You can have things that he will need, shipped or mailed to his address in Spain.

A lot of people move across country and mail most of their things to their new address. It is cheaper than using the movers. I don't know what the international rates are, but it might be worth checking into.

I would time it so that the packages are mailed after you KNOW he has arrived at his apartment and is living there. Unclaimed packages sitting around for a long time tend to become "lost".

Sounds like this is Lesson One in a long list of learning experiences for him.

Remind him that they have stores of all kinds in Spain and the Spanish are pretty fashion forward.

On the athletic shoes - he needs to find out if young people in Spain are as into athletic shoes as US kids are. I remember seeing tour groups in Europe and you could spot the Americans by the white leather shoes.

In my twenties I travelled for a month in Europe with nothing but a small duffel. I had a total blast!

One item that was indespensible was a nylon slicker with a hood. It rolled up into a very small package, and also had an elastic strap so that I could carry it around my waist when the sky threatened rain. Saved me from having to have a hat or umbrella. Also just had 1 pair of walking shoes, and one pair of nicer shoes. Slept in a shirt.

Hope he has a great time!

Not to be rude to barb5, but no young hip guy is going to wear a fanny-pack rain slicker. Spain has great clothes shopping, so he might want to save up to shop there.

Otherwise--Spain is a little more formal than most American cities, so he should have a sport coat, just in case he has to go to family events, like a wedding or big party.

I'd recommend renting some of Pedro Almodovar's movies, which, while over the top in terms of characters and situations, do show you Spanish life. Penelope Cruz is his favorite leading lady, so your son can probably manage to watch a couple.

You can ship stuff, as well, but I know when my kid went to Hungary, some packages just never made it.

Our youngest DS did study abroad in Granada two years ago. (wow, those two years have flown by). Re 50 pounds of luggage - if your son is a large size guy with big feet, and possibly a "clothes horse" - one suitcase will likely not do it. Seems like our 6'2", 200lb, size 12 shoe kid checked 2 bags and carried on another as well as his back pack. He was only there Aug until late Dec and I do remember him being rather "tired" of the clothes he had taken for a while.

Maybe it has changed, but as recently as last summer, most flights and carriers to Europe allowed 70 pounds per bag and / or 2 checked bags on international flights.

Your son will love it, ours did. I had the chance to take his brothers over to visit and am so glad we did.

Nothng says "American" like walking around Europe in what we call tennis (athletic) shoes. He might want something comfortable and leather. We live in SoCal but he went to college in Mass. so he had already learned there is life beyond flipflops and that real guys wear leather shoes (in colder climates). He is darkish and can look like a native there but did have a couple of rather scary moments - blending is good thing. Tell your son to be very mindful and aware of his surroundings. Not to scare anyone, he would go back in a heartbeat.

When Max traveled to the middle east, he purchased a giant backpack from REI. He fit everything he *needed* inside. Just roll everything up in a tight ball before you stick it inside.

Backpacks hold more and they are so much lighter than a suitcase. Don't forget a world cell phone and make sure there will be service there. Max didn't do this. He got a phone there and purchased minutes. But Palestine and Yemen is different than Spain. Verizon has a World Blackberry on special for $49.00 with a contract right now. That is a great deal.

I suspect his clothes horse days will be put on hold for awhile. Hope he has fun!!

Half as many clothes and twice as much money! That's what I always bring when I travel.

But seriously, regarding clothing...I have friends and family in the Netherlands and England with teenagers and 20-somethings. You know what they wear? ABERCROMBIE, J. Crew, and GAP. Youth styles seem to be the same, no matter where in the world you go.

I barely shop at all when I am travelling anymore because nearly everything I see in Europe can be had at home for a lot less $$$$. Plus, the exchange rate is so bad for anyone spending American dollars, that jacks the cost up more.

When I was 21 I travelled for four months in Europe with a backpack, a rain coat (which was also a bathrobe and a pillow in the train!)and a good ole' Eurailpass. The more you brought, the more you had to carry, and it slowed you down, plus you had to worry a bit more about your "stuff" than I wanted to. Even now (20 years later) I pack ultra-light. For a three week trip to Provence and Amsterdam I recently took one small carry-on. My husband just came back from another 3-week trip to Singapore, Germany, Belgium, and Holland and again...a carry-on. It can be done, but only if you're serious about streamlining. Maybe this is a chance for your son to learn to live with less?

