My Life in a Suitcase
For the past couple of years I have been living a nomadic lifestyle that has given me a lot of joy and also made me a more organized person. Initially, I would just travel with a backpack, which could be easily taken on a plane as a carry-on. This used to be very convenient, however as I spent more and more time on the road, I found that having a small suitcase and a separate backpack for my equipment works better for me. I am sure everyone has a different preference, but I know I have done a lot of research back in the day to see how other people manage their possessions and carry them around in such a small space as a backpack or suitcase. So here it goes…
My luggage is an American Tourister suitcase, on the smaller side of the range, at around 75 cm tall and 45 cm wide. It easily fits all my things plus there is a little space left for souvenirs and generally it doesn’t exceed 20 kgs no matter how full it is - but of course, that depends on the weight of the contents as well. My backpack is a standard cabin bag sized camera bag (40x30 cm), which doubles perfectly as a normal backpack when I take out the partitions. I also usually carry a small Quechua backpack inside my luggage for daytrips and sightseeing.
The contents of my luggage are usually more or less the same from one trip to another. Depending on where I go, I like to take at least one layer of clothes for all types of weather. If I am going to a warm location, I will take more summer clothes, whereas in a colder location I will have more warm clothes. I am not too concerned about having more than 2 or 3 changes of clothes as I can combine them and wash them frequently. I usually take two to three pairs of pants, one pair of yoga pants, two pairs of shorts, t-shirts, a long sleeved shirt and a fleece, underwear for a week, 1 pair of hiking boots, one pair of sneakers, 1 pair of waterproof sandals, a travel towel, a small bag of toiletries, medicine essentials, my camera gear (body, two lenses, travel tripod, flash), my Bluetooth speakers, an external charger and my laptop.
Initially, packing used to give me a big headache, because it was so hard to decide what to take and what to leave behind. Eventually, however I started learning what it was I could do without and just getting rid of the excess upon leaving a country. This lifestyle really forced me to start living minimally and think twice before buying anything, especially if it wasn’t essential. It also helped me become less attached to my material possessions and I feel lighter and happier as a result. I would definitely recommend that everyone try living out of a suitcase - or a wardrobe of equivalent size - for some time of their lives. The best thing is that it doesn’t even have to entail travelling: there was a period in my life during Covid when I knew I wasn’t travelling for longer stretches of time and I still kept to this philosophy and it helped me fell grounded and my mind uncluttered by unnecessary things.
I know that a nomadic lifestyle is not everyone’s cup of tea, but I honestly believe that we can do with much less in our lives and I am happy that this lifestyle taught me how to do that. I am curious to know how you pack when you travel and if you have any tips on how to decide between essential and non-essential items in your life. Leave a comment, I would be happy to hear hear about it!
