Packing List

Make Sure You Pack Everything on Your List

  • Valid passport with a minimum of six months beyond your planned date of return remaining before expiration
  • Visas or working papers, if you’ve managed to obtain them prior to departure
  • Photocopy of your passport, birth certificate, and other important documents
  • Traveler’s checks
  • Resumes and letters of recommendation from past employers, teachers, and even students
  • Copies of your diplomas and certificates
  • Guidebooks, dictionaries, phrase books
  • Teaching materials (including an English grammar guide)
  • Postcards or photos of your home city and travel brochures from your local chamber of commerce
  • Passport photos (at least ten, black-and-white or color)
  • Nice work clothes and shoes
  • Light, casual clothing
  • A coat and several articles of warm clothing, depending on your destination and the season
  • Thermal underwear to wear under lighter clothes during the winter
  • Comfortable walking shoes with thick soles
  • Backpack, if you intend to travel
  • Rain gear
  • Toiletries and personal items (e.g., anti-perspirant, skin moisturizer, make-up)

Optional

  • Contact lens solution; definitely bring a pair of glasses if you normally wear contacts
  • Small gifts
  • Camera
  • Music (an instrument, radio, cassette player)
  • Athletic equipment (running shoes, soccer ball, tennis racket)
  • Women’s tights; pantyhose are plentiful, but real tights can be more difficult to come by
  • Birth control (condoms, in particular, are of poor quality and difficult to find)
  • A few good books (on audio cassette tape?)
  • Some special treats (your favorite sweets, supplies for your hobby)
  • Adaptors for any electrical devices that require 110 watts (Europe is 220 watts)

What to Leave at Home

  • Drugs. Do not jeopardize your travel plans and your future. Jail is no place to find gainful employment.
  • Weapons. We strongly discourage carrying weapons into Eastern Europe. If you feel strongly about doing so, we advise that you check the laws of the countries you will be visiting.
  • Attitudes and abrasive modes of expression. Remember that you are a guest in another country. Tread lightly until you know what you’re walking on.

 

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