Travel and Leisure
I must be bored. Or at least not very busy in my other hobby/part-time job of working as an Extra in TV & film. Even though our next trip is still quite some time from now, I find myself thinking about what could I improve upon before we fly to Europe again.
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| Facebook Marketplace offers suggestions base on your past views |
Enter Facebook. Yep, the dreaded F-word. But in recent years, I have found Facebook Marketplace to be a treasure trove for getting little things here and there, and it's especially useful for picking up wardrobe items that I want/need for working on camera. It's also great for getting rid of stuff that you haven't used or worn in few years. But here's why FB Marketplace is good for this: it tracks what you are interested in, and suggests things when they come up for sale. e.g. If you search for and click on say, Helly Hansen women's jackets, it will start to suggest listings to you. In the image above, you can see that it found a new listing for HH women's jacket.
Some of my best/recent acquisitions for travel wardrobe have been found on FB Marketplace. Like this Fjallraven jacket I found a few weeks ago. If you're not familiar with this brand, they are a Swedish manufacturer that makes quality hiking and travel gear. Unfortunately, their clothing and kit is quite expensive, which makes for good bargain hunting on FB Marketplace. Like new, and at only $60, this was a steal compared to paying retail at over $300. Why is this an upgrade? Well, I had an Arc'teryx jacket that was very similar, but didn't have enough, erm, space for a thick sweater or mid-layer underneath. This one also tucks the hood into the collar, which I prefer. It's perfect for late spring and early fall European trips (we leave late September). I ended up selling the Arc’teryx one for $75 (for which I had originally paid $70 from another FB seller)!
Another awesome deal I found last year on FB Marketplace, was this like new travel backpack! See, before the pandemic, we had booked flights and Airbnbs for France. Normally, I'd use a carry on-sized, 4-wheeled spinner for a trip where we might be going on a river cruise, for example. But with this itinerary, we would have been spending a fair bit of time traversing small towns, with uneven pavement and cobblestone streets. I decided back then to start looking for travel backpacks for both of us, and this like new Osprey Porter 46 showed up for $60! Very highly rated, and with a regular retail price of over $200, this was a great FB Marketplace find. And then I found a
Rick Steves convertible backpack for her, on Facebook as well, in a forum called "Buy Nothing"; it's a group for folks in your neighbourhood where people give away stuff rather than it ending up in the landfill. Yep, that's right... a like new travel backpack for free!
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| Source: MEC.ca |
I wrote recently how I also upgraded my travel footwear, buying some
Arc'teryx approach shoes that will be great for those shoulder season trips where we might encounter inclement weather. Actually, on that same shopping outing, we stopped into MEC (it is our local outdoor gear store, similar to REI in the States), and I found a better pair of shoes for warmer weather destinations. Yes, I did have a comfy pair of somewhat stylish, Spanish-made, Fluchos shoes, but after using them this past summer on some easy hiking trails, I found they lacked the support I require for my bad knee(s). So when I tried these Timberland hybrid hiking shoes on, I knew I had found a better solution for warm destinations. While not a FB Marketplace purchase, I still have Facebook to thank, as it presented me with the ad, indicating further markdowns at MEC... they ended up being only $40!
Another find, was this MEC crossbody bag, which I will be using to replace my other
day-touring bag (which has turned into my camera bag). This particular bag is no longer produced, so finding a clean one in like new condition is a bit of a score. Again, FB Marketplace comes through again... $20. Why am I calling this an upgrade? I found that the last time we went to Europe, my other bag was
just a little too small; once I had packed the essentials in for a the day's outing, I found there wasn't room for a small snack (nicked from the hotel breakfast bar). It will also double as my personal item on the plane; large enough for my iPad, headphones and other items I like to have close by, but small enough to fit under the seat during the flight, but not take up my legroom. Also, this one has a convenient handle on the top, when I've got my Osprey Porter 46 taking both of my shoulders.
Who knows what I'll find next? With 8 months to go until we travel to Europe again, I'm sure I'll find something!
