Packing List

Many people ask me what I take with me when I travel. I use what is considered by most to be a carry-on bag as my checked luggage. I take a backpack as my carry-on luggage. Within the back-pack, among other things, I have a small bag with a shoulder strap which I take out at each destination and use as my daily carry-around bag with my guidebook, maps, camera, film, etc. Here is a packing list that is fairly complete if you want to see what goes in these bags:

1 air ticket
Passport
Immunization record
$350 in traveler’s checks in 20s (20) and 50s (3)
$500 in cash in 50s (1), 20s (17), 10s (8), and 1s (30) (latest designs only)
Currency for Thailand, Singapore, Germany, and Brazil leftover from previous trips
1 credit card for getting cash at ATMs (prepaid credit balance/no transaction fee to minimize cost)
2 credit cards for charging expenses
Business cards

1 carry-on suitcase with wheels and multiple pockets (to be checked)
1 backpack (to be my carry-on luggage)
1 small bag with over-the-shoulder strap (which fits in the backpack when flying, busing, boating)
1 passport/money pouch (around-the-waist version)
1 pin-on hidden pocket with 2 large safety pins to attach it
1 folding wallet
Photocopy of checkbook register and 3 blank personal checks

3 bound journal booklets–100 sheets each (600 pages total)
5 ballpoint pens
1 flashlight
1 book reading light
1 small pair binoculars
1 35 mm camera
12 rolls film
1 combination lock (to use with chain below)
1 coiled bicycle chain (for locking suitcase to places on trains and in hotels)
1 travel alarm clock
1 watch
1 large garbage bag with twist-tabs (to put around suitcase when traveling in rainy weather)
1 gallon-size freezer bag to protect journals
Several quart-size baggies for holding/protecting various items
Several packets of silica gel to keep items dry
Collapsible umbrella
Hand fan (free gift when in Tokyo and REALLY handy)

Malaysia/Singapore guidebook
Torn-out pages of part of Thailand guidebook (for sections being visited this year)
Torn-out pages of part of India guidebook (for sections being visited this year)
Printed guide to Shanghai/Suzhou (downloaded from Internet)
Printed guide to Sri Lanka (copied from library copy of guidebook)
Printed guide to Egypt (downloaded from Internet)
8 Novels to read:
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
Plainsong by Kent Haruf
The Feast of Love by Charles Baxter
The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
The Diagnosis by Alan Lightman
House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III
A Frolic of His Own by William Gaddis
Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder
Copy of eyeglass prescription
Photocopies of passport/visas, driver’s license, credit cards, ticket
Printout of emergency numbers for credit cards, insurances
Printout of address book/e-mail address book
Extra passport photos for visas

Antihistamines
Anti-malaria tablets
Stomach relief capsules
Ibuprofen tablets
Bandages
Combination sun screen/insect repellant
Shampoo
Liquid hair tonic that works like mousse
Deodorant
Soap
10 disposable shavers
Shaving cream
Toothbrush
Toothpaste
Dental floss
Eyeglass cleaner
Q-tips
Roll of toilet paper

1 pair eyeglasses
1 pair prescription sunglasses
Fingernail file
Toenail clippers (for both fingernails and toenails)
Hair scissors
Comb
Swiss pocket knife
Corkscrew
Can opener
3 pairs of ear plugs
1 eye mask
Universal sink stopper
Small brush for cleaning crud off shoes
Iron-on patching material
travel sheet (cotton fabric sewn together like a sleeping bag that you crawl into--for emergency use when stuck in an unclean place)

1 pair shoes
1 pair sandals
1 pair khaki pants
1 pair khaki shorts
2 swimsuits (which can serve as shorts)
6 t-shirts
2 knit shirts with collars
1 long-sleeve shirt
1 waterproof windbreaker
5 pairs shorty white socks
5 pairs of long socks (mixture of white and khaki colors)
4 pairs of underwear
1 floppy hat