{"id":6446,"date":"2014-10-09T07:23:13","date_gmt":"2014-10-09T12:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/?p=6446"},"modified":"2014-10-09T07:23:13","modified_gmt":"2014-10-09T12:23:13","slug":"the-packing-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/?p=6446","title":{"rendered":"The London Packing List"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Keep<\/a>
Keep Calm and Carry On signs and post cards can be found everywhere in London.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Anyone who has traveled to another country can explain the benefits of packing light. Most international airlines have baggage charges that can get pretty expensive. Normal struggles of getting through TSA and customs multiply when traveling with many, and often heavy, bags. Most importantly, though, you don\u2019t want to have five bags worth of clothes and forget that you\u2019ll probably bring home a number of souvenirs from the country you\u2019re studying abroad in. How are you going to carry it all home? Shipping? Might as well study abroad twice in a row – because the pricing would be about the same.<\/p>\n

A side note for my fellow shop-a-holics: We may have shopped in our home towns for this trip thinking this experience would be non-stop fulfillment and cultural exploration, as opposed to filling our closet with the local H&M market designs. Know that there is a high possibility of finding yourself in mall while roaming the city, then realizing you have time on your hands and money in your pocket. Prepare for the possibility that you won\u2019t be able to resist! Leave some space in your suitcase for that dress unique and vintage figurine.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s nice to think that TSA, heavy lifting, and high prices are worth the pain. Moving from city to city is hard, and we want to bring the things we love with us. This applies to the move out of your parents\u2019 house, into a college dorm, and especially into a a new country for study abroad ventures. Unfortunately, that\u2019s not always possible.<\/p>\n

\"My<\/a>
My two, clothe-filled carry ons, which double as school bags and suitcases for weekend trips.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By now I know all of this first hand. I\u2019m originally from California and went to school over 2 thousand miles away to study at Loyola University Chicago. The summer after my sophomore year, I studied abroad in C\u00f3rdoba, Spain<\/a>. Now in my fourth year of university and studying abroad in London, I\u2019ve made a number of trips where packing and moving items around the country was my sole concern.<\/p>\n

In the past, though, all of my packing experience applied to long-term moves for full year trips. I hadn\u2019t yet figured out how to get 3 months worth of clothes, shoes, accessories, and essential toiletries into one suitcase and two carry ons.<\/p>\n

Of course the world is big and the internet is a savior so I did a little research on packing lists for studying abroad in London.<\/p>\n

It seemed like all the blogs emphasized one thing.<\/p>\n

Literally.<\/p>\n

The most common advice I saw was that students should bring one of each item, such as: one pair of walking shoes, one pair of heels, one weeks worth of underwear, one good tee-shirt, one sweater, one raincoat, one (maybe two) good pairs of jeans, one dress, ETC. WITH THE ONES.<\/p>\n

Cue my anxiety, for real.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a city girl moving from big city to big city with a decent level of observation skills and what I\u2019m noticing is that this \u201cone-item rule\u201d isn\u2019t going to work.<\/p>\n

With the help of my mother, I created my own packing list of essentials. I needed more that one of many things, but have since\u00a0learned that my idea of “essential products” may have been a bit excessive.<\/p>\n

\"This<\/a>
This is HALF of the pile of the heels, flats, sneakers, and boots that I originally planned to bring with me to London<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now, two weeks into living in my London dorm, settling, and reflection on the items that I brought, I feel I can create the ideal packing list for a one semester study abroad student!<\/p>\n

*DISCLAIMER: Some of the items on the list apply specifically to London\u2019s weather conditions. Please do not pack thermals if your trip is to Egypt.*<\/p>\n

Underwear<\/span><\/strong>: You do not need all of the undies and bras, maybe<\/i> a week and a half\u2019s worth. This depends on the frequency of your laundry load<\/p>\n

Socks<\/span><\/strong>: Bring a weeks worth, but bring the kind that fit in your shoes. Where you go may be cold but thick socks make fitting into your favorite boots impossible. Trust that there is no fun in getting blisters on rainy days<\/p>\n

Tops<\/span><\/strong>: I have separated my shirts into sections – Fun\/Going Out, Tank Tops, Everyday\/Casual, and Long Sleeves<\/p>\n

– I have 3 to 5 shirts per pile.<\/p>\n

– Some of the shirts overlap groups but this keeps my closet organized and my \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 clothes easily tracked.<\/p>\n

