"Things" we have loved, lost and left behind

We have written about our observations of life on the road and the people we meet but we have not written much about "things" so this column is dedicated to those possessions and material goods that sustain us, nurture us and frustrate the heck out of us. Here goes:

Things we love (in no particular order):
1. Our Osprey bags. We've said it before and we will say it again, these bags rock. Literally. Those big wheels roll right over the biggest, baddest rocky roads we travel. These zippers are indestructible. We have crammed them full and they stay closed.
2. Patches of flags from the countries we have visited. They are little, inexpensive and remind Mike of the places he has loved.
3. Showers with water pressure and room to move. We have been crammed into little boxes with no elbow room and washed with cold water and water that barely dribbles. When we get a great shower, we celebrate.
4. Mike's travel shoes. After years of wearing tennis shoes daily and for all purposes, Mike bought some low hiking shoes for this trip and he loves them. He is not going back to daily tennis shoes.
5. Our travel wardrobe. We brought too much, but what we brought was great.

Things we lost:
1. Deanne's black capris. I washed them then left them hanging in the closet to dry. At the next stop when I realized that one half of my pants wardrobe was gone, I e-mailed the hotel and THEY PROMISED TO MAIL THEM TO CAITIE FOR FREE. And they did. So, as of today, I have them back.

Things we have left behind:
1. Mike left behind some clothes that he no longer wanted/needed.
2. Paperbacks in English for the next person traveling through that hotel in desperate need of reading material.
3. Soaps and shampoos that we have collected along the way to use as laundry soap until we realized the rate of acquisition was exceeded the usage rate.
4. We intend to leave some extra clothes and shoes with Caitie so we have a lighter load while we travel through Italy. We will pick them up on the way back through.

Mike and Deanne