsy. The cut is loose. It is wrong, with no waist, no room for a big bust. Not smart if you are travelling to a hotel or restaurant on public transport.

Pink Ladies Waistcoat

Shein in Feb 2023 had a ladies waistcoat worn with nothing under it, tight fitting, bright colour. Only 10 Singapore dollars (plus postage). I put the picture on my Pinterest page.

Navy Gilet (Waistcoat)

Red Cape blazer

Be Jealous

Useful Websites

Amazon

Ebay

KOYO

https://www.facebook.com/koyoclothing/

Patra

https://blog.patra.com/tag/gilets/

Shein

https://sg.shein.com/Solid-Button-Front-Waistcoat-p-11223300-cat-1739.html?skucode=I52lu1

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Practical Travel clothes with Pockets: dresses, jackets, biker vests, and mosquito barriers, convertable trousers

 

Angela Lansbury wearing a navy blue Craghoppers dress with four pockets. Photo by Trevor Sharot.

Craghoppers Dress - What Is So Special about it?

A Craghoppers dress - perfect. I already have their shirts which I wore every day on a hiking holiday. The pockets securely fasten so precious possessions don't drop out. You don't want to go back over a five hour trail to look for your pen. Nor do you want to slide down a slippery slope trying to retrieve your designer sunglasses. Secure pockets are essential for secure belongings plus peace of mind - you know nothing could have dropped out.

I had wanted a dress from pickpocket proof clothing, but their colours are sand or khaki and I am into blue. Beside they are beyond my budget. And the dresses and skirts are short, above the knee.

Imagine my delight at discovering a Craghoppers dress, in navy blue. At a reduced price.

Advantages of Craghoppers and Nosilife

Nosilife is a brand name for insect proof clothing. It has a fine weave. Handy for hiking. 

But not only for hiking. Good for daytime. Outdoors. Eating out. Picnics. Kerbside cafes. 

Anti mosquito and midges, I want longer skirts and long sleeves. This navy Craghoppers dress had the fashionable tab but it doesn't lengthen the sleeve much. Only an inch or two. Not to the wrist. 

I can't add the lower sleeve as I don't have matching fabric. I can wear it with one of their blouses as a jacket.

Buying Replacement Belts

You want a belt the right colour if matching the fabric colour. Alternatively black or white or multi-colour, matching your shoes and necklace or hat. The fabric should match if using fabric. Or the style, matt rather than vivid shiny satin. For casual countryside or daytime wear, elastic is useful. Plaited. For evening, or about town, a smarter belt, a statement buckle.

DIY Belts

If you need a belt in a hurry, you can use a piece of ribbon. A tied ribbon can look pretty.

If you have a slippery fabric, it is likely to slide loose. The remedy could be a double knot. Alternatively, add a brooch with a secure rotating grip on the pin. Or some kind of two hole gripper. 

To make a firm belt, you need two pieces of ribbon for the front and the back, with interfacing (thicker, stiffer fabric for lining) cut to length. Then add a buckle, unless you want to tie the belt. 

Short Sleeve Options

Like the tab, adding a blouse acting as a jacket still gives me the short sleeve option. The jacket would be, removable at mealtimes, unless I want to keep it on because I am sitting in air conditioning, or the fresh air fiends insist on eating outdoors. A blouse worn as a jacket is less bulky and heavy, sleeker lines. 

 I love Craghoppers tops and didn't know they made dresses.

Buying On eBay

I bought this Craghoppers dress  on ebay. It was sold without the belt. The seller pointed out that there was no belt. As soon as I put it on I found the sewn in loops for a belt. But I found an old belt which had been sitting at my home, abandoned, stored, patiently waiting for a dress.

When I went back to the seller's description, I saw that she drew attention to the fact that it was without a belt. Reliable, honest seller.

Wider belts are made with concealed zip pockets at the back. 

I have also seen pockets suspended from a belt. 

Clothes for restaurant wait staff have wide from pockets with zips for collecting cash tips.  

