Why living out of a suitcase is good for the soul

Wanderlust Chronicles
 How does it really feel to live out of a suitcase?

One day, as we were sitting on a train from the Czech Republic to Poland, our hypothesis about living out of a suitcase being good for the soul was confirmed by a short but validating TED talk that we chanced upon. According to writer and designer Graham Hill, less stuff equates to more happiness. Hill’s theory was based on creating smaller, minimalistic living spaces and therefore by minimising one’s space they would minimise the amount of stuff they collect, making them happier. And we feel that this theory can also be applied to the practice of living out of a suitcase. As this dawned on us we begun to think, what was our first experience of living out of a suitcase really like?
Living out of a suitcase
The night before we embarked on our one-way ticket adventure, Leesa and I stared at the three suitcases that lay before us with an overwhelming feeling of anxiety. Did we forget something? What if we do need those matching panda shirts that we hadn’t worn since we were children? We can’t live without all of our shoes. We should have packed a suitcase just for shoes. Will 10 pairs of underwear be enough? The questions were endless. But knowing that the strain of travelling around with three suitcases was a lot worse than not having enough shoes, we embarked on our journey with uncertainty.

The first month was the hardest. As we envied the style of the women gracing the streets of Paris, we wondered if we’d made the right decision to forgo our extensive wardrobes at home in favour of travelling light (well as light as we could). Eventually, the days went by and we begun to appreciate waking up to plan our day’s adventures without having to bother about the worry of the day’s outfits. Now, three months later, we have begun to complain that we have too much clothes and we have even posted some of our clothes home. We now complain when we have to go shopping and have begun to appreciate wearing our outfits on rotation. So, ladies and gentlemen, living out of a suitcase with less clothing, less belongings, and less responsibilities definitely means more freedom, more money for experiences, and more time to focus on enjoying life. We have honestly never felt so free in our lives and truly believe that when it comes to long-term travelling, less is definitely more.

Have you or would you ever live out of a suitcase?

Share your experiences below in the comment section.

 

 

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10 Comments

  1. February 7, 2016 / 5:59 AM

    Less stuff definitely means more happiness. Right now I’m trying to get rid of everything that I don’t absolutely need.

    • February 9, 2016 / 12:52 AM

      Glad to hear that you agree. Good luck with the clean out xx

  2. Saccharine Soul
    February 10, 2016 / 7:18 AM

    I never lived out of a suitcase for more than 2 months. Quite liberating as you don’t think too much when it comes to outfits 🙂

    • February 11, 2016 / 12:24 AM

      Yes definitely. Now that we are nearing the 5th month mark, we have never felt so free! xx

  3. February 10, 2016 / 7:36 AM

    It was just recently that I realized how travelling light and knowing the ‘art’ of bringing only the important stuff and actually knowing what are the important stuff can make difference in our lives. I am a sentimental person, I’d like to keep everything that was given to me specially by my readers and special people in my life. My brother, who is kind of irritated with seeing a lot of things in our house made me realized it first, then I read articles and other blogs about letting go and knowing the essentials in travelling so I won’t have to worry in bringing tons of things that when I get home, I would realized that I did not even used half of them. This is a nice read! 🙂

    • February 11, 2016 / 12:26 AM

      Thanks so much for your insightful comment. We still haven’t mastered the art of travelling light. But when we were given no choice but to take only what we needed then we stepped up to the challenge and here we are 5 months later with less stuff and a lot more happiness. xx

  4. My Unsettling Life
    February 11, 2016 / 7:00 AM

    What I basically have been doing for the past 2 years is living out of a suitcase, my husband lives in England, I’m Brazilian and I keep going back and forth every 3 months, so yes, now my most important clothes and belongings just fit in 1 suitcase.

    • February 12, 2016 / 4:08 AM

      Wow that sounds like a fun life! You must agree that it is very liberating living out of a suitcase. xx

  5. 87PAGES
    February 14, 2016 / 12:33 PM

    Since moving abroad at age 22, its become second nature to live out a suitcase. It took me awhile to stop overpacking — I actually did have a suitcase for shoes lol. When I fly I try to only take a carry on, because it forces me to really think about what clothes I need.

    • February 26, 2016 / 8:08 AM

      Loved hearing your story and the fact that you actually did have a suitcase just for shoes :). We would love to make the transition to carry on only but I have feeling that is not going to happen any time soon. Safe travels xx