The Law of Travel

Published on June 17, 2014 (↻ February 5, 2024), filed under Adventure (RSS feed for all categories).

The story of my 18 months of travel around the world, including this and other articles, is available as a big but humble e-book: Journey of J.

The longer you travel, the lighter you should pack.

Much simpler and more useful than any other laws I wish I had coined, I consider this the most important rule of traveling. And yet I’m sure it’s not new, as many savvy travelers before me will have found light luggage to be more convenient, and easily possible.

Figure: How to lug a life around.

Then, you get an idea why ten and a half months and twenty-five countries into my travels, I can still resist the urge to settle again. I simply don’t have that much stuff clamping me on a spot.

Update (October 11, 2017)

Some time this year I wrote a little tool to help with packing: What to Pack for a Trip. To be extended.

About Me

I’m Jens (long: Jens Oliver Meiert), and I’m a frontend engineering leader and tech author/publisher. I’ve worked as a technical lead for companies like Google and as an engineering manager for companies like Miro, I’m a contributor to several web standards, and I write and review books for O’Reilly and Frontend Dogma.

I love trying things, not only in web development (and engineering management), but also in other areas like philosophy. Here on meiert.com I share some of my experiences and views. (Please be critical, interpret charitably, and give feedback.)