The wake-up call
Alright, buckle up. My last trip slapped some sense into me. Seriously. Standing there in Bali, surrounded by plastic bottles bobbing in what was supposed to be paradise? Yeah, no thanks. Felt like I was part of the problem. Worse, actually. Flying halfway across the world just to trash the place felt dumb. Really dumb. Got home feeling kinda gross about it. Decided enough was enough. Time to actually walk the talk.
Starting with the obvious: packing
First step? Raided my kitchen instead of buying new stuff. Grabbed that trusty old reusable water bottle – the dented one lurking in the back of the cupboard. Dug out a basic coffee cup, not some fancy travel mug. Threw in the bamboo cutlery set my sister gave me years ago that I’d never used. Found a beat-up canvas tote bag. Seriously, who needs new crap?
Did a dry run packing the bag:
- Water bottle: Check. No plastic nonsense.
- Coffee cup: Check. Bye-bye disposable cups.
- Bamboo cutlery: Check. No more flimsy plastic forks.
- Tote bag: Check. For groceries, souvenirs, whatever.
Total cost? Zero bucks. Just used what I already had gathering dust. Simple.
The real test: hitting the road
Next trip rolled around – a long weekend hiking near Sedona. Kept it close to cut down on flying miles. Flew direct, that’s it. Small win.
At the airport: Refilled the bottle before security. Drank it down, stuffed it empty in the backpack. Piece of cake.
Lunch stop after landing: Bought a sandwich, told ’em to skip the plastic cutlery. Whipped out my bamboo stuff instead. Felt a little goofy, sure, but worked perfectly.
Grabbed snacks: Popped into a local shop. Forgot a bag? Used the tote. Easy.
Morning coffee craving: Rolled into the local coffee shack near my Airbnb. Handed over my own mug. Barista didn’t even blink – just poured the coffee right in. No fuss. Bonus? Often got a small discount, like 25 cents or something. Nice little perk.
Going a bit further
Got bolder on the second trip. Found small local guesthouses instead of big resorts. Took the bus into town a couple times instead of calling an Uber. Asked at a cafe in Tucson if they could fill my container with leftovers instead of a disposable box – they looked confused for a sec but figured it out. Hey, progress.
What actually happened (spoiler: it worked)
Okay, results? Honestly surprised.
- Less trash: Like, way less. My little bin barely filled up. No stacks of takeout containers.
- Felt lighter: Packing simpler stuff literally made my backpack lighter. Duh.
- Saved money: Refilling water is free. Skipping checked luggage fees? Big win. Coffee discounts added up. More money for tacos, obviously.
- Met people: Seriously! Using my own stuff started conversations. Someone asked about my cutlery set. Had a good chat with a shop owner because I used my tote.
- Felt better: Didn’t fix the world, obviously. But didn’t leave a total mess either. Felt… cleaner? More responsible? Just better.
Look, it’s not magic. Still took a plane. Probably still messed up somewhere. But it’s stupidly easy to start. Just grab stuff you own. Use it. Refuse plastic when you can. Take the bus once instead of a taxi. Small stuff adds up way more than doing nothing. Felt less like a mindless tourist wrecking things. More like… someone just trying not to be an idiot. That’s the goal, right? Let’s be better idiots.
