Packing with me for Greece!!! + International Packing Tips

Hi!

Hope everyone's summer is going really well!

This summer I am so thankful that I have the opportunity to travel to Ikaria, Greece for the Ekilibre Contact Improvisation Workshop led by Maurice Fraga, Artistic Directer of Ekilibre Dance. I am SO ecstatic and excited to explore contact improvisation and partnering, along with working with my mind, body and spirit, through new ranges of movement, relationships, and creation.

We will be traveling to Ikaria, an island in Greece and then back to Athens after the workshop to explore and tour more of Greece. While I am extremely excited, I am struggling... packing is very hard!!!

1. First of all I am VERY indecisive, plus I also like to have options, and be prepared. Also, we do not have an exact plan of what we will be doing everyday, so it is hard to plan what I will wear each day. Basically I overpack.

2. I am a visual person, so I have sort of layed everything all over my floor, but for days my room has looked like a tornado just went through it. It's bad. I have barely been able to walk through my room.

3. Another struggle for my whole family with packing is what suitcases we should use. Packing for two weeks is hard, especially when you have to get new suitcases because your old ones are broken. We have bought so many different suitcases and also returned a lot. At one point we had 13 options for big suitcases in our house at once, not including all the other small and medium suitcases we already had.

4. And overall... I just procrastinate packing. I love traveling, but not a fan of packing and often do it the night before, but when traveling for long periods go time and especially internationally it is more important to start packing sooner.

Here is what my room looks like mid-packing:

If you are traveling internationally anytime soon here are some tips and ideas I have learned that may help you be as prepared as possible.

Tips for international trip packing:

1. Passport- SUPER IMPORTANT when traveling internationally!!!! Scan a copy of it too in case you lose it and throw in one of your driver’s license just in case. You always want to be safe

2. Extra Outift - Pack an extra outfit in your carry on just in case something happens to your luggage- you never know. Flying in general always poses a risk for losing your luggage, but even more when flying internationally and having an extra change of clothes could make your day so much better:)

3. Universal Outlet Adaptor- Pack a universal adaptor for outlets. Otherwise you probably won’t be able to charge things. In many countries, especially Europe the outlets are different and you don't want to get stuck without being able to plug in anything.

4. Cash to exchange or Foreign Currency- Bring cash to exchange for foreign currency or preorder and get foreign currency before you leave. You don't want to be stuck somewhere that doesn't take your normal currency and you don't have any foriegn cash with you.

5. SIM Card- Get a SIM card if needed/wanted phone access in foreign country. Being in another country, a lot of times you won't be able to get cell service with your normal phone, but you can order a SIM card to give you access to cell data or you will have to pay a lot of money, or wait until you have wifi access.

6. Laundry Soap Sheets and Clothesline- If you want to do laundry in your room pack laundry soap sheets and a clothesline/pins for portable and easy washing. This is helpful for any big trip, summer intensives, or other opportunities, but can be really helpful for quick washing and eliminating having to pack SO much.

Hopefully those help!

I am super excited about going to Greece and having the opportunity to train in such a unique environment created by the Ekilibre Contact Improvisation Workshop!! The day we leave is quickly approaching though and I am still not done packing, so hopefully writing this blog post to share with you guys will help me pack:)

I am going to get to work! Subscribe to my blog and receive updates about my experiences in Greece!!

#summer #greece #contactimprovisation #packing #struggles