Luggage
For those that are curious about our packing for this year, this is how it started: a big backpack for me + medium suitcase + medium Longchamp bag. Tom: BIG backpack + small backpack. When we arrived in Kuala Lumpur in December we stuffed a big cardboard box full of warm clothes, hiking boots, & anything that we assumed we didn't need for the warm weather of the southern Pacific region & Southeast Asia. Naturally, you make mistakes along the way & there are definitely things I did wish I kept--like some pairs of shoes that could have been handy, or a few more warm clothes since we are going to New Zealand in colder weather, & some long African skirts I bought that could have been useful in India and around random southeast Asian temples. But oh well, you live and you learn. We have been incredibly lucky because everywhere we have been we have had a place to leave our big stuff & we would just travel around with a few small bags (we sort of planned it this way): Warsaw, Tanzania we had that guesthouse for a month, Kuala Lumpur, Chennai, Ho Chi Minh, Sydney........it's been a lifesaver not to have to lug around that extra stuff!!
Finally, when we left to Bali we had to take all of our stuff with us. This thought made us nervous, because even though we knew we hadn't bought that much along the way, we weren't sure how stuffed our bags would be--we bought some clothes along the way & we had all the tailored clothes to carry (among other things). With Air Asia flights you have to add on baggage for a small fee & I estimated that Tom’s bag was 20kg while mine was 25kg. We knew that was probably not enough and you pay hefty extra charges if you add weight at the airport. The same goes for Tiger Airways which we were also using. Surprisingly, we just made it in weight--mine was under 25 & Toms was slightly above 20. Our carry-ons were not too heavy, although Tom had to hold his winter coat & stuff a few heavy things in it ;) However, we did it and we didn’t have to pay any extra charges!
It is a bit of a hassle to carry the extra stuff but well worth the saved money. Also, there were only a few more trips to go so we could handle it. Generally, with all the travelling, i don’t think i am a good packer. i always bring too much & then always miss out on packing some other important items. Either way, I did learn from this packing experience:
---PACK LESS!!! I didn't wear at least one quarter of what I brought. I have to learn that I don't need 10 shirts, I can easily work with half that!
---pack according to where you will travel. Originally, the way I packed was either things I liked (so I thought I would wear them) or weather specific things (estimating temperatures in the places we would be). What I did not focus on (& was oh so important) was the cultural implications of where I was going. You can't (or really shouldn't because its innappropriate) wear shorts in India or eastern Africa, & just about every temple of religious site you enter in Southeast Asia you have to have your shoulders & knees covered. Also, in any Hindu or Muslim countries you generally have to dress modestly. I really didn’t factor that in as much as I should have & I ended up buying those kinds of items in places like East Africa & India.
---I'm angry at myself for bringing nice shoes on this trip. I either lost them, broke them completely, or damaged them enough that they are no longer good shoes. Lesson learned.
---rain gear is so important. Do not send it back in a box early to Canada!! You WILL need it at a later time!! This goes for hats too--so versatile and helpful! And scarves!
---all the electronics we brought were worth it: phones, computer, cameras, kindle. Sadly, my phone took its last breath in Australia (still hoping I will get some insurance money back for that!!) but we really made use of the electronics and they were not as much of a hassle to carry as I thought they would be (the extra clothes were more annoying). Specifically, I do not regret buying the expensive Nikon camera--it captured some amazing pictures in amazing quality and was so worth the purchase. It even left me with a bit of a photography bug ;)
---backpacks are my favourite. Anything wheeled or lugged over one arm is just torture!
---book flights in advance as much as possible (so much cheaper!) & always buy more luggage weight than you think you need (it costs pennies to add bags online & a fortune to do it on the day of the flight at the airport!)
---I have too many clothes. My mom always lectured me about this & I am no different from any other girl in Canada or the US or Europe, but ladies we seriously have too much crap. My plan is to filter through my closet when I get back to St. John's and sort the following piles:
1. Keep.
2. Tailor to fit me so that its worth keeping.
3. Give to goodwill or sell in a garage sale or give away to someone.
