Tuesday, January 13, 2015

What’s in my backpack: Packing for Thailand and Cambodia


I'm just back from my trip to Thailand where I learnt diving, was a beach bum, shopped till I dropped and took a quick 2-day detour to Siem Reap.  The trip panned over 17 days, of which 5 were spent at Ban’s Dive Resort.

For my trip I decided to chuck the suitcase with wheels and instead opt for a rucksack.  I purchased my backpack in May 2014, before my maiden Himalayan Trek to Roopkund.  It’s a Quechua 60L hiking backpack in brown colour, nothing fancy.  I bought it at an unbelievable price of INR 2,400/- on snapdeal, though their service is not up to the mark. Check the backpack out here.
  

I also carried a funky cloth backpack which was gifted to me on my birthday, my lowerpro toploader 50 AW camera bag which fits my DSLR, prime lens, zoom lens and camera charger and a small peachsling from Lavie, again a gift. 


My backpack weighed around 16-17 kgs, luckily under the 20 kgs baggage limit.


Now, I must admit, I over-packed even this time!  

Here’s what I took with me, the struck off points are the things I could have avoided:

Clothes
1 Jeans
1 quick dry track pants
1 Harem pant
3 2 shorts
1 Denim skirt
2 1 dress(es)
2 gangis
13 6-7 tees/ tops
2 spaghettis
3 2 sets of nightwear
2 1 swimsuit
1 fleece - mainly for airport - consider carrying a warm shawl instead
1 towel - every hotel/ hostel gives towels

PS - I rolled up all my clothes, except tops/ gangis which I carried in fishnet washing bags to avoid ruining the ironing

Footwear
1 flip flop
1 paid of funky flats 
1 shoes
4 pairs of socks

Accesories
1 fedora hat
2 pairs of sunglasses
3 1 sarong(s)
Tons of accessories - carry minimal statement jewellery

Toiletries
Big tube of bathing lotion  - carry a small bottle of bathing lotion/ use the one in hotels if you do not have sensitive skin
Shampoo and conditioner
Lofaah
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Moisturizer/ Face cream
Small bottle of talc
Deodorant
Washing powder - ample 24hours laundry servives avaibale in Thailand and Cambodia and very affordable as well

Other
2 Novels - I realized I could do without a book! Next time I'll probably carry e-books on my mobile, just in case
Prints of all airtickets, ferry tickets, hotel/ hostels
Basic medicines
Tons of Indian snacks - Eat delicious local snacks instead!
Mobile charger, Pendrive, JBL flip speaker (including charger), headphones
Deck of cards
Spare folding bag - Omit if you do not intend to shop, or carry a bigger bag - latter applies to me :P

For my next trip, I will strive to ensure my backpack weighs under 12 kgs, especially if I am travelling to a place with hot weather.

Things I wish I had carried and/or done differently!

Inflatable pillow ended up buying this
Portable mobile charger
Ankle and knee caps ended up buying this
Functional all weather backpack (30L) instead of funky backpack
Rucksack rain cover - barely managed to escape the rain
Rain poncho - ended up buying this
Waist pouch for money/ passport
Rolled my tees/ tops instead of using fish-net washing bags

Do let me know what you guys carry in your backpack!!

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