Pandemic Diaries - Italian Interlude - "What Do You Pack?"

8 December 2022

 

There are two questions we seem to get most often when we explain our travelling life to people:  what is your favorite place, and what do you pack?  We both explain we don’t have ONE favorite place, we both have a series of favorites.  The packing question is actually easier to answer.

 

I’ve developed a “uniform” that works for me – each of us is different, and we have different preferences, colors, styles.  But if I stick with my personal basics, it makes packing quick and easy.  (My basics are three to four bottoms, one or two dresses, up to ten tops, a cardigan, a light jacket, a rain jacket.  And no more than three pair of shoes.  Roughly 20 clothing items, not continuing shoes or necessities like undies and socks.)

 

First, I look at the trip – how long will I be gone, what activities will I be doing, will there be any special events?  Then, I look at the general climate of the region where I’ll be travelling.  Finally, I start tracking the current weather for that region, so I can pack accordingly.

 

Having been to La Romita previously, I knew the general plan – half to whole days in various hill towns in the area, afternoons and/or evenings in the art studio.  Cool mornings and evenings, warm days.  Casual with lots of walking.  Basically, slacks and tops, maybe a pair of shorts.  A couple of sweaters and a light jacket to keep warm.  Birkenstock sandals and maybe a pair of sneakers.  Perfect.

 

When I added the Mediterranean cruise and Atlantic crossing, that upped what I’d need – maybe a dress or two for evenings, and some way to turn my casual outfits into “dressy” for six or eight nights (given that this was a 28 day cruise).  Okay, so maybe two silk tops, a silk jacket, and a dress that could dress up or down.  Plus a pair of shoes that are comfortable but dressy-ish, and flat enough to walk around the ship if the seas get a bit rough.

 

Fortunately, we were leaving from our “home base” in Washington, where we have some boxes of clothing stored with my youngest brother.  That makes life easier when packing for a trip, because I can “shop” in my boxes.  I did buy one pair of shoes and a new necklace for this trip, but that really was about it.  All other articles of clothing were things I already owned.

 

Once I started tracking the actual weather, though, I had to adjust my packing – central Italy had cooled off, and was rather rainy at times.  (There was even flooding in the state just east of La Romita!)  The one pair of shorts and all sleeveless tops came out of my luggage, one additional pair of slacks and a few more short-sleeved tops went in.  Strappy sundress out, one more sweater in.  Add in a very waterproof hooded rain jacket, take out the fabric sneakers and pack the leather sneakers so my feet would stay dry.

 

So that left me with a reasonable wardrobe – a few more items than I’d normally pack, but oh well, silk packs very very small.

 

I also decided to use two packing envelopes, rather than my usual two packing cubes.  The packing envelopes are larger but slimmer, and are better at keeping clothes unwrinkled, so my dressy items would look better on arrival.  But even more importantly, the packing envelopes made it easier to fit my watercolor block in the rolling duffel, since the pad is 12” x 16” and maybe .5” thick (31 cm x 41 cm).  What can I say, I don’t like to work small, but I like to keep my art supplies compact.  And the art supplies were just as important as the clothing, so I had to keep that in mind with my packing.

 

My final packing list, divided by clothing type:

 

Tops:  white cotton embroidered and tiered top; white cotton top; white linen shirred back top; white embroidered Ecuadorian top; white cotton tank to layer under items; blue linen shirred back top; navy linen high-low top; asymmetric black rayon jersey top; cropped dark grey top; grey cotton tee; black cami to layer under items.

 

Bottoms:  black rayon jersey skirt; black lace-edged leggings; black cotton straight-leg slacks (can be rolled to be cuffed); black linen slim balloon-leg slacks; black rayon jersey drape front wide leg cropped slacks.

 

Dresses:  black silk knit A-line tank dress; black and pink floral patchwork print mini to wear over skirt or leggings.

 

Warm Items:  navy cotton cropped cardigan; black cotton cropped pullover; berry linen pullover.

 

Jackets:  navy linen jean-style jacket; black waterproof hooded rain jacket.  Then I bought a green/grey cropped rain jacket in Venice because it was just so cute.

 

Dressy Items:  pale aqua Moroccan rayon jacket; white sheer silk top; black sheer silk top (with laser cutouts, so it looks vaguely lacy); silk patchwork jacket.

 

Shoes:  pink Birkenstocks for everyday wear;  black and grey platform Birkenstocks for dress up wear; white leather sneakers for cold or wet days.

 

Accessories:  white packable (squishable) sun hat; three scarves/shawls – one white with blue design, one silk patchwork, one black with colorful flowers.  I also have my usual pouch with several necklaces and pairs of earrings.  I added a tiered necklace of staggered pearls on silk cord, so one item that has more visual punch than my usual simple pendants.

 

That’s it for clothing.  See how easily everything goes with everything else?  It makes it so easy to get dressed each morning.  All tops work with all bottoms, and can layer under any of the sweaters/pullovers or the jackets for cooler weather.  And equally easy to dress up for a “gala” night on the cruise by going with either the dress or a black top/black bottom, and add one of the dressy layers.  By now, with only four days left on this two month trip, I have worn every item more than once.  [Written on 16 November 2022.]  I have enough color and visual interest to keep me happy and not bored.  By packing clothes I really like, it means I keep liking everything, even if I’ve worn something twelve times already.

 

In addition, I have my art supplies (brushes, two watercolor sets, and sketchbooks), which all fit in a zippered bag that is smaller than the small packing cube.  Given that I’d be travelling for two months during this pandemic, I also packed several cloth masks that have N95 masks inside.  Plus toiletries and medications for three months – just in case there were delays, or quarantines along the way, or any random eventualities that kept us on the road for more than two months.

 

This trip included one week in New Jersey, three weeks at La Romita in Umbria, Italy, eight days in Venice, and then the 28 day cruise.  Plus a day in south Florida at the end, and our flight back up to NJ.  I’ll probably continue to live out of this bag for another week in NJ, including Thanksgiving, and then a week to drive down to Florida for our winter abode.  And this basic wardrobe, minus the dressy items, will make up the basis for my Florida clothing as well.  For me, this capsule could last all winter, though I do have a few more sweaters and some long-sleeved tops I’ll add instead of the dressy things.

 

I probably could have packed fewer tops, but since they tend to need more frequent washing than other items, I like to have some extras.  Especially since I like a crisp white top with black slacks or a skirt – it always looks put together, even with the occasional spot of paint on the top.  (My laundry kit includes a bleach stick, a stain stick, and sheets of compressed laundry detergent.  Takes up very little space, but I’ve had to wash numerous paint spots out of those white tops!)

 

My luggage consisted of a 21” rolling duffel, which could have been carryon but I went ahead and checked it, and a backpack.  I ended up using my larger pack than the usual daypack, because I’m still getting used to packing a CPAP machine (for sleep apnea).  The machine fit into my daypack with my usual meds and such, but I couldn’t get the hoses and mask and extra electric things to fit – so, slightly larger pack.  I’ll adjust, and hope to get back to a smaller pack again by reducing some other item in my luggage.  (There isn’t a small travel machine for the kind I need, so I’m stuck packing the larger machine, unfortunately.  However, it counts as medical equipment, so it could go in its own separate bag if I wanted to upsize things.)

 

So, that’s my answer to “what do you pack???”