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Randy Johnson's "Footloose and Fancy-Free in the Third World"
All text Copyright © 1992-2012, Randy R. Johnson.
The basic sewing kit includes a small variety of needles, several colors and thicknesses of thread (cotton), a thimble, a needle-threader, a few buttons, safety pins, and straight pins. Most needles are nickel-plated and soon rust if not protected from humidity. Add a coating of wax or ChapStick to them when not in use. Stainless steel needles are unheard of outside of sail maker's shops and are expensive. Take the trouble to find good quality thread at home; the average stuff you get overseas is pathetically weak. Round spools are good for keeping the thread from kinking up, but too bulky for me. I wrap the thread around flat 'pop-sicle' ('ice-lolly') sticks, or heavy cardboard for carrying. Nothing beats a thimble for its purpose. Needle-threaders are flimsy, so take a spare. These few items can easily fit in a little waterproof match-safe and it could be your entire sewing kit. Or add some more threads and needles to make it a little bigger.
That is the basic kit, but you really need a few extra items to make it a good sewing outfit. You can probably use a few more safety pins than will fit in the tiny kit. They tend to come in handy when your trousers rip, or your pack or bra strap breaks, so I keep a few bigger ones fastened away behind the button placket of several shirts; they eventually rust and get replaced. A strip of Velcro material can occasionally come in handy as a closure for a shirt or trousers pocket (it makes a nice sound when anyone tries to slip a hand in). I usually add snap fasteners on my shirt and shorts pockets to keep from losing things out of them.
An optional item is a stitch cutter (seam splitter); it allows you to rip out previous sewing without cutting the material. If you do much sewing, it is much preferable to accidentally cutting up your garment with a pocket knife, as I used to do. I cut the handle down so it fits in my basic sewing kit, which is a bit larger that a match-safe. I used to use a little metal spice tin as my sewing kit, and wrapped my fishing line and heavy cord around the outside of it, protecting these with a layer of electrical tape. I always end up with a few of those tiny little "match-book" sewing kits that you get on airlines or at hotels. I put one in my hip-pouch just so I always have something for emergencies.
If you ever want to get into some more serious sewing, you just need some heavier needles and thread. Heavier cord should be waxed to pull through more easily. Now you can try sewing up most parts of your rucksack, jeans seams, or hip pouch. Needles for sewing leather have fluted triangular points that make a clean slit in the leather without poking a hole; they come in varying sizes and, to do it properly, you should coat the needle with some kind of wax before each stitch or two. ChapStick, Vaseline, Tiger Balm, or boot wax will do. When you sew leather or canvass to lighter material, you should place a patch of split leather behind the stitches, to keep it from ripping out the material. You can find leather scraps at the leatherworkers in the marketplaces of big towns along the way.
Now, we're getting serious. If you start to think about sewing leather, you should probably go looking for stainless steel sail maker's needles; they aren't cheap but they are miles ahead of common needles. Ordinary needles of larger size tend to break very easily on tougher jobs. While you're there, take a look at a sail maker's glove. You will soon figure out that a thimble is no good at all for pushing a needle through a couple of layers of leather or canvass. Sail makers wear a leather strap around their hand (called a "glove") which holds a large hard "thimbled" surface directly over the heel of the thumb. With this you can put the whole weight of your body behind the needle (that's when the ordinary ones break, and why you use wax to lubricate the needle). I doubt that you will want to buy, let alone carry such a tool. But having traveled with a sail maker in Central America, I made a poor substitute by sewing leather around a large coin (I think it's an Ecuadorian Sucre), and then making a handstrap for it out of a bootlace. It puts the coin over the right spot on my hand, but lacks the "thimbling" to help keep the needle from slipping off under pressure. By this time I was repairing rucksacks, tents, and shoes for fun and free beers.
Well, I've obviously gotten carried away with my own hobbies here. You will get along fine with the basic sewing kit, and can probably leave the heavy jobs to a professional somewhere along the way, should the need arise.
