When Jen and I were packing for this trip to Europe we knew one thing for certain…We needed to pack light. This is normally a good rule to follow when traveling in Europe anyway. I had a friend tell me that there were two types of people who travel in Europe: Those who pack light. And those who wish they did. This is incredibly true.
But this trip is special. It’s special in that we have to try and get as much stuff from our lives in Paris into the bags that we fly back with. I’m talking shoes, more clothes, video camera, guitar gear, baby stuff, etc…We knew that for every article of clothing that we took to Paris, it went one less article that we were going to be bringing back. So we packed light. Like, I run out of shirts in a few days light. Like, I brought two pairs of pants for a month light.
Sacrifices were made…but the greatest sacrifice of all for me was that I left my camera gear at home.
Who does that? You’re going on a trip to Europe and don’t pack your camera? Even here in Colorado I’ve wanted to take pictures, but somebody was trying to be smart and didn’t pack his camera. I know that I’ll regret it every day we are in Europe. Even writing this right now makes me feel sick with regret. Ugh!!!
I guess in some ways this is a good thing…life can’t be lived looking through the lens of a camera. And just because memories aren’t captured in a 5 mega-byte jpeg file doesn’t mean they didn’t happen. I’ve already enjoyed flying without my camera and I know that on the way home when I have a ton of stuff on the plane that I’ll certainly be glad that I don’t have it. In the meantime I’ll have to deal and find other ways of creative outlet…thus the new 6 randomized headers on my blog!
But what I really want to know is in that lightly-packed-oh-so-cool-convertible-backpack/suitcase of yours did you ever find the elusive French checkbook?
I mean, c’mon, I’ve been losing sleep since we barely made it to the airport two weeks ago!
And just to keep you tuned into Portland life…it is *bleeping* cold here AND just started dropping sweet little tiny snowflakes while I have been typing this comment! I think I’ll go grab my camera and take a picture
Miss you guys!
I know what you mean about packing light. The last 4 trips to Europe I have taken, I packed light. As a matter of fact, I take nothing more than a really big backpack for these trips and never even check my bags. For 3 weeks in Spain and Portugal, I had 3 pair of pants, 1 pair of shorts, 5 t-shirts, 3 long sleeved shirts, and a light jacket. And it was more than enough. I know moving to Europe is much tougher than just traveling back and forth so you have a lot to bring back this time. However, I never regret when I pack light. It makes me much more mobile on the go when traveling through all the wonderful places in Europe. I know leaving the camera is tough but make the most of your memories when you are there.