So I added a fourth section to this three part series on everything I did leading up to Day 0, a recap of my last few days in the United States.

This section is going to be all about packing.  I am sure that many of you are extremely curious about this so I will do my best to be as specific as possible.


First, I looked up the weather in Granada.

Since I would only be there less than the last two weeks of enero, weather.com provided a pretty detailed account of the weather: 30s – 50s; sunny, partially cloudy, or cloudy; one day of 80% precipitation, all others <20%.  For febrero – 35 – 61; marzo – 39 – 67; abril – 43.2 – 70, and mayo - ??.  I did extensive research on the precipitation because one website really through me off.  Most websites stated ~1 inch of rain a month, but one website stated that this was per day.  Unfortunately, the weather channel didn’t list this information so I just decided to go with the masses and assume ~1 inch of rain per month.

I also looked at my ISA provided handbook for Granada.  I Googled stores in the area.  I Googled typical Spanish dress.  I paid special attention to how the Europeans dressed on my family New Year’s trip to Disney world.  I am definitely one for expressing individuality through clothes, but as an obvious foreigner I wanted to blend in—therefore not standing out to pick-pockets and thieves—as much as possible.  I took into account that if I truly needed more clothes, I could buy some.  I wasn’t about to move to the most remote corner of Earth.

So here is my highly detailed packing list:

Carry-on: I brought two carry-ons, a backpack and a roller bag.

Documents
Electronics
Clothing
Toiletries
Other
·       Passport and copies
·       Visa and copies
·       ID and copies
·       Credit/debit cards and copies
·       Flight itinerary and tickets
·       Meds and copies of letters
·       $$$

·       Macbook
·       iPad
·       iPhone
·       Chargers
·       Headphones
·       Camera
·       SD Cards
·       External hard drive

·       Wore: Jeans, heaviest boots, t-shirt,light sweather, heaviest coat, gloves
·       Packed: extra socks, underwear, t-shirt, sweat pants and sweatshirt to sleep in

ALL TRAVEL SIZED:
·       OTC meds
·       Shampoo and conditioner
·       Face wash
·       Face wipes
·       Hand wipes
·       Hand sanitizer
·       Lotion
·       Hair brush
·       Toothbrush and toothpaste
·       Makeup

·       Cards
·       Manzanas con manzanas (Apples to Apples in Spanish)
·       Smaller backpack
·       Passport neck wallet
·       Sleep mask
·       Travel blanket
·       umbrella



Checked: I brought two checked bags.  Originally I packed the smaller of the two bags into the larger.  It’s hard to believe, but everything fit this way!!

Documents
Electronics
Clothing
Shoes
Toiletries
Other
I didn’t put any personal documents in my checked bag in case it was lost.
·       Converter
·       Adapter
·       Travel extension cord
·       Hair straightener

TOPS:
·       4 Sweaters: 2 lightweight, 2 heavyweight
·       5 t-shirts
·       1 long sleeve tee
·       2 graphic tank tops, 1 graphic t-shirt
·       4 long sleeve blouses
·       2 short sleeve blouses
·       Rain coat
·       Lighter weight coat
BOTTOMS:
·       4 pants: 1 corduroy, 1 velvet, 1 leather, 1 wax coated jean
·       1 pair shorts
·       2 pairs running tights
·       1 pair workout shorts
OTHER:
·       UA cold gear top and bottom
·       7 pairs socks
·       14 pairs underwear
·       2 sports bras
·       2 regular bras


I made sure to bring shoes that I knew were comfortable because I wore them all the time. In addition to the wedge boots I wore on the plane, I brought:
·       1 pair sneakers
·       1 pair flat boots
·       2 pair booties – low heel and wedge
·       1 pair heels – low heel


Because I have sensitive, acne-prone skin, I brought enough skin products to hopefully last me.

I will do a special post on this later J

·       Language books
·       Pillow
·       Blanket
·       Duffle for weekend trips



That’s it!  Hope this helps some of you studying abroad in the near future!

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