Cup -- This is one of the required items. Take a good-sized cup; if it is big enough, you can use it for a bowl, as well. 12 ounces (350 ml) is minimal, but 16 (0.5 liter) is better. My latest one holds 24 ounces (0.7 liter) and you can get them much bigger! Find some items that pack perfectly inside of it and it won't use much space. Sturdy plastic cups will not burn your fingers or lips as often. Enameled metal cups can also be used in a pinch for cooking, and will stand up to an electric emersion heater. Everyone in China carries a very large enameled cup with a lid on it. After drinking a few cups of tea on the train, they may dump in a packet of instant noodles, let it sit for a minute, and have lunch. You can buy them in any department store in China, but I have very seldom seen cups with lids elsewhere, although enameled cups are universally available.
Some travelers take their own cup into cafes so they don't have to use one that may not have been washed in clean water. This can be a good habit in some countries with sanitation problems, and especially at road side tea stalls along the way; the tea has been boiled, the glass has not.
Bowl -- A bowl can sometimes be useful, even when not camping out. If your cup is big enough, a bowl is redundant, unless you just have to have your tea and food at the same time. If you end up needing a bowl too, you can always buy a cheap plastic one in any city.
Silverware -- A good spoon is essential, so take one you like eating with. A fork is somewhat redundant. You can always use your pocket knife, but I take a folding picnic knife with a good edge which saves cleaning lots of food out of my pocket knife.
Chopsticks -- I am now going to tell you that you should take chopsticks to China! Although disposable chopsticks are beginning to appear, you will often be given some very grotty bamboo chopsticks; they are just impossible to clean properly. If you carry your own you will be safer and save the forests of Borneo by not using the disposable variety. If you forget them, pour a glass full of hot tea and stick the grotty local chopsticks in it for a while. Many Chinese do the same thing; toss the tea out the window or on the floor. You can easily buy cheap chopsticks in any Chinese shop outside of China, and anywhere in Hong Kong.
Salt -- This is optional, and you can always pick up small quantities of salt whenever you need some along the way. You will probably carry salt if you cook for yourself very often. It is also useful on food that is a bit bland, and to keep you from suffering from salt deficiency in hot climates. If you take salt because you sweat so much, always take it with some food; too much salt on an empty stomach will make you sick. Salt can also be used for brushing your teeth and is good for cleaning blood stains out of clothing, if applied promptly. Salt is also excellent for discouraging leaches that have become attached to you.
Spices -- Even if you never cook, you may occasionally enjoy adding a little spice to food that is becoming monotonous. I usually start out with a little cumin to Asia, or curry to Latin America, just for a nostalgic change of pace. Locally used spices are, of course, available everywhere; and "exotic" ones almost nowhere.
Shaker Tops -- These are small plastic lids which just fit a normal film can. Look for them in sports and outdoor stores at home. They have a flip-up shaker top, and can be used to hold and shake out salt, spices, talc, baking soda, etc. This is a good way to carry small quantities of these items and keep them handy in your day bag. You can always get film cans.
Can Opener -- You probably have one on your pocket knife; does it really work well on all kinds of cans? Use it in the kitchen for a week and see. You can get tiny little folding "P-38" can openers, which usually work reliably well; find them in Army Surplus stores, if not in camping supply shops. Take one as a spare, but a good one on your knife is best.
Emersion Heater -- This is an electric metal coil which you can stick into a cup or pot of liquid to heat it without a stove. It's pretty much of a luxury item, but a small one (about 4 oz. 110 g). If you find a reliable source of electricity (and have the right adapter), it can be a convenience for brewing up your own tea or coffee in your room. Don't leave it plugged in when not in the liquid! These are available in various sizes in some Third World countries, and huge ones are sometimes used in large pots of food. Get one that works on 220 volts (most of the world); it will be very inefficient if you try it at 110 volts -- taking over 10 minutes to heat a cup of water -- but will be much better at the higher voltage.
