5 Things to Leave at Home for your Semester Abroad

 

When I left Edmonton for my semester abroad, my cute pink suitcases were full to the brim with all my stuff. Packing your life into 2 suitcases and 2 carryons is no easy feat let me tell you, especially when you live and breathe for the 16 coats hanging in your closet… What can I say, I love clothes!

That being said, there are a few things that can definitely be left behind. As long as you factor the things you’re going to want to buy into your travel budget beforehand, you’ll be sitting pretty for suitcase room!

5 Things to Leave at Home for your Semester Abroad

High Heels

You think you’re going to wear them, and I believe that you honestly believe they will be of use to you on your exchange. But, girl, save yourself the space because stilettos on cobblestone streets do not mix no matter how gorgeous the shoes are. Copenhagen in particular was filled with sneaker wearing people. I can’t actively remember one time that I was out in a club or for dinner and saw a girl in heels. And that’s not an exaggeration.

Hair Straightener and Curler

I had heard this before but didn’t take the advice because I was a serial hair do-er. Before my exchange I would not leave my house without either straightening or curling my hair every single day. So when I got to Copenhagen, to my utter dismay, the weather made my perfectly curled locks go completely flat in under 15 minutes. It was that day that I gave up doing my hair and now, you’re looking at a girl who hasn’t done anything to my hair other than wash and brush it in over 7 months. Who have I turned into?! If you’re like some of my friends who do not believe this is possible, consider buying a straightener there. A friend who visited me killed her $200 straightener in under 5 minutes when she got there using both an adaptor and a converter.

5 Pairs of Jeans

Man, exchange must change you because before I left I was also a serial jeans wearer. Every single day, other than business attire, I was in jeans without exception (see here, here, here, here, here… and so on). Denmark in particular is very into the loose look and that definitely had an impact on my jean wearing. I quickly turned to trousers and culottes and sent almost every pair of jeans home with visitors. Don’t make the same mistakes I did and limit your packing jeans from the beginning. They’re heavy and not worth the extra luggage weight.

Toiletries

I wanted to bring everything I possibly could with me to avoid having to buy it when I was there. I ended up bringing so many toiletries that I had to cart them all the way home at the end of the 6 months too. I, of course, brought every bottle of stuff I owned when I didn’t even use it at home, thinking that I would for sure make time to try it out abroad. Of course I brought 10 face masks and not enough tooth paste so my priorities were slightly skewed. I would say take a few of the ones you know you’ll use and avoid packing the ones you don’t. You need as much room as possible to take home everything you’re going to buy. Trust me.

School Backpack

I chose to bring a school sized backpack instead of a backpacking backpack. I quickly realized the error in my ways when I had to pack for a 4 day trip to Berlin, in the winter, with the amount of room for 2 textbooks. I face timed my family and got them to bring my sister’s old traveling backpack when they came to visit and it changed my travels. It makes a big difference when you don’t have to drag around a suitcase trying to find your Airbnb and instead everything fits perfectly on your back. For the school aspect, when I did go to school (it was rare), I used a tote bag and liked it much more. University students in Europe I swear are prepared to walk down the runway at all times, and those runways do not favour backpack wearing. Leave it at home.

Did you bring anything on your exchange that you wished you had left behind?

xx Victoria