I meant to post this entry yesterday at the beginning of my
travels, but could not find a convenient time or place. So here it is now.
Packing. Is. Stressful.
Yes, that statement does deserve the extra punctuation. I’ve never liked packing to begin with,
but I always manage to get through it pretty painlessly (after a bit of
procrastination). Painless unless
you count my freshman year of college where I over packed out the wazoo – but
who doesn’t, right? Actually
though…I brought a U-Haul. So yes
I’ve packed up several months of my life before, but never for a plane and
never for international travel.
Three and a half months – that’s a long time. Three and a half months of things I
won’t be able to get in London, like contacts and prescriptions, but also three
and a half months of changing weather climates. It’s supposed to be 72*F on Saturday and reach about 40*F by
December. So that means sweaters,
coats, appropriate shoes, scarves, not to mention rain gear, and...shorts.
I was trying my darndest to pack it all into one large
checked bag, one small roller carry on and a backpack (stuffed to the brim) as
to avoid extra baggage fees.
International flights will charge you like crazy. The only problem was that 50lb. limit
on the checked bag. It’s actually
impossible. Monday night was full of slight headaches, rocking back and forth
on my bed, and repetition of the phrase “this is so stressful, this is so
stressful.” We were weighing and
measuring and transferring and eventually eliminating things until I got to a
point where I literally could not eliminate any more. I swear. Even
my mom said she was proud of me for limiting myself to a few pairs of shoes and
few pairs of jeans. Like I said
before, I’m a notorious over-packer.
My goal for London – pack light.
But man is that HARD!
Tuesday morning decided it would be much smarter in the end
and much less hassle (not to mention stress) to check another bag. Hallelujah! Because of this, I was able to upgrade from my small
carry-on suitcase to my medium sized one, which equals more room.
Anywho, after squeezing and switching and weighing, our
mission was accomplished – finally!
And only a few compromises had to be made. Now I can breathe.
After all this I have time to just chill with my family
going over some last minute details and have one final American meal. I choose Bluewater Grill. Love that place. I am also able to see my (9 months
pregnant!) best friend one last time.
Her presence always calms me.
So I was grateful for that.
We drive to the airport. It is at this point I start to get butterflies. The good kind. This is really happening! The trip I’ve been figuring out for a
few months and been dreaming about for a few years. I knew I had to visit London someday. I just had this feeling we would
mesh. And now the time is here to
test out that theory. It could not
be at a better point in my life.
At the airport my bags are weighed. One is over by a pound. I transfer two pairs of pants to the
smaller suitcase. Voila. 50 pounds. Other suitcase – 50 pounds. WOW! On the dot – look at that. Now, how I’m going to bring stuff back is another question,
but…we shall cross that bridge when we come to it. I still need to revel in this victory. Two bags, perfectly full, for three and
a half months? I’d say that’s
packing pretty light…for me at least ;)
So here I go.
Off to London. Off to
explore. Off to learn. And off to grow. I cannot wait for the journey.
Now to get there…
Photos courtesy of the fabulously talented Tanner Scarr
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