{"id":111,"date":"2006-09-08T14:10:42","date_gmt":"2006-09-08T22:10:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/09\/08\/packing-list-review\/"},"modified":"2020-06-10T21:51:55","modified_gmt":"2020-06-11T05:51:55","slug":"packing-list-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/09\/08\/packing-list-review","title":{"rendered":"Packing List Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>One subject of conversation that came back often when I was in France and England was about the size of my backpack. Most of the people were amazed that I travelled for 4 months with so little.<\/p>\n<p>Well, if you have read this website from the begining, you know I spent some time fine-tuning my packing list optimizing for weight and easy-cleaning. To read how it was created and how I selected some of these items, go <a target=\"_blank\" title=\"Some more info on my packing list\" href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/03\/30\/packing-list\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">there<\/a>.<br \/>\nI think the best way to comment it is to go over it:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>3 t-shirts\/1 long-sleeves t-shirt: <em>I loved my 4 dry-fit t-shirts. They were perfect for every occasion. I ended up buying one short sleeves and one long sleeves cotton shirts in Dahab and it proved useful too.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>2 pair convertible trousers: <em>Perfect<\/em><\/li>\n<li>3 pairs of underwear: <em>Rod used to make fun of me for having only three of them. He even offered me to buy me some in Tel-Aviv! That is true that it was a bit tight especially when I could not clean any for several days. I would go for the double next time.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>A set of long very warm underwear pants and t-shirt (The set I use when I ski): <em>I used them at night in the desert and on top of Mount Sinai and never got cold.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 swimsuit trunk: <em>Definitely<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 fleece jacket: <em>Not used that often but definitely worth carrying.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 windproof, rainproof jacket: <em>Only used in England! <\/em><\/li>\n<li>3 pairs of socks: <em>I wore the Tevas most of the time so 3 pairs were enough. If you wear closed shoes more than half the time, I would take 2 more pairs.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 cap: <em>Perfect. I would take one more next time because I got tired of it.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 pair trekking\/walking shoes: <em>Perfect<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 pair of <span class=\"hm\" id=\"misp_compose_2\">Tevas: <em>Perfect. They got quite stinky at time but they wash nicely overnight! <\/em><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li>1 travel towel: <em>Useless. It is nice to go on a backpacking weekend. Very light and everything but frankly, I used it rarely preferring the hotel&#8217;s towels when available and ended up <a target=\"_blank\" title=\"Drop the towel\" href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/06\/28\/a-blue-cruise-along-the-turquoise-coast\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">loosing it<\/a>. I bought a normal towel that I lost the same day on the boat. I finally bought a large beach towel in Greece and even if it was taking more room in my backpack, it was definitely worth it.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 silk sheet bag (because I am worth it!): <em>Well, used it only for 10 nights max. The hotels\/hostels usually provide bed sheets and those that require a sheet bag rent them for super cheap and you do not have to clean the damn thing. I would not take it again for a trip in Middle-East. It might be different for a trip to Europe though.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 toothbrush \/ 1 tube of toothpaste \/ 1 box of floss: <em>Take the real thing, not travel size.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 bottle of shampoo\/1 bottle of soap: <em>I thought I would be smart and use containers that close tight but they were too small and ended up having to buy these items. <\/em><\/li>\n<li>Nail clippers: <em>N\/A<\/em><\/li>\n<li>An electric razor: <em>Except for the fact I decided not to use it by the end of my trip, it worked great. If you don&#8217;t bring one, you can take your chance with the barbers that do a nice and relaxing job for very cheap.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 travel pack (Gregory Palisade): <em>Worked well. Difficult to securely lock so it might be a concern for other people.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 day pack (Eagle Creek packable day pack): <em>Love it! <a target=\"_blank\" title=\"How BA lost my day pack\" href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/08\/12\/a-bit-worried\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">British Airways too!<\/a><\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 duffel bag (that folds very small):<em> Never used.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>2 locks: <em>Definitely. I used one to lock my daypack when going in crowded area.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 tiny alarm clock: <em>Very useful and worked like a charm.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 mini <span class=\"hm\" id=\"misp_compose_3\">Maglite<\/span> flashlight with extra bulb: <em>Very useful for the desert, the Egyptian monuments and the cave exploration in Petra and Cappadocia.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 <span class=\"hm\" id=\"misp_compose_4\">Leatherman<\/span> micro: <em>Very useful. Sadly, I had to let it go at the airport in Athens after I forgot to check it in.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 compass\/whistle combo: <em>Compass was very useful while exploring Petra and Cappadocia.