How I started traveling with only a 20 liter backpack

Japan 20 liter backpack

 One of the best parts of traveling is to walk around the streets of the city I am visiting. For me, this is the best way to see local architecture, gardens, statues and get to know people's habits.

To do this, not only I walk a lot, but also sometimes I need to get in and out of public transportation, and drag a heavy suitcase and/or backpack with me does not make my walking comfortable.

Additionally, most airlines charge fees for non-carry-on bags (bags you can take with you to the aircraft cabin), not to mention the risk of losing our bags.

I've watched, first had, a friend of mine waiting in vain for his bag to come out of the aircraft into to conveyor belts. He ended up waiting 4 days to have his clothes with him again!

After watching these events live, I decided to start carrying my bags with me all the time.

Initially, I traveled with a cabin-approved carry-on bag with all the clothes I would need for the trip I was taking (the one in the picture below).


How to pack carry-on bag

 But after a few trips, I started thinking that I was lugging around unused and dirty clothes. I would use these clothes once and then continue carrying them around. Even though I was putting my dirty clothes properly separated from everything else, this though was not making me happy. 

This is not a very relevant problem if we're staying 15 days in the same hotel, but if we're moving around to 4 more cities, then it starts becoming an issue. 

My luggage-losing friend become again an inspiration. For 4 days, my friend only had the clothes on his body, and he was still able to go to an office and do his job. The solution? wash his clothes and dry them every night.

I started thinking again: I was avoid washing clothes in my trips, but was it really as much discomfort as I thought?

I decided to a more minimalist approach to my next trip. Carry changes of clothes for only 5 days regardless of the duration of my trip. If the trip was for 5 days, I had no need to do any laundry, but if the trip was longer, I would wash my clothes and dry them and re-use them for 5 more days.

These 5 days worth of clothing would fit perfectly in a 20 liter backpack, which I had bought for €20 at Decathlon.

cheap 20 liter backpack

I tested this new strategy in a trip to Rome and worked perfectly. I haven't looked back since. Since then, it was been a minimalist packing strategy.

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