Useful Websites (alphabetically)

Craghoppers (Nosilife, anti-insect)

ebay

clever travel companion

https://www.clevertravelcompanion.com/collections/frontpage/products/pickpocket-proof-t-shirt-dress-with-secret-zipper-pockets

Black, (or white with a navy stripe - no good for me as I am lopsided from a broken collar bone in a RTA, knocked down by a car in Corsica) largest size 3X was sold out but 2X was available, at about 50 pounds sterling

https://www.clevertravelcompanion.com/collections/frontpage/products/pickpocket-proof-t-shirt-dress-with-secret-zipper-pockets

Royal Robbins dress with concealed zipped pocket inseam, another dress reversing back to front to change the neckline, about 100 Euros

https://www.royalrobbins.com/eu/en-gb/women/dresses-skirts/dresses/bergen-dress?v=Y326004%3a%3a794691925123

Pacsafe dark or pink bag

https://pacsafe.co.uk/collections/new-arrivals/products/pacsafe-go-anti-theft-tote-bag

Scottevest Quest 

The Scottevest  Daisy dress is 119 US dollars. The dress is short-sleeved, has 8 pockets, one whose measurements look large enough for my Samsung phone (but without the bulky case?) and colours are plum, navy and black.  

I did a cost conversion  on Monday  July 7th 2022 and the website I selected gave me just over ninety eight British pounds sterling. About 114 Euros. Maybe postage is extra.

A video of the Daisy dress:

https://www.scottevest.com/products/daisy-dress#read_reviews

Their other two dresses have four pockets and cost more. However, one has long sleeves. Dorothy dress 129 US dollars, short sleeve V neck.

https://wise.com/gb/currency-converter/usd-to-gbp-rate?amount=119

Some websites offer you a discount or free postage on your first order, or free postage if you order more than a certain price.

https://www.scottevest.com/products/daisy-dress?variant=42650868089047#minicart=open

I am putting this on my wishlist for Christmas or a birthday.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhochman/2015/04/21/best-pickpocket-proof-clothing-for-the-serious-traveler/?sh=5d4527e54aa1

Motorcycle biker vest in black leather, no sleeves, pockets>

https://www.ebay.com/itm/322283605056

From 28 dollars. Other sellers have similar jackets.

American sellers have jackets with pockets for 'concealed carry' (meaning guns) which presumably have large, strong pockets. Brands include Anarchy, Ard, Buka.

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How To Secure your bags and pockets on trains - and in restaurants

Some people travel with their own helmets to go cycling, motorcycling or skiing overseas.

Before travelling, check your clothes pockets for security and your bags and locks and keys.

Pockets
I ordered a multi-pocket jacket. I was disappointed that it arrived with pockets which had no fastening. However, with a day or two to spare before my journey, I had time to add zips and press studs and even extra pockets behind the front pocket.




 Even if you are capable of carrying a large item, a bag which is too large to keep under your seat can be a security risk when you are travelling.

 
Most years I take at least one train trip. sometimes from London, England to Wales to a Writer's Holiday. Sometimes, from London up north to Derby to Writers Summer School.
 I remember my journey on a train within Switzerland. They had a rack with hooks for your coat to hang up.


I have also travelled from the airport to Philadelphia. I sat around in the airport for hours. All sorts of people, porters, waiters, people at the next table, tried to apparently help me by movin my bag our of my way and theirs to a position away from my table.

I never allow that. My shoulder bag and wheel on bag must be in front of me, visible, ideally attacheched to me by the shoulder bag handle looped around my arm or the chair leg.

I have a friend who have lost her bag which was by her feet at a large table for ten in a Chinese restaurant in London.

My husband lost his wallet and sunglasses from his coat on the back of a crowded restaurant in Prague, Czeck Republic, one New Year's Eve. In addition to the manager and waiters, people passing to and from included diners leaving. Would-be diners walked in to enquire about a table and leaving disappointed. We had a guitarist and his assistant with a cap for money approaching us and passing to and fro. A person selling flowers. Another collecting money for charity.People at the next table getting up to go to the toilet.

