A hostel roommate in Barcelona told me my packing cubes were too big so I finally downsized to two small ones

She watched me struggle to zip my bag shut and just said 'you're bringing too many options, pick one shirt type and roll with it' so I cut down from 4 pairs of pants to 2 and now I actually have room to bring back souvenirs, has anyone else gotten packing advice from a random stranger that actually worked?

2 comments

2 Comments

rileynguyen10d ago

pick one shirt type and roll with it" honestly that's the kinda brutal honesty we all need but dont wanna hear lol. i had a similar thing happen in a hostel in prague where this german guy told me my toiletry bag was "a crime against efficiency" and showed me his one little pouch for everything. now i use a ziploc bag for my toiletries and honestly its been life changing, way less bulk and i can see everything at once. i still cant get down to 2 pants though, i need my backup pair for when i spill something on the first pair which happens like every trip.

lunawilson10d ago

My friend Sarah had the same thing happen at a hostel in Barcelona @rileynguyen but with a guy from Switzerland who basically redesigned her entire backpack while she was in the shower. Came back to find all her stuff laid out on the floor with a little pile of "unnecessary items" he had separated out, including her extra pair of jeans and a travel pillow. She was mad for about 5 minutes until she realized he was actually kind of right and now she packs the same way. The ziploc bag thing is genius though, I switched to one last year after losing a bottle of contact solution in a regular bag and having to sniff everything to find it. Still bring three pairs of pants though because I am clumsy and proud.