How to Pack: 15 Tested Tips

Almost three months ago, I wrote about how to pack lots of outfits from from few clothes.  Now, having actually traveled, I have a better, more extensive list of packing tips.  They’re geared toward women travelers, but men are more than welcome to read and heed the advice.

Clothing Care 

1. Febreze It

Buy a small spray bottle and fill it with Febreze.  Eventually, your things will stink.  Even clean things smell bad after being in a pack with dirty things day after day.  Your traveling mates and the locals will thank you for packing this.

(The best thing about traveling is that no one you meet knows your past.  You’re free to reinvent yourself– or to just rewear that shirt you wore two days ago … and two days before that.  My rule: if it doesn’t have gelato spilled all over the front of it, it’s fair game for several Febreezings.)

2. Shout Wipes 

There’s hope even if you do spill gelato.  I used half a dozen of these babies on my five-week trip.

3. Spray-on Wrinkle Remover

You can find small cans of this at travel stores.  Unless you want to look like a nasty bum, this stuff is pretty necessary.  It works amazingly, too.  Just spray it on the wrinkles, smooth them out, and watch them disappear.

I used the store-bought stuff, but there are also recipes for cheap, home-made wrinkle releaser.  Try a dryer sheet in a small spray bottle of water.  Or, mix 1 cup water, 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol, and 1/4 cup fabric softener.  I haven’t tried either method, so make sure to test in an inconspicuous spot, first.

4. Packing Cubes

If you’re trying to catch an early train, packing speed is crucial.  Packing cubes keep everything organized, making it easier to stuff it all back into your pack without leaving it hopelessly wrinkled.  I brought one for bottoms, one for tops.  Also helpful: a bunch of ziplock baggies of varying sizes, for wet clothes or mementos or receipts or whatever.

5. Think Ahead about Washing

In winter, I wouldn’t bother with bringing Woolite and a clothesline to handwash clothes.  The heavier clothes you’ll be wearing won’t dry quickly.  But definitely don’t plan on finding a laundromat.  Instead, when you’re booking hostels, plan to stay once a week or so in a hostel with washing facilities.  (You can even use an advanced search on Hostelworld.com to ensure that you pick a hostel with laundry facilities.  On the “Book Your Bed” panel, click “Additional Search Options” and then “More Facilities.”)

Garments

6. Choose Your Shoes

They’re heavy.  Choose a good, comfortable pair for walking around the city.  Flats, which are stylish, light and compact, can supplement for nights out on the town.  During the summer a pair of flip-flops can serve as both shower shoes and streetwear.  Also, even though boots are super-cool, it would be pretty ridiculous to pack a pair.

7.  … And Socks

If you’re going to be doing a lot of walking in cold places, thick woolen socks could be key to keeping your toes happy.  But! make sure your shoes will still fit around them.  For formal occasions, I brought little thin, nude-colored, super-low-cut socks.  Those were a lifesaver when I didn’t want to look like a dork with my little white athletic socks, but also didn’t want my shoes to smell bad and get all sweaty and give me blisters.  Get a cheap pair at any department store.

8. Panty Power

I brought seven pairs of nylon/lycra panties.  They dry really fast, so if you’ve desperatly run out of undies you can wash them in the hostel bathroom, wring them out, and they’ll be dry by the next morning, if not sooner. 

9. Bring Some Bling

Bring a fair bit of cheap fashion jewelry — stuff you don’t mind breaking or losing.  It ties outfits together and makes you look like a real person on days when you just feel like an exhausted traveler.  It also helped me keep from getting bored wearing the same small set of clothes over and over again.

10. Pick a Prudent Purse

Bring a purse with a strap, not a clutch.  Out on the street, the clutch is too easy to snatch from your hands.  Also: bring your driver’s license.  It isn’t valid for driving abroad, but it has your birthdate on it and will let you get into clubs or buy alcohol without having to bring your passport around town with you.

11. Buy Pashminas Abroad

Throughout Europe, there are tons of cheap (about $5) pashminas for sale — and people really wear them!  (As neck scarves, especially.) You can buy two or three of different colors.  That way you’re warm, the pashmina ties your outfit together, and when people at home tell you how great you look, you can tell them you got it in Europe!  They’re also good, light compact presents.

12. Ditch the Hoodie

Sweatshirts are really bulky in your pack, and they’re worthless when they’re wet, so you may want to invest in more high-tech, waterproof medium-warm layer. 

Other Concerns

13. Saving Space vs. Saving Money

If you’ll be abroad for awhile, you may consider bringing a box of tampons with you, because they’re expensive over here!  O.B. tampons are the smallest and lightest choice, if you’re willing to live an applicator-free lifestyle.  Bringing a few of those personal wipes is also worth the trouble.

14. Pack for a Picnic 

Dining out can also be vicious to your travel budget.  To save what you can, eat out at lunch and make picnic dinners.  Many hostels have guest kitchens.  A fold-up plate and a set of good plastic cutlery makes impromptu picnics simple.

15. Audiobooks

Downloadable audiobooks from Audible.com add absolutely no more weight to your pack, but they still give you something to listen to on long train rides.  One paperback book is advisable, too, though, because reading a book in a restaurant or cafe looks a lot more normal than staring off into space with your headphones on.

