Those who know me well will no doubt be flabbergasted by the fact that I am taking on the subject of “traveling light” in this column. After all, I am notorious for the copious amounts of luggage that generally accompany me from destination to destination.

You see, I always thought that to travel with less than a complete wardrobe would be to diminish the overall style with which I like to travel. However, given that I am not Elton John and that more often than not I fly coach rather than on a chartered plane, I have been forced to come to a realization about packing, which is perhaps fairly obvious to many, but somehow eluded me for years -- Less is indeed more even when it comes to packing.

The most important insight that I can share is that traveling with interchangeable basics is definitely the way to go. This may sound terribly anal, but heretofore I was one of those people who would sit down with a legal pad and outline every single outfit and every single accessory I would need for every occasion prior to packing for a trip.

Nowadays, I still sit with my legal pad but I use my planning to eliminate excess in my packing. I always start with the basics - black pants, khaki pants, navy pants, white shirts, the great black suit which can be dressed up or down, and so on - and then I build around them. In this way I can plan multiple outfits that can work for any occasion that might arise. Then, if there is a truly special occasion, I simply add in that one jaw-dropping ensemble and c’est voila, all is well with the world and my packing is complete. Again, this may seem patently obvious to some, but for me it was mind boggling.

The other packing revelation that I feel obligated to share is that bigger is not always better when it comes to luggage. Call me a size queen, but before my recent mea culpa I had always been drawn only to the grandest valises because for me they represented unlimited packing potential. Yet again, I was sadly misguided by my own grandiose notions of travel, which were no doubt drawn from the elegant movies of the 40’s and 50’s where all the swells traveled with steamer trunks chock full of all sorts of booty. But now that my feet are firmly planted on the ground and in the present, I have discovered that a whole lot can fit into small packages thanks to innovative designs by leading luggage manufacturers like Tumi and Louis Vuitton. You don’t even have to sacrifice an ounce of style with many of these brilliantly compact designs…in fact you could even gain a little. Who knew?

The final little packing revelation I just can’t resist sharing is the joy and ease that knitwear can offer for your travels from coast to coast. These days when I pack, there’s always a healthy selection of James Perse knits tucked away in my luggage for good measure. Knitwear is light, takes up so little space and, most importantly, almost never requires ironing no matter how many times you roll it up. It’s pure genius unlike me who despite graduating from what was one of the top 5 business programs in the U.S. and going on to a top 20 law school, never quite figured out before now that packing knitwear might make travel so much easier for me. I guess it just goes to show you that they don’t teach you everything in college.

Now if you’re one of those people who can go away for the weekend with a backpack, you’ve probably read this column and gone “duh” and you would be right to do so because traveling light is no issue for you - yours is an entirely different issue which I fear must await another column…another time. But for those who like me who have lived under the oppression of packing and luggage for so long, I hope you to will find a lighter less burdensome path by using the tools that I have shared.

About a year ago, we wrote about how greed and overcrowding has ruined Key West. Now a new report comes out by National Geographic Traveler which corroborates this. They actually say Key West is "getting ugly." Their words, not ours.

But it is true. All they care about in Key West is the almighty dollar, cruise ship after cruise ship enters port and out come thousands of tourists, overtaking the quaint village. Duval Street is a total nightmare, there is no charm left. There are t-shirt shops and more t-shirt shops. The place looks like a Hollywood back lot. You keep looking for charm and substance, but there is none. It is all a shell.

At first, they screwed the gay crowd over by not catering to us. After years and years of gay support, they turned their backs on the gay crowd probably because "straight" resorts and hotels were throwing money at them and a new Hooters on Duval Street was more important than the bohemian atmosphere that everyone went there for. They went for the "straight dollar." Now the whole place is screwed up. It's all about greed.

In the March 2004 issue of National Geographic Traveler, they feature 115 of the world's "greatest places." Key West was tied with one of Thailand's tourist areas as being third from the bottom of the list. A victim of "crowding, poor planning and greed," according to the magazine. Since Key West is one of the leading gay destinations, and the others on the bottom of the list are not, we thought we should report it.

In 1998, Newsweek called the city "spoiled." What they market and the reality are poles apart.

The top 5 places according to
National Geographic Traveler:
Norwegian fiords
Cape Breton Island, Canada
South Island, New Zealand
Torres del Paine, Chile
Tasmania, Austrailia

The bottom 5:
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands,
Key West, Florida
Phauket area, Thailand
North coast, Jamaica
Costa del Sol, Spain

Editor's note: The only reason we bring the subject up is that when we first published reports of how poor Key West is for tourists, we were bombarded with emails and phone calls from Key West officials, the Key West daily newspaper and locals. Rather than face the problem, they all condemned us for telling it like it is. We expect the same reaction now. That seems to be the problem: they have their heads in the sand and won't face the real problems. They would rather blame the messengers than try to recreate what once was: charm and elegance in a funky little town.

Air Canada New Sponsor For 1st World Outgames Montréal 2006

“A tripartite agreement has been reached between Tourisme Montréal, Air Canada and Montréal 2006,” Ms. Louise Roy, Chief Executive Officer for Montréal 2006 announced. “For Air Canada and its partners,” explained Ms. Roy, “this represents an overall contribution of nearly $500,000.”

Following the announcement of Labatt Breweries as a sponsor earlier this spring, Air Canada now becomes the second major sponsor to join the ranks of private support for the 1st World Outgames, which will be held from July 29 to August 5, 2006 in Montréal.

“Air Canada is pleased to sponsor the largest sport and cultural event to be held in Canada in the next two years.” said Ms. Guylaine Lavoie, Air Canada’s Director of Sales for Eastern Canada. “Our involvement in this event also demonstrates, beyond the economic spin-offs the Outgames are certain to generate, Air Canada’s desire to participate in the overall social evolution of Canadian society.”

“Our partnership with Air Canada,” said Mr. Mark Tewksbury, Co-President of Montréal 2006, “reaffirms our vision of the Outgames as an event that will show how the gay community is actively participating in and contributing to sport and cultural life in Québec and in Canada.”

“As far as we are concerned, the importance of the 1st World Outgames is clear,” said the Honorable Charles Lapointe, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tourisme Montréal. “From the beginning of this incredible adventure, Tourisme Montréal has been behind this project, as we will be right up to 2006. We already know that Montréal is one of the most popular destinations for gay and lesbian travelers from around the world — in fact, Gay.com recently ranked us the 8th most popular destination in the world for gay and lesbian travelers,” Mr. Lapointe continued, “Add to that the fact that the Outgames is open to the society at large, gay or non-gay, and the event has an even wider appeal. Tourisme Montréal and its partners have committed almost 2 million dollars over 3 years to the Montréal 2006 project.”

At this time, online registrations for the Outgames and for the International Conference on Rights continue to roll in. Almost 500 people have already registered for the event, a number that corresponds to the organisers’ original forecasts.

“The addition of Air Canada and the unwavering support of Tourisme Montréal,” concluded Ms. Roy, “allows us to tackle the work ahead of us over the next two years with a great deal of confidence. Registrations and ticket sales will finance up to 51% of our budget of 16 million dollars. The involvement we now have from our sponsors and partners already represents another 46% of our total budget. Financially speaking, Montréal 2006 will be able to honor all of its commitments, and preparations for the sport and cultural programs are all on target according to our original plans.”