My World Nomad Wardrobe

I am pleased to announce that I have lost 5 kilos (luggage weight that is!) Those of you who subscribe to the weekly *Goodie* know that I’m on a mission to limit my check-in baggage to a mere 15 kilos. When I arrived in Manila, I weighted an astounding 26.4 kilos. When I checked out 5 days later, I weighted 21.6 – yay me!

The secret to my weight loss? A new “World Nomad Wardrobe.” I know, I know, it is so cliché: American tourist girl dumps khaki walking shorts for batik skirts once she arrives in Southeast Asia. But hell, if the shoe fits – wear it!

And wearing it I am! I have a completely re-invigorated and much “lighter” wardrobe of traditional skirts, dresses, and scarves. What I love about it is the color! So many bright and tantalizing pieces – I literally can’t wait to get dressed I the morning.

And it’s all really cool. As in breezy, non-clingy fabrics. I’m specializing in the knee-length wrap skirt, tank top and multi-color Indonesian ikat scarf with closed-toed flat leather shoes (to keep my feet clean while traversing the dirt sidewalks and side-stepping the open sewers). I especially like that my shoes are a mellow orange – they go with everything!

My one reservation is that I think some of my scarves may, in fact, be table clothes. They are just a little thick, and I got a few puzzled looks from people on the plane. Then again, they may have just been bedazzled by my brave use of seemingly contrasting colors and patterns. (In my mind, they are somehow go “together…”)

Whatever! I’m having fun and am comfortable and cool in the humid heat that’s only going to get more intense as we move into the Southeast Asia summer and I head into IndoChina.

Besides, if I am wearing table cloth, it could come in handy as an extra napkin in a pinch.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 16th, 2011 and is filed under Shopping & Fashion.