I don't let a coat out of sight either. A coat hanging in a cupboard can disappear. Unless it is on a hook on the wall behind your table and you are facing it or leaning against it, don't let it go.

I also have a distinctive cover on my phone. A black phone could easily be picked up by mistake by somebody else. Or left behind by you, not realising it was your phone, thinking it was somebody else's.

I get onto a train and the man who helps me onto the train wants to heave my bag onto the luggage rack by the door. My reserved seat, or the only empty seat, is further into the train with its back to the distant luggage rack.

Thieves' tricks
A well-known trick is for a thief to get onto the train just before it is about to depart. When the signal for departure goes, he grabs a nearby bag and leaps off the train. Even if you had a distinctive bag and were watching and saw this happening, by the time you have raced to the end of the carriage, the train is moving.

Porters
In some hotels the porter wants to take your luggage away and up to your room via a service lift. I don't allow that. I recall ariving at my room and can't clean my teeth because the bag is delayed whilst they wait for somebody else on the same floor to load their stuff onto the trolley.

I once decided to change rooms, because mine looked out onto scaffodling and rubbish bins (Americans say trash cans). I had not left my rented home overlooking a swimming pool to stay in a room overlooking a buldging site and rubbish. But where was the luggage. (Americans can baggage.)

If the porter insists the luggage must go in the other lift, go with the luggage in the other lift (if you feel safe), or remove the wheel on bag containing your lap top and keep that small item with you whilst they take the larger suitcase.

Or just take your own luggage.

What can you do?

Bicycles
Which rack is easier to watch, the one in front or the one behind?




1 Buy pickpocket proof clothing. (That's a brand name.)
2 Add inside pockets to your clothes.
3 Add zips to all pockets with flaps.
4 Add a second zipped pocket inside and behind the main pocket compartment.
5 Wear a second garment such as a jacket or cape outside your jacket.
6 Keep a social distance from anybody. Face them when speaking to them, watching for people standing alongside.
7 Keep your wheeled bag between yourself and others in a queue (Americans say line-up) so they are not right next to your pockets.
Turn your wheel on bag so the front zip comparment is towards you or on the floor with another bag on top.
Buy a wheel on bag with a compartment at the back instead of the front.
Keep only newspapers in the front zipped compartment.
Count your bags.
A jacket with pockets on the outside can be worn inside out. Remove the neck brand and size labels or cover with satin ribbon.

Useful Websites
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-in-1-Women-Pockets-Scarf-Convertible-Journey-Winter-Infinity-Scarf-
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Convertible-Scarf-With-Hidden-Zipper-Pockets-Bandana-Headscarf-Wool-Neckerchief

About the Author
Angela Lansbury is a travel writer and photographer. Author of Quick Quotations and several other books.

See Lulu.com and Amazon.com 

Who's Accident-prone? Who Lost Their Passport - On A Plane!

What was the worst travel loss ever? The couple who were denied entry to Greece after leaving their passports on the plane. Thank God it wasn't me. It nearly was. I once lost my passport at security in the USA. At the last minute I was told to remove the bag around my neck with my passport. It went into another box.

I ran off to catch the plane without it. On the plane I felt round my neck and my bag wasn't there. I ran to the door. A member of staff stepped forward, saying, "You can't get off." 

I rushed out gasping, "You have to let me off or I can't get off in London. My passport's in Security!" When I ran back to Security, they had gone. My passport had been taken to the security office two floors up, the other end of the building. 

I ran. I arrived gasping. 

I said, "Excuse me, ..."

The assistant frowned, "You'll have to wait - I'm dealing with this person!"

I shouted, "You are holding up 300 people on a plane. They can't take off with my luggage without me and you've got my passport. Angela ..."

He looked, "Is this it? Do you have any identity?"

I sobbed, "You've got my identity. Look at the picture. It's me!"  