Food
Food is clearly replenishable, and you certainly can't take enough for your entire trip. The really useful foods you could bring from home would be freeze-dried or dehydrated camp food for an extended trek where you must carry all your own food. This situation will be rare, and I could only recommend bringing such food if you were planning to use it in your first few weeks. It sounds nice to bring along a bit of meuseli, dried fruit, or dried soups, but bringing a lot of food is about as unreasonable as bringing your own water. Whenever you head out for a few days or a week or two on a long journey or a stay in an isolated area, any food you carry will often be to augment the basic food that will probably be available. You will be able to stock up on the standard provisions in the nearest city. Sometimes it is just biscuits, instant coffee, and tinned fish, buy you can often get tinned cheese, meat, and fruits, and dried soups (Maggi soups are not uncommon) to round out your diet. You will also be able to get dried fruits, mueseli, and a few other favorites from home in some places.
More important than what to bring from home, is how much food you will normally carry with you from day to day. Since you will buy virtually all your food locally, the only reason to carry much is when going into rural areas where supplies will be sparse. The main items carried regularly by travelers are coffee and tea. Even these are a luxury in most places, since you can usually get one or the other very cheaply at most hours. Still, it can be pleasant to make your own hot beverage when you want it, and even if you don't have a stove or electric element, you will be able to get hot water for tea in many lodgings where you stay. If you aren't happy with the local bulk tea and coarse coffee, you can now buy Nescafe and British teas in many places. You can even get it now in a few places in China, which is the best place to have some, since every hotel, dorm room, and train comes with an unlimited supply of boiling hot water.
When you get into sugar and milk powder, you have already started to fill up a little corner of your pack, without even thinking about food. If it sounds like a good idea to you, take a small plastic bottle or two to carry these items, so you won't be transporting large tins and glass bottles as you buy it along the way.
Reading Material -- You will probably do more reading on the Road than you do at home. It is the television and cinema of travelers, and a great escape from your boring daily life in exotic places. Some people start out with a stack of great books and carry them around until their next mail outlet -- or until they get home. Yes, it's great to finally have the time to read all the books you've had on your list for years, but books are simply too heavy to consider carrying that many around. An average paperback or guidebook weighs 10 to 14 oz (280 to 400 g). Two guidebooks and three or four novels weigh about as much as a light tent! Hit the beach for a couple of weeks with all those special books, and then mail them home; what a great way to start a trip!
Try to take just one good (or raunchy) novel, and plan to trade it with other travelers along the way. If you do bring or buy your own special books, be aware that serious treatises on advanced physics or the tenets of Tantric Buddhism tend to get left unread in your bag while you opt for lighter reading for enjoyment and escape. You will often be able to buy books about the local culture in the countries you travel to, or even find other travelers with some they are willing to swap.
Guidebooks -- Most travelers take along at least one guide book. They are full of (hopefully) useful maps and information, including where to stay and eat, how to get from one place to another, what to see, and some kind of cultural and historical background. I bought a guidebook in Egypt just because it had the detailed information and maps of the antiquities that were rarely available at the sites themselves. The problem is, how many to take? Years ago, you were lucky to find any guidebook geared for backpack travelers; now there are several for each country! It can be tempting to take along a dozen for a long trip, but that would be incredibly heavy.
The best advice is to look through all the guidebook information you can find before you leave, and pick the books that will provide you with the most practical information along the way. One general area guidebook can provide you with most of the basic information you need for several countries. If you go to well-traveled areas, you should be able to pick up the latest information about where to stay and eat from other travelers, and even have a look in their more detailed guidebooks from time to time. On my Latin American trip, I didn't bother to carry the South American Handbook, but I borrowed one on many occasions, taking down detailed notes about the next country I was going to.
Among the most useful items in a guidebook are detailed maps. I often take a whole packet of maps that I have copied from various guidebooks. If I highlight the villages, hotels, and sights that I will probably want to visit, this provides a large percentage of the usefulness of the entire guidebook. I may also copy small sections on culture, history, or the sights of a particular city that will be useful. If everything is useful, I take the whole book, or plan to buy it along the way. But by making some judicious Xerox copies, reducing the size and putting them on both sides of the page, I can carry around the kernel of information I will need for a number of countries in a small packet (zip-lock bag) of papers. Most of the immediate information I need about hotels, timetables, and prices I will pick up along the way. If this is not enough, I can often find a place to pick up a particularly useful guidebook, or at least borrow one for some note-taking.
