Packing for 8 months of travel

This was definitely a daunting task for my current trip. Of course it wasn’t the length of time that made this such a hard trip to pack for but it was the diversity of places and experiences I was going to have. Basically I had to pack 2 wardrobes- one for my summer in Europe and one for my semester in Nepal. Normally I love to pack diverse things that work for all travel. But I was given specific packing instructions for Nepal and a lot of the clothes just didn’t translate well for a summer in Europe. I needed hiking boots, long skirts and conservative pants and tops, long underwear, and fleeces. So I picked out some thing that were compatible with both, tried to consolidate what I was going to take, and packed as best as I could. I still think I over packed a bit but I just have no idea what to expect in Nepal so I really think it was necessary. I am going to do a follow up post when I get back in December to see what I really used and what I didn’t. Additionally, since Budapest will be my base for the summer and I will stop back in the winter before heading home, I can leave most of my Nepal gear there over the summer, and most of my summer gear there while in Nepal. I hope that will really help to lighten the load for me.

So what did I pack?

Summer clothes

- 6 tanks (colors)

- 5 short sleeve tops

- 1 long sleeve top

- 1 white sweater

- 2 jean shorts

- 2 skirts (yellow flowers and blue with stripes)

- black raincoat

- toms

All of this, compacted into this. I wore my black raincoat on the plane.

Beach stuff

- coverup

- 2 tops and one bikini bottom

- 1 cotton tank

- 2 athletic shorts *

- 4 t-shirts *

- long durable black leggings

- Haviana flip flops

** I also plan on running while abroad since I am a big runner so those are mostly for running **

Nepal Clothes

- jeans

- light linen style pants

- 2 long skirts (one heavier, one lighter

- 6 tops (3 long sleeve, 3 short)

- black sweater

- 2 lightweight scarves

- light black ¾ zip

- vest

- Patagonia zip up

- wool socks and wool hat

- long underwear top and bottom

- lightweight hiking boots

 I also compacted this in a compression bag, to become this. 

I will also take 3-4 of the colorful tops from the summer and bring those for Nepal as well.

Clothing odds and ends:

- 3 under tanks

- 6 pairs underwear

- 5 pairs socks

- 2 bras

- 3 sports bras
- boxers
 

The “Stuff”:

- iodine drops (for Nepal trekking)

- antibiotics
- laptop
- water bottle
- hat
- kindle
- notebooks
- passport, paperwork, and program information
- sunglasses
- quick dry towel
- headbands
- flashlight
- gum
- chargers
- pencils
- plastic bags
- camera

This stuff was packed into a north face backpack for later use.

Toiletries-
- Meds! (i have lots of stomach problems)
- contacts
- toothbrush
- razor
- medicated toothpaste
- nail clippers

No pictures-

I brought a lot of fun, but unnecessary for most people, stuff to wear costume wise in Budapest, since it is just the way things roll down there. I didn’t get pictures but I brought for that

- nerf gun and darts

- onzie PJs (also for sleepover parties with the girls in Amsterdam)

- hawaiaan lay

- USA headpiece

- face paint

- body paint

- body glitter

- stripped leggings

- cat ears

- rainbow mustache

- Massive bottle of Ranch dressing (Americans living abroad miss their ranch)

These definitely took up some space but its dead weight that I will get rid of right when I get there, will be a lot of fun, and I had space for.

On the plane:

I wore my light hiking boots, durable black leggings, long sleeve blue t-shirt, black raincoat and Patagonia on the plane. Everything else fit well into my backpack and little pack. I checked my big back pack and carried on my purse and little backpack