Ultimate Guide to Moving Abroad Part I: Stuff

Let’s talk about how much stuff you own.

total baggage for 2 people leaving Thailand 2017

Without a doubt, you own more stuff than you can take with you on an airplane.

I watch a lot of Hoarders: Buried Alive and people have an unhealthy attachments to things.

I’m also from the United States. People in the USA own a lot of sh*t. US home sizes are huge--twice as big as in the UK and almost 4x the size of the average Chinese home. Like pack rats, we fill up whatever space we have.

Before you can move abroad, you have got to get control of your stuff. Unless your company (lucky you) is paying to ship your belongings across the globe, you will need to physically carry everything you own. The only way is by owning less stuff. A lot less.

Get Rid of Your Stuff

Detach. Read a book on minimalism. Meditate on the emptiness of possessions. Do whatever you have to, but emotionally detach yourself from your stuff so you can get rid of it.

Stacy, packed for a 1 month in Peru 2015--including a 4-day hike + a wedding

Are you motivated by money? Sell!

It takes a good month using online marketplaces to make a decent amount of cash. This job falls to people who are responsive to messages and extremely patient. Buyers have some wackadoo requests (“Can you write me a receipt for this second-hand desktop computer?”) and you have to deal with them if you want their cash.

Whatever is left can be given too a friend that will find it worthwhile. My favorite vintage bar stools live at my local Indian restaurant in Oakland. My treasured bike from Bangkok went to a friendly coworker.

Go paperless. Scan photo albums, documents, and everything onto a cloud storage system. Turn it into thin air. Then throw it out. This feels AMAZING.

Once you have felt the sting of regret for getting rid of a little too much (OOPS I needed those flip-flops!)...that’s how you know you are finally ready to pack.

Should I store it?

It’s taken a few tries, but I’ve learned that it’s best not to leave anything behind. Your stuff loses value while you are away. Furniture warps, clothing degrades, and records break.

Also, your leftover stuff can cause you some sticky situations. True story: I left my ex-husband shortly after an international move. I had things stored in his parents’ basement. Long after we had ceased being friendly, I had to fly across the country and sift through it all with him. Talk about awkward.

Listen, anything you want can be purchased again. If you really love having a guitar, you’ll buy one in another country. Will it be as nice as the one you've had since you were sixteen? No. But you’ll use it and you wont leave a nice one rotting in somebody’s basement.

Stuff Worth Storing

If you are 100% sure that you will return soon-ish, it’s fair to store the following items:

• Treasured Collections that are impossible to replace: family Christmas ornaments, a lifetime record collection, heirloom jewelry, etc.
• Expensive Hobby Equipment: musical instruments, sports equipment, etc. 

Disclaimer: if you love your new home country, it could be years before you go home. In an emergency, your generous friend should be able to abandon it all without causing a rift in your relationship.

Take It With You

Each time I move, my bags get smaller. I have learned to be precise.

total baggage for 2 people on the road for 5 months. ok so 3 are mine 😅

So what do you actually bring? Though you may be tempted to leave important things in the 'safety' of your home country, do not leave these items behind:

• Personal Documentation: Birth certificate, legal paperwork (probate, divorce, taxes), high school/college transcripts, diplomas, medical information, dental records, insurance information, etc. You will need original documentation in your hand for various travel and job applications. You will usually have less than a week to produce them and sometimes your visa is riding on it, so FedEx is out of the question. Take it with you and be responsible for it.

• Extreme Weather Clothing: Assuming you have nice clothes that you like, keep 1 of each of your most expensive items. As a Latina woman with boobs and hips, clothing options are sparse here in Asia. So take a swimsuit to Antarctica and take a winter coat to Vietnam. Maybe Antarctica has fabulous indoor heated pools! Maybe you’ll visit the snow in Japan! You will be traveling more than usual. Having this 1 item will buy you time.

• All Occasion Clothing: Have one outfit nice enough for a wedding or a job interview. Have sandals that you can wear in a flood, at the beach, or as slippers. The same floor-length dress can be worn to a funeral or on a motorbike trip around ancient temples--you get the idea. I’m not talking about trekking poles--just the absolute basics. I hiked to Machu Picchu for 4 days through snow and mud in old tennis shoes. 

you don't need a yoga mat or lulu-lemons to practice in the Andes!

Leave It Behind

This one is hard. It goes against every instinct we have, but do not pack FOR your new country. I know you’ve spent weeks reading up on the local weather patterns, but you need you to trust me.

It’s a waste of energy to haul things that you won't end up using. Start off by admitting that you know nothing (!) about your new home, the standards of dress, or the accoutrement of your living space and you cannot possibly pack well for it.

Don't trust what the internet tells you. Most bloggers are tourists and have no handle on local customs. As an example of the blind leading the blind, see every single “How to Dress in Southeast Asia” blog and then read the local papers that shame Western tourists for how they dress.

cant get into Thailand if you are dressed like a hippie! SoThai

As for gear, the country you are moving to has quality products suited to that environment. Don’t carry a winter coat from California for the harsh Mongolian winter. Don't bring a raincoat to Thailand because it’s too hot to wear long sleeves in the rain.

Where You are Going is Civilized

This one is for anyone headed to developing countries for the first time. Assume the country you are going to has a large number of totally normal, completely modern human beings living there. Privileged Americans and Europeans think that Latin America, Asia, and Africa are remote jungle locations. They pack basics like bug spray, aspirin, pencils and paper, or water filters. I guess they imagine everyone lives in a hut, wears pajama pants, and drinks muddy water from a gas can.

Honestly, anywhere you are likely to touch down is a capital city of the world. It has all the modern conveniences of your home country. There is no need to bring that water filtration system.

Even foreign products are readily available in large cities. You are not Indiana Jones. If foreigners have gone before you, they have created a market for these things long ago.

Specialized items can be less popular in some cultures (where my moon cup ladies at?) so be adaptive and you'll survive.

don't pack alpaca snacks! they like home-grown Peruvian grass 

Every country has online expat forums. For example, I used these to find out about life in Thailand:

• Thaivisa - visa and immigration questions
• BKK Expats Facebook group - private group for expats in Bangkok (10,000+ members)

There is almost no need to ask questions to the group--just search the posting history. Each country and decent-sized city will have its own forums where you can mine information from thousands of people who have already asked.

Bottom Line

Remember to use your head as you travel. With the world at your doorstep, all of a sudden you are a global consumer. Buy your umbrella in London. Get your winter coat in Moscow. Buy your bikini in Rio. And never, ever buy your prescription drugs in the United States of America again!

Click here to read the next part in the Ultimate Guide to Moving Abroad series.