Lighter

Meghan
Oct 28, 2016
3 min read

Pack. Unpack. Pack half.

It's been two weeks since I last posted. In those two weeks I stayed in a hotel in Seattle with my college roommates, an unfurnished apartment with TP, a guest bedroom in Reykjavik, a remote hotel in Iceland, and a massive hostel and fourth floor walk up in Amsterdam. I took a five hour flight to Seattle, a seven hour flight to Iceland, a three hour flight to Amsterdam, two bus rides and six tram rides. What have I learned? That I should have packed lighter.

While packing, I chose to pack three kinds of items- things I love, things I hate, and things I need to use- with the goal of becoming lighter and lighter as I went. So far I haven't gotten rid of much, but I'd like to get to a point where I am only carrying the essentials. I want my things to serve as tools for living and traveling well rather than a burden to transport from place to place.

Things I love: These are the things I use/need/wear every day. These are my yoga pants, my sneakers, my face lotion, my hair brush, my wallet. These should stay with me throughout my journey.

Things I hate: With the goal of getting rid of things and lightening my load and I went, I purposefully brought along some of my least-worn items so it wouldn't be as painful to let them go. I'm running into the issue that some of the things I love are not particularly useful and while I don't need them, I'd rather not shed them.

Things to Use: These are consumables that have come along for the ride and should naturally diminish as I go. I might have gone overboard with the mini shampoos and conditioners (hostels don't have them) but this should correct itself relatively quickly.

Everything I shed in Iceland:

-A pair of long black leggings that were slightly too big but great for the cold weather

-A Clinique makeup bag that I was using like a packing cube for my socks but ended up using more space than it saved

Everything I plan to shed in Amsterdam:

-A black overcoat give to me by a friend- It was very necessary in Iceland but ((hopefully)) far too warm for the rest of my trip.

-My old favorite pair of jeans- I used to wear these a ton but always find myself reaching for yoga pants or leggings now. I have fully embraced athleisure and don't plan to do anything requiring real pants any time soon. I also have a backup pair of the same jeans at home.

-A pair of black waterproof booties- I bought these two years ago while studying abroad in Bilbao. I was pretty sure I'd need them in rainy Amsterdam but I've been opting for sneakers and a change of socks instead. The forecast for Bilbao (my next destination) is dry and sunny so I'd rather not lug these to the on another train and plane if I can help it.

More:

-My huge ASOS blanket scarf- I have this three foot by five foot scarf that I've loved wearing in Iceland but is now incredibly impractical in 60 degree weather. It takes up a ton of space but can double as a blanket when lounging or flying. I'm torn on getting rid of this one but it will probably go eventually.

Edited Nov 13, 2016:

Everything I shed in Amsterdam:

-Black overcoat

-1 pair jeans

-1 pair black boots

-2 pairs socks

-1 turtleneck undershirt

-1 backpack (a smaller day pack I carried as my personal item on airplanes. I used a drawstring bag for that afterwards

Everything I shed in Barcelona:

-Reusable Starbucks cup

-Pajama Pants

-Black scarf