UNNECESSARY LUGGAGE

We brought a number of items on this trip that we could have easily done without. While our reasons for bringing each of these items were well-reasoned, we  ended up carrying these items around for a year for no reason.

Secondary phones

Having carried two secondary devices for a year for “just in case” situations (e.g. theft, water damage, etc.) and having never really needed them is a little bit annoying. While we are glad that our phones were not lost, damaged, or stolen on this trip, carrying any items around for a year on your back without any need for them is still not optimal.

Our Kindle and Kobo E-readers

Now this one I was actually quite surprised by. And I would preface this one by saying that if an E-reader is how you typically consume books, you should probably bring yours with you. Before this trip, I would have put myself in this camp. However, what I’ve found with my use of the Libby app is that I’ve actually spent a fair amount of time reading on my iPad. It’s much easier than having to port Libby content over to the E-Reader (and Kindle doesn’t even allow this). If I were to do it again, I’d leave my E-reader behind.

Kids’ OSMOs

For those that aren’t in the know on this, these are toys that basically convert an iPad into an interactive learning system for younger kids. And while we expected to make more use of these things, and so brought one for each kid along with various sets of pieces for games, our kids have not spent a huge amount of time playing on the OSMOs. Part of that is because we have not let them play OSMO, but part is that the games we have were fairly limited and they were already getting too much screen time reading on the iPads. These were actually pretty bulky and heavy and carrying these around for a year was definitely not worth it. AND nearly every time through airport security this device was flagged for secondary inspection.

Underwear

We thought underwear was going to be the thing that we ran out of first and so we ultimately probably overpacked on this front. This is not a huge deal as underwear does not weigh much, but it still took up unnecessary space in our bags. Surprisingly, the item that had us running to get laundry done the most was our shirts. So we would recommend that you pack a few extra shirts and a little less (but still sufficient) underwear. Polyester shirts for Mr. Worldsmith were clutch, given that they could be easily washed and hung dryed overnight in a pinch and that they tend to block out more of the UV.