I filled in three forms, grabbed my passport, and ran back. 

I flopped into my seat, pink, heart thumping as if I was about to have a heart attack. I was hoping my husband would sympathize, pat my hand and console me. But everybody thinks of themselves. 

My husband snapped, "Don't you ever do that to me again!"  

Yes, we've all lost things. Even the most careful person. I bet you have, too. Once, or twice.

Here's a quick way to lose your hat. Travel in an open- 

sided rickshaw with a man, donkey or motorcycle at high speed.

We lost a man's hat, my husband's, from a motorcycle rickshaw in Cambodia.

My hat, also, nearly went for a roll into oncoming traffic. Fortunately, I was able to grab the brim. It was half-secured by being tied on with ribbons. I had already learned to sew ribbons onto hats. I carry a spare ribbon, plus a needle and cotton in my packing.

DIY Repairs
If you have open pockets on your clothes, add some zips and press studs to stop items falling out.

I have heard a friend in Singapore, J, say, "My family forbid me from travelling with my passport to daytime meetings because I am so prone to losing things."

He needs deeper pockets with secure closure.

My system: Look behind every time you leave a room or elevator or train or plane.

Before you ditch the old luggage, check the inside and outside pockets.

Plain Checks
Check the plane pockets and overhead compartments. Yes, we have left behind boxes of chocolates bought for our hosts at the destination. One couple left their passports behind in the plane seat pockets, were denied entry at the destination and missed their entire trip.

Try to get on board early so your duty free goods are above your seat and not in a compartment three seats away. If the latter is the case, make yourself a list of things to take off the plane, such as the coat hung up by the staff. If you are small, ask somebody else to check the overhead compartment before the line starts moving off the plane. Ask:  "Is anything else left up there?"

Small or Large Bags?
I had a lovely Travelon anti theft bag small shoulder cross body bag. Unfortunately the thieves took the whole bag. In Singapore. Pushed me from one side. Another person grabbed my bag from the other side.

Singapore flag. Safe country? How safe?

Singapore and Safety
Yes, Singapore is relatively safe. But, as the advertisements say, Low crime does not mean no crime.

Now I travel with a huge bag.

Waterproofing bags
When I had multiple injuries and an arm in a sling I had to swap to a light fabric bag. But my fabric bag is not waterproof. Papers, books and manuals have to be protected by something waterproof.

Spare Shoes
What about shoes? High heels make your feet hurt but are painful to walk home in?
take a foldable bag which disappears into its own pocket. Take spare small foldable shoes for walking home or to make a change if it rains.

What do you do with your heels when you have switched to the flats? Stick everything into a wheel-on bag.

Wheelie Bags
Even a wheel-on bag is not a hundred per cent safe. I lost a bag at the world travel market in London. Poele kept saying to me, :Leave it here" When I got back somebody had moved it way , or moved it into the store room or behind a desk and I spent ages anxiously looking.

On one occasion I lost the whole bag. After that the precious items stayed in my clothes pockets. All vital business cards.

Heavy brochures were thrown out and I kept only the business cards and photographed the brochure pages or asked for them to be posted to me or sent by email. That way my wheelie bag was light to carry around with me. And not to heavy to go on the plane home.

To end on a lighter note, this sounds like the children's song, dating back to German in the 1700s, There's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, as sung by Liza and Henry. You come round to the large container at the end. With the hole.

Lyrics[edit]

If you go back to Wikipedia and click on the sound symbol you can hear the tune of There's a hole in my bucket.

Useful And Interesting Websites
https://www.clothingarts.com/collections/womens_travel_clothing?utm_campaig
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=pick+pocket+proof+clothes
https://vagrantsoftheworld.com/best-anti-theft-travel-gear/
https://www.lazada.sg/pacsafe/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There%27s_a_Hole_in_My_Bucket
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/uk-couple-greece-holiday-lost-passports-plane-stansted-kos-first-choice-tui-a8428841.html

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

How To Be Safer from theft in restaurants: Check and Czech Republic

One system is to have your bag between your feet, with the strap would around your leg. However, that does not prevent somebody from cutting the strap, or causing a distraction, such as one person falling over you spilling water, whilst another makes off with the bag when you stand up.

