Ireland 2016: T-minus 2 weeks

Today I need to film my T-minus 2 weeks episode, but I admit I have not done it yet.  There are a few things that I have to have set up ahead of time that involve work and quite frankly, I'm lazy.  But I will do my very best to get to it today.

The idea for today is to do a dry run of all of the packing that needs to be done and that's my biggest struggle right now, figuring out which bag to take.  I want to use the black backpack that I took on my last big adventure, but I'm not sure it will hold up as one of the straps is pulling out of its seam.  So, I may run to TJ Maxx or something today and look for a new bag for that.  I'm not a fan of the typical "backpacking" bags, you know the ones, the massive hiking bags.  I prefer something a little more... traditional... rustic.  So, we'll see what I can find and with any luck, you can see it in my latest episode on YouTube.

Regardless of baggage woes, here are the things that you should take care of when you are 2 weeks out from your vacation:

1. Packing Dry Run

Give yourself a test run for cramming everything into the bags that you are taking.  Make sure you have enough room and that you're not taking unnecessary things.

2. Finalize Your Packing List

Use the packing dry run to finalize your packing list, you can find plenty of sample packing lists and tailor them to your own needs.  Make sure you write down the critical stuff like medications.

3. Notify the Bank

Be sure to call your bank and tell them that you will be leaving the country and when so they don't freeze your card overseas.  I would also use this opportunity to see if your card has any foreign transaction fees so that you know whether or not you can use your card casually.

4. Obtain Your Currency

You should have ordered your currency at the three-week mark, so now, you should have picked it up already.  If it hasn't come in, call them and ask why.  It shouldn't take that a week to come in.

Thanks, y'all!

Check out the video that goes along with this blog post.