Even More Packing
Well, I’ve met my limit. My weight limit. For my suitcase. Let me start at the beginning.
I easily fit all my clothes for Germany into one half of my new suitcase, and only had to fit shoes and vitamins and a few bits and bobs into the other side. There was so much room left that Matt even piled in some of his clothes. But when we weighed it all with our little luggage scale, it was over 60 pounds. The limit for checked bags is 23 kilos (or 50 pounds), so this would not fly (get it?). And this is what kills me: Why do they make suitcases this big if you can’t fill them without going over weight?
Matt’s smaller suitcase was a measly 35 pounds, so we started the endless game of redistributing the heavy items to get them both under the limit. But there were still lots of things we hadn’t packed yet- two pounds of Larabars, for example. We always stock up on these for travel since we save so much money on airport/airplane/train station food. And then my modest amount of toiletries contributed to the heft, too- I guess two months worth of eczema cream and medicated shampoo really add up. Once all the last-minute things went in- our electric toothbrush and charger, Matt’s electric clippers, etc.- both bags were pushing 50 pounds.
And then Matt decided to bring our DSLR camera onto the plane instead of checking it, and he thought it would be wise to wrap it up in a big sweatshirt and put it in a duffel bag. So then, somehow, things started being added to the duffel bag- my purse, some sandwiches, my scarf, etc.- and we ended up with a whole carry on bag in addition to our suitcases and backpacks (our backpacks count as “personal items” that hold our laptops, my pills, important notebooks, some liquids).
It’s moments like these that make me rethink this whole idea that I’m a minimalist at all. I always say to myself that packing for two months should be no different than packing for a week- we’ll be doing laundry, after all. But somehow it never works out that way for me. I dream of fitting everything I need into a carry-on roller bag and a purse like I see the bloggers doing, but give me an inch and I apparently take 23 kilos.
Matt tried to start pulling out some of his clothes: “I don’t need two sweatshirts,” he said. But he wears one every day to rehearsal, so I insisted he bring them both. His clothes were clearly not the problem. I mean, how much could a sweatshirt really weigh? My vitamins weigh 3 pounds. Now there’s something I wish I could leave behind. But I’ve never seen vitamins for sale in Germany, and I couldn’t be sure that I could buy them there. Well, what about our shoes? Were they the problem? I don’t think so. Between the two of us there were just 3 pairs of sneakers and Matt’s dress shoes. I racked my brain, trying to come up with some way to cut back, but I just couldn’t. We legitimately needed everything we packed.
And it all makes me wonder why they never show this part of packing in all those “Pack With Me” Youtube videos and blogs. The rearranging of items, the consideration of weight limits. They always show you how to roll up your clothes and put them in little packing cubes, not a luggage scale in sight. But I’ve never had an issue with fitting things in- that seems pretty basic to me. I don’t require any instruction on how to cram things into my suitcase. It’s a strategic approach to the weight limit that I want to know about. With most European airlines weighing your carry-on as well as your checked bag, I really want to know exactly what people are doing. The only weight-related tip I can find is to wear your heaviest items on the plane to keep your suitcase a little lighter. I already do this- I’d never dream of trying to pack my boots or my belt when I can just wear them free of charge.
Are they just not showing the reality in those packing videos? Are they paying overweight fees at check-in? Are they squatting on the floor, pulling items out of their checked bag and wearing them instead? No one’s ever mentioned it. Every time I check my bag, I’m holding my breath that our scale was accurate enough and that we won’t end up on the airport floor, frantically rearranging our personal effects while trying not to get stepped on.
So what am I doing wrong? Do I just have maximalist tendencies when it comes to travel? I don’t know. I think one glaring difference between me and those minimalist packers is that I have to pack my pills. My backpack is full of them, leaving little room for anything else. And those 3 pounds of vitamins certainly don’t help anything. Then with Matt still battling a sinus infection, he has his own medicine cabinet’s worth of drugs to take with him (you can’t buy things like Sudafed or melatonin in Germany, so you have to plan ahead with the over-the-counter stuff, too).
After all was said and done, I still ended up with (including my plane outfit) 4 pairs of pants, 4 sweaters, 3 pairs of shoes, 2 coats, 3 pairs of leggings, a fleece, a button-down, a scarf, and all the requisite T-shirts, socks, bras, and underwear. Sure, I could have cut back, but with the weather being so drastically unpredictable, I couldn’t figure out how. And so I have a giant suitcase and a backpack to lug around, plus Matt has the duffel bag, too.
No matter how many times we take these two-month trips, I never seem to get the hang of packing. I can’t get it into my head that I always need less than I bring, that it’s no great tragedy if I run out of socks and have to buy a pair. I insist on being over-prepared and over-burdened. Maybe next time will be better- simpler, I think. But I think I’m just an over-packer. There, I said it. Renounce my minimalist membership right now.