Getting Started

Jordan Mcintyre Edinburgh Internship Program, Scotland

Date

August 3, 2015
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Anyone who’s gone on vacation knows that packing is the actual worst. What do I bring? Do I have enough pairs of shoes? Do I have too many pairs of shoes? What if it’s hot? What if it’s cold? Will it rain? What if there’s some post-apocalyptic blackout that freezes over the entire planet and I don’t have enough pairs of socks? While that last one is a little far-fetched, those are all the questions people typically ask themselves when preparing to go on a trip. However, when packing to study abroad, I’ve found myself asking a million other kinds of questions trying to get ready for this journey. What’s been hard for me is trying to figure out what my essentials are so I don’t end up shoving my entire closet in my suitcase and then getting mad when I have to pay an absurdly expensive overweight baggage fee. This time around, I’ve decided to make a packing list to help stay organized for this upcoming year. The problem I usually run in to when I pack is that I see an inch of free space and end up trying to shove four other things in there because I’ve decided that maybe they could be important. This is usually how I end up overpacking, leaving me with little to no room to bring stuff home. With my new packing list, I’m holding myself responsible to only put stuff in my suitcase if it’s on the list. That way, I’ll stay a little more organized and hopefully still have room to bring home some good stuff… there really is some great shopping in England! While my list is scarce so far, I can already tell that it’s going to make sitting down and putting everything in my suitcase so much easier in the end.