What do you wish you had taken???????

pboae

(Sorry guys this may be TMI, you might want to stop reading now...)

I remembered something else :-)Take a dose of Canestan with you. If you have to take antibiotics you've got a good chance of ending up with thrush, and it's no fun trying to explain that to a pharmacist who doesn't speak English <blush>. If you need to use it, keep the box or the leaflet with the details of the generic ingredients so you can just show that to the pharmacist. Even if they don't know the names of the drug they have books they can look it up in (at least they did in Central America).

cundall

black-saturn wrote:

In SE Asia you cant even use tap water if your going to boil it. It has to be bottled water for everything (and keep your mouth closed when you shower). You can actually see things floating round in the water when you use the sink. It's horrible. But bottled water is really cheap (about 2p per bottle).

Everything there is unbelievably cheap. Packets of cigarettes 17p for 20, 3 course meal in a restaurant for 2 people about £3.00, Apple iPod for £3.50, dvds 50p each and cds at 30p each.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

We have had this before! No ipods for 3.50 (about 8 months ago someone brought this up)
DVD's yes maybe but they are all fake and all come from China ! (where they are alot cheaper!) Cig's for 12pence (yes china) 3 course meals for 3 pounds easy! cd's at 30pence will be hard to find but yes but again fake...

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My tips:

1 If its just SE Asia you can buy most things on the way!

2 Best thing is to not pack alot as your going to be carring it!

3 I would bring lots of body spray if your going to china as all through SE Asia you are fine its just China its hard to get!

4 A good torch for power cuts!

5 Locks for your backpacks plus a spare one for your locker in your dorm room!

6 If travelling over night make sure you have a cable lock to go around your bags!

7 US dollars as most places prefer them to pounds.

8 For me though not for everyone is sea sickness tablets!

9 Guide book, don't really need it if your just doing the normal loop but handy though.

10 I carry a knife though thats not required!

11 Multi Tool as you may need this alot to fix broken locks, open windows that are stuck! Or even fix your bike! (This is the main one for me!)

12 Buy loo paper here in plastic packs (tissues packs really) keep them in your day pack and your main pack as you may need them while on the move!

13 Lots of memory cards so that you can change them and back them up every few days as many camera's get stolen and its the photos that you want! I learnt the hard way, i lost 900 photos!

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Currently in Singapore though flying to the Philippines in a few days just been backpacking over land through:

Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong then i have travel by air to india and now back to Singapore. Got a long way to go only 7 / 8 months into it and i will not be home until June / July next year coming back via the train!

ajtrader100

try and message my dad, his profile is arkwright and he has just come back from a tour of peru and south america. send him a pm and he would be happy to help im sure.

his bags got lost and had to set up completely from scratch in a small country with hardly any shops...... he should know the essentials!

pavlovs_dog

biglass wrote:

Hi,just a wee bit of info/advice re immodium type medication that I was told by a doc-diarrhoea is the body's way of getting rid of a dangerous bug and to take something to stop that process will allow the bacteria to multiply to often fatal levels inside the body.Sorry to talk about such things at this time of morning!:rotfl: Better to take rehydration sachets instead!
Enjoy your trip-it's something I regretted not doing when I had the chance! xx

another way of rehydrating if you dont have/have run out of rehydration salts is flat coca cola

puffinmuffin

Things i have bought several times whilst travelling as i didn't think to bring them are nail clippers and tweezers. I also need stash of travel sickness meds as i am very prone, especially for long bus trips when you want to read without vomiting. A small first aid collection for when you are in remote places (painkillers,antiseptic cream) i was recently on a remote island in Fiji with no shops wishing i had some antihistamine cream for some bites aquired a few days before. Bear in mind that travellers are nice people and you can usually borrow stuff and most things will be availible in big cities. A lot of people recommend those money belts worn under the clothes. Also after an unfortunate camera drowning incident i highly recommend the waterproof wallets you can get in outdoor shops, then even if your daypack leaks in a sudden shower your valuables will stay dry.
Hope you have a fab trip

McDuck

A few things we have found great.

1. A length of thin leath strap great for so many things spare bootlace, tie your bag together or hold a bunk on the train togther (I'm 6'5" and 17 stone those bunks aren't designed for me!)

2. Buscapan (not sure of the spelling) you can get it over the counter at the Chemist. It is is great when (not if) you get the runs as it stops the painful cramps

3. Sleeping bag silk - like a mini sleeping bag use it when the linen isn't clean Also great when you are not well as it keeps you warm

4. Heaps of sun cream

5. A hat

6. For SE Asia and open mind and plan for how you will deal with beggers - sounds odd but you will need a plan.

ahenry

I found this article on Travellers' Diarrhea an interesting read: http://www.ciwec-clinic.com/diar/index.html Its from a clinic in Nepal

http://www.indiamike.com/india/index.php are good forums for information on travel in India

linbadd

Take plasters and antiseptic cream. (I swear by the original Germolene (in a white and yellow box and the cream's a sort of salmon pink colour- not the new version in the white and pink box (cream is white), which is useless.)

Nail clippers, emery board (Nothing more annoying than broken nails snagging on clothes, etc.) and tweezers.

Hotel-type emergency sewing set.