The idea of liberating our possessions is by some completely terrifying to some and exhilarating and exciting to others.  I admit to regularly flip flopping on this issue, some items I’m terrified to leave behind and others I’m excited to purge.  I traveled around the world with a small carry-on sized backpack.  As time went on I got rid of more and more until I felt as though I had truly reached my minimalist breaking point.  That’s when I joined the terrified to get rid of things camp.

We’ve written extensively about what we traveled with, the gear, the miscellanea, the clothes, what we kept in boxes for two years, and what made it around the world with us.   We’ve also blogged about our fear of losing those last few possessions and the emotional attachment we came to feel to objects.   We’ve written a lot about stuff- what is our obsession?

As we pack for another travel adventure, I’m smile to myself as I see the first few items go into the bag.  Here they are:

1. Steri Pen, Water Purifier.  My adoration for this product can simply not be described.  It is without a doubt the #1 object I’d recommend to any traveler going anywhere for any amount of time.  As my grandma says, without health you have nothing!
2. Sarong.  Versatile, from a sheet to a skirt to a towel, this rectangular piece of cloth is a must.
3. Med Kit.  We did leave this behind once and lived to pay the price.  It’s like an American Express card, never leave home without it!
4. Ex-Officio undies.  Our little secret at first, but these are the most comfortable for travel – even if it’s 10 hours in an airport.
5. A Hat.   If you’ve ever squinted in bright sunlight to read a sign you know what I mean.

Is that all I really need?  Maybe I’ve crossed to another level of minimalist travel. What are the first few items in your bag?

 That happens to me a lot, I instinctively move something or put it away, but don’t even realize I’m doing it.  This means sunglasses and random objects are usually not always where I think they should be or for Danny where he thinks they should be.

On the road I was always worried about losing things.  Mostly our passports and cash, but also just little things like our laundry line and sunscreen.  Ridiculous, I know. Surely every market had twine, but it wouldn’t have the cool little clips and small neoprene pouch that our fancy shmancy seatosummit one had.  We might be able to find sunscreen, but it wouldn’t be the waterproof 30SPF oil free kind from home that we love.

Somewhere along the road of selling it, quitting it and giving it away I got very protective over those precious few items in my backpack.

So we developed a stuff survival system.  DEFT- Drying, electronics, food, toiletries- the things that would most likely be left behind.  We double checked as we left the room.  ”Honey did you pack____?” I’d say.  Things were tightly put away in pouches, our backpacks fit together like puzzles, everything only fit one way which made it a lot easier to know when something was missing.  But not everything.

Somethings were lost along the way.

Actually quite a few things, especially as time went on.  Towards the end of the trip we stopped paying so much attention to our stuff, perhaps because we knew the end was in sight.  From a rather expensive rain jacket in China to yes, a laundry line left hanging at a campground in Africa, many of those precious few items were left along the way. And you know what, at the time, we missed them.  We had truly packed down to our essentials, there was hardly anything in that pack I didn’t use on a daily or weekly basis.  But losing them didn’t ruin our trip. (Although I think Danny would disagree about his raincoat!)  

The stuff I was trying to protect really didn’t matter.  It made us more comfortable, but when I couldn’t buy contact solution (for the record ONLY Ethiopia) I just did without. In the end we both came home with packs smaller than when we left.  Not because we lost so many things, but because we realized we could do more or the same with less. We let our stuff go and you know what, it was rather empowering.

Packing for a big trip?  Check out our youtube video on packing a backpack!

We traded out clothes that weren’t cutting it, mostly things that were easily torn or didn’t live up to the rigors of travel.  For Danny this was a few shirts and a pair of pants.  Jillian traded out some undergarments and shirts, added a travel dress and took out a pair of capris.

Because so many people have asked about what is in our packs and how much we actually have, we made a video of how to pack a backpack that will give you a visual of how things fit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oR3IfWk7tA

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