Jeans<\/span><\/strong>: 4 different pairs; I absolutely encourage this.<\/p>\n

– Every one expects jeans to be re-worn for days or maybe weeks at a time, but spice up your life! Don\u2019t \u00a0let a change of tops be the only thing to make your outfits interesting for few months<\/p>\n

Tights<\/span><\/strong>: 4 pairs, 3 colo(u)rs, variety of styles and lengths<\/p>\n

Leggings<\/span><\/strong>: 1 pair<\/p>\n

– Works with jeans and tights to help with variety<\/p>\n

Belts<\/span><\/strong>: THREE (3), various sizes, colors, and styles<\/p>\n

Bags<\/span><\/strong> (in addition to suitcases): 1 tote, 1 purse, 1 backpack<\/p>\n

– \u00a1<\/strong>This is important<\/em>!<\/strong><\/span> I have packed too many purses myself and often find that I lose track of keys and lipsticks that are spread between them all<\/p>\n

– Only bring a\u00a0backpack if you dont have a carry-on sized back for weekend travels; everyone at school here uses totes<\/p>\n

Pajamas<\/span><\/strong>: I love my pajama tops, but I dare say 2\u00a0were one too many. Tank tops and casual tee-shirts often become comfortable supplements for sleepware<\/p>\n

Gym clothes<\/span><\/strong>: 1 pair of shoes, 2 tops, 2 bottoms<\/p>\n

– I believe this will be perfect, but my work out attire has yet to be put to the test. The city of London encourages everyone to walk everywhere, thus replacing gym time.<\/p>\n

Yes to thermals<\/span><\/strong>, it is so cold<\/p>\n

– This also means bring at least 2 scarves and a good pair of gloves<\/p>\n

Research the party scene<\/strong><\/span> before you arrive! I happily assumed everyone went to clubs all the time. Apparently that was common in secondary school (high school), not college. I have yet to need a club outfit, but\u00a0a cute something something is good to have just in case<\/p>\n

– The same applies to cocktail dresses and high heeled shoes. I brought three of each and could have stopped at two.<\/p>\n

Toiletries<\/span><\/strong>: There are no guidelines for personal items like medicine, lady products, and makeup. Bring what you need<\/p>\n

Nice\u00a0to have<\/span><\/strong>: A cardigan and\/or blazer, 2 casual skirts, and 1 or 2 casual dresses<\/p>\n

– What you actually bring depends on your style, so bring 4 skirts\/dresses and only one pair of jeans if that\u2019s what you prefer. I find that what a person is wearing does not matter too much, but it has to fit in a suitcase!<\/p>\n

Shoes<\/span><\/strong> \u2026\u2026 I\u2019m still figuring this one out myself. Gym shoes are essential, high heels probably will come in handy for some occasion along the way, boots (rain and regular) are a must. I bought a pair of Vans here for a more normal, comfortable walking situation, but locals seem to stick with sneakers or water-proofed boots with any sort of outfit.<\/p>\n

*Warning<\/span>: lots of cobblestones here – boots may fall apart and ankles may wobble as high heels get stuck in cracks [emoji], but such is the life.<\/p>\n

So I’m hoping this helps any future Londoners!\u00a0I’ll have some new posts coming up soon about having a new roommate, classes, and integrating into a new culture!<\/p>\n

***FUN VOCAB OF THE WEEK***<\/p>\n

I have heard the term\u00a0“fortnight,” or “two weeks,” when not quoting Shakespeare<\/p>\n

“Starjump” – Jumping Jack<\/p>\n

“Wellies” – Rainboots<\/p>\n

“Crips” – Chips<\/p>\n

“Chips” – French Fries<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anyone who has traveled to another country can explain the benefits of packing light. Most international airlines have baggage charges that can get pretty expensive. Normal struggles of getting through TSA and customs multiply when traveling with many, and often heavy, bags. Most importantly, though, you don\u2019t want to have five bags worth of clothes … <\/p>\n

Read More Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[146,172,193,213,218,250,331,354,416,417,418,472,481,511,560,563],"class_list":["post-6446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-bags","tag-britain","tag-carry-on","tag-clothes","tag-college","tag-essentials","tag-keep-calm","tag-london","tag-pack-light","tag-packing","tag-packing-list","tag-school","tag-shoes","tag-study-abroad-london","tag-united-kingdom","tag-university"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6446"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6446\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.luc.edu\/goglobal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}