With my upcoming trip less than a week away, I’ve probably shopped more on Amazon in the last month than I have in my entire life.
Every time I think I have everything for my trip, I find something new I need.
Even tonight, as I did a test pack of my backpacks, I found more stuff I needed and headed out the door to the store at 8pm.
Yup, things are getting real – test packs and final checklists are going on.
So, what did I buy the last few weeks?
Glad you asked…
New backpacks: I’ve had the same backpack for over 10 years now. It has stood the test of time, and frankly, it’s ready for more but I wanted to change to a backpack that I could bringin onto the plane as carry-on as opposed to checking it in every time so I had to get something a little smaller. You can read all about my backpack buying adventure here.
New shoes: I still have the original shoes I bought for my first trip 10 years ago. Yes, that’s how awesome they are. They are super comfortable and obviously last quite awhile through all the wear and tear. This year, however, I discovered a crack in my right shoe’s sole which really sucks when you’re walking through puddles. So, I finally caved and bought a new pair. At $180, it wasn’t cheap, but well worth it.
A new travel wallet: I’ve also had the same travel wallet I bought 10 years ago before my first trip. It had a good run but I noticed on the last trip that the band that held the wallet closed had loosened up and I just felt like it was time to get a new one. I only travel with 2 cards (my bank card and one credit card) so the wallet I was looking for was slim with just enough room for a couple cards and my foreign cash. I found this little beauty and can’t wait to fill it with some euros.
A coin purse: Speaking of cash… gotta have a place to put all those coins I’ll come across on my travels. I used to use an old plastic earplug container I got on a Renfe train awhile back but, sadly, it cracked and the last trip I was just throwing my coins in a pocket in my daypack. Not quite ideal. So, I went onto Amazon, and wouldn’t you know it – they had the perfect little coin purse keychain!
The best underwear ever!: It’s not hyperbole! ExOfficio is the best travel underwear out there. I discovered them when I was researching my first trip way back in 2012. Countless travelers and fellow backpackers swore by them and now, after using them exclusively for 10 years, you can add my name to the list. They are super comfortable, don’t chafe, don’t smell and you can wear them multiple days if you need to in a pinch. Anyway, I decided to buy a couple more pairs just so I’m not doing laundry as often on these upcoming trips.
Earplugs: I’ve always had those cheap, generic pointy earplugs that are super uncomfortable and always fall out when you sleep on your side. In a nutshell, they were useless. This time around, I decided to research if there were actually good earplugs out there. Turns out, there are! I bought Mack’s Pillow Soft Silicone Earplugs that apparently you mold to just cover your ear opening – no sticking it inside so there’s nothing that’ll pop out when you sleep on your side.
Sleep mask: Somewhere along the way between trips, I seem to have lost the sleep mask I had. To be honest though, the one I had wasn’t that great as it always felt tight on my ears and would become painful after awhile. I bought a new one made of silk with an adjustable strap that had good reviews so I’m hoping for your good night sleeps on the horizon.
New headphones: The only time I ever use headphones is when I’m traveling so the pair I’ve used on previous trips has been sitting around collecting dust for the last 5 years. When I went to gather my gear to do a test pack today, I noticed that one of wires had been chewed (grrrr cats!) and had an exposed wire. Oh well, nothing a quick trip to Best Buy couldn’t solve.
A phone adapter: I finally gave in and bought a new phone last year after having the same one for almost 10 years. I only discovered this week that it didn’t actually have an input port for the new wired headphones I just bought. Luckily there’s a USB to 3.5mm adapter you can get to solve the problem.
Power bank: When I’m at home I rarely use my phone. Worrying about my battery running out isn’t really a concern. With my impending trip, I decided maybe it was time to get a portable power bank to use to charge my phone on the go. The one I got can charge my phone 1.7x so it should be enough to get my through a day of selfies, map markers and google searches.
A pop socket: Again, since I don’t go crazy using my phone back home, I never saw a need to add this accessory to my phone. A pop socket is basically a little knob that you can attach to the back of your phone to help you hold it. It also gives you a way to stand your phone up on it’s own.
New luggage tags: Gotta sport the Canadian flag on the backpacks! The rubber luggage tags I’ve had for my previous trips were starting to show their age, so I decided to snag a couple new tags for both my backpack and daypack. I’ll also be sporting my unique “Living The Dream” tags I sell in my Euro Trip Kits.
Hat: Since I decided to go with with shaved dome look a year ago, I’ve realized that I’ll need a little protection for my head being in the sun for several hours at a time. I wanted to find a nice, comfortable ball cap that I could wear day to day. I looked in a few stores but ended up getting this simple white Nike hat at Foot Locker.
Toiletry bag: I seem to have misplaced my old toiletry bag. I actually searched high and low for it tonight and just couldn’t for the life of me find it. Not only was I missing the bag, but also my plastic soap dish holder and toothbrush cap. So, I did what any red-blooded Canadian would do – I headed out to Canadian Tire and bought a new bag, a new soap dish, and a new cap. Problem solved!
And there you have it! All the stuff I bought the last month. It’s certainly been a whirlwind and I wouldn’t be lying if I said I got a little bit more excited about my upcoming trip each time I made a purchase.
6 days to go! Let the adventure begin!
