What people don’t understand about travel clothing, is that:

What is on your body may seem like it matters most for a trip, but when your airplane hits its optimal altitude (or you start realising the gravity of how much walking is involved in city walks), it’ll be your feet that dictates your true comfort & optimal style.

The toll of being a fashion blogger and travel writer, includes journeying thousands of miles, for tens of hours – and over time, your body takes issue with the strain.

Since I began my long-haul adventures abroad – always in time with fashion week or an award show – I have had PUMA with me.

When I got my first taste of what it means to be an international traveller, it was when I planned and headed to London.

I had an old pair of durable sneakers as well as boots, that respectively survived the bustle of Heathrow Airport, and the regular rains of the colonisers capital.

When I have the opportunity to choose a kick-ass pair of PUMA’s, I always think of the micro-climates involved in travelling, and ensuring that I don’t overheat or freeze (or leave myself wide open to preventable unidentifiable substances, attaching themselves to me).

In one trip, I can encounter:

• Warm bus rides to the airport
• Hot tarmac, warmed by the infamous African sun
• Biting chill of the pressurised, air-conditioned airplane cabins
• Mellow room temperature of airport lounges etc.

You’d think one pair of sneakers cant protect from all these, but PUMA always has an array of ideal choices!

When I landed in JFK, one less thing I had too worry about, was taking strain on my feet as I side-step the crowds at one of the worlds biggest airports.

I landed and explored the wonders of The Big Apple, had photographers snapping street style shots of me at Fashion Week, and enjoyed sundowners at The Viceroy, in a versatile black & white pair of PUMA x Daily Paper sneakers.

Style | Comfort | Durability

France would have been an absolutely tiring endeavour, had I not chosen my PUMA Suede Bow Varsity sneakers.

The Charles de Gaulle International Airport is, inarguably, thee most hectic and perfectly functioning airport which I had ever encountered. Truthfully, you cannot even exit this beast, unless you go on your own little adventure before your Paris adventure.

It’s big. It’s loud. It’s packed.

Choosing sneakers to journey with, will really be doing a solid for your feet, when  faced with the number of long queues you’ll be filing into.

Paris Fashion Week takes place all over the city, so running from one show to another, is legitimately what many fashion enthusiasts do.

…And if you’re like me, and decide to cleanse yourself of the tiresome energy of Paris Fashion Week, a train ride to the South of France, will really do you wonders – just don’t forget your sneakers when exploring Cognac country.

So say you’re not built for Fashion Week, that doesn’t discount the need for PUMA sneaker comforts.

When I travelled to Los Angeles, I figured I’d wear my sneakers for the journey there, and maybe just a hike.

Turns out: However big you think Los Angeles is, it is THREE times bigger.

As a result of a city built for pedestrian exploration, travellers to the City of Angels, will likely walk more than they regularly would on home soil, thus the need for sneakers.

My sneaker choice this time, happens to be the PUMA x Ralph Sampson retro mid-top sneaker – the second-coming of the iconic 80s court silhouette.

I could not pass up on the reissue celebrating Basketball Hall-of-Famer Ralph Sampson and his legacy (a legacy which includes him always seen in a PUMA sweat suit with matching sneakers).

Did you know that LA has an awesome cultural link to sneakers like my PUMA fits?

They are known as the home of ‘Sneaker Culture‘.

The rise and evolution of ‘Sneaker Culture‘, involves more than just regular people buying sneakers from a store.

From a commerce perspective, the sneaker culture is also owed to industry, celebrity culture, basketball performance-wear, a rise in reselling, and even skateboarding.

As far as regular people rationalise it:

Sneaker culture comes from a time when access to catalogues and their colourways had to be journeyed for; A time when releases happened so sporadically, that hoards (from all walks of life) would save for months, to fight their way to a pair of sneakers.

Sneakers were as functional, as they were a readily acknowledged & discussed status-symbol. Sneakers were also a way of showing individuality, revelling in hip hop culture, and expressing support/allegiance for a social group you identified with.

In its simplest form: Sneaker Culture is a bonding form of expression.

LA is now the perfect place to scout for collectables, break in a pair, or flex your sneaker style on the streets.

Anyway, what I’m trying to get at, is that PUMA sneakers really are the plug!

I have gone from red carpets to mountainsides, with them. They are athlesiure, and formal wear – as long as you’ve got the skill of styling.

I’ll admit, there are legacy brands for hikers and travellers all over the world.

PUMA, however, is a brand with a duel legacy of performance and style.

Their thick-soled wares are durable and functional – usually with reliable as hell traction! In the last decade alone, PUMA has produced some of the most vibrant colourways ever seen.

My #1 Travel (and Style) Essential: PUMA