5 Essential & 5 Useless Items to pack… or not!
June 1, 2011 in Inspiration, Travelogue
We belong to a Facebook Group called “Families On The Move.” This is our virtual friend set of people who live like we do, as full-time nomads, or close to it. If that’s you, or if you’d like it to be you, check out the group! There are some pretty fabulous families on there. This post is in response to a writing prompt for that group.
Most people pack far more than they need. I know we do. We pack pretty light for a family of six, one backpack and one day pack each, but even so, that’s 12 bags… and then there are the musical instruments. We could do with less.
What do we carry that we consider essential? I’m going to skip the obvious and go for the unusual.
1. Suture Kit
Yep. Seriously. We needed one once and didn’t have it. Now we do. Along with it comes a set of new syringes & IV starts. We realized, at the wrong moment, that if clean needles were not available, we’d take the dirty ones over having a child die. Better yet, let’s carry clean ones.
2. Grapefruit Seed Crush Extract
I use this stuff to disinfect fruits and veggies on the road and we take it internally when we (inevitably) get gut bugs from eating food on a chicken bus somewhere. It really is almost a miracle.
3. Sprouting Seeds
I know you’re thinking, “WHAT?!” but I really do carry sprouting seeds and a sprouting cup from The Sprout People in my backpack. The “San Francisco Mix” is our favourite. They can be grown anywhere and when green veggies are in short supply they make a nutritious addition to a chopped salad. Call me crazy. I carry yogurt and cheese starter too.
4. ipod Touch
We each have one of these. They are our internet connection, our telephone calls (skype) our library (ibooks, kindle & stanza apps) our “cheap” cameras, school enrichment (times table practice and other educational apps) and, of course, our radio. ipods win over other devices because of the multi-functionality.
5. Tarp
It was my Uncle Dick who first suggested this, before we started our year long cycle trip. I thought he was crackers; add a TARP to our already over stuffed panniers? Actually, he was a genius. $70 USD for an ultra light weight tarp was the best money we’ve ever spent. We used it every single day and we still do. Buy one. I’ll thank him for ya.
On the flip side, what are 5 items that are basically useless that we could all leave at home?
1. An egg keeper
I’m ashamed to admit taking one of these on our first big cycling trip. Now, we just buy the eggs and carry them, cartonless, in a plastic bag like the rest of the world does. If we have to transport them for more than a day, we hard boil them. It’s one of those items that seems like a good idea, but is, in fact, a total waste of money.
2. Books
Pack ONE per person to read and then trade it in on a book swap shelf for a new one. That’s the best way. Books weigh a ton and are the bane of my existence. Better yet, switch to e-books. I’d love to say I faithfully adhere to this advice, but I’m the worst packer of an extra book that you’ve ever met, even though I know better!
3. Underwear
For real. It’s just one more thing to hand wash in some hostel shower.
4. Toiletries
Anywhere people are found, toiletries can be purchased. Sometimes you have to adjust your brand expectations, but there really is NO sense in carrying around heavy bottles of your favourite.
5. DVD Players
On road trips, especially. Why do people turn their cars into living rooms? Isn’t the whole point of travel to break away and do something new and different, experience something real? The best way to do that is to unplug.
To read the other responses check out:
See… we’re not the only gypsy family you know! 😉
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Okay, I have to ask. What have you been using the tarp for? Shelter from the elements? Sleeping? May sound like a naive question, but lack of experience has me asking. Thanks.
The tarp… eating and cooking on, lots… shelter, sometimes, mostly to cover stuff up or use as a ground cloth. We stake it down at the corners and hang out on it all over the place=portable living room! 😉
Nope. Never had trouble crossing a border with it, but it’s properly packaged in our med kit… it looks official, not “addict” like, if you know what I mean!
Same thing, yep. Perhaps the place we buy ours from just labels it a bit differently!
OK – you got me on your list of essentials. Grapefruit WHAT? I’ve never even heard of it! And suture stuff? Isn’t that like… for doctors to use to sew you up? But I totally got ya on the DVD player – never have figured out why people carry those things around the world…
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Ipod Touch would have come in handy. We did carry books – lots of them. We would leave them behind or trade them in, but when we came across a good stash of English Lang. books, we stocked up; and they are heavy! On the other hand, we do have wonderful memories of how we obtained certain books.
What about a SteriPen to sterilize water? We’re all BIG water drinkers. Is the Grapefruit seed extract the only thing you do to combat stomach bugs?
Thanks for the link to the FB group. I just submitted my request!
Susan… we carry a ceramic filter for our water usage and it works GREAT. Call me crazy but I’m skeptical of those light pens do they REALLY work? And no, GSE isn’t the only thing we use. We also carry “Ultra Immune” by Beeyoutiful everywhere we go, as well as over the counter anti-diarrheals (only for days when we can’t stay home, like a bus day) and we are ridiculously thorough about the “wash, boil, peel” regimen. We VERY rarely get sick.
Nancy: GSE: Grapefruit Seed Crush Extract it’s awesome. Do a little online research. We use it instead of bleach on the outsides of fruit and veg and we take a few drops in juice internally for gut problems. It works WONDERS. Suture kit… yep… we’d prefer to hand it to a real doctor to use, but in a pinch, I’d definitely sew a kid up (my vet friend showed me how to tie the knots!) We’ve actually been in a situation where we needed one, the hospital didn’t have one… and neither did we… now we do.