My dAd and sister are coming to visit at the end of the month. They'll be here for almost three weeks. So this will give us plenty of time to explore Bulgaria and hopefully Istanbul. I got a hysterical email from my dAd today. Then he called me on skype to ask me if' I'd gotten his email. He's awesome like that. So my dAd is not a big traveler. He's traveled pretty widely in the States but to date his only big international trip was to England maybe eight years ago. He's also not known for being a light packer. As such, he's been thinking, worrying and discussing this with me on and off for the last few weeks. Here's his most recent correspondence:
<blockquote>Carolyn, I thought that I might head out to buy a few clothing items for our trip… googled up what to wear – Bulgaria, Europe, etc. Some things stood out:
<ul>
	<li>No athletic shoes – especially white – I have white Nike walking shoes that are my current favorite – should I look for a dark pair?</li>
	<li>No t-shirts with writing</li>
	<li>Wear slacks and summer shirts – I assume this means button down shirts and khaki pants</li>
	<li>Not so much on wearing jeans?</li>
	<li>Don’t wear shorts</li>
	<li>Don’t carry camera bags – messenger type bags will fit in better (I’ve got that new small over the shoulder bag that I’m going to carry anyway…)</li>
	<li>Rick Steves A.) only pack a carry-on bag, B.) wash/rinse clothes at night and wring out well to that they dry over night, and C.) neutrals are good – brown, black, dark blue.</li>
</ul>
Since we blonde people will look like foreigners perhaps respectful dress is more important? Perhaps I’ll wait a day or two to go shopping… if you want to respond in a blog post that is ok. Love, dAd</blockquote>
Um, first and foremost, I LOVE my dAd. He is at home in Walla Walla plotting his adventure in Bulgaria down to his clothes and what he should and should not pack. I guess it all stems from a moment in London when he looked around and realized that he was the only in shorts and a baseball cap (his standard uniform) and this made him feel out of place. I've tried to tell him that in Bulgaria his clothes really don't matter that much and that he should wear what he's comfortable in. Because really, it's not like my 6'2 blond father is going to blend in in Bulgaria. I've also tried to warn him that he's probably going to feel out of place. He doesn't know the language and can't read the alphabet. Luckily the two words he does have down in Bulgarian are: beer and good-bye. You'll be proud of me I didn't cop out and teach him ciao. Nope I am serious about things and taught him довиждане (dovijdane). So, thoughts? Have I lead my dAd astray? Would you give him different advice or have I done okay?