Final Preparations

With just a few days to go before we leave, and with our daughter Becky and her friend Kyle coming in tomorrow, we won’t have much time for final prep in the last couple of days before departure.  So we spent most of yesterday going through our final checklists and getting things packed.  Also, it looks like our walk on Tuesday was probably our last long training hike – although I hope we’ll still get in a couple shorter ones over this weekend. 

We emptied our packs – we’ve been carrying them with either the actual stuff we’ll be carrying plus some extra clothes to approximate our final weight and volume – and laid everything out on the bedroom floor as a double check.  We discovered a few things that we hadn’t packed or kept close to the backpacks for final final packing, and removed a few items that we decided we don’t need.  I’m sure we’ll do at least one more unpack/repack before leaving.

In addition to the gear and clothing packing, in the past few days I’ve...
•    stopped or placed on hold our newspaper, mail delivery, and Netflix account;
•    copied vital documents that we’ll be carrying;
•    organized our various medications for traveling;
•    notified the bank and credit card companies of our travel plans;
•    exchanged a few US dollars for Euros to have on hand when we arrive in Spain;
•    verified our automatic bill-paying status;
•    drained the hot tub;
•    notified family and friends to request holding of unnecessary emails;
•    set up telephone SIM card for Spain and pay-as-you-go service on my cell phone;
•    informed our family, nearby neighbors, and a few close friends of our contact information while in Spain;
•    and all the other things that must be done before leaving on a long trip like this. 
•    Plus, Jeanette has set up schedule with some of our neighbors to keep the indoor plants watered and generally keep an eye on things around the house while we’re gone.

Despite all this, I know we’ll miss something – either something we’ve failed to pack or something to do with the house while we’re gone.  C'est la vie, or since we’re going to Spain, I guess I should say que sera sera – we can’t think of everything.