When it came to packing for my 3 month trip to Cambodia I didn’t really know where to start, although VSO had sent me some brief guidelines I was thinking things like; how many pairs of knickers do I pack?, Is 5 packs of paracetamol excessive?, Do I bring a jumper?, Will I really need antibacterial powder?!
I thought it would be a good idea to write a post for those of you ready to embark on your own 3 month adventure and having the nightmare I had when it came to packing! Please note I came to Cambodia at the coolest point in the year and also stayed in a host home with electricity so some things may differ depending on the country you are visiting but for the most part it should apply to all the countries ICS currently operates in.
Things I wish I had packed!
Head torch – My dad did buy me one but I forgot to pack it. We cycle a lot here and daylight turns into night very quickly, one minute it’s bright sunshine, the next it’s pitch black and getting caught on the busy roads without any light can be a bit scary! Can also double up as a handy night light when reading in bed.
Plain coloured smart trousers – When shopping for clothes I was thinking of how hot Cambodia would be and I would need really loose, baggy trousers but I was looking for summer clothes in winter! I struggled to find any and ended up buying only 2 pairs of trousers in the sales (both a size 14, I’m a 10!) which of course were huge on me and I just hated wearing them. I bought some patterned ‘hippy trousers’ from the night market in Phnom Penh which of course only tourists wear and all in all I just felt a bit silly. In a nutshell, make sure you pack clothes that you would be happy to wear at home and you quickly realise all those nice pattern tops you packed don’t look so good with your hippy trousers in the office and you have nothing else to wear!
Extension lead – If you have electricity in your host home it can be so handy as you can charge your laptop, have the light on and the fan all at once, hurrah! Thanks god for William Gilbert! ( I did manage to buy one in Phnom Penh for $7 but an expense from my allowance which could have been spared)
English books – It didn’t even cross my mind that I would be teaching English, at all. My counterpart has limited English so I teach him on a daily basis during conversation, which for adult’s, works best in my opinion but I didn’t expect 15 children to turn up at my host home the night I arrived with exercise books in hand ready for an english class! There was even a white board and brand new marker pen there waiting for me. You learn to think fast on ICS! Had I known I would have brought some basic English books with pictures to help me teach.
A suitcase – I hate to admit this one as my mum told me to take a big suitcase on wheels and I said no as everybody else was taking a 20 litre rucksack so there must be a reason as to why…there isn’t! My luggage weighed in at a mere 14kg when I had 20kg allowance….all the things I could have packed! Your luggage comes off the carousel straight into a bus or coach, which then drops you to a guesthouse, your luggage then gets put onto another bus when you depart from training, it then gets put into another guest house, then it goes back onto a bus (or tuk tuk in my case) straight into your host home where it stays. A suitcase on wheels would have been lighter to carry and much more convenient when you dont really want to unpack everything at the guest house to then re pack it all again when you depart in a couple of days.
More clothes – I figured if I packed too many clothes I wouldn’t wear them all but truth is 3 weeks in and i’m already bored of the same mundane, long sleeved tops I bought in every colour of the rainbow. Hmmmm what colour shall I wear today? Pastel blue, Sky blue, Navy blue or Duck egg Blue?
Jeans – It really depends on what time of year you are travelling but the majority of time you are in shade, whether that be at night time, the office, host home or in a cafe and when you’re not in shade you will seek it as the sun is fierce. So basically, if you wear jeans at home, you will wear jeans on your placement. They’re easy, they go with everything and if like me, you don’t pack any and end up in Asia, it’s likely you wont find any bigger than a UK size 6! Damn I wish I’d packed my MOM jeans, don’t make the same mistake!
Laundry bag – In what world did I not think to pack a foldable laundry bag??!! Enough said.
A blanket – sounds mad right? I said the same to my mum, I’m going to a hot country not the north pole. However I am in Cambodia in January/February and living right on the Mekong River, it’s the coolest time of year so temperature does drop at night and with the added strong wind from the Mekong I’ve woken up many a time trying to stretch the kiddy blanket over my shivering body.
More DEET spray – I know DEET is bad for you, I know 50% DEET is REALLY bad for you and I know this stuff is £10 a can but if like me you are prone to getting bitten and the only repellent you can buy in the local shop is 15% DEET, you will be wishing you hadn’t said no the sales assistant in ASDA who assured you it would only take 5minutes to grab you some more cans from the back!
Do Not Need to Pack
Lots of Toiletries – I packed lots and lots of mini shampoo and shower gels, carefully filling each one on my sitting room floor but reality is you don’t need to pack loads. It’s highly likely you are flying straight into your country’s capital and there will be so many shops to buy UK branded or cheap local toiletries in big sizes which is great as all that weight in your luggage can be replaced with things you do need! Do bring some empty mini bottles which you can buy from most pound shops and use these during your mid phase review week.
Thing’s I’m so glad I packed
My Converse – I hate sandals, it’s irrational but true. I just hate them. My feet get bitten, Cons go with everything, you can ride your bike better in trainers, all hail Chuck Taylor.
A travel towel – It’s light, it dries quickly, it folds up small.
Laptop – do not be fooled by anyone into thinking you should not take anything valuable therefore do not take a laptop! You WILL need your laptop to work on, you will want to have it in your room to listen to music or watch a film, you will want to go on wifi and complete research for you project. Bring a laptop and insure it!
iphone/smart phone – Again, depending on the country you visit but lots of developing countries have excellent internet connection, Cambodia being one of them. I live right out in a rural village in Bosleav and although I don’t get full 3G (I get E) it’s good enough for me to Whatsapp and Facebook my family and friends.
Lots of medication – I take long term medication for migraine so bit of a no brainer but if you are taking long term meds REMEMBER to get a prescription to cover you for the 3months well in advance as some pharmacies do not have enough all at once. I packed lot’s of painkillers, immodium, antihistamine, dioralyte and at 3 weeks in I have used them all at one stage or another. You will have dioreaha, you will have a head ache at some point, you will need to rehydrate your body. Yes you can probably maybe buy these things in shops if your lucky to be near a town but whatcha gonna do when your rolling on the floor with stomach cramps after a dodgy dinner and your miles from the nearest clinic? Just pack it all.
Lots of books – I packed 5 and it was a ball ache to carry them around in my ruck sack but I’m glad I did as there is no where here to access english books and they don’t have libraries.
A hoody – Following on from the blanket I can now only dream of, a hoody has brought me some solace in the mornings when it’s cold.
A travel pillow – probably the best thing I did pack, our travelling time to from Heathrow to Phnom Penh was 24 hours including lay over’s in airports and I don’t know what I would have done without that little companion. I have used it on bus journey’s and actually every night I have been here. It’s become a part of me, like an extension from my head. You get the picture, pack one!
