Decisions, decisions, decisions...

We are going away on vacation for two weeks. I just can't wait! Holidaaay - celebraaate...! Still, this requires quite some planning. As a former girl scout (I am still one at heart), I like to come prepared. One thing is packing clothes and all that other obvious stuff you need for two weeks in the sun with a glass of champagne in your hand. Picking the right shoes is a whole different story. If I do not bring the right ones, I will end up buying new ones. Very often quite similar to the ones I left at home. I have tried getting away with the concept of buying "souvenir shoes" before, but no. So - I will need to bring shoes appropriate for: flying and possibly running through airports, dinner at the (presumably) best hotel in Athens, hiking on Mount Etna, climbing the gangway at least twice a day, getting in and out of the tender when going ashore, exercising at the gym (we can always dream, can't we?), lounging on deck with a few drinks AND being able to walk down the stairs back to the cabin with some dignity, sightseeing in Pompeii and Delphi, climbing the stairs from the harbour in Sorrento, going on the funicular in Capri, and finally - having numerous dinners where I can play my favourite game of "dress up". And while I do all of this - I really would like to try to look ok and have a good time. Being a very typical Scandinavian, I have a tendency to melt when being exposed to what other countries refer to as normal summer temperatures. My hair gets limp, my skin looks like I have just been exercising, and my make-up keeps running. So if I try to draw the attention away from those parts by wearing amazing shoes, I figure that I might get away with it. We are getting close to the final cut now. It has taken some effort, but I have managed to cut the list down to 16 pairs. If it had only been flats, I would have been able to slip them into my suitcase. Easily. But recently, I have aquired this insatiable taste for platform wedges. I have some silly idea in my head that they might make my legs look longer. Here I must quote my fellow Norwegian - Ibsen: "If you take the life lie from an average (wo)man, you take away his (her) happiness as well." So. Stop. Don't. Even. Go. There. Only drawback is that these skyscraper shoes weigh a ton, and take up a lot of room in my luggage. And our 195 square feet cabin. Ouch. Last year I met this incredible 80 year old woman onboard the Seadream I. She had booked a separate cabin for her shoes. My hero.