Met a guy in a hostel in Prague who changed how I pack

Last summer I was in Prague at this cheap hostel near the old town. This older traveler in his 60s saw me struggling with my giant backpack. He showed me his setup. He had this tiny 30 liter pack with everything he needed for 3 months. One pair of shoes, three shirts, two pants. He told me 'you carry your fears, not your needs.' He washed his clothes in the sink every night with bar soap. I tried it for the rest of my trip and it worked so well. I still think about that conversation when I'm packing for a trip. Anyone else had a random stranger teach them a better way to travel?

2 comments

2 Comments

elliotc101mo ago

Whoa, wait - he washed his clothes in the sink every single night with bar soap? That's wild to me. I guess after a few weeks you'd get a system down but the thought of standing over a hostel sink scrubbing my one pair of pants every evening makes me tired just thinking about it.

wesleyjohnson1mo ago

My first trip overseas I packed a 70 liter bag with 7 different outfits and a separate pair of shoes for every single day. Looked like I was moving out of my parents house. I basically packed my entire personality into that bag because I was terrified of looking like a tourist or not having the right thing to wear. Of course I ended up wearing the same two shirts on repeat and donated half my stuff to a hostel in Budapest. That older guy's advice cuts deep because we really do pack our anxieties, not our necessities. Still overpack sometimes but at least now I laugh at myself about it instead of crying on a train platform.