In the last ten days more than a dozen people have asked me for packing advice. Seriously. I may not be an expert packer, but I've come about an idea or two and thought I'd better write them down before I completely run out of voice.
My parents are heading to Europe in a day or two, and they are defying many of my travel codes:
Travel Code (for travel less than one month in a developed country)
1. Don't check a bag.
2. The total weight of the stuff you bring with you should be less half of your total weight.
3. Worst case scenarios can be handled by a very few essentials:
a. A credit card
b. Your passport/driver's license
c. Prescription medication
d. Listerine pocket packs
e. Ear plugs
In preparation for their trip, my parents have packed and repacked bags. They are deciding how many pairs of underwear and socks to bring on a ten-day trip to Europe, how many batteries, how much ibuprofen and it has been challenging for me to listen to them agonize about what to take and what to leave. What can they live without? Apparently, not much.
It comes down to a more fundamental question: what are you afraid of? In the case of my parents, they are afraid of death. Literally, their most notable fears are: airline disaster, heart attack, being knifed over the $50 in their pockets. While it is difficult to say to my parents (and hence, why I am saying it here) is that socks and ibuprofen are unlikely to stave off any of these disasters, even if MacGyver happens to be nearby.
I inherited much of this fear, and shaking it has been the most important travel lesson I have learned. No matter what you bring on your trip, You Can't Take it With You.
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