Phones and Table Tops
Watch out for having a mobile phone on the table top. Strangers come up, put a newspaper down on your phone, engage you in conversation, pick up the phone and go.

As soon as anybody approaches you to talk, move your phone off the table. Better still, don't put it down. Keep it in your hand or in a pocket.

Inaccessible Zip Pulls
Consider having an inaccessible pocket. For example, sew an inner bag inside your pocket, so the person trying to reach your phone would have to find and undo a second zip. have the zip pull behind a ribbon sewn down on three sides.

Exposed Jacket Pockets
Do not leave a phone inside a jacket on the back of your chair. When you find it has gone, you have no idea when it went or who could have taken it.

Possible Precautions
Keep your phone on your body, rather than in a jacket which you remove.

Checking In Coats
Empty your pockets of wallet, phone, doorkeys, bus passes, sentimental objects, before handing in the coat to check-in. Photograph yourself in the coat earlier in the day, so if you lose your cloakroom ticket you can show the colour and style of jacket to the attendant, and prove the item is yours.

I prefer to keep my coat with me. No risk of forgetting and going home without it.

If you choose banquette seating against a wall, less chance of a passer-by being able to reach it.

As soon as somebody sits down at an adjacent table, move the item away from them. Otherwise they might put their coat down on top of your bag.

Singapore Theft
I had my cross-body bag taken in Singapore. A  slash-proof bag is no help when somebody takes your whole bag. it was a classic theft, I realised afterwards. Somebody, an old man, bumped me from the right. I looked behind and two tall younger men in conversation were marching away behind me. At the time I thought I must have left my bag on the bus. But I felt light as they lifted it. the image of the old man and the two passers-by remained in my memory and re-surfaced when I read about this distraction technique later.

Stay close together. If you are a couple, walk together. Don't separate, the man a few paces in front of the woman, or running forward to look at a shop window, or take a photo.

Spain Theft
Years ago a grab theft happened to my parents in Spain. The two men were walking ahead. the two ladies were walking behind. The thief ran past the men towards the ladies. he grabbed a handbag and ran on. By the time the men heard the women shout and ran back, the thief was well ahead and had disappeared around a corner.


Czech Republic Theft
We were in Prague for New Year one year. We were targets of two thefts. The first was from our parked car.

We had just parked when a girl approached and offered to help us and translate. She accompanied us around a museum and went for lunch with us - during which she went off to make a phone call. We later suspected she was telling accomplices that she was keeping us busy.

We got back to find our car window broken as well as items taken. We spent most of the rest of the holiday going back to police stations to make reports and meet translators and to the garage to order parts and on the phone to insurance companies - all impeded by office closures over the New Year.

We went off for a meal at a restaurant. My husband's jacket was on the back of the chair. No wallet in it. However, his new sunglasses were taken.


As they say, better safe than sorry.

Safe travelling.

Useful Websites
clothingarts.com

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Address cards, printing, storing, presenting, re-using

Problems
1 How to print address cards in a hurry
2 How to print and carry lots of cheap address cards
3 How to find your address cards when you have lots of pockets, your new friends is about nato jump off the bus or train, or the person who gave you a lift drops you at a station on a corner with cameras and don't stop signs and you need your business card in a hurry.

