I hate packing

Much like I'm not a runner, I'm not a packer. It's boring, tedious, and (no offense to any of the runners out there) not fun. However, unlike running, packing usually coincides with travel to justify the terrible, awful packing ritual. Much to my mother's chagrin, I procrastinate my packing, meaning I started packing Friday the 11th and did not stop packing until the day I left for Argentina - March 15th. I was literally purchasing clothes Monday the 14th to pack for Tuesday.

Packing for any sort of vacation is tricky. You need nice clothes, casual clothes, four pairs of pajamas, extra underwear in case you pee yourself, extra pairs of socks because you never know what could happen, a bathing suit, and shoes you know you probably won't wear. Whenever I pack, I never quite remember that the goal is to wear the clothes, so I often myself with a bunch of clothes that don't actually match. Now for this trip, packing was especially difficult because, well, 8 months is a long time...especially in a new country...especially in a city that happens to get cold. So for all of you out there who are curious about what I packed, here ya go. In my two checked bags, carry-on, and backpack, I brought:

4 jackets - one super light, a rain jacket, and two heavier jackets

4 pairs of jeans

4 (or 5) pairs of pants that aren't jeans

8 pairs of shoes - a pair of heels, chelsea boots, chacos, birkenstock sandals, birkenstock clogs, converse, vans, and sneakers - now that I'm writing this out this does actually seem like a lot

4 sweaters

2 cardigans

2 formal-esque shirts

7 tank tops and/or crop tops

4-6 just like regular shirts

1 pair of sweatpants

2 flannels

4 sports bras

6-7 pairs of leggings

4 workout tops

2 pairs of pajamas

4 rompers

1 scarf

1 winter hat

Quite a lot of masks

3 pairs of shorts

4 dresses in case I for some reason become a dress person

lots of socks and underwear

Now did I overpack? Probably. But, hear me out, 8 months is a long time, and in northern Argentina the winter is mild, but where I will be there is actually winter. So, really, I had no choice.

In addition to clothes, I brought my coveted Cetaphil face soap, contact solution, 8 months worth of contacts, peanut butter, a smoke/carbon monoxide alarm because Argentines apparently are cool with apartment fires, and every possible otc med one could think of. If I had a massive headache and was dizzy and had diarrhea and car sickness and acid reflux and gas and allergies all at the same time, I'd be covered. I also brought (and printed copies of) important documents that are even more important because COVID like my passport, my vax card, a negative test result, my health insurance and proof it covers COVID, and a document I filled out that was required by the Argentina gov. Oh! During this packing I also got a yellow fever vaccine, a typhoid vaccine, and hep A and B vaccines.

Here is my giant stack of paperwork that I can't lose!

I don't have many packing tips to share with any of you who are curious about what it's like because it sucked and because I panic packed the entire time. Use packing cubes, but maybe label them? I had this fun little issue of not know what was in any of my cubes when I was in Buenos Aires, so I ended up unpacking quite a bit. Put clothes in your carry-on that you plan on wearing for the next 1 to 2 days. I wish I had packed more clothes in my carry-on because it would've made life so much easier. Also, know what the weather and clothes-buying vibes are like where you are going. I'm sure many of you are wondering why I couldn't just buy clothes here, but it's really not common. Puerto Madryn is more of a beachy tourist town, so clothes are expensive for their quality.

Let me know if you have any questions!! :)