You can now find many of the common guidebooks in bookstores of the countries you visit. You will also find used guidebooks for sale by other travelers, and at some used bookstores, notably in Kathmandu and Singapore. This brings up the point of what to do with your guidebooks when you no longer need them. I often sell, trade, or give them away, but I try to mail home the ones that are full of my personal travel notes. Although it's tough to give away a good guide book, I often buy new copies of the most useful ones after I get home.
Phrasebook -- If you plan to be in one country or language area for some time, consider bringing a small phrasebook that will teach you more language than a guidebook can. In particular, Spanish in Latin America, or Arabic in North Africa and the Middle East will cover a lot of countries.
Maps -- If you are resourceful, you will be able to find good local and city maps for most places you visit along the way. You can carry a guide or two, copy the maps from other guidebooks before or after you leave, or just get maps from the local tourist office. If you are planning to travel outside the public transportation system -- by driving, hitching, or trekking -- then a large, well-detailed country map will be of great usefulness for identifying villages, crossroads, and natural features. Even if you travel on the bus, you can enjoy good maps if you spend a lot of time in the countryside.
The best maps are to be found at home in book and travel stores; sometimes they make their way into the local country, but usually at a higher price. If you buy one for each country, they will take up quite a bit of space, so try to be selective. Country maps from the local tourist office are usually simple or non-existent, but you will find a few good ones.
If you will be needing a number of detailed maps for your off-road travels, you should find a specialized bookstore or travel store at home that can help you find the maps you need; they may be able to order some for you, if you plan ahead. From Map Link (US, referenced below) you can order a free catalog of 1,200 travel maps from around the world, and for the price of an expensive guidebook you can get their complete list of 80,000 map titles. In London visit Edward Stanford, Ltd., 12-14 Long Acre, London, one of the largest map sources in the world.
Notebooks -- You can buy nice, hard cover notebooks and journals just for travelers. You can just as easily save some space and expense and pick up school notebooks and copybooks along the way. But do look for a few well-bound notebooks that are small enough to carry around with you daily; you will always be needing to write something down, no matter where you are.
Address Book -- Don't take your big one from home, leave it there where it will be safe. Copy the addresses you'll need into the smallest address book you can find. If you don't need that many, then just keep them on a piece of paper protected in plastic, or put it in your money belt.
Pens -- Of course you can buy ball pens anywhere in the world. They may leak a little more often, but they get the job done. The special pens I bring from home are little stubby ones only 3 inches (7 cm) long. They fit in several little corners and bags, so I've always got one with me, even when the big ones get left behind, fall out of my shirt pocket, or get lifted by a light-fingered bank teller.
Indelible Marker -- I always seem to carry one of these around, mainly for addressing packages that I send home. It seems a waste, but I'm often glad I have one, although they are not too difficult to find in big cities. When you get fed up, you can use it to circle and label bed-bug kills or peep-holes in the walls of sleazy hotel rooms. Also good for hitch-hiking signs.
Photos from Home -- Don't forget at least one photo of each of your family and friends. You don't have to be homesick to appreciate the memories of your loved ones back home; or maybe you'll bring photos of your car and dog. You will occasionally have an opportunity to show these photos, not only to your traveling friends, but also to local people. It shows them that you are a real person too; that you have a real family, a home, and a regular life in your country. If you don't have any children, throw in a few photos of some anyway; nothing melts people like photos of kids.
Postcards from Home -- Also bring a few post cards or brochures from your home, or at least your part of the world. They might include a modern city, a small town, some beautiful scenery, and ordinary street scenes, or something of cultural interest. It gives the local people you meet an easier way to identify you with a real culture; bring them along, with your family photos, anytime you get invited into a local home. They will often be amazed by small details that you never noticed -- snow on the mountains, huge lawns, or a policeman on horseback. You can spend an hour just explaining a few post cards; if they really like them, have some extras to give away.
