Nomadic Narrative » travel gear http://www.nomadicnarrative.com emphasizing the invisible and underground nature of life Sat, 31 Jul 2010 13:29:34 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 Nomadic nail tips http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/2009/09/nomadic-nail-tips/ http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/2009/09/nomadic-nail-tips/#comments Sun, 06 Sep 2009 20:35:55 +0000 Nomadic Narrative http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/?p=347 Travel light, travel fast. It took a while for me to learn how to pack to be both comfortable and quick. Air travelers today are getting a crash course. Trying to pack a carry-on toiletry bag following TSA’s 3-1-1 rule really makes you pare down to the barest necessities. At least these new restrictions have led to a series of creative solutions.

A small gift came attached to this month’s box of Kotex. Wrapped in clear plastic, a pink and yellow square designed like a matchbook read limas de viaje, travel emery boards in English, in discreet cursive font on the bottom fold. I released the top half just as I would if I were opening a pack of matches. Inside, twelve tiny emery boards pulled apart―yep, you guessed it―just like matches.

emery_board

This innovative solution beats out the old metal files, which probably won’t make it through security and the large, bulky emery boards. I’m adding a set of travel emery boards to the cute-pair-of-flats-and-little-black-dress ensemble I always tuck away!

]]> http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/2009/09/nomadic-nail-tips/feed/ 0 Cosmetics in Costa Rica http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/2009/03/cosmetics-in-costa-rica/ http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/2009/03/cosmetics-in-costa-rica/#comments Sun, 29 Mar 2009 01:07:00 +0000 Nomadic Narrative http://www.nomadicnarrative.com/?p=149 Over the years I’ve slowly increased my makeup tastes from drug store to department store brands. From there, I’ve even inched a bit up the scale starting with Clinique and moving on to Lancôme and MAC. In the United States, close to malls and enticed by glossy Sunday adds, I was quick to pick up a new eyeliner or the latest shade of lip gloss. I especially found it hard to pass up one of those nifty gift-with-purchase sets. In Costa Rica, for most beauty products, it’s back to the grocery isles.

cosmetics
The mascara is selling for 8,305 colones ($15), eyeliner 6,920 colones ($12.50) and lipstick 5,700 colones ($10). On the bright side, excellent coffee is $1.75 per 1lb bag and it’s too humid to wear a lot of makeup!

The supermarket near my house, where the above photo was taken, has both sides of an isle decorated with cosmetics and staffed with women offering product advice. Need mascara? They are there to point out options just like the makeup counter in a department store. The only difference is that I haven’t noticed anyone offering samples or giving in-store makeovers…yet.

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