Bonjour,
We all know that time when you go on vacation and realize that you way over packed. If you know that feeling you also probably know the feeling of wishing you had brought something but didn’t. Now, this is the just vacation! When going on exchange every single bit of extra space and every single pound count. The struggle is real. Hopefully, these five things I wish I wouldn’t have brought and five things I wish I did bring can help you to eliminate un needed things in you well-packed suitcase. These things could apply to any country but the majority of them only apply to France since that is where I spent my exchange.
Things I wish I did NOT bring:
Lots of shorts and summer clothes.
it got very cold very fast in France, even in the south. Also, there was no need for my shorts, because all the students wear jeans to school so there was not even a time to wear them.
Super casual clothes
In the US you may see people walking around school in their sweatpants and sweatshirt but in France, you wouldn’t be caught dead outside in sweatpants. Every day, everyone’s outfits were put together and very nice. I had brought a lot of just plain t-shirts and some sweatshirts but never really wore them other than pajamas.
Things I wish I DID bring:
Scarfs
In France during the winter all the girls wear scarfs and it just is essential to keep warm on a cold day. I ended up buying 2 or 3 scarfs even though I had 12 in my closet in the USA.
Jeans
I had brought with me only two pairs of jeans and when I arrived I had found out the all they wear to school is jeans. Two pairs of jeans were not enough to last me a whole week and I ended up spending a ton of money on jeans.
A water bottle
Not only is it good for at the airport but also in the school if you have gym class or if you end up doing any type of sport outside school. I played tennis and did Zumba with my host sister so I would have been nice to have with me.
A photo album or something
This one seems like a waste of space but it really would have been nice to have. Make up a small photo album of things in your city and with your friends and family or doing things you love. Then when your host family asks about your life back home you can easily show them some pictures and they can see a part of your life back home. Then at the end of your exchange, you can just leave it there or give it to your host family.
I know this is short but I hope that it helps at least a little!
à bientôt
xoxo Gina
You can also check out my Tips for Packing if you would like more advice!