Travel Light - Pack Smart

I tend to stuff more in the luggage back while going to hometown, traveling for a casual trip or business trip to other country. At the end I end up in wasting too much of energy in carrying the luggage where most of the stuffs will not used in the trip. So I started to explore the ways to optimize the luggage space and the stuff needs to go in to the luggage back which avoids burden. Wherever I read for alternate options it’s said “Travel light”. By traveling light, we end in carrying stuff which really needed for the trip and saving the fuel of the vehicle too… “What if someone puts a heavy load on your back and ask you to carry , U waste huge amount of energy , need energy drinks to replenish the body strength (Water , energy drinks) ..Same applies for vehicle, putting too much weight in car decreases the fuel efficiency and end in filling too much of petrol which takes too much of money from your pocket. For instance, If everyone traveling onsite “Travel Light”, more fuel will be saved and decreases the demand of fuel and decreases global warming too…

My Experiment on traveling light started 6 months back during my travel to home in Coimbatore... First I lined up the things which I want to carry, after lining up I sorted the things by importance and the usage… After Sorting for 30 minutes, I end up in reducing the stuffs by 50 -60%...Isn’t that great While sorting the thumb rule I had is

1. For the sake of Travel light, don’t get 100% dependent upon someone else for the things to use by you.
2. Take the things which will not available in your travel destination.

By keeping these two rules, I sorted out the things… initially it was difficult to adopt the travel light ideas as the day goes by I got used to it. Even when going to office I don’t stuff too much of things in laptop bag and when moving out of office I take the laptop only when necessary this way I don’t put too much load on my shoulders.

And when i go to my in law place or my home town , I keep a pair of shirts , Pants for buffer in the cub board so that next time while I go my luggage bag will be free from clothes by 50%...

This time while traveling to onsite for a business trip, tried out the “Travel Light” idea and looks its working good as I am not shortage of things which is needed daily and not dependent upon someone else for the stuffs to use. So this I did during my package time in India.

I listed out the things in to categories like Official, Personnel, Emergency kits, Photography kits and food items. Here the Most occupying space happens for your personnel things and for food, I haven’t got anything from India as I need to try different styles of food here… For Emergency kits I took only umbrella not even tablets as I am sure i will get some tablets here if needed. Let’s come to Personnel stuffs. Most of the time we stuffs we load the luggage with two much of clothes in which we won’t be using all of them in the trip so I made a decision that I am going to load only 4 sets of formal and 2 sets of casual as in US, dirt in the shirt collar and pant won’t happen easily.. By keeping so many things in mind, I packed up the things... The Bag allowance I was allowed to carry is 23KG but I end up in carrying only 11 KG by minimizing the things... So guys let travel light and avoid the burden.

Air France executive in the check in area asked me for check in baggage, I said this is the one “Ohh great, just 11 kg” for a 45 day travel !!!!