A lot of you, my dear friends, have at one point, inquired about how I would be packing for this trip, and let me tell you it wasn't easy. I did, (I think at least), a fairly good job... But not great, that's for damn sure.
For those of you, that do not know the details of the trip. Noah and I packed up the contents of our home, put what was priceless to us in storage (a total of 8 boxes and three large pieces of furniture, and a few paintings) and we sold the rest. As for our clothes, we donated or packed them for our open ended trip to Europe, consisting of 2-3 months in Barcelona, and at least a month traveling Europe.
For me, my clothes are precious. I have admired a well designed article of clothing since I was a teenie Toni, and over the years I collected quite the collection of beautiful things,. When I dress each morning it takes more than just the temperature to sway my decision, I touch each piece of fabric, think about my mood, where I'm going what kind of shoes I want to wear... It's a process; a process I enjoy every single time.
So what I am getting at, is, I didn't want to leave anything behind, I wanted to bring everything I have ever collected with me, because who knows how I am going to feel each day I am there, and who knows how cold or warm it will be? In the end I donated about half of my wardrobe and packed the rest but this is what I am finding, at least here in Barcelona.
Where clothing is involved:
The things I thought I'd wear all the time, I never wear. And the things I packed and said I don't know why I'm packing this I probably won't wear it, I wear every day. And a few things, I donated, thinking I won't need this, it's excessive, I wish I had.
At home in New England, I generally wear a cotton maxi skirt, paired with a ribbed tank top or a long sleeve cotton shirt, a light scarf, and a pair of wedges, or flats depending on the amount of walking I'm doing that day. That's my go to outfit; it's comfy, cute, and casual. So I packed 7 maxi skirts and countless long sleeve shirts. Because I of course thought, this is probably what I will wear all the time.
In reality, here in Barcelona I usually get dressed twice in the day, as the temperature drastically changes. In the morning/during the day, I wear a short shift dress with a bathing suit underneath paired with sandals or toms. At night I either wear a pair of jeans with an oversized sweater, or a long sleeved dress usually with my Clark wedged ankle boots.
So what I am saying is, I only barely overpacked when it came to clothes. I have exactly what I need, and the shopping here is incredible so it gives me an excuse to shop!
Shoes however there are 3 pairs in my closet I have yet to wear... Oops!
In case you want to know for your own trip this is what I never touch that I brought. Cotton long sleeve shirts, maxi skirts, blazers, t-shirts (cute and plain), any type of like nice dinner dresses, or party dresses, black pumps, leather riding boots, and another pair of heels.
This is where I failed:
Medicine... Facewash... Razors... Chargers... Bathing suits
I don't know, if I was so caught up in trying to get everything else packed that I overlooked these things or I thought how easy will it be to get them when I get there. But let me tell you, women's razors are expensive, hard to come by, and pretty shitty quality. I think that spanish women use "veet", that instant hair removal lotion my mumma always told me to stay away from; either that or they are just naturally hairless. I think the former but who knows?
They have face wash, but it's really hard to read the ingredients in a foreign language, and I'm pretty anal about what I put on my face.
Medicine: I completely forgot to refil my prescriptions before I left, which will pretty soon send me on a journey trying to find my prescription medicine over the counter, or a pharmacy that will fill a US prescription. OOPS! Actually let me reemphasize: a MAJOR OOPS!
Bathing suits I wear instead of undergarments every day. While packing, last minute, I took out a bunch of bathing suits and said "I don't need all of these stop being ridiculous teens". Well I wish I had them because when you live on the beach you are always wearing a bathing suit (now I know)
Last but definitely not least, CHARGERS. Right before we left the charger to my MacBook Pro broke. They cost a fortune at Apple. They cost 3/4 of a fortune at second hand stores, and they cost half a fortune online. Overwhelmed and out of time we didn't buy one and decided to get one abroad. Well they cost double a fortune here. And they basically only sell third party chargers which are known to catch on fire. Hello stressful.
All-in-all I am happy I decided not to sacrifice fashion for this trip, and brought most of my pretty things. It feels nice going out and wearing the things I love. I wish I had thought a little less about clothes and a little more about essentials I also wish I had Hermoines bag so I didn't have to lug my suitcase around and pay overweight baggage fees. Because although I can pack like no other and fit a ridiculous amount of things in one bag, I can't make them weigh less.
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