The only trips I’ve been on that lasted more than a week were to the Dominican (where I was working) and Maine, where I visited family. Aside from these two trips, I usually go away for a few days or an extended weekend. This trip to Europe however, was the longest trip I've taken...hold up, I lied. I went to Ethiopia for 2 months like 6 years ago, so that would've been my longest trip but that was with my family & I was younger so I didn't count it. Anyways, Europe was the first trip I went on by myself for a long period of time & I realized I was NOT prepared for it at all, whatsoever. Everything I thought I knew about traveling was put to the test & I definitely failed but I learned a lot from it. So this post is to tell y'all about the lovely things I learned, as well as to inform you about things you may not know about traveling - especially if you've never taken care of all the details yourself. There are so many bloggers who talk about how to travel & what you need to know, and although it's all helpful, we need to know what lessons you went through to know those things. We talk way too much about our success & not enough about our struggle so things seem unattainable when they're really not. So here it is, enjoy and have a laugh at my expense. This is what I went through on my first solo overseas vacation...
- Carry On: I think this might be one of the most important points which is annoying because I had this on my last trip & it made things so much easier for me but this time I struggled to find a nice new one & instead just opted for the shittier alternative. A backpack is an ABSOLUTE MUST as a carry on bag. When you are checking in your bag, going through security, getting food, looking for your passport & boarding pass, leaving the airport during your layover etc. Life is sooo much easier hands-free. I had a purse with a long strap but it was heavy & a nuisance; I was also carrying another bag on the way there & a carry on bag on the way back so my hands were full. Speaking of carry on, I don’t know why I didn’t get myself one of those cute ones that roll around & don’t need to be lifted unless you are putting it in a bucket for security clearance or into the overhead when you board the plane. I tried to take the easy way out & just take my gym bag because it was easily available at home; carrying that bag was a bitch & walking down the aisles of the plane with it & my purse was just a hot mess.
- Suitcase: Cheap should never be your first thought when getting things for your trip because for one, if you get a good one the first time you won’t need to get another one for the next trip, especially if it’s gonna be something that bugs you during your whole trip. I wanted to get this suitcase but it wasn’t in my budget & I ended up finding a decent one for $5o which I thought was a steal. My one thing with choosing a suitcase was that it needed to have 360 wheels so that it would glide next to me as I walked. I was over the age of dragging a suitcase behind me & wanted to make life easier. The day I left my house for my trip, I regretted my choice immediately. The wheels went whichever way they wanted to go & never went the way I needed them to go; sometimes they would get stuck & not move & I’d almost fall over the suitcase. I ended up getting bruises from it and the zippers inside ripped. So much face palming & regret.
- Planning: RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH. Very important part of travelling. You need to have some sort of a plan per day, you shouldn’t depend on people to always take you out & show you all the cool things you want to see because they might not know what & where there are or the type of things you are into. A detailed itinerary isn’t what you need but you need one big thing you want to do for each day you’re there. It gives you a pinpoint of where in the city you’ll head to for the day & it'll give you some sort of plan for the day. Winging it is an option as well but depends on if you are solo or the type of crowd you're with. Also if you're in a big city & there is so much to do, it could be very overwhelming; some days I wasted time trying to decide where I wanted to eat & what I wanted to do.
- Packing: Everyone told me I was over packing & that I didn't need 7 pairs of jeans, 2 sneakers, heels & all these tops but I refused to listen to any of them. I didn't need any of it. I hated majority of what I packed and I barely had space to go shopping & bring things back. I learned a lot about how to organize outfits & how it's better to just leave things behind & buy things I may need, later on.
I hope y'all have easy going, organized trips but also have some struggles because I believe that struggles make you stronger & test you. Happy traveling & let me know what trips you guys have coming up!
till next time
xoxo
lamrou
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