Now that we\u2019re about one week into our trip to China and Mongolia, we\u2019ve ventured beyond Beijing, our first destination. For this two month trip, we\u2019ve packed as lightly as possible. Instead of each of us taking our normal packs (around 80 liters in size) and also carrying additional smaller packs, we\u2019re only carrying one medium sized pack (about 35 liters) and smaller backpacks. Also, one of the smaller bags is a camera\/laptop bag.<\/p>\n
We decided to pack light after our experiences with previous long-term trips. While living out of a suitcase (or backpack) gets old, so does carrying a heavy load. We learned what we can and can\u2019t live without, and have adjusted accordingly. We\u2019re also not going anywhere with drastic weather changes, and that makes it a lot easier to cut stuff out.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re each carrying about 6 shirts, mostly the nylon fast-drying type. I\u2019m also taking one pair of shorts, a pair of jeans, and a pair of safari-style pants that zip off into shorts. Of course, the requisite amount of underwear and socks are included. Socks are very important, never underestimate their value. For slightly chillier weather in Mongolia, we also have warmer fleece shirts and light rain jackets. It will be cooler up there, but not too bad since we\u2019ll arrive in July.<\/p>\n
We also have smaller bottles of shampoo and other personal hygiene items. Larger bottles are heavy and consume a large volume of space in our bags. We can always buy more of these items as we travel if needed. Furthermore, we\u2019re taking one towel for both of us. Hopefully we can keep it dry.<\/p>\n
We each have one pair of shoes and a pair of flip-flops for showers and lounging around. So far every hotel we\u2019ve visited in China has provided shower shoes. It\u2019s the Asian way, I think.<\/p>\n
Electronics make up a large portion of our weight. We\u2019re carrying a laptop and associated cords and plug adapters. We\u2019re also avid photographers, and have two digital SLRs and four lenses between us. A small case of blank DVDs will be used to backup our photos, and zip lock bags are used to keep all of the cords, batteries, and memory cards dry and organized.<\/p>\n
On our year-long trip a few years ago, we brought a pocket knife for peeling fruit. It\u2019s generally a bad idea to eat raw fruits or vegetables in foreign countries without peeling or cooking them first. (\u201cPeel it, cook it, wash it, or vomit.\u201d) We packed the knife again for this trip, but upon arrival at the Beijing airport it was confiscated at the security checkpoint to get onto the train from the airport to downtown. Now, every time I see some attractive and exotic Asian fruit in the market, I get upset. We\u2019ll probably buy another knife once we get out of the big cities, but every entrance into the Beijing subway system has a security checkpoint. I guess they just don\u2019t want me to eat their fruit!<\/p>\n
So far, the lighter bags have been much easier to handle than the larger packs we\u2019ve carried on other trips. Time will tell if we decide that we needed more space, though.<\/p>\n