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>2 safety pins: <em>Never used.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 bunch of <span class=\"hm\" id=\"misp_compose_5\">Ziplocs: <em>Perfect<\/em><br \/>\n<\/span><\/li>\n<li>1 small roll of duct tape: <em>Once again, it saved the day when I had to fix my papyrus roll after the Israeli custom had cut the top open!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 tube of detergent: <em>I bought liquid soap. I did laundry every night for 1 month. I did not have enough. Then I discovered that most of the backpacker hotels were offering laundry service for very cheap so I went for that.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 sink stopper: <em>Great<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 surgical-quality, natural latex rubber clothesline!: <em>Perfect, that stuff can hold a load.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>2 inflatable hangers: <em>Very good. I got some shit for having them from Rod but I think he was just jealous!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>some toilet paper: <em>Always have some on you<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li>1 pair of sunglasses and its box: <em>Lost the box in Athens. I also managed to damage them by putting them in my pocket :(.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 traveler first aid pack including diarrhea treatment, Advil\/Tylenol, blister pads, bandages&#8230;: <em>One word: <a target=\"_blank\" title=\"Cypro power\" href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/04\/18\/the-curse-of-the-pharaoh\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cypro<\/a>!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 bottle of mosquito repellent: <em>Used it only twice.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 tube of sunscreen and lip balm: <em>I think I went through 5 or 6 tubes total. It is difficult to find good sunscreen with SPF over 30 so if you need more, stock on them. I used SPF 60 for most of Egypt.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>Inflatable travel pillow \/ blindfold \/ earplugs:<em> I cannot find earplugs that work with my ears. As Ledi says all the time, they have a weird shape!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>A digital camera + an extra battery + charger: <em>Worked great except when <a target=\"_blank\" title=\"Broken LCD\" href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/07\/24\/a-cure-to-my-addiction\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">I broke the LCD.<\/a><\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>A Hardshell CD case to store the picture CDs I burn along the way: I bought it in Egypt. Definitely worth it.<br \/>\n<\/em><\/li>\n<li>An <span class=\"hm\" id=\"misp_compose_6\">IPod<\/span> and its charger: <em>For the 13 hour bus rides with the radio blaring in a language you do not understand!<\/em><\/li>\n<li>An universal power converter: <em>It worked great everywhere. Small and versatile.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>A security pouch: <em>Perfect<\/em><\/li>\n<li>Important documents<\/li>\n<ul>\n<li>Passport \/ Green card<\/li>\n<li>Vaccination certificates<\/li>\n<li>Credit\/debit cards<\/li>\n<li>Health insurance info<\/li>\n<li>3 personal checks: <em>Never used one but it is a good thing.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>A list with personal addresses and phone numbers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<li>Copies of these documents: <em>N\/A<\/em><\/li>\n<li>3 guidebooks: <em>The Middle-East Lonely Planet turned out too old to be useful. It was so heavy that I ended up tearing sections apart and carrying only the current country&#8217;s section. Having a guidebook is at the same time an enchantment and a calamity. It helps you not get scammed all the time but it also shields you from many experiences. Using it is definitely a balancing act. While more expensive and more difficult to buy a guide when you get in the country, it definitely saved my back not to carry all of them from the beginning. <\/em><\/li>\n<li>A bunch of books: <em>These were heavy. Need to take less and unload more along the road. The book exchange works quite well.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>My scuba diving logbook and <span class=\"hm\" id=\"misp_compose_7\">PADI<\/span> cards<\/li>\n<li>1 small notebook<\/li>\n<li>1 pen: <em>Failed on me in Istanbul. I did not find one I liked before England.<\/em><\/li>\n<li>1 pencil: <em>Gave it to a tomb guard in Abu Simbel on a misunderstanding. I thought he wanted to write something for me!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The only thing I really missed was a set of nicer clothes to go out. I did not go as much as I could have because I did not have anything nice to wear. I will take what is needed next time.<\/p>\n<p>Except for that, everything worked quite well. I have updated the <a target=\"_blank\" title=\"The updated list\" href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/trip-preparation-guide\/packing-list\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">list<\/a> based on my comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One subject of conversation that came back often when I was in France and England was about the size of my backpack. Most of the people were amazed that I travelled for 4 months with so little. Well, if you &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/2006\/09\/08\/packing-list-review\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=111"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":290,"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111\/revisions\/290"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=111"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=111"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.30wonders.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=111"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}