packing for Mexico

I leave for Mexico in 5 days and yes, I'm packing already. I am not a procrastinator. Especially when it's something I want to do. I'm packing early for a reason: to see if everything I plan to take will fit in my suitcase. Actually, I have suitcases. I'm checking a bag, but also get to carry on a small bag, with another backpack as my personal item. These items will all be heavy and bursting at the seams. But it's all for a good cause. Okay, most of it is for a good cause. 

The libraries need books. That's something I can get behind. But they also need Legos and origami paper (which I realize I could just convert from regular paper, but why settle for less than the real thing if you have a couple of Gringas heading down from California to shower you with gifts).

How do I pack for a month in Mexico? I'm not the light traveler I used to be (see my first post, entitled a digital revolution (and revelation) for the exhaustive packing list of electronics I plan to pack into my three bags). When I returned from Honduras, I could fit everything I owned in a car (which I didn't even own). Now I not only own a car, and a bicycle, and an entire house full of furniture, but I also have furniture in my parent's basement. Does anyone really need this much stuff? Don't worry, this will not be another one of the posts about how I simplified my life. My life is not simple, I have "stuff" I use all the time, and I'm planning on keeping it.

But, aside from all my cameras and computers and charging cables, what else do I pack? I have so many unanswered questions - what do people wear in Mérida? In the libraries? At the ruins? What I'm really trying to ask is, "do I want to look ridiculously American? Or do I want to try to blend in a little bit?" And how am I going to deal with the heat? I've been in San Francisco way too long. I'm always cold, don't have air conditioning, and don't even own a single pair of flip flops (I bought a pair for the trip!)

So, here is what I really think as I pack. What will the final ratio be between items for Karen and items for the Yucatecos? At quick glance, I estimate 50/50. But I haven't packed any of my clothes yet. 

My suitcase so far

The Harry Potter in Spanish is for the kids. As are the Legos. 

The hat and shoes will be donated when I leave. 

So really, I'm not packing 50/50. I'm at 95/5.