Oh, the biggest hassle packing these days is all the electrical equipment and chargers. I took my kids to Europe recently and I swear, the iPods, digital cameras, Nintendo DSs, and cell-phones were the biggest pain. You need chargers to convert the plugs and all the chargers...practically one whole backpack for that stuff. If your son has all that, plus perhaps a laptop since he's going to study, it may very well be that the high tech equipment forces him to streamline...

Also, make sure you make copies of all his travel documents (passports, tickets, visas, etc.)and photocopy charge cards, front and back, health insurance cards, etc. Keep one set at home and bring a second set on the trip. You never know...I did once lose my passport abroad. Copies help.

Another thing, be aware that certain medications are different abroad. If you have a headache you might be taking paracetol instead of Ibrupofen. If he has certain OTC medications he prefers for colds and headaches, bring them. You'll find equivalents, but you won't get the same stuff. I had a terrible experience once, I picked up a Johnson & Johnson product abroad that seemed to be the same as the one I used in the US. Well...it had the same labelling and same name but was a slightly different formulation. I had a really awful allergic reaction. And...since it was an Ortho Gynol product, you can imagine how unpleasant that was! Nasty, nasty. But I've never had any trouble with soaps, shampoos, or moisturizing products.

Once you start loading up on all the non-clothing necessities, you'll begin seeing that there's even less room for clothes than you or he thought initially.

If your son decides to purchase what he needs while he is living there make sure you check out whether the purchases are eligible for a tax refund.

Have him get a VAT form every time he buys something - just in case.

Here is a link that might be useful: VAT Refund

Ideefixe, I had to smile when I read your comment. DS once used me as a character in one of his essays- "she appeared in her customary baggy high waisted jeans, with the usual grass stains at the knees, plastic clogs on her feet..." It went on and apparently all the hip teenagers in his class had a good laugh.

I should stay away from giving advice to anyone about the subject of clothes.

If he is into clothes and fashion then definetly just bring some clothes to last for a little while and have him purchase more there.

The fashions tends to be more lax in the US and more form fitting in Europe among the young.

My experience with any of the sales tax refund programs is that you can't open it until after you got your refund at the airport when you go home so I wouldn't even bother with that.

Our daughter spent a year in Mercia, Spain. She took essentials and bought other stuff she needed. It would cost about $30 or more for a small box to mail...and it didn't always get there. I think they disappeared at the NY harbor, tho. Our DD was told to "blend in with the locals as much as possible." It will cut down on issues like losing cameras, passport, etc. DS should probably wear local clothes...and not spend to much money on them.

Mercia got to about 45 degrees F in the winter, but DD said a lot of the housing, including hers, did not have heating because it is usually warmer. She needed warm clothes! and warm bedding which she bought there.

Also, be sure you are on DS bank accounts, that banks, charge cards, etc. know he is traveling so his cards don't get blocked, and make sure his debit card and charge card don't expire while he is in Spain. With you on the accounts, you can access his checking, etc. and talk to a representative if something funky is going on with a card. DD program had her prepay for housing, etc. but Spain is so laid back about everytthing, that the university officials wouldn't get around to giving the study-abroad students their money on time and she would run out, sometimes for 2 weeks. That was when her debit card really helped.

DD was always very polite and humble, would not hang out with the americans that were not polite to the locals. We americans aren't loved by the Europeans right now.

DD favorite city was Seville.

Oh, and DS needs to always check in with the u.s. embassy when he arrives.

DD visa only lasted 6 months, and she had to renew it. Lines were long and she needed help from locals that were at her university to get through the process. It took her many trips, hours and hours of lines and perseverance to get it renewed.

Thanks for all the tips. Especially about the banking and visa. My older son spent a year in Germany, but he was quite a bit older than my youngest is now and handled most of these details on his own. Also he has no problem getting by with 2 pairs of shoes and a very basic wardrobe.

The son who is going to Spain has been there before - he spent a couple of weeks there right after high school, part of that time he spent with a Spanish family. I think that he has a good idea of what type of clothing is typical with Spanish college students. He also got a lot of comments when he was there that he looks very "European", so that should be a plus.

Does anyone know of any American banks that have some kind of reciprocal arrangements with a Spanish bank? When my other son was in Germany he had a B of A account, because they had an arrangement with Deutschebank. That worked out well for him. I also opened a B of A account so that I could easily transfer funds to his account. I am planning on doing the same thing this time.

About credit cards:

If he has a credit card that is paid in dollars, make sure that he has one that doesn't tack on a service fee for conversion from Euros into dollars. Or if you can't get one, that there is a limit to the service fee, and not one that is a percentage of the purchase amount.