Travel Requirements and Shopportunities

Ah, travel. It broadens your perspectives. It opens up the mind. It introduces you to people and places you would not have otherwise have experienced. There's the whole subgenre of "adventure travel" or "eco-tourism" wherein travelers safari, backpack, and otherwise generally rough it while getting close to whatever habitat they have chosen to explore. Sounds amazing, but not my idea of relaxing. I have friends who crave the beach -- who want nothing more than to plunk themselves down on a "beach bed" (I have it on good authority that such things exist) and slowly sip margaritas all day long in the sun and salt spray. Not my thing. There are my camping friends, who will drive themselves out into the middle of big Bend National Park and strike off for days at a time with merely whatever they can squeeze into their backpacks. I do not own a backpack. I have another friend organizing a ski trip this winter who has invited me along. I regretfully declined. I'm sure it would, as she assures me, be fun. But in order to go on a ski trip I will have to willingly go somewhere where it is cold (which is a requirement for snow, which is a requirement or skiing).

I'm a city girl. I like to travel to cities. I like museums and restaurants and opera houses and high rises and perfume shops and transit systems and taxis and hotels. And, as we know, I like to shop. Frankly, if there are no retail opportunities presented by travel, I'm not really interested in doing it. Does that make me shallow? Perhaps. It also makes me well-dressed. I can live with it.

And not many places in the world are better for all the stuff I love to do than New York City. Never been? Too long since your last trip? Here's your chance:

It's a long weekend in the Big Apple with accommodations and some spending money -- a perfect little getaway, not to mention a great excuse to do some shopping. (Just be careful -- the airlines are charging per suitcase now. I cannot tell you with what enormous dismay I heard that news.) I've already entered. And while you're at Shopbop, check out the enormous summer sale -- there is tons of marked-down stuff.

I haven't hopped on the patio dress bandwagon yet, not because I dislike them, but because I do resist anything so trendy that I suspect is unlikely to carry through to next year at this time. However, this dress could make a gal change her mind. I love the butterflies, and I love the way the black and white keeps the butterflies from being too sweet.

I'm on a near-frantic search for nice, cool, sleeveless or short-sleeved tops. I lovelovelove this botanical print. This would be so very cute with my cropped khakis, or narrow jeans.

Perfectly fantastic and useful, not to mention gorgeous, nude shoe. Open shoes with tights are going to be everywhere in the next couple of seasons. The suede will move these easily into fall, and imagine how pretty these will be with a pair of jewel-toned tights underneath them. They also come in chocolate brown. I love these shoes, and they are crazy on sale.

This is a dress I've seen and admired in stores all summer long. A slight variation on the sheath dress, a little more forgiving, in a beautiful patterned silk. It's just enough specialness without trying too hard. Lovely dress.

So, go!! Shop!!!