Simple strategies for smarter packing

Nine tricks and habits that make my journeys more manageable

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Simple strategies for smarter packing

Nine tricks and habits that make my journeys more manageable

Photo by Belinda Fewings on Unsplash

Dear NE-One

The sun is setting now, as I open my computer to write. I can’t see the horizon or the sky (Jakarta’s multi-storey buildings are too high, too close) but I know the time of day from the call to prayer: the muezzin’s smooth voice, a gentle current sliding just above the restless rhythm of the city’s traffic, slips softly into our hotel room.

There’s nothing remarkable about this place – there will be thousands of hotel rooms just like this one all across the city: beige walls, shower squeezed beside the toilet, two wire coat hangers hooked on a rail – but still, we’ve settled in well since we landed in Jakarta a few days ago. Laundry is draped here and there; devices are charging on the desk, beside the bed, in the bathroom. Mark’s clothes are on the room’s one shelf and my things have become a collection of organised chaos on my side of the bed. I’m often amazed at how much can erupt from one carefully considered backpack.

This hotel marks the beginning of a four-month stint in Indonesia. We pack up and move on again tomorrow – and for the next four months we’ll be changing hotels and homestays every one or two nights, sometimes three.

Over the years of working and travelling like this, I’ve picked up some tricks and habits to make journeys smoother, lighter and a little easier. Perhaps you might find them useful:

• I always pack a lightweight tote – good for laundry or shopping.

• I turn clothes that need to be washed inside out.

• Compression packing cubes are essential. They save space and it’s easy to find what I need because I label each one and pack logically (this trip: Tops, Bottoms, Undies, Jungle, Beach).

• All of my clothes mix and match.

• If I need to glam up for an evening, I do so with jewellery.

• All bits and pieces – first-aid kit, washing line, water filter, head torch etc – are kept together in a zip-up packing cube. To save on space, some of these items are stored inside my walking shoes, which are in the same cube.

• To minimise the chance of leaving something behind, I steer clear of hotel cupboards. If I do use one, I’ll store my bag or pack in there too – as a reminder that things are inside.

• Everything has its place in my bag/backpack. This helps me to keep track when I pack up.

• Useful items I carry include a sarong, a few zip-lock bags in different sizes, a fine-tipped permanent marker, medical tape and a crafting blade (which gets through airport security, unlike scissors).

How do you stay organised when you travel? I’d love to know – I’m always on the lookout for new packing tips and hacks.

Until next time,
Narina x

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