It's almost time to go. Everything has been prepared and packed since a week ago. You must be wondering, what are the things I will bring for this trip. Three months on the road is not short, but not that long too. You have read from the previous post about the things I had to buy. All of those things are packed and will be brought for my trip. When planning on what items to bring, many were decidedly left out, but many more were added.
As I have mentioned, I will only bring a 22" suitcase. Many people, having seen the size of my suitcase, expressed strong doubts and suggested me taking a bigger suitcase. I disagreed with them. I don't want to bring one that is too big, because I will use public transportation and walking instead of getting a taxi from/to the airport to/from the hotel. On the weekend trips, I will only bring my backpack or an expandable duffel bag.
I tried so hard to keep the number of things to bring. But, I hopelessly failed. The suitcase now weighs 21kg, and the backpack weighs 8kg (which I will lug around when arriving in Amsterdam for the layover). For KLM flights, the checked baggage allowance is only 1 piece of item with maximum weight of 23kg, while the cabin baggage allowance is only 1 piece of item with maximum weight of 12kg. However, for Alitalia flights, although the checked baggage allowance is the same as that of KLM, the cabin baggage allowance however is only 8kg maximum.
Below are the things I packed. Some of them were packed in the suitcase to be checked-in, some went to the backpack to be brought on the airplane cabin.
1. Undergarments and socks
- GT Man underwear (x5)
- Renoma underwear (x7)
- Bum boxer (x3)
- Gap brief (x1)
- Renoma singlets (x3)
- Uniqlo short socks (x2)
- Uniqlo long socks (x2)
- Topman short socks (x3)
- Topman long socks (x2)
- Hush puppies socks (x1)
- Daiso thick socks (x1)
2. Pants and shorts
- Esprit shorts (x1)
- Giordano shorts (x1)
- G2000 khaki pants (x2)
- G2000 jeans (x1)
- Jeans (x1)
- Nike tennis shorts (x1)
- Rip Curl surf shorts (x1)
- Sleeping shorts (x2)
3. T-shirts
- G2000 Blu t-shirt (x1)
- Esprit t-shirt (x5)
- Topman t-shirt (x2)
- Padini t-shirt (x1)
- Giordano t-shirt (x1)
- Nike training t-shirt (x1)
- Volcom shirt (x1)
4. Cold-weather clothings
- Uniqlo long-sleeved t-shirt (x2)
- Zara sweater (x1)
- Topman turtleneck sweater (x1)
- Topman sweater (x1)
- Gap cashmere sweater (x1)
- G2000 vest (x1)
- Topman scarf (x1)
- Fox scarf (x1)
- Wool scarf (x1)
- Winter Time winter hat (x1)
- Daiso gloves (x2)
- Topman gloves (x1)
- Long john pants (x1)
5. Travel gears and miscellaneous
- Money belt (x1)
- Ponco (x1)
- Expandable duffel bag (x1)
- Luggage tag (x2)
- Travel adapter (x2)
- Carabiner (x2)
- Small flashlight (x1)
- Earplugs (x3)
- Padlock (x1)
- Shoulder bag strap (x1)
- Small scotch tape (x1)
- Card wallet (x1)
- Backpack rain cover (x1)
- Scissor (x1)
- Dry bag (x1)
- Hand warmers (x18)
- Neck pillow (x1)
- Tote bag (x1)
- Cap (x1)
- Belt (x1)
- Oakley glasses with case (x1)
- Oakley sunglasses with case (x1)
- Esprit umbrella (x1)
- Wristwatch (x1)
- Zara coat (x1)
- Oakley jacket (x1)
- Gift for the host family (x1) - not shown in the picture
6. Books
- Notebook (x2)
- Dive log book (x1)
- Travel journal (x1)
- Pocket Oxford Hachette French Dictionary (x1)
- Rick Steves' Provence & The French Riviera 2011 guidebook (x1)
- Rick Steves' Best of Europe 2011 guidebook (x1)
- Rick Steves' Snapshot Italy's Cinque Terre guidebook (x1)
- Let's Go Europe 2008 guidebook excerpts
7. Electronics
- Sony A300 DSLR camera (x1)
- Extra battery for DSLR camera (x1)
- Extra memory card for DSLR camera (x1)
- Extra battery for compact digital camera (x1)
- Sony DSC T-2 compact digital camera with case (x1)
- Battery charger for compact digital camera (x1)
- Gorillapod (x1)
- MicroSIM adaptor for iPhone 4 (x1)
- USB cable for DSLR camera (x1)
- USB cable for compact digital camera (x1)
- Battery charger for DSLR camera (x1)
- Toshiba netbook (x1)
- Nokia E71 cellphone with charger (x1)
- iPhone 4 with charger and earphone (x1)
- Battery charger for netbook (x1)
- Optical USB mouse (x1)
- SanDisk Cruzer thumbdrive (x1)
- WesternDigital external portable hard disk (x1)
- USB cable for iPhone 4 (x1) - not shown in the picture
8. Toiletries
- Towel (x1)
- Insect repellent (x1)
- The Body Shop lip balm (x1)
- The Body Shop lip butter (x1)
- SPF 70 sunblock (x1)
- Calvin Klein One Summer perfume (x1)
- Nail clipper (x1)
- Small mirror (x1)
- Gillette shaver (x1)
- Refill for shaver (x2)
- Comb (x1)
- Toothbrush (x2)
- Toothpaste (x1)
- Body soap (x1)
- Shampoo (x1)
- L'oreal face cleaner (x1)
- L'oreal face moisturizer (x1)
- Cotton bud (x1 pack)
- Tissues (x5 packs)
- Wet tissues (x3 packs)
- Toiletries bag (x1)
- Body moisturizer from dermatologist (x1) - not shown in the picture
