This month, as I’ve been planning to travel to Scotland, I’ve been obsessed with packing and figuring out what I really need to bring with me. Travel guru, Rick Steves advises to pack a suitcase and then take half of it back out. I’ve been trying to follow his advice because I’ve challenged myself to pack only a small carryon and a small bag for my electronics. For four weeks of travel. Nothing unnecessary can make it into either bag. In some sense, this is easy. I can load my Kindle with books and movies and bring my laptop and my handheld consoles. (Although Amazon’s restriction on watching movies overseas has led me to obsess for hours about picking the best movies for my trip.) But, when I practiced packing my electronics bag, I realized Rick Steves was right, half of it had to go.
The consoles themselves are small, but the accompanying cords began to pose a problem. So one console had to go. Picking which handheld console out of the PS Vita or the 3ds was a no brainer for me. I obviously love the Vita more, and I recently discovered that I can sideload Silent Hill Origins and Silent Hill Shattered Memories, and I’m pretty excited about playing both of those games. So, I’ll see the 3ds on the other side.
But, I have questioned my obsession with making sure I have enough movies, books, and video games to keep me occupied in Scotland, because I am going to Scotland. I’m not likely to be bored there. So why do I feel like I have to plan for some future entertainment emergency? I know my traveling self, and I know that when traveling I typically don’t care about the same things I care about when I’m home. That is, I usually get caught up in the travel and experience and forget about things like movies and video games. I’ve been in Texas for a week now, but haven’t played any video games. I’ve been more involved in visiting with my family and (re)exploring the area I grew up in that now seems somewhat unfamiliar again.
Of course, I also have to leave behind my beloved Legos. Those don’t travel well. I recently asked what I was going to do for a month without Legos. My sister replied, “Um…enjoy Scotland?” She’s right. That is what I’ll do. I’ll enjoy Scotland, and I probably won’t even care about movies, video games, or even Legos during that month. I will still bring the Vita, though, because if I do miss Legos too much, at least I’ll have Lego video games to keep me busy. I’m also bringing the Vita because I am facing two monster plane trips with lots of connecting time in airports. But, I’ll admit I’m curious if I will even feel comfortable enough to play in an airport. I know this is not much of a problem for many of my friends, but I get self conscious playing in public, mostly because I know there are people who think someone like me isn’t supposed to be playing. (And, I wouldn’t care what people thought if they would just sit there and quietly think it instead of needing to tell me about it.
I imagine my next few posts will continue to explore my gaming habits while traveling. In addition to the Vita, I also have a couple of games loaded on my Kindle: Monument Valley and Walking Dead Season 2 (because, by God, I’m going to finish this game one way or another). I wonder if I will be less self-conscious playing games in public on the Kindle. Either way, I’ve never done any traveling of this magnitude, and I’m curious and excited to see how it goes.
