This close to takeoff and we're still learning lessons! Definitely got me feeling like a travel guru. However, I'm all packed up now, and that is a relief I'm not sure I could put into words. Knowing everything is set to go is really making my life so much better.
Since I'm sure you're wondering, what we learned today is that you need to allow at least 24-48 hours for the bank to get its hands on foreign currency. Don't expect to be able to walk into the bank and swap out your U.S. dollars for European Euros the day before your flight, because same day service is no longer offered. Looks like I'll be paying the ridiculous fees for currency exchange at the airport. I should have more than enough time to do so; I'll be arriving at the airport around 9:30 AM tomorrow for my noon flight. I have a layover in JFK in New York, then it's on to Barcelona! I should land around 7:15 AM CEST, which is 1:15 AM CST. With any luck, I'll manage to sleep on the plane despite my excitement. :)
As you may or may not be aware, there are tons of guides out there for how to pack for travel in Europe. Choruses of "ABSOLUTELY NO WHITE SNEAKERS" ring through the Internet. I'm not going to tell you how to pack, but I will list what I packed. Towards the end of my trip, I'll let you know what I missed and what I didn't need. (Hint: I probably packed too many clothes.)
In my checked bag, I packed:
- The World's Coolest Mole, Clovis
- 1 set of clothes for working out
- 1 knee-length black skirt
- 1 pair of running shoes
- my laptop and charger
- my last 4 laundry pods
- my electric toothbrush
- 10 pairs of underwear
- 1 pair of skinny jeans
- 1 pair of jean shorts
- 4 button-up shirts
- 4 shorter dresses
- my fancy camera
- 1 pair of sandals
- 1 set of pajamas
- 2 maxi dresses
- 1 pair of tights
- my backpack
- 3 tank tops
- toothpaste
- deodorant
- 1 sweater
- 3 scarves
- 1 blazer
- 1 t-shirt
- 1 bikini
This allows me to create more than thirty unique outfits, not including variety added by the scarves. The hope is that I won't come back absolutely sick of the clothes I packed. Knowing me, though, I'll wear the same ten or so outfits over and over.
My carry-on bag is mostly empty. It has one t-shirt, one sweater, one pair of jeans, and one dress. It also has my textbooks (which we were required to purchase here and bring over), notebooks, medications, my converter, a hairbrush, and an ethernet cable.
My personal item is also mostly empty. It has my passport and wallet, a coloring book, colored pencils, and my nook. I'm most excited to use my nook because I just downloaded several new books that I can't wait to read. I also put all my chargers and portable back-up battery in this bag so that I could reach them as necessary.
So here we go! By this time tomorrow, I'll be in O'Hare, taking off my shoes for security.
Until next time!