Day 18 - Packing

This post probably should have been the first one, but better late than never.  I took a few pictures while waiting in the LAX Flagship Lounge back in May.

My backpack is really a two-in-one bag.  It separates into a main pack and a daypack.  This is how I am able to travel with carry-on only, despite having such a large bag.

I have three travel cubes to help organize my things.

Main Cube

The main cube has my extra pair of convertible pants, three synthetic short sleeve shirts, two synthetic long sleeve shirts, a swimsuit, and plastic bags for packing wet stuff.


Small Cube One

This small cube has a first aid kit, mesh laundry bag, rope for making a clothesline, clips for attaching clothes to the line, an eye mask, and a pack of tissues.



Small Cube Two

 The second small cube has three pairs of SmartWool socks, five pairs of synthetic underwear, a bandana, and a pair of athletic shorts.



Main Compartment

 Within the main compartment, there are three cubes, a pillow, athletic shoes, shower shoes, and a mesh compartment.  The mesh compartment holds medicine, a portable hard drive, and a toothbrush.



Medicine

Within the medicine bag, I have two antibiotics and anti-malaria pills.

That's it for the main pack.  The daypack has my liquids bag, laptop, Acer Iconia, fleece jacket, electrical converters, chargers, and toilet paper.  Remember, toilet paper is a rarity in Asia.  Even the toilets that are supposed to have it usually don't.  The liquids bag is the usual 1-quart TSA approved bag.  It has shampoo, bodysoap, laundry detergent, DEET, a Tide stick, toothpaste, and deodorant.

I keep my iPhone on me along with my wallet and passport.  The international sim card lets me receive free calls and texts in any country except Malaysia.

You can see in the photo above my Keen sandals.  I bought them specifically for this trip using a gift card.  They have a closed-toe design, which keeps my feet safe, but allows them to breathe.  I wear them all the time unless it's raining.  I have only worn my athletic shoes twice.  I highly recommend these sandals.

I also wear my TCU baseball hat (which I always wear anyway) along with my Oakley sunglasses.

I see people lugging huge hard-cased suitcases with wheels around and have no idea how they manage to do it.  I think they just rely on taxis in the city and hope their luggage makes it to the destination when flying.  I purposely packed incredibly light and don't regret hardly anything.  So far my biggest regret is the fleece jacket (which isn't very useful in 90+ degree heat) but I still have to go to Europe where it might come in handy at night.

As you can see, it's quite easy to pack for an unlimited amound of time away from home.  Sometimes I see people with two monsterous checked bags going for a one week vacation in the US and wonder what's inside.  Small children to avoid paying for seats?