Answers
1 Find printing machines in shopping malls that print you 20 cards instantly or office supply shops often have a printing department which prints cards while you wait.
2 Photocopy your last card several times
3 Find somebody who can do calligraphy to hand write your address, telephone, email, website and draw a logo and photocopy it
4 Print Able labels stickers - and get them sent to your hotel or conference centre
5 Write you name and website address on the back of cards you no longer need, such as restaurant cards which you can photograph on your mobile
6 Ask others to photograph your last business card(s) using their mobile
7 Photograph your last business card on your mobile and share the photo with others to give them your address
8 Print company cards or family address cards adding at the top or the bottom of the front or back
the words Presented by ......... Then all the family or both business partners, or whoever runs out of cards first can use the Presented by set as extras.
9 When you have lots of pockets keep all your cards in a holder or simple an elastic band in the lower or upper right hand pocket (if you are aright handed - if not, the left hand pocket).
10 Place two business cards in each pocket of your jacket(s) and every bag and case. Whenever you are asked for a business card or need it in a hurry, you will have a card in whichever pocket you reach into. When you get home, or back to the office, re-fill whichever pocket is empty.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. See my books on Amazon and lulu.com
Please like and share my posts on this blog and Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube.

London By Night - The London Eye, Bus Tours, Singapore

Problem
How do you get around London at night, see the important sights, meet people?

Answers
1 You can take an open top bus tour. (Most big cities of the world.)
2 Bus tours by night.
3 Combine a bus tour with a boat trip. (London, Singapore, New York, many other cities.)
4 See the world from London Eye. (In Singapore, the Singapore Flyer. They say, "A moving experience at every turn." I've done it. I can vouch for that. You get a commentary, and spectacular views. Book on line and look for the discounts. You also need to book in advance because you get timed tours due to high demand. The queue to collect tickets will usually be shorter and quicker than the one for buying tickets which is held up by discussions and card payments.)
5 Walk from a main line station along the Thames river bank and admire the floodlit sights, such as the London Eye near Embankment station. You could cross one of the bridges and take pictures.
(In Singapore walk along the riverbank linking at least one major museum with other landmarks. See my previous posts on the river and Clarke Quay and bridges.)
Get a free map of London from an airport, hotel, or a large station. Circle sights you want to see. Or print off a map of an area of London and mark on it places you have seen and photographed.

Story
What I had not realised until this December in London, England, in 2016, is that the open top bus is itself a night time attraction. The light along the top of the bus changes colour.

This week the London Eye was in red when I saw it.

Tips
1 Look at Meet-up for events in your area.
2 Always carry an umbrella in London or Singapore. Find the smallest umbrella and the jacket with the largest pockets to carry the umbrella.

Websites
http://www.londonnighttour.com
http://www.singaporeflyer.com

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.
Follow my blogs, like them and share my posts. Also on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube.
Books on Amazon and Lulu.com

Packing Cheap, Travelling Light and Buying New

The British used to admire the French for their chic clothes, and the Americans who always looked as if they were wearing new, uncreased clothes, despite travelling to the UK on long flights, often overnight. What are travellers' style secrets?

American Throwaway, and New Bulk-buy
When I first went to the USA I was astonished how cheaply you could buy t-shirts. In the south and Caribbean, stalls were offering cheap t-shirts or two for the price of one or special deals on three. I concluded that the reason why Americans looked as if they were wearing new clothes was that they were wearing new clothes.

Laundry
For a special occasion, a celebration lunch or dinner, you can buy an inexpensive item and keep it in its packaging. Alternatively, if you've worn it on the journey, send it to the hotel laundry. If you hotel's laundry is too expensive, you might be able to find a local laundry shop by looking in the local directory in your hotel bedside table or desk, or just use your phone or the free computer terminal in the hall of the hotel.

Cleaning and Ironing
Ask hotel staff if the hotel has a washing machine or iron for guests. Some hotels hide the iron at the back of the wardrobe, have a washing machine hidden in the basement or up on the 4th floor. Ask. Alternatively, housekeeping will send you an iron and ironing board, usually supplied only to the suites but often supplied to any guest who asks.

If your hotel provides a valet service for a suite, or a club lounge, the staff may be able to advise or organise washing or pressing of an item.

Larger hotels offer a laundry service. Hostels and budget hotels often have a laundry room.