9. Medicines
- Band-aid (x1 pack)
- Blisters plaster (x1 pack)
- Rash cream (x1)
- Diarrhea medication (x3 stripes)
- Allergy medication (x3 stripes)
- Berocca multivitamin (x1 box)
- Antimo (x1 stripe)
- Panadol (x1 box)
- Cough medication (x3 stripes)
- Vomit medication (x1 stripe)
- Sleeping pill (x4 tablets)
- Medication bag (x1)
- Cream from dermatologist (x3) - not shown in the picture
10. Documents and finances
- Singapore dollar notes
- Euro notes
- Envelopes (x5)
- Wallet (x1)
- Internet banking tokens (x3)
- Copies of documents (tickets, reservations, contact lists, identity cards, photos, etc) (x2 sets)
- Passport (x1) - not shown in the picture
- Credit cards (x2) - not shown in the picture
- ATM cards (x3) - not shown in the picture
- Insurance card (x1) - not shown in the picture
- International student card (ISIC) (x1) - not shown in the picture
- PADI Advanced Open Water Diver card (x1) - not shown in the picture
11. Footwears and containers
- Nike running shoes (x1)
- Zara canvas shoes (x1)
- Crocs sandals (x1)
- Ziplock plastic bags (x20)
- Plastic bags (x10) - not shown in the picture
Here my suitcase and backpack look like after packing.
Finally, closed and zipped.
For the flight, I will wear jeans, long-sleeved t-shirt, cashmere sweater, socks, running shoes, and, of course, underwear. I will put on the money belt (inside are the passport, credit & ATM cards, and money) at all times during the flight. The rest of the cold-weather stuff and all other valuables are put in the backpack for easy access when needed.
This is the end of this series. I know you are as sad as I am. But I'm hoping that I can still write while on the road, if I have time and internet connection. I'm all set and ready to go. For now, au revoir et à bientôt.
Awesome series Stewart. Your blog helped me a lot with my decisions. I'll do a French course at Actilangue too, on semptember.
ReplyDeleteSo... give us news! How's the trip going?
Thanks, Phillippe! I'm glad you like it. I'm sorry that I'm not able to update the blog for now, as I am really busy with school and traveling. But I can tell you that so far it has been an amazing trip with a lot of experience!
ReplyDeleteAfter studying in Actilangue for almost 7 weeks now, I can really recommend it for your French study. I have learned so much from school and from practical life in homestay and during the traveling in France.
So how long will you be in Nice for learning French?
Salut Stewart!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry it took so long for me to get back to you.
I'll stay in Nice for 2 months, from September to November. I was going to quit my job to stay 3 months, but I got 1 month of sabbatical leave (which is rare in Brazil)... so with my annual vacation, I can stay for 2 months.
So... do you still use the trains for your travels or did you find a cheaper way (maybe bus)? I found TGV too expensive.
Do you have a Flickr account or something like that, where we can see pictures from your trip?
Et sur les femmes? Il y a beaucoup de belles femmes à Cote d'azur?
Salut Philippe. That sounds great that you will spend 2 months in Nice. I know getting sabbatical leave is difficult. As you might already read, I'm lucky that my boss granted me 2 months of sabbatical leave. By the way, in my class, I have had 1 Brazilian girl from San Paolo for 2 weeks, and now I have a Brazilian couple also staying for 2 weeks. They are very nice people!
ReplyDeleteI think September to November might be in fall and early winter. Yes, a lot of pretty French girls here, especially now that it's getting hotter nearing the end of spring, people are now filling up the beach.
Yes, I'm using trains for my travels to far destinations. Like you can see in one of my posts, I have booked train tickets far in advance for several weekends trip to get a cheaper price. TGV is very expensive if booked near the departure day (especially for Paris). When already in Nice, I have bought TGV tickets for my Avignon trip two weeks before, and it's already expensive. However, also when already in Nice, I have bought TGV tickets for Marseille and Aix-en-Provence just few days before the trip, and the is price already the maximum price but not very expensive.
For the places near Nice (and there is a lot), you can use bus, normally 1 euro for each bus ride. I suggest you buy a guide book specifically for Provence and French Riviera like I did (you can also see it in one of my posts) to know what are the places to visit near Nice.
I don't post my photos to my flickr accounts. I post it to my Facebook. Although I haven't uploaded all of the photos for the trips outside Nice. If you want, you can add me in Facebook: stewart_life@yahoo.com (send me a message to with your friend application so that I can know to accept you), to view the photos.