Shape shifting

I am packing for the Hot Place. It is very difficult. I have been to hot places before, though not this one, and I have been places before where women need to cover themselves up. But I have never been to a hot place where women need to cover themselves up *and* look on the tidy side of presentable.

'Hot and smart?' I said to the person briefing me. That might be a challenge. You just wait, she said. Everyone looks immaculate all the time. I don't know how they do it.

Normally, I would take baggy-ish T-shirts. But these won't do. Most of my T-shirts feature holes, paint splatters or political slogans, and I sense that none of these will be acceptable. Man-made fibre is also not recommended, because of the heat, which rules out my super-easy-care travelling shirts. I try one on anyway, but my bosom is clearly discernible. This is also bad form.

So I have gathered together every flowing cotton garment I can find. I don't know if I can 100% avoid elbow and decolletage exposure, but I think most bases are covered.

joella