Happy packing!

 

Packing 19 Outfits From 10 Items

Four days.  Three requests to expedite my passport application.  One potential last-minute trip to Chicago’s passport processing center.  No passsport.

Instead of stressing, I’ve been making sure I have everything I need for the next six months.  Planning outfits, anguishing over whether to take or leave the pink polo shirt.  Lame!  I have, however, developed a very nice capsule of outfits that intermix well without being too redundant.  Here are the pieces:

Cornflower blue t-shirt, teal and pink polos, and red and turquoise spaghetti strap shirts.  Brown dress with white polka dots.  Khaki and navy capris, and brown and blue skirts.  A brown cardigan and cute brown walking shoes cap off the list.  With appropriate jewelry, almost all the pieces go together to make very nice outfits.  Here is an example of eight outfits from six items.  Plus, the different jewelry can change the look of an outfit, even if the shirt and bottom are the same.

   

I’ve also been spending time rushing around St. Louis county, getting copies of my birth certificate, getting vaccinations, getting blood drawn.  This is the picture of the pediatrician’s waiting room where I spent the morning:

Maybe it’s time for me to get an adult doctor.  … But the picture books are so fun!

 

More Hiccups and Some Help

There are officially eight days left.  It’s one week from my third annual Two Pi Day party, where I will say “adios” to all my Kirkwood friends and console myself with massive amounts of pie … while I cry.  What a sad, rhyming plan.

I’ve been getting a little nervous and sad already, and when I do my 14-year-old little brother likes to hug me and say, “Don’t worry, you’re not going anywhere.  Your passport isn’t coming, so you aren’t leaving.”

It’s true: my passport still has not arrived.  However, I got in touch with my U.S. Representative, Todd Akin, and help is reportedly on the way.  Apparently Congressmen have some magic sway over who gets (or doesn’t get) a passport in time to catch their flight.  I just hope Todd doesn’t know it was me who signed all those left-wing, close-Guantanamo-and-let-gays-marry petitions.  Otherwise I’m stuck here for sure!

Also: I’m not quite sure how I was supposed to know to call my congressman.  My sister told me to, and a friend from college also recommended it.  But if I were some poor, isolated loser, I would never have known!  I don’t think it says that anywhere on the State Department website, and the passport customer service guy definitely didn’t mention it.

On the up side, I’ve purchased even more stuff.  New shirts, new guidebooks, new TSA-approved suitcase lock, new rechargeable batteries, new makeup, new chapstick — new everything.  One thing I have not bought is a new cell phone that will work in Europe.  I have discovered, however, that I can postpone my (Verizon) account for three months for the small fee of $15, and it will save me $30 in phone fees and three months of service.  Yay!  (Comparatively, if I had terminated my account early, I would have saved $60 and paid $175 and lost my three months of service — and my beloved phone number!!  The thought of losing that dear, dear number for good makes me a little queasy.

In summary:

• If you haven’t gotten your passport, call one of your congressmen.  They’re very friendly.
• If you can’t stop worrying, shop more.
• It makes more sense to postpone, not cancel, your cell phone plan.

 

My Poor Passport

I applied to renew my passport more than 14 weeks ago, as soon as I found out I’d be going to Spain.  The U.S. State Department’s website is still advertising that it takes 10 to 12 weeks for processing.  So as the weeks pass and my mailbox remains empty, I’ve been getting anxious.  On the passport website, I’ve checked the status of my application several times.  “Thank you for submitting your passport application! It is currently being processed,” the site cheerily announces.

The site also advises, “If you are traveling within 2 weeks and have not received your passport, please contact the National Passport Information Center with the above locator number. It will enable them to update you on the status of your application.”

So I called today.  I spent about an hour on hold at various points during the day, but I was eventually connected to a customer service representative.  We spoke for about two minutes, during which time he said, “Alright, your application is being processed.  That’s all I can tell you.”  No estimate of how much longer it might take.  No explanation of why I was told to call the number, if they could only give me the same information as the website.  One redeeming factor: the representative let me know that, if I hadn’t received my passport within three days of my departure date, I could call back.  Thank you, federal government.

Photo credit: gadgetgirl of Flickr.

 

The Gear

I finally bucked up and bought a backpack.  It means something very scary — I’m really, truly going abroad for six months!  I do feel better knowing that the pack is a good one, the REI Grand Tour for Women, and should treat me well.  It has a bunch of sweet features (Zip-off daypack? Yes please!  Stow-away shoulder straps? Mhmm!), lots of pockets, and fits pretty darn well.  I feel pretty confident I can make it through the wilds of Madrid safely.  ¡Gracias a Dios!

 

I’ve also recently acquired a Packtowel, a travel alarm, a camera case, a 2G memory card, some comfy walking shoes, little Woolite packets, a travel pillow, and a hostel sleep sack.  Interesting discovery: I was going to invest in a converter, because the sockets over there put out a higher current, but the only electronics I’m bringing over (laptop, iPod charger, battery charger) all accept that higher current.  Some forethought just saved me about $30.  May the luck hold!