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Am I counting down the days until we go and I get a break from this country?
Absofuckinlutely.
I have thought about it every single day. I am usually a huuuuge procrastinator when it comes to packing. Like legit, I will pack for a short trip the night before, and maybe 3 days before for a big one. LOL.
Well, the excitement I have for this one, has me buying a bunch of shit I need 2 months in advance. So I thought I’d show you what I’ve bought, and why, along with some faves for packing, traveling, and such that I always use during travel. If you don’t want to read all of this, view the list here.
Spain Here We Come!
We’re going to Madrid for a few days, and the rest of the time will be spent in Valencia. In Madrid, the highs average 63°F to 67°F in April. While Valencia they average 67°F to 70°F. Doesn’t that just sound fucking glorious? From what I’m reading, it’s pretty similar to where I grew up in SoCal.
Another thing to note is if you need to wash anything and/or get wet, it’s best to have items that dry easily as most of Spain doesn’t have clothes dryers.
Clothing:
I went for easy-to-wear, lightweight clothing that I could layer. Spaniards are not the biggest fan of America’s athleisurewear vibe. People tend to dress more put together, although I’ve read it’s more relaxed near the beach. But, I don’t want to be the dumb American walking around in my leggings and sweatshirt vibe that I rock here, haha.
Also, you’ll notice a theme of black and olive green.
- I fucking love black clothing will my entire being.
- I think my color is olive green. It goes with all the recent hair colors; pink, blonde, and current brown. It makes my eyes pop. So I’ve decided, along with the multitude of compliments I get when I wear it, that it’s my color.
Tops: I scored some tank tops and a few cute shirts at Old Navy on the clearance rack, all under $4. I got a gray ribbed tank, a black ribbed, a flowy black tank, a pink sure, and a white scrunch top body suit. I also have and/or purchased a body suit in black and olive green. That t-shirt is my absolute favorite and I own it in 5 colors, haha.
Lightweight pants: easy to wash, don’t take up a lot of space, breathable. They’re wide-leg, flowy, and comfy. These particular pants do ride up a little on thick thighs, but I still love them (I bought 2 colors). I also scored a pair of jeans I am OBSESSED with from Old Navy. They are a little big in the waist, as most of mine are because of my ass, so I found these no sew waist cinchers and they work amazingly well!
Rompers: easy to throw on, look a bit more put together, easy to add accessories, lightweight. I bought the one on the far left in olive and black. The printed one, I am still on the fence about. I don’t usually do prints, but from afar, it just looks green. So we’ll see how comfy I feel in it. I am trying to step a little out of my comfort zone sometimes.
Dresses: I love a dress! Easy to throw on, dress up or down, super comfy. I bought this one above, and have a different one that I will bring. I liked this one because I feel like it has a Spanish sorta vibe.
Shoes: I bought some AllBirds because I wanted super lightweight shoes, and I think these are so cute. I also bought some Teva sandals, and they’re so cute. However, as of right now, I filed an exchange because I need a bigger size, and the ones they sent are the entirely wrong shoe. I chatted with their customer service and they offered expedited shipping on a new order, and then process the return. So I am excited to get those!
I’m also bringing my Converse chucks, because DUH. If you have wide feet, and or didn’t know this, not only do they make a platform version, but they make wide versions. I will ONLY ever buy these wide platforms for the rest of my life.
For Jaxson: pretty much his normal clothes, but I made sure he had a windbreaker and a puffy jacket, that he can layer over a sweatshirt if it gets cold at night. He’ll have a range of shorts, pants, short sleeves, and long sleeves. As well as sweatshirts for when it cools down at night. For shoes we’ll just bring a couple pairs of shoes.
Electronics:
Our items will not work in Europe because they use a very different plug than we do in the US. So I bought a few different items, a converter, and adapters. I wanted to have options in case we’re out and about, or in the Airbnb, etc.
Hair accessories: Ours won’t work there unless they have a voltage setting, using one from here without one, may burn your hair off. I might get this hair dryer that is just like mine but has the conversion option because, to be honest, I have no clue how to dry my hair anymore without one, haha.
Carry On Items:
All of these items will (or should) make my life easier when traveling over 13 hours overnight with a 3-year-old. They’re all linked in the list if you want to just check them out. I consolidated it all to one place for you.
A backpack to fit all the goodies with plenty of pockets, laptop pocket (I THINK I’ll bring it just in case, but I’m also unsure I want to lug it there), security pocket, roomy, etc. I love that it has a spot for the charger as well.
Airplane bed for him, of course. It blows up and will fit on the feat and then down to the floor in front so it gives him a flat place to sleep with more room. For the long haul flights we’re in Delta Comfort+ so we have more leg room, so this should make him even more comfy (at the time of posting, it has a 20% off coupon).
