Kim-Ling and Guy are two Australians based in Canberra, both in their 30’s and travelling as much as possible around their full-time jobs. That’s right, you don’t have to travel constantly to have fun!
Their story started in 2014 with a crazy idea to temporarily leave their full-time jobs to live in the south of Spain for nine months, just for a little something different. With some careful planning and just enough Spanish to be dangerously misunderstood, they moved to the little town of Pozoblanco, in the countryside outside of Cordoba in Andalucía. They used this mini-retirement from ‘real life’ to explore Cordoba, Granada and throughout most of Spain, while also ticking Istanbul, Bruges, Croatia, France, Greece and London amongst others off of our bucket lists. They started a blog, and Travel-Ling began so that we could share their adventures and show that you can still travel while holding down a responsible job.
What’s usually in your carry-on?
I can surprisingly fit quite a lot in my carry-on! At present, I’ve got five outfits, a scarf, sleepwear, underwear, swimmers, laptop, camera, tripod, spare shoes, chargers and toiletries. My Cabin Zero bag is pretty full, but it pretty much has everything I need for at least a week of travels. If only I could fit my mermaid fin, then I’d be set!
Tell us about the usual type of clothes you bring when traveling?
Depends on the travels! If it’s an active holiday, then I’ll pack comfy light-weight clothing and swimmers, but I also like to pack a few dresses for nice photo opportunities. I normally like to have an idea of what I will wear each day, so I can get up and go without having to decide on what to wear. I wouldn’t say I’m meticulous, but I’ll have a general idea of what I’ll wear for each day’s planned activities.
What’s the best packing tip anyone has given you? Who gave it?
When I was a travel agent, a colleague mentioned he rolled his clothes. That is now one of my best pieces of advice I give to others, as it does save a lot of space and keeps the clothes tidier. We go a step further and try to roll clothes in groups (e.g. roll all the shirts together, pants in another roll, dresses, etc). I also save space by stuffing socks and other small items into the shoes; that way it saves more space and keeps the shape of the shoes better.
Photo Credit: @travel_ling on Instagram
What is the best thing about packing light/heavy?
I love lightweight packing, especially when you are on the go. There’s nothing worse than having to lug around a heavy, awkward suitcase onto trains and up/down stairs. I also prefer to fly with just carry-on (if possible), as then I don’t need to anxiously wait at the baggage carousel, hoping my luggage hasn’t been lost!
How does your pacing for a travel routine look like?
I normally prefer to pack a few days before. It sounds a little over the top, but I often do a ‘pre-pack’, where I’ll lay out all the clothes and items I think I’ll need, and then try to ‘cull’ and remove a few items from that. Then I’ll pack, and maybe re-pack a day later, to ensure I haven’t forgotten anything, or packed something that I don’t need. I often take way too much when I travel, so I’m trying to improve that! I find packing lists really helpful, as you know what items are a necessity (eg. phone chargers, camera, etc) and what things don’t have to be packed if room doesn’t allow it. Worst case scenario, you can hopefully purchase anything you’ve forgotten when you arrive at your destination (although this isn’t always the case!).
How do you deal with “excess baggage” situations?
Thankfully, we’ve never been in that situation, as I always pack a luggage scale! The best way to tackle it is to try to redistribute the weight before getting to the airport. If you are travelling with others, see if they’ve got extra space/weight you can offload some items. If that doesn’t help, then it’s best to weigh up (excuse the pun!) what the excess is, and whether it’s worth keeping or paying extra to send it back. If I’m going to a destination where I’ll want to buy nice clothes (e.g. Spain), I’ll take old clothes with me and throw them out once I’ve worn them. When we were living in Spain and moved back to Australia, we had accumulated some items that wouldn’t fit in our luggage, so we posted them back home as it worked out cheaper (and easier) than taking it with us on the plane.
What’s your best-kept packing secret?
Apart from rolling clothes, I always pack an electronic luggage scale. They are small and light, so it doesn’t take up much space/weight in the suitcase, but they really make packing easier, as you won’t have any nasty surprises when you get to the airport. It helps us to track how much weight we can distribute between suitcases and carry-on and whether we need to tighten up on our overseas purchases!
Photo Credit: @travel_ling on Instagram
Quick Qs:
- Favourite region? Europe
- Favourite country? Spain
- Favourite city? Barcelona
- Favourite beach? Pasir Timbul, Indonesia
- Favourite food? Chocolate
- Favourite mode of transport? Bicycle
- Favourite book? A Song of Ice and Fire series
- Window or aisle seat? Window
- Carry-on or check-in? Carry-on
- Hostel or hotel? Hotel
- What’s your favourite design from the Cabin Zero collection? Purple Classic
You can follow more of Kim-Ling and Guy's adventure on their travel blog, Travel-ling.
0 comments