In September, I did a post on packing for a 9 day trip to Spain and received a lot of comments and questions. So as I prepare to leave this week for a one month trip to SEAsia, including about 16 days in Myanmar and 12 days in Laos, it’s time to meet the challenge of packing as light as I can. While I would like to be able to fit everything in the 20” bag that I took to Spain, I don’t think I can quite narrow it down enough. So I’m going to use my 26” Victorinox bag, which is the bag I used for my RTW trip, so I know I can fit everything into it. Again, like my other bag, this bag has no extra pockets or compartments…
…which just take up space and add weight to the bag. And I will of course use the same mesh bags for this trip…
Some people wanted to know more specifically what I took on my last trip, so here’s my clothing list for this trip:
- 2 prs quick dry pants, 1 pr jeans, 1 pr capris, 1 pr shorts
- 1 long sleeved collared shirt, 1 short sleeved collared shirt
- 2 polo shirts, 2 t-shirts, 1 knit top (more about this top later)
- Long sleeved, light-weight runners shirt (for layering on cool days/evenings)
- Fleece pullover, cardigan sweater, rain jacket
- 4 each underwear, bras, socks
- Longhi (like a sarong for coverup and dinner)
- Sandals (will wear these most days for in/out of temples), walking shoes
- Cheap pair of slippers (the kind you get at some hotels to use for hotel rooms with tile floors)
- Bathing Suit (don’t leave home without it)
- Sun Hat, Scarf
This should be more than enough for my month long trip. Is there anything else you would want to take along?
I’ll give you an example of how you can stretch these items. On my trip last year at this time to Ethiopia, about two weeks into the trip, someone in my group said “…how many clothes did you pack anyway…you’ve had something different on for dinner every night…” Well, in fact, I had worn the same thing every night! So to show you how I did this, I’ve taken a pair of capris and the extra top that I mentioned above (which I bring along for just this reason), and put together six different outfits with those same two pieces.
First, just add a scarf
#2, add a necklace (maybe one you've bought along the way)
#3, use a long sleeve shirt as a cover-up
#4, add the cardigan and a bandana
#5, add a rain jacket for the cool evenings
#6, switch out the top for a "globeDOTTIngTravel" polo shirt
So you can really mix and match and layer the few items in your bag to get different looks.
Of course, there is a lot more to pack than clothing…toiletries, medical and health items, gadgets and other miscellaneous items. So if you are interested in getting the complete packing list which I provided to those who are accompanying me on this Myanmar small group tour, contact me, and I’ll email it to you.
I am ready to go explore Myanmar again and Laos for the first time! With a bag that weighs a little less than 30 pounds, and with plenty of room to spare (I may stuff some gift items in there for people we meet along the way).
Come Explore With Me on my next small group tour to Myanmar. scheduled for October 2013!
