My entire life is spread out over my bedroom floor. There is some dog hair here, too.
To be entirely honest, my mother would say that the current appearance of my room does not differ dramatically from its usual state, and she may be right. The distinction is this: in a short matter of fifteen hours, I will board an Air Portugal flight, Geneva bound, with two checked bags and a small carry-on containing my American way of life. How can one possibly prepare for a year in a foreign country, with no real checklist or guidelines, without losing one's mind? I'll explain.
Firstly, I feel compelled to suggest beginning with some music. Packing, while exciting, can be a slightly anxiety-inducing and exhausting thing. Music helps. I recommend ABBA (I'm part Swedish, what can I say), Bring It On: The Musical (I have no excuse), or whatever makes you happy and inspired. I don't know you or your Spotify-curated playlists!
Clothing:
Secondly, I recommend a preliminary purge. You will need to go through all of your wardrobe to pack, and getting rid of things that you don't even wear now will make choosing the staples that you will wear all of the time much easier and more efficient. I did the same thing with the contents of each of the drawers in my dresser and the sections of my closet: I imagined how many possible outfits I can make with an item of clothing and how often I wear it at home. Of course, there are some sentimental or special garments that transcend all of these guidelines, and of course you should keep those.
After The Purge, I thought about the weather and climate of the region in which I will be living, and packed accordingly. For me, that meant a fair amount of clothing that could be worn layered for colder winter evenings and alone during the spring and early fall. I am most comfortable and confident in jeans and a loose shirt of some sort, and I kept that in mind as I packed. The last thing that I want is to feel like someone I am not while in an unfamiliar country. That said, I also purchased (on sale!) some dressier pants and black jeans, of which I had none pre-France.
After choosing what I initially thought I would bring, I invited some of my most trusted and fashion-conscious friends to my house to eat ice cream (and to help me pack). I admit that the ice cream may have been served mainly to sweeten the deal before springing the suitcases on my unassuming guests. They all advised that I roll my clothes and make sure to bring dresses in which I feel comfortable and like myself, but still looked put together. At their suggestion, I did include a couple more dresses and skirts. Again, this is personal. If skirts do not make you happy, you do not need to bring any (unless, of course, the culture where you will be living requires them). Having friends over as part of the packing experience did make it more enjoyable and less stressful, but I would recommend it only after you have done most of the basic packing yourself.
Personal Products:
Personally, packing toiletries, skin care, and makeup was a very simple process. Makeup was involved in The Purge, so I had very little left to pack. I packed my razor, my favorite shampoo and conditioner, and my toothbrush, but not much else. France definitely has lotions and potions if I decide that I require them. (For all of you girls out there, I do recommend packing a month's supply of sanitary products. Especially if you are very unfamiliar with the native language, it may be awkward or uncomfortable to ask your host mother or sister to take you to the pharmacy for pads or tampons. That is totally fine, but let's make sure that our shyness does not lead to any unfortunate incidents with Aunt Flo!)
Presents:
To say that buying presents for people I have never actually met has not caused me a little bit of strife would be untrue. The task is difficult, and I tackled it by purchasing gifts that are local to my region and state. Vermont has delicious maple syrup and small-batch chocolates and other goodies, and I made sure to pick up the tokens that explicitly said "Vermont" on them. If you live in California, they will probably enjoy something with a reference to a local beach, National Park, or to something even more personal (or edible!) Whatever is special to you and your region will be the most meaningful gift, I am sure.
These are the main categories that I considered while packing. For you, there may be additional things that come to mind! I have survived this process by starting early, but not too early (I would say that a week is best), and by remembering that I can always pick up the odds and ends —that I will undoubtedly forget at home— in France. Packing, while important, is not something about which you should stress too much. Sleep, spend time with friends and family, and get excited for the journey ahead! That is what I am doing.
Bises à tous,
Julia
P.S. Make sure to leave some room in your suitcase for souvenirs you will acquire during your time abroad. It would be awful to be ready to fly home and to realize that your suitcases are too full and heavy!