Now that I’m pretty stationary here in Bali, not moving around every one day or so, I’ve had quite a bit of down time. This afternoon I was laying on my bed resting and I thought “It’s the perfect time to do a packing inventory post.” So I got up, cleared the bed, and pulled out almost everything from my backpacks. I say almost everything because I some miscellaneous papers and other random things that are not critical to my travels. But I’ve photographed probably 99.8% of everything I have with me, minus some souvenirs I purchased while in southeast Asia and a few articles of clothing I sent home while in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Packing Inventory

Let’s start with clothing I guess:

– 3 long-sleeve shirts (two of them are for cold weather)

– 6 t-shirts (minus the one that I am currently wearing – not shown here)

– 3 sports bras and 1 regular bra. I sent one sports bra home.

– 1 pair of spandex shorts (for whenever)

– 2 pairs of thermal long-johns – one pair is thinner and the other is thicker. I couldn’t decide which to bring while packing at home so they both came.

– 8 pairs of underwear

– 3 pairs of Darn Tough Socks

– 1 pair of REI Softshell Activator Pants

– 1 pair of REI Softshell Activator Shorts (no, they don’t make them; I did). One of the buttons broke on my original pair and I freaked out and bought another pair and made the damaged pair into shorts (best move ever – love those shorts!).

– 1 belt – as seen in the upper pair of gray shorts

– 1 pair of spandex capris for the occasional workout (haha).

– 2 pairs of ankle socks

– 1 pair of pajama pants

– 1 black Columbia Sportsware hat

– 1 (my favorite) cashmir scarf

– 1 orange Patagonia down jacket

– 1 purple Marmot wool pullover sweater

– 2 notebooks – one for lists/to-do/logistics/notes etc., the other is a sketchbook – no lines, nothing. Just blank space for journaling, scrapbooking, etc.

– 1 book for reading – currently I’m carrying/reading Wild by Cheryl Strayed (for the 2nd time). I think I’ll lose it at the first hostel in NZ. I’ll have finished the second read by then.

– 1 international drivers permit.

– 1 international yellow card for vaccinations.

– Passport

– 1 green passport protector. Didn’t really need this. The first time I used it, I put my passport in it, brought it to the airport at JFK, and the person who checked me in immediately took the passport out of the passport case. So much for that. It now acts as my wallet.

– 1 silver RFID-blocking card/cash case – also acting as a wallet. Not all eggs in one basket.

– Bug spray – I’m running out and need to find more.

– 1 Headache oil blend made by my good neighbor, The Country Artist, in Canastota, NY.

– 1 phone and phone charger

– 1 tablet and tablet charger

– 2 USB-to-outlet adapters

– 2 outlet-to-international-outlet adapters

– 1 Tablet case

– 1 REI Backpacker Multi-Day First Aid Kit

– 1 pair of Black Diamond trekking poles

– 1 REI 32-ounce stainless steel water bottle.

– 1 pair of Columbia Sportsware black rain pants

– 1 salmon-colored Columbia Sportsware rain jacket

– 1 pair of La Sportiva rock climbing shoes

– 1 Petzl Rock Climbing Harness

– 1 chalk bag

– 1 roll of rock climbing tape – good for rock climbing and to protect against blisters.

– 1 Seat to Summit inflatable pillow

– 1 REI microfiber towel

– 1 REI washcloth

– 1 Bear Butt Rainfly (to cover hammock)

– 1 REI Flash insulated air sleeping pad.

– 1 Live Infinitely double-nest hammock

– 1 pair Live Infinitely hammock straps

– 1 Cocoon cotton travel sheet

– 1 REI Joule sleeping bag

– 1 pair La Sportiva Hiking Boots

– 1 pair Saucony ISO series running shoes

– 1 Osprey Tempest 20L anti-gravity backpack

– 1 REI Duck’s Back 20L pack rain cover

– 1 Osprey Aura 65L Anti-gravity pack

– 1 Osprey 65L backpack rain cover

The very bottom-right-hand corner of the bed (facing towards the headboard) are things that I purchased in southeast Asia and were not in my original packing. Those items include:

– 1 new two-piece swimsuit

– 2 new dresses – one ripped while sitting at dinner after our Chang Mai cooking class. So mad… it’s my favorite dress. Need to get it repaired.

– 1 pair of wrapping pants

– 1 shirt that matches the wrapping pants

– 1 new pair of cotton pants purchased today… Not photographed here because I’m wearing them but I love them.

Almost forgot the bathroom stuff. In my bathroom bag, I have:

– A couple of things of my natural toothpaste

– Shampoo

– Hair brush

– Natural lotions (also from The Country Artist)

– DoTerra Deep Blue lotion for muscles

– 2 things of floss

– 1 razor with extra blades

– 1 small container of cotton q-tips

– Nail clipping kit (minus the cuticle scissors that I inadvertently had in my carry-on backpack and had confiscated at Bangkok airport security…. ooops… my bad. Also lost my tiny leatherman to the same security. It was a bad morning in Bangkok on the 13th.

Other things:

– 2 DoTerra lipbalms

– 1 DoTerra On-Guard Oil Blend Micro-beads (good to boost the immune system)

– 1 small container of Advil Liqui-Gels

– I have some prescription anti-biotics and malerone (to protect from malaria).

It’s kind of hard to believe that I can fit all of that into two backpacks, but I can and I did and will again when it comes time to move on in late December/January.

Any questions about my packing, let me know! 🙂

Other Logistics Planning/Progress

While in Bali, I have to make some arrangements for when I move on to Melbourne, AU and then NZ.

– I need to get a hostel in Melbourne and a bus pass from the airport. Hopefully the hostel will have a shuttle.

– I need to get a hostel for my one night in Queenstown before I catch my first hop-on-hop-off bus on the 7th.

– Find work exchanges in at least two other locations in NZ to help stay longer but keep the cost of accommodation down.

My most recent update is that I’ve secured a two-week work exchange at the Bella Vista Hotel in Fox Glacier on the west coast of the southern island.  This did require purchasing an Intercity Bus Pass from Queenstown to Fox Glacier but that’s ok.  I’ll figure out getting back to Queenstown to catch my HOHO bus when I get to Fox Glacier.  Pictures I’ve seen of the Fox Glacier area look absolutely beautiful. So excited!

Yesterday I helped plant moringa and passion fruit trees around an aquaculture pond as well as helped cut bamboo pieces to put an addition on the elevated goat shed. Today, we went to a nearby Saturday morning market that Chakra started some years ago and ended up getting some dried banana and dragon fruit to munch on while riding the motorcycle back home. :-p We also picked up some lemon grass plants to plant along a bare soil-edge that really needs some roots to stabilize it. We also put in some pieces of bamboo pipe with mesh to drain water into and out of the aquaculture pond so that water can circulate and keep the fish happy. I haven’t taken any pictures of this particular agriculture/aquaculture area yet, but I will.

Question for everyone – are you able to see the photos I post on Instagram right in my blog page? One of the widgets I have there is a link to my Instagram account so you should be able to see what I post. This will generally keep you up to date on what’s happening while I will write more and in more detail with more pictures in my blog post. Please let me know. Thanks!

I think that’s all for now. Don’t really have anything else to report.

Till next time! 🙂