Presents -- You just don't have the room to carry around a lot of trinkets from home to give away to people you haven't even met yet. Yet some people do bring bundles of pens to give out to kids. Occasionally you will make a friendship or receive some hospitality that you would like to acknowledge with a small gift. You can always pick up something locally, and it will certainly be appreciated. For children you make friends with, pens and school notebooks that you buy locally may be greatly appreciated, especially if they didn't beg you. I already suggested post cards from your home. Other tiny trinkets which are unique and easy to carry are beautiful postage stamps, and the usual souvenir pins and badges (patches) from your country. On long trips, I sometimes just give out some of the trinkets I have collected from other far away countries. Sometimes taking a family photo and sending them a nice copy or two when you get home is one of the best gifts you can give; just don't forget!
Odds and Ends
Fan, folding -- Yes, an oriental folding fan is just the ticket for sultry afternoons spent in the confines of desolate railway stations, stationary buses and such. No, not a necessity, but you can find them in many oriental shops at home and abroad. The little metal ones (1 ounce) fold double to easily fit in a shirt pocket. I take a few to the tropics and give them away to other deserving travelers.
Pillow -- This is hardly worth the bulk of carrying, but there will be times when you want one, depending on your sleeping habits. Make sure you have some small bag, such as a very light day pack, that can be used as a pillow case. Then experiment stuffing it with sweaters and such until you have the perfect pillow for you; you may have to double it over to get good "loft". Now when you really need a pillow for camping, the bus, or a poor hotel, you know just how to make one. Bring a small pillow case for this purpose, if you have to.
Inflatable Pillow -- I've been tempted to take a wrap-around neck pillow to use on long bus and train rides, but never actually bothered. It could come in quite handy on a few long journeys, and works reasonably well at preventing stiff neck. Weight 5 oz. (140 g.), or 3 oz. without the cover. You might be tempted to use it as a seat cushion, but it probably would not last long.
Seat Cushion -- I have never bothered to take one on a trip, but there will be a number of times when you will physically suffer from hard seats on long bus rides, and a nice heavy piece of foam rubber under your bum would be worth a week's mail. An inflatable one doesn't take up too much space, but is easily rendered useless. Try to find a good substitute. If you have a sleeping pad, you can fold it and use it on the bus to great advantage. If you don't have a sleeping pad, you might consider a square of old ensolite material as a cushion for bus and camp; you can also buy a single square of Therm-a-Rest padding (see sleeping pads) that weighs 7 oz (200 g) and rolls to 2x15 inches (5x38 cm). Or use a sleeping bag or extra clothing stuffed into a day pack or stuff sack; but plan ahead for this before the long trips.
Super Glue -- You may occasionally need to glue something back together, and if it is your glasses, you may want to carry a tiny tube of super glue. You can also use it on your deteriorating running shoes, and who knows what else. You can now buy super glue in stationery shops in many large cities overseas. Several other glues work as well or better for some jobs, but super glue comes in those tiny little tubes.
Stuff Sacks -- These are just sacks you stuff your "things" into. Your sleeping bag should have its own stuff sack. You can cheaply buy quite strong stuff sacks of various sizes from outdoor stores. They should be of thin coated nylon and close with a drawstring; if they don't have a spring-loaded "toggle" you can add your own. Something about 8" high and 5" in diameter (20 x 12 cm) makes a good toilet bag; and you can certainly use at least two or three near this size to organize your various odds and ends. Take along an empty one too; you can always find a use for it. Weight: 0.5 oz (15 g).
Toggles -- These are the tiny spring-loaded plastic closures used for securing the drawstrings on stuff sacks. You can also use them as an alternative to tying bows in any other draw strings on your jacket, shorts, etc. You just might find a use for a couple of extra ones.