In-flight Clothes Change
A PR girl for a travel company taught me her trick for looking good on arrival off a flight. She travels with a spare lightweight outfit to wear on board. She greets her group at the airport in a tailored business suit. Immediately after boarding she changed into loose onesie for sleeping. Arriving overseas in the morning, she changed back into the business suit.

If you are a frequent flyer the airline personnel often offer to hang up your coat. This keeps it pristine and crease free. Less chance of dropping your tray dinner all over it.

If the flight is less than full, you have more chance that the crew will offer to do you favours even if you are travelling in Economy. Especially if you tell them that you are travelling to a wedding or a new job or you have a reason for wanting to look smartly dressed.

If you are buying souvenirs for family, consider buying two (or more) t-shirts, one as a gift for somebody, the other to wear on holiday, or two as gifts, or two to wear on holiday, and negotiate a price for buying more than one. The same obviously applies to other clothing, sandals. If you have a partner who has nothing to do while you are at a business meeting, sports event or conference, and they like shopping, you can occupy them by asking them to organise laundry or better still sending them to buy clothes.

Colour Co-ordination
Either co-ordinate colours with yourself, or what is available.You can pay to have a company choose your colours - known in some systems as spring, summer, autumn and winter colours. But holding colours against your skin or hair or eyes or lipstick or shoes or coat will often show you which basic colours or accessory colours suit you.
 In China red is a favourite colour. You could match your company colours, or go for your football team's colours.

Fitted Clothes
A neater look is created by wearing fitted clothes. A loose garment can be tightened by wearing a belt. You could use a long scarf as a belt. Or turn the garment inside out, create a seam up both of the sides with a couple safety pins. If you have time loosely sew the seam with the hotel sewing kit. If you don't have a sewing kit in your room, ask for one. Or if none is available, a member of the hotel staff, or another guest might be able to lend you a needle and cotton.
Make sure the garment is still loose enough to pull over your head.

French girls, on casual occasions, as tourists, or on the beach, sometimes tie the lower corners of a causal shirt into a bow, making it fit across the bust.

Matching Colours
In the UK, the 99p shop and Pound World sell slippers in colours. You can co-ordinate bedroom slippers with your night clothes or casual wear. Either one pair. Or even matching slippers for two or more pairs of pyjamas or night dresses or wraps.

Wraps For Beach and Bedroom
A long scarf doubles as a beach sarong. A light wrap around dressing gown does for both beach and hotel wear.

One one occasion I forgot to pack pyjamas, so I wore the hotel dressing gown in bed. It was warm and the bedroom was air conditioned.

I found the belt was uncomfortable. But I was glad to be dressed when I had to rush to the door on hearing knocking. I found a man delivering the early breakfast I'd ordered before my dawn flight home.

Crease-free
The three ways of having crease free clothing are:
1 Buy new at home
2 Buy new at destination
3 Send to laundry
4 DIY ironing
5 Wash garment and hang it to and drip dry in shower room steam
6 Invest in outfits of synthetic non-crease fabrics. Poly-Cotton is a compromise, cool enough, yet relatively little creasing.
7 Hang everything immediately.
8 Pack clothes on thin hangers, the sort you get from dry cleaning shops. If you don't have enough, you can buy them, or pick up spares from other people, or even shops.

Travelling Light
You can buy jackets with multiple pockets designed for photographers, sports, and people on airlines with luggage restrictions.
Alternatively add pockets to the inside of your own shirts, a jacket, even a T-shirt. Pockets can be expensive to buy. You can make pockets from old garments.

Pockets
A shirt with a frayed collar and cuffs still provides a ready-made breast pocket you can cut off, cuffs which can be seemed and reversed. A too-small child's uniform had pockets in the jacket for mother's jacket. Old trousers (USA readers - trousers are pants) and jeans also have pairs of pocket.

I invested in dressed which can be worn three or more ways. I find long skirts which pull up to make a dress with a halter neck strap work well. However, many of the wear six ways dresses require a slim figure which looks good in very tight or very folded clothing. the fabrics are often thin, flimsy and cheap and easily crease, dull or day-glow colours.

