It’s a beautiful, sunny day here in Wezep. It’s also my last day in the Netherlands. That’s a pity because it would have been great to go for a bike ride. But needs must. My passport expires in a couple of weeks so I need to head back to UK and begin the process of renewing it. I could have stayed here a little longer I suppose, but I don’t like leaving things to the last minute. According to Murphy’s Law, anything that can go wrong will go wrong. I have a more positive outlook on life, but sometimes give Murphy the benefit of the doubt because unexpected things (good and bad) are a big part of this thing we call “life”.
As I sit here writing, my backpack is sitting on the floor behind me and my smaller Port Designs laptop backpack is waiting for my laptop. When I pop it inside it will be good to go as well.
In a recent post I mentioned I’d been considering getting rid of my tent as a means of lightening my load. In the end I decided to ditch my leather jacket, a few extra shirts, and a pair of jogging pants. My leather jacket was beginning to look a bit tatty anyway, the shirts were getting a little old, and I only need one pair of jogging pants so I have no idea why I kept an extra pair for so long.
The combined weight of the items I got rid of was exactly the same as the weight of my tent (2.5kg). The other problem with my tent is its length. When I strap it to the bottom of my backpack it makes it awkward to carry it through the turnstiles that are installed at some train stations. I solved that problem by purchasing a few bungee ropes (€1) and strapping my tent to the front of my backpack. The total weight now is just less than 23kg, and I am confident I can make it even lighter before I go traveling again.
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