Garbage Bags -- I always carry a couple of heavy-duty plastic garbage bags to protect my rucksack in a rainstorm, or when stowing in for a very dusty bus ride. This is usually adequate, and you can even cut holes so that pack straps fit through it for carrying. I keep one in the outside zip pocket so I will have it handy when needed. As an added precaution, you could take the trouble to put one around everything inside your pack for wet trekking.
Plastic Bags -- Ordinary plastic bags are now used almost everywhere, and you will often find them useful for packing wet clothing, dirty camping gear, and dozens of other things. Leave a good-sized one in the bottom of your day pack that can protect all its contents in case of a sudden rain.
Zip-lock Bags -- Whenever you want a plastic bag, one with a zip-lock top is much better because it seals moisture out -- or in, for wet towels, soap, etc. This modern convenience can be found in the supermarket in one liter (quart) and half-liter sizes; "freezer" bags are stronger than the ordinary variety. I also use them for organizing my mail and film. If you can fit your camera inside one, it's a good emergency protection for canoe trips and unexpected downpours. Much smaller bags can be found in camping of office supply stores and are handy for protecting your camera battery, passport photos, leaky tubes and bottles, and dozens of other things. Take plenty along, you won't often find them overseas.
Elastic Bands (rubber bands, "lackey" bands) -- Take a number of these of several thicknesses; they often come in handy when you least expect it. Heavy ones keep my plastic kit box secure, and you can quickly employ one to temporarily attach a small item (pen knife, fan) to a button hole to keep it safe. Eventually they will rot (especially from sun), but spares should last for quite a while when protected.
Spares -- The longer you travel, the more things will break or run down. Partly for this reason, you will tend to take along fewer of these things in the first place. But still, it is prudent to have a few spares of essential items. The main spares that everyone should carry are flashlight batteries, and bulbs. Fortunately, these can be purchased in many places, but not right when you need them most. If your camera takes a special battery, you should definitely take a spare and protect it as thoroughly as you can from any moisture. The same goes for special batteries for a calculator or clock; it may be months before you find a place that sells a replacement. A good pair of shoelaces, especially for boots, can be hard to find, and are easy to carry along. Now, look around at your other important gear. Are there special little components to your rucksack, tent, stove, or whatever, that would render them useless if lost, broken, or worn out? If you find too many of these, maybe your equipment is too complex to be reliable over a long trip. I carry a spare money belt on a long trip, just because it is not something I can do without, even for a few days.
Odds-and-Ends Bag -- There are a number of little items I like to have handy for all occasions, the kinds of things that easily get lost in the bottom of your day pack or waist bag. I've found it convenient to keep them organized in a small bag; mine is something like a cloth change purse. It usually holds folding scissors, nail clippers, small pen, lighter, Lomotil, Dramamine, ChapStick, aspirin, matchbook-type sewing kit, keys, ear plugs, Band-Aids, and a dab of sunscreen and Tiger Balm. Yours might have completely different contents, but it's a good way to keep them safe and readily available when you need them in the middle of a journey or excursion.
Containers
Good quality, air-tight, plastic squeeze bottles are a real convenience for carrying liquids, and not always easy to come by. You can buy small ones in camping stores at home; get a few good ones and refill them along the way instead of taking pot-luck with whatever you buy. If the cap must be removed to use it, it is at least a nuisance and can easily get lost. I prefer the pop-up "squirt" spouts, especially if no air or liquid can escape until the spout is almost completely vertical. Try it out in the shop. If they aren't closed tightly, they could leak on airplanes or during rough handling. For air travel, or even traveling to high altitudes, squeeze out most of the air and close them in this collapsed state. Put them in a zip-lock bag to be sure. Figure out just how tight you need to screw the top on to make it air tight, and mark it with an indelible black line on the cap and bottle; this prevents stripping the threads on the screw cap by tightening it too far, too often. I had two very good plastic bottles fall apart on my last trip, and realized that they were so important, that I had carried both of them through several years of hard travel. My iodine bottle (what a mess!) had gone on four long trips!
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