Reversible jackets
You can buy reversible clothes for men, women and children. I have a permanent search on eBay for reversible everything, reversible skirts, reversible dresses, reversible jackets, reversible scarves, reversible belts, reversible pendants, reversible bracelets, reversible stone rings.

A jacket which reversed to black seemed dull and boring on the black side. I don't wear black at night. I want to be seen when crossing the road. So I wore only the coloured side - until I arrived at a funeral. Everybody was in black, about five hundred people, an entire church full of black, only little me in bright patchwork! I 'accidentally' dropped my hymn book, removed my jacket, sat up again and replaced it, now wearing black. I found myself muttering a short prayer, 'Thank you, God, for my reversible jacket.'

Happy Travelling!

Companies offering reversibles
UK JD Williams and catalogues in the same group of companies
Asia - many Chinese jackets are reversible, lined with silk. Even if they are not sold as reversible, you can reverse them. You may wish to remove the conspicuous white inside neck label, cover it with a piece of coloured ribbon, or wear a neck scarf which hides the label.

Reversible Jackets For Men
marksandspencer.com
landsend.co.uk
jdwilliams.co.uk - I saw a festival jacket in the 2015 summer sale at £34.
Cheaper items in the USA from aliexpress.com

Pockets in jackets
Ski wear usually has lots of pockets.
ayegear.com - not cheap. £139.99. Loads of pockets.

Price Comparison
On eBay you can search and sort prices low to high, including postage.
On eBay you can put items into your cart and then compare prices before buying. On eBay if your watch list is full you can do a Collection for comparison, and fill in the price on the notes.
Several comparison sites bring up everything available in a search. These appear at the bottom of your screen when you are on eBay.
Idealprice.co.uk

Quality Checks
To get an overview of quality, you may have to search around. For example, you find something cheaper on Ebay than on Amazon, but you might find more customer feedback on Amazon or on the brand's website, or even a site which is out of stock in your size is still handy for customer reviews.

What could go wrong? A reversible dress may show the reverse below the on top colour. To me this is usual. You could put a string size ribbon or belt on the lining to hold it up.

The fabric could be too light or too heavy. Chiffon can be scratchy. Silk can range from tough to so lightweight that the seams tear. Decide if you want softly draping or robust. A plain colour might show stains. But you could cover them with muttons or patches, of flowers made from a piece of the hem.

A light-weight bag could be too light to carry heavy objects or tear easily at the seams or when sharp objects or corners project from heeled shoes or goods you place inside. Light four wheel luggage might not wheel easily over cobblestones, rough tarmac, bobbled paving at crossing supposed to help the blind but annoy anybody using wheels.

If you know this already and don't care, then the overall satisfaction rate might convince you that as you are not so fussy the item is a good buy, or good for the price, or good enough for one trip.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer, author, speaker.
See my other blog posts, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook. Please like my posts and follow me.

Luggage and pockets protecting from pickpockets

pacsafe.com
Scottevest tops and trousers (USA pants) with lots of pockets
Travelon bags - lots of pockets and wife, solid shoulder straps

How to Protect Your Suitcase & Valuables?

   Everything I have is of value to me. Unless I buy a book at a charity shop and wear dirty torn old clothes.
   Whether on business or holiday I like new clothes, new underwear. But I try to keep my camera in my pocket and photograph the contents of my suites at the airport before sealing the bag and checking it in. That way if I have an insurance claim I have proof.
  The trouble is you buy new clothes or goods on holiday. Then you have to bring them home. You can't put everything in carry on luggage.
   When we were living in the USA, we had to bring everything back. We thought goods were safer in suitcases with us than in containers.
  One solution is wearing clothes with large pockets. But what about pickpockets at airports? And happens when you take off your coat when asleep overnight? Or going to the toilet? Other people can access your luggage in the overhead lockers.
    If you see me get off an airline wearing two dresses it's not that I've stolen one. I've bought it. Or decided my two silk dresses are safer on me than in a suitcase.