Finally the time has come for my trip to Russia! I was never interested to visit but my boyfriend wanted to see Iceland play in the World Cup for the first time ever, and so our trip to Russia was planned! Not very well I might point out. We bought the tickets for the games months ago, applied for our Fan IDs about 2 months ago, and actually booked flights and hotels 3 weeks ago. I was worried that the flights would be sold out or extremely expensive (the flights were really expensive when we looked 4 months ago!) but we managed to find return flights for about 50,000 ISK each. That's about £350 sterling. We even have a decent stopover each way in one of my favourite cities, Budapest! There was just one catch, they were carry on only.
I usually fly carry on anyway but 10 days in Russia didn't seem plausible to me for some reason. I was convinced that I'd need lots of layers and many changes of clothes. I think it's just because I'm used to short haul flights, not travelling from the most Western part of Europe to one of the most Eastern parts!
It's Summer in Russia which apparently is very hot, as I'm writing this it's currently 17°C in Moscow but it's been in the high 20's during the last week! Hungary is also hot during the Summer but I was preparing to pack for the last time I went to Budapest which was during the coldest month, January. I'd recently returned from a trip to ReykjavÃk and Budapest was much colder in comparison. Anyway I had to remind myself to pack Summer clothes.
What I packed:
- Pair of black Skinny jeans (Travelled in)
- Black floral shift dress
- Pale blue cotton peasant blouse
- Black and white midi skirt
- Striped jumper
- Blue shirt dress
- Black leggings
- White slogan t-shirt (used as pyjamas)
- Central Perk shorts (used as pyjamas)
- Burgundy hoodie (travelled in)
- Swallow print t-shirt (travelled in)
- Black cardigan
- White and gold chiffon blouse
- Butterfly print chiffon top
- Swimsuit
- 3 x vest tops
- Bikini bag
- Underwear (not pictured)
- Pair of trainers (not pictured)
- Pair of ballet pump style sketchers (not pictured)
- Toiletry bag (not pictured)
- GoPro (not pictured)
I always travel in my jeans as they're usually the heaviest item of clothing I take. Even though I probably won't need it I packed a lightweight jumper for the evenings. The blouse is lightweight and great for keeping cool. The skirt is a nice length and matches most of the tops. I usually wear skater dresses but I am officially a shift dress convert! This is one of my most worn dresses, it's surprisingly flattering and so comfortable.
All of my pyjamas have long bottoms, so I decided to just bring an oversized t-shirt and shorts instead to save space and keep cool. I bought this shirt dress on my last trip home, it's very lightweight and looks nice with leggings.
My boyfriend bought this burgundy hoodie for me from Finland, he also bought matching trainers which I'll be taking too. It's very soft and perfect for travel. The cardigan was my mom's but I sneakily packed it when I was emigrating as I needed one, sorry mom! The t-shirt was bought on a recent trip to the UK when I was meeting friends at the pub, but spilled coffee down the shirt I was wearing right before I met them! In my panic I went to the nearest shop and bought this for a fiver.
The blouse with the white polka dots was free from Hollister! There was a 3 for 2 sale and this was my free item. It's lightweight and ideal for the Summer heat. The butterfly top was from my favourite clothes shop in Whitby, North Yorkshire. It's my favourite top for nights out in the Summer. I don't think I'll need it but I packed my swimsuit just in case (another burgundy coloured gift from Biggi, do you see a pattern?). Even though we don't have that much time in Budapest I would like to squeeze in a trip to the geothermal baths if possible!
I took a few vests which I'll probably wear the most, I might even buy some more in Russia. The bikini bag is waterproof on the inside and I store my swimsuit inside it after swimming.
I usually roll my clothes but decided to pack everything flat this time as I find Summer clothes tend to crease easier than my regular clothes. I still have quite a lot of room left in my carry on case after packing! I will put my (empty) backpack inside the case and probably fill the rest of the space with snacks to save money. I've been known to fill 50% of my carry on with food for a trip before...
I actually believe that I've really over packed for this trip! I'm not really used to packing for hot holidays so I think I've over estimated this but it's a learning curve! I've heard that Russia is great for clothes shopping (and cheap!) so maybe I will pick up a couple of things there and not wear much of what I've brought with me. I'd like to bring a maxi dress but I don't own one! Hopefully I can pick one up while I'm there.
So that's what I packed for 10 days in Russia! I'd love to hear where you're heading to for a Summer holiday, let me know in the comments below!
Loppy x
Loppy x
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