Packing for Peru
Peru in December was the hardest trip I have ever packed for. I spent hours coming up on my trip standing in front of my bed with a duffel bag and everything I could possibly need for 10 days laid out in front of me. There was a lot going on in my brain. I knew that I would be south of the equator, something I had never done before, so even though it was winter it would be summer when I landed. It is hard to remember summer in the dead of winter, especially a summer that is also the rainy season. What does 60 degrees even feel like? I know it is cold but it’s warmer than it is outside right now.
The other issue I kept coming across was the fact that I wanted to pack light. I would be carrying everything I brought with me myself and I wanted to have room to bring any presents and treats back with me. Everything had to fit into the small, compact bag I had chosen, that then fit so very nicely into my spare duffel bag (I consider myself very smart when it comes to luggage expanding over the course of a trip and I highly recommend packing two duffel bags, one with all of your stuff in it and one with that bag in it.). It all had to fit. I would have to make very careful decisions packing my layers so that I could adjust to the three different climates I would find myself in. I spent hours, HOURS, making lists, and planning, and even doing math and I still failed. I failed to pack things that I quickly learned I desperately needed.
The one thing I did not pack that I wish I had? Sandals! Or, really any pair of shoes that was not my giant hiking boots. Don’t get me wrong, my hiking boots are very comfortable… for giant heavy hiking boots but any shoe that you wear for 10 days is going to start to hurt your feet and you are going to get tired of wearing them. I could have really used some sandals in Lima and on New Years Eve in Cusco, though my boots came in handy that night considering that there are apparently no laws in Cusco on New Years Eve and there was broken glass everywhere. There just comes a point when you would like to wear a different pair of shoes and you should bring them. The reason I did not bring any shoes other than my hiking boots was because I wasn’t sure how safe even the city would be for my feet but also because shoes take up a lot of space and I did not see the point in bringing an extra pair.
BRING AN EXTRA PAIR!
I also regret not bringing shorts or flowy airy pants of some kind, something other than jeans. When you are traveling in an area with about a 30-degree swing in temperature (high 80s in Lima to lows in the 50s in Machu Picchu) you need to just accept that you need at least one outfit for every kind of season. You need to have the option of changing into something that is not heavy. I brought lots of light and flowy tops but only jeans and heavy socks for my lower half and, in general, my feet were very unhappy about it.
That’s actually it. I thought I had more but that are the only things I can remember actively thinking “I wish I had (blank)” about. I had good rain gear for the moments the sky opened up, as it does in the rain forest during the rainy season, and an almost constant stream of Gatorade so I almost didn’t have to worry about whether or not I had my water bottle, I even had significantly more pain medication than I could possibly use just in case I was shot with a firework or something… you never know, there are no laws in Cusco on New Years Eve.
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