Storage cases to keep the backpack organized and keep things we need in one place. I plan to use one for cords, chargers and things, and the other for toiletry items like sanitizer, wipes, some skincare, etc.
Portable chargers and cords we’ll need for the plane. Portable ones as well in case the sockets on the airplane have any issues.
Headphones for the little dude! I got two kinds, Bluetooth version, to attach to his iPad, and a corded version to use the plane TV. He’s never worn any of these so we’ll see how it goes!
Pillow/blanket: I thought about buying one of those that folds into itself, but Delta gives pillows and blankets on international flights. I might bring one of his blankets from home, for comfort. He’s only been on a 45-minute flight, so this is a big jump!
Airplane pocket/tray cover: You know like I do, that the one pocket they give you is tight, it’s a free for all in there, and not the most helpful. So I found this organizer and cover that will allow me to keep the shit in front of me organized, easily accessible for dude, and covers the gross tray.
Oh I also got a skinny water bottle, instead of the usual round ones. To fit well in the bag, and always have water on hand while flying.
Packing:
Packing cubes, which I’ve had before but I don’t feel like they really helped. So I purchased compression cubes to make sure we get it all in there.
Toiletries bag: I think these are just the easiest to have especially since they come with the bottles, and containers you need. I use it for my shampoo, conditioner, body wash, his hair/body wash, micellar water, and hair gel for him.
Stroller:
I am so damn excited about this. I have a travel stroller that folds into the stick like shape, so it has to be gate checked. Because of the longer flight, short layovers, I wanted to get one that fits in the overhead bin. That way, in case of any delays, I can put him in there and haul ass to the next gate. I found the Colugo Compact stroller and I LOVE it.
Safety/Well-being:
Sanitizers, because people are gross, diseases floating around, and well, kids fucking touch EVERYTHING. So giving these spray ones a try, plus wipes to clean all the plane surfaces.
Door lock: Spain is very safe. Spain ranks 21 in safety, where the US is down at 47, and the crimes are different. Crimes in the US tend to be more violent (in 2021, America’s intentional homicide rate was 7 times that of Spain), where as Spain there is a lot of personal theft, pickpocketing, etc. However, being a single woman traveling with my child, I feel you can never be too careful in a new place, and someone else’s space.
Air tags and holder for his shoes. Parenting in Spain is way different, less hands on, families at playgrounds at 10pm kind of vibe, and I fucking love that. But coming from such an unsafe place, I am a little bit of a helicopter parent. And again, I feel like you can never be too careful. So I got an air tag and holder for his shoes.
Because pick pocketing is a big thing, and I will likely have a bag with some wipes, and necessities chillin in the bottom of the stroller. While I know it doesn’t have valuables, someone else doesn’t. So I bought carabiners to attach it to the stroller.
Miscellaneous:
A selfie stick! I’ve never really owned one, but I refuse to have tiny, up close selfies of us on this amazing trip. So I bought this selfie stick/tripod combo so I can set it up for pics, or use it as a selfie stick to capture the amazingness behind us.
Air tags and passport books to keep them safe as well. I will have copies on me, and the originals in the Airbnb though. Still, can’t be too careful.
Shopping bags: I know this seems super random, but Spain has great mercados and I do want to have some snacks, and fruit and things in the Airbnb, and reusable bags are a must. So I got these since they fold up super small and can fit in my bag, or his stroller.
Noise machine: I am not super familiar with where the Airbnb’s are, and while I don’t see any clubs or anything downstairs, there is a chance especially if we’re close to the ground floor, there will be outside noise. So just in case, I bought a noise machine to drown some of it out. It was inexpensive, and it’s priceless if it helps bub sleep.
Money:
I will also have my Capital One Quicksilver card because they have NO foreign transaction fees. HOLA! Fees are stupid. Fees to use your own money are stupid, sooo we’ll circumvent that however possible.
I cannot begin to tell you how fucking excited I am for this trip. To leave this country, to experience a country with an actual culture. I took Spanish in high school but regrettably did not pay enough attention, stupid kid. So I’ve been using Duolingo for 76 days straight, and I’ve also been taking the James Spanish school course (code: KATIESELLER gets you 25% off). I like that he makes it easy to understand, uses relatable examples, and teaches it well.
Aprendo español porque quiero visitar España…Pero en realidad quiero vivir allí.
I am not the dumb American who expects the world to cater to them. I want to immerse myself with the people of Spain, experience all that it has to offer, explore it’s beauty, and leave the US behind, for whatever amount of time I can for now.