Before the Journey began ...

People approach big trips like mine in different ways.  Some are spontaneous; they book their ticket, pack a bag and go without a care in the world, ready to tackle anything.  Others have a different approach ... I have a different approach!

I am compelled to organise everything to within an inch of it's life!  I had spread sheets and notebooks, timelines and budgets ... everything for maximum organisation- I just can't help it!  There are benefits; I felt prepared for anything and there weren't any last minute surprises ... but it did take a lot of time and probably caused a lot of unnecessary anxiety.  But I enjoyed it too.  Planning for such an exciting trip was fun, the monumental decisions had already been made (quick recap - quit job, left London and friends and family ...) so the getting ready for the trip was my way of starting the journey early!

There were lots of things that had to be done before I could leave, I wasn't ever going to be able to just pack a bag.  I had to pack up my life as I know it.  Not much fun, but a great opportunity to get rid of a ton of stuff.  Every item in storage is one that I know I want to see again or use again when I get back ... anything that I had accumulated for no good reason went to the charity shop, the bin or ebay.  My life is now in boxes in a loft in Shropshire, pretty condensed but I'm sure there's room for improvement.

Anything left is what I have taken with me to South America.  Working out the actual process of packing was tricky, but eventually I got from this:

to this!

I thought this was impressive, until I saw what other travellers are carrying!  It appears that I have fulfilled another habit of a lifetime ... an incapability to pack light! I missed the vital clue ... if your 'stuff' fills an entire room then you have too much to travel with!

I like to think that revising the contents of my pack is something I can do on the move , but I'm not sure I can bear the thought of shedding those 'just in case' items just yet!