The Six Styles of Packing

In preparation for my move to Scotland, I thought I'd share with you a few styles of packing I've utilized over the years. Enjoy.

1.  The Perfectionist's Puzzle

A week before you leave for your trip to Europe, you start packing.  Meticulously folding and rolling each and every article of clothing, grouping them by temperature or utility and then carefully assembling it all in a well layered, efficient display of space-saving brilliance.  Only to take it all out and repack two more times because it could be better.  Be careful, though!  Be sure to leave some extra space or pack an extra bag for those souvenirs.  Your packing style won't be quite so economical for your return journey.  In the mean time, sit back, relax, and admire the masterpiece until your flight leaves... two days from now.  Plenty of time to repack six more times.

2.  The Hotel Haphazard
It's the middle of your trip. Sore feet and sunburnt neck, you spent an entire day exploring and just got back to your hotel. You'll be leaving this city and moving on to the next tomorrow so you should maybe gather all your belongings scattered throughout your hotel room. How did that one get behind the TV stand? Instead of folding the day's clothes away neatly you simply throw them haphazardly into your bag. You tried to keep it somewhat orderly but, as your trip progressed, the pile has grown. At this point you simply give up and just throw that pair of shorts you wore yesterday and your pajamas from the night before on top of the pile and slam the suitcase shut, struggling to get it closed.

3.  The Willy-Nilly
The miniscule dorm room you've been staying in for the past six weeks is sweltering. All you want to do is get out of there and spend your last day with the friends you've made. You start out by folding everything nicely but as the sweat starts to flow you become desperate. You begin throwing things from across the room into your suitcase. You try to open a window but there's no breeze to ease your suffering. In a last ditch effort you take arm-fulls of your belongings and shove them into your suitcase. Sitting on it, you urge its zipper around the last corner. Every muscle in your body is tense.  You just want to get this dang suitcase closed. Finally. Relief. You got it closed.

4.  The Speed Pack
Perhaps you've been so busy you simply haven't had time to pack. Perhaps you've spent the entire week prior to your trip saying, "Oh, I have plenty of time. I can just pack tomorrow." You keep telling yourself that until mere hours before you leave. In a panic, you pack.  Your family is waiting on you. Your flight leaves in two hours and it's a 45 minute drive to the airport. Anything would be better than the situation you now face. You almost wish you had stayed up all night, even if that meant slumping exhausted over a neatly packed suitcase ten minutes before your alarm goes off. Maybe then you would have been able to sleep on the plane. There are those who are annoyingly excellent packers and will produce a perfectly packed suitcase in under an hour; but you are not one of those people. You're in a crunch for time and space. So you throw a little of everything in your suitcase, not sure what you'll need.

5. The Object-Oriented Design

Yes, my computer science is showing... Let me just zip that away in this side pocket. Encapsulation is the key! The idea is to wrap an entire program (outfit) in a compact, self-contained bundle. That way, when the code (clothing) you've been sporting for the past four days starts to smell, or when you experience a sudden change in temperature, you simply have to pick a fresh bundle that's best for the job. Along with being highly space-efficient, each bundle plays nice with other bundles when stacking or layering them in your luggage. The more organized things are, the easier it'll be to find what you're looking for during runtime. And if you really want to follow best coding practices, you can organize your bundles by warmth or utility and give them descriptive names like "wearOnPlane" or "hikeMountain".

6. The Backpacker

There are 15 cities across seven countries on your list for the three weeks between terms. You can take only what you're able to carry on your back and will fit in a Ryanair overhead bin. Your bag is the quintessence of spartan. Several pairs of moisture-wicking socks, 5 pairs of underwear, an extra pair of jeans, a few t-shirts, three button-ups, a sweater, a good rain jacket, and a sturdy pair of shoes (based on recommendations from The Savvy Backpacker). You've charged your battery pack, packed your padlock for hostel lockers, and are ready to comfortably and affordably navigate the train stations, cobblestone streets, and as many free museums as you can find.

So there you have it. The six styles of packing. Obviously this list isn't exhaustive, so please feel free to share your own packing style below. 

And here are a few more useful tips to keep in mind when packing for any trip:

• Plan ahead
• Roll, don't fold
• You won't need as many clothes as you think
• Heaviest items go closest to the wheels for roller bags
• Utilize every empty space, like inside shoes
• Take only the cosmetics you'll need to get by

Whether you use one of these styles of packing, a combination of them, or have your own, please always remember: approach your travels with an open mind, your only expectation should be adventure, be safe, and take every opportunity to meet new people and learn new things about yourself, other countries, the world we live in, and the world we hope to live in.

Stay informed. -NLD