I’m setting my alarm tonight for 3:45 AM so I can get up, brush my teeth and leave this (spacious and well equipped) apartment in Nha Trang Vietnam to catch a train to Hoi An Vietnam. And right now, my stuff is scattered all around this apartment.
There’s electronics in the kitchen. There’s clothing all over the bedroom. There’s a few things in the bathroom. And there’s even a sweaty pair of pants hanging up on the balcony.
It’s times like these that I get to take an inventory of what I have with me. And of what I do and don’t need. There are things I regret bringing along, and things I cannot live without. And a few things I wish I had with me right now.
Stuff I wish I had left at home:
One heavy pair of pants — Again with the pants. I have two pairs of pants and both feature heavy duty ripstop fabric. They were fine in Japan, but now I find having two pairs is overkill and I wish I had a lighter pair that don’t make me sweat as much.
Three white T-shirts — these are three of the four white things I brought, and since they get washed with everything else, they are getting a little dingy. Heather grey would have been better.
Two sporks — who needs two sporks? I have not even used one spork.
A few of the meds I brought — I’ve only had mild stomach upsets so far. But I have enough Pepto to last me a month.
Second pair of water shoes — One pair is going in the trash, I think.
A lot of my charge cables — I find that I use the same four charge cords over and over and lot of the specialty cords I have packed go unused. I did have one (cheap-o) cable die on me, so I was glad to have a spare.
Extras: toothbrushes (I have three), sunscreen (2), towels (2), underwear (7) and more. I don’t need all the boxer shorts I’ve brought, for example.
Stuff I’ve already discarded:
Thermal leggings — once I left Japan for the tropics, there was no reason for them.
Dish soap — who travels with dish soap?
Complementary gifts for first-class passengers on airlines — It’s pretty much junk.
A heavy metal water bottle with a built in thermometer, given as a gift. Sorry. Too heavy.
The plug adaptor that only works in Brazil. Gone.
Tossing tonight: My old pair of pink native Jeffersons (pictured in the photo at the top of this post). The bottoms are worn smooth and are therefore somewhat dangerous to wear on wet surfaces. I can get a new pair when I get home. Also, it’s possible to buy similar shoes nearly anywhere in SE Asia. So I’m happy to save some space.
Stuff I’m glad I packed:
Logoless, plain t-shirts — I see a lot of tourists in their NY Yankees hats and BANGKOK! t-shirts and all I can think is, “tourist.” I get the feeling I’ll see a Something Natural t-shirt any day now. I’ll stick with plain t-shirts (Unless it’s my I&M t-shirt).
Flashlight — This little Thrunite flashlight is rechargeable and I use it often. It has a low light more and a really night 1200 lumen setting. Good to have by the bedside. Good to have in a tent. Good to have when the public restroom has no lights. Good to have when walking back to the accommodations from a restaurant. The only down side is the clip broke, so now I can’t attach it to my baseball cap to go hands-free.
One small adapter with two USB C ports and one pass though plug and one charger with two USB C ports. That’s all I need to keep everything charged.
Two super short fast charge cords — Shorter cords are better than long ones that get tangled.
Nano Bag — this little lump unfurls to become a shopping bag that can carry a massive amount of stuff. It’s perfect in an airport when my personal item has too many bags of pistachios in it.
My collapsible water bottle — It rolls up and stows away when it’s not used for hydration. And it has its own carabiner attachment.
Arch support slides — the monkeys got the first pair. Now I have a second pair. I think I scored the only size-12 arch support slide sandals in the Philippines last week.
Nite IZE 12-inch Gear Ties — These things have a bunch of uses from keeping my coffee bag closed to attaching my rain jacket to my sling bag to securing my headphones so they don’t fall off my personal item bag. Brilliant.
Bandaids — always good to have three or four.
A couple things I will likely buy if I run across them:
French Press — okay, I already bought this in Manila. $6. A worthy investment.
A pair of very light pants — see above.
Another collared shirt — I only have two and one is constantly wrinkled.
Pain reliever — time to restock.