Packing

1 year, 4 seasons, 2 suitcases. How does one pack for such an occasion?

Originally I wanted to be a hardcore world traveler and take only one suitcase for my year long adventure. However, after going through every item i have ever owned and realizing that i'm going to have no money to buys lots of new clothes, i've broken down and am taking two rather large suitcases instead. But the challenge still remains: what to put in them and how to make it take up as little room as possible.

Luckily there is no dress code where i will be working (assuming i understood the email correctly. She did say that they dress latinamerican and i'm not really sure what that means. My mom thought it meant wearing tight clothes.) So mostly i am taking clothes i like to wear which as most of you know means solid colored t-shirts, jeans, and shorts. I've added a few skirts, a dress (just one), and a few sweaters for good measure. It's really the shoes that are hard to choose between since they take up so much room.

Besides clothes there are so many other little things that i must take: converters, toiletries (but not in my carry on!!), books, first aid kit, sewing kit, vitamins, duck tape, and gifts for the kids. Due to the usually small size of these objects I think that of course there will be room for just one more roll of travel toilet paper. but what am i thinking? they are going to have toilet paper in argentina, i'm pretty sure. and if they don't well i'll be heading home much sooner then i thought.

The real space taker upper is the bedding and towels. Luckily, my dad bought me those air vaccum bags that suck the air out of everything and squish them down alot. So my suitcase now looks like a gigantic sized child's luch box full of little baggies of sheets and turbie twists. I can't wait to open them all and watch everything expand again!

So assuming the zippers will close, I and my two bags will be heading off tomorrow night. I have a direct flight from Atlanta and will arrive Tuesday morning! Adios!