When we travel, I like to
shop for people. I recently picked up an adorable baby outfit in Paris for a
baby shower I had been invited to. I like to buy German chocolate and other
candy to share when we get home. I pick up small trinkets like Christmas ornaments
or accessories for myself. My sons like neckties for church so I will try to
find one that has regional meaning to it. And, of course, t-shirts - we're
always buying t-shirts. Sometimes I get a special request from someone because
stuff from the Harry Potter shop in Kings Cross station is WAY COOLER than your
run-of-the-mill HP stuff you can find in the US.
That being said, I can never guess what
kind of extra space I'll need because I don't know what I'll find. Early on, we
tried the "Just Don't Stuff Your Suitcase Full" method. Well, I have
found that if there is space in the case, I will fill it with one more thing
(Regina K is guilty of over-packing.....).
Despite our best efforts, we usually found that there just
wasn't room to put much in at the end. Besides, I swear my clothes
"fluff" in a suitcase. Maybe it's that when you come home, it's all
dirty so you practice the "who cares" packing method of pretty much
just wadding it all in. And, Mr. Cockfosters is always convinced that he's
"not taking much" and will pick his normal sized carry-on but then
keep saying things like, "Do you have room for my....."
So, during one trip, we realized that it just wasn't going to
all fit. So, we ran to a mall and bought a canvas bag we could check. It
changed our life (okay, we lead simple lives where we get excited about simple
things). We now have this lovely (it's ugly, but lovely in concept) 18 inch
sturdy canvas duffel bag that we take on every trip as our extra stuff bag.
Before every trip, I get that thing out and flatten it down and place it in the
bottom of my suitcase and then pack all my things on top of it. It takes up
almost no space and weighs very little. When we arrive and I start buying
things to be brought home, I toss them in the open mouth of the duffel bag.
It's a good visual of what I've done so far. I know that if that bag starts to
get full, I need to shift the shopping down. If I still have specific things to
get, I need to keep space for those. If we have extra space in the end, we take
a trip to Marks and Spencer or Waitrose and stock up on candy or other fun
things we can share with others when we get home. The bag comes home full every
time. However, because it's also canvas and I know what airport luggage
handlers do to luggage, it is sometimes stuffed with shoes, dirty underwear and
socks (don't worry, we keep the food separated) while we put the Christmas
ornaments or more delicate things I might have found into my suitcase in a
manner that protects them better.
Now,
here is the only word of caution where you just might run afoul of this
glorious TTTT; the dreaded flight from London to another European
destination.....
We got trapped in that ONCE. I had gloriously shopped my heart
out in London at Christmas time. We were flying to Germany and then driving on
to France for Christmas markets. I was feeling so smug about my shopping finds
and had left room for the treasures I was going to find at the Christmas
markets. We were going to come back and check back in to our hotel near
Paddington for 2 more days before flying home. As were getting ready to leave
with all our luggage, we suddenly had a horrible realization that the
duffel bag was going to be stupidly expensive to check-in at the airport and
that we already had carry-ons. European Airlines do NOT mess around with
carry-on luggage. They don't turn the other way when you try to roll your giant
suitcase down the ramp or carry-on 4 bags. And, they pretty much charge you for
every bag you check and it adds up fast. We had a similar situation the
following year with Regina P and her Mr. Cockfosters - although we were ready
for it that time.
So,
here were our solutions in both cases. The first year, we had our hotel keep
our luggage. We were literally coming back in 4 days. They put up a tremendous
fight, though. Their "policy" was to only keep luggage for 2 days.
But, come on.... we had a reservation for 4 days later. It's not like we said,
"We MIGHT be back". We ended up winning that fight and actually left
both the duffel AND Mr. Cockfosters' suitcase there. We pared down our wardrobe
and made extra space in the case for purchases. We ended up stuffing our
carry-ons with our German and French Christmas Market finds, but it was mostly
small trinkets and ornaments - which I had anticipated would be the bulk of our
purchases. It worked.
The
next year after spending several days in London, we went on to Munich. We knew
we would be coming back from Munich with the other Cockfosters and spending the
night at a hotel by Heathrow before flying home the next morning. So, we ended
up leaving luggage at a service in Heathrow:LINK
here. It's cheaper than checking bags on airlines and you don't have to drag
EVERYTHING around with you which was handy when we found out our cute little
inn in Munich had no lift and we had to carry everything up the stairs.
So,
my TTTT (Tried and True Travel Tip) is: Plan for purchases! Don't pretend you
won't buy anything. You may not spend much but what you do buy will need space
to come home.
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