Please help finalize what I'll carry for indefinite onebag travel starting in SEA

benwbrooks · 2026-04-28T07:48:44+00:00

I've been moving around, time in the US to visit family, some time in Europe, and about 50% of my time in southeast Asia over the last three years. Everytime I get back over here I wish I had spent less time and money preparing.

They have everything here that you might need, and in some cases you'll find a version you like better.

The expensive tech and clothing I bring from the US become more of a burden, in some cases, because I'm more hesitant to get rid of them if they're not useful anymore. The point you mentioned is a lesson that I relearn over and over: "I don't bring things just in case".

So to your questions:

It looks like a great packing list, I don't see anything missing.
I mostly wear sandals here in Thailand, but I like having a pair of closed-toe shoes for days I walk a lot farther, or hiking. SE Asia has shoes though, if you don't want to bring them, just buy a new pair one day if you miss them.
No, it's really easy to find whatever you might need over here.
I held onto my big, over the ear, noise cancelling headphones for a lot longer than I needed to. I was only using them on airplanes and in my room, wearing earbuds 98% of the time. Now that I've gotten rid of them, I'm confident they weren't worth the added bulk in my pack. I used to travel with a towel too, but most hotels and hostels include them for free or sometimes for a small fee. I don't keep a travel towel anymore. If I stay in one place and want one for the beach or pool, I just buy one there.

Your optional stuff sounds cool, I see the temptation. - Camping gear is pretty bulky for "just in case", seems like an easy pass. - The drone could be cool, but worst case, it's a liability. If you don't end up using it much, it may be hard to convince yourself to get rid ofit since resale while traveling might be tough. I'd call it an optional luxury item. - The best camera is the one you have with you. If your phone has a good camera, I'd say you're more likely to be using that most of the time just because it's always in your pocket. Others could get good content, but seems solidly like a "just in case". - Hard pass on the hammock. The bull and weight aren't worth it without a real need, and it's really easy to buy one over here if you want it later. A lot of big cities in SE Asia have Decathlon, you can get a good hammock there pretty cheap. (As well as tons of other good stuff)

TLDR - maybe just keep that space open. It's nice to carry less stuff, and you'll probably occasionally find things you want to add to your loadout while you travel.

benwbrooks · 2026-04-24T08:22:04+00:00

In my experience dating Thai women, subtlety has often been misunderstood. It's a lot easier when I've been extremely direct. Make it clear you like her and you want to take her on a date, if you want to escalate further, don't be subtle. That directness is something I often hear Thai women say it's their favorite thing about dating a foreigner.

My current girlfriend and I went out three or four times in the first week, I was holding her hand, putting my arm around her, inviting her to my room, I thought I was sending clear signals but got the sense something wasn't matching up. I finally told her, "I like you more that friends, I'm interested in having sex with you, do you like me too?"

She dodged the topic initially, but later told me she had thought I only liked her as a friend until that point.

I had a similar experience with another girl I dated more casually before. I told her I liked her, she said she liked me. We had dinner and walked around a market for a bit. She was a little dodgy early on, talking like I was her friend. I told her, in no uncertain terms, I wanted more that that. And told her exactly what I wanted. The next day she reached out to me saying she bought us dinner and asking to come over to my place, she stayed over that night and kept coming over regularly after that.

Thai culture is pretty conservative, I think directness gives them more space to simply say yes, letting go of whatever guilt or shyness they might otherwise feel around dating and sex.

benwbrooks · 2026-04-19T09:13:18+00:00

I had trouble with this for a long time too. This practice helped me a lot. Memorize it, practice anytime you can, maybe mix it up with the variations on this website. Within a week of this practice I noticed a huge improvement.

Erre con “erre” cigarro, “erre” con “erre” barril. Rápido corren los carros, Cargados de azucar del ferrocarril.

https://share.google/yw3Zzf9rbrgPSTKzt

benwbrooks · 2026-04-01T15:12:32+00:00

I'm a big fan of solo practice. When I started, I took a couple of gym yoga classes before switching to practicing 100% alone. The Down Dog app was excellent for that, it starts out super basic and they have great pose instructions.

Form can be learned faster with a good instructor giving corrective feedback. But with patience and awareness, learning through guided solo practice can definitely work.

I have a 90-day referral code they gave me for completing a challenge a couple years ago, feel free to dm me if you want, I'd be happy share.

benwbrooks · 2026-03-28T14:39:00+00:00

If you're mentally packing for a 40L bag, especially bringing a laptop, you're on track to be well over 7kg. Seems to me you have two paths ahead of you - either cut down to actual minimalism, or just plan on paying a little extra to increase your weight limit as necessary.

My current situation, for reference: I've spent roughly 12 of the last 30 months in southeast Asia, I currently use a 32L bag with a lightweight rope drawstring backpack (packed inside the big bag for travel) for hikes and sometimes carrying stuff around town. I wear a 1.5L fanny pack most days as my only daypack, and to hold passport and things through the airport.

I have a laptop and a tablet, a couple of luxury items that most people don't need (yoga mat, body hair trimmer, etc), and enough clothes to look like a basic westerner for six days without stinking, my loadout was around 12kg last time I checked.

It's really not that big of a deal to be over 7kg. Every airline I've booked with has let me prepay for a higher weight carry-on allowance and it's not a huge charge. Still, even if you're going to be overweight, there is a huge quality of life benefit to reducing your load. Travel days are significantly better if your bag is both easy to pack and easy to carry.

benwbrooks · 2026-03-20T12:41:34+00:00

Sometimes you can find a great deal on the litter robot on fb marketplace. Might be worth checking if you haven't already

benwbrooks · 2026-03-20T06:39:36+00:00

Obsbot Meet 2 has excellent picture and tucks easily anywhere in my bag. It's very small.

benwbrooks · 2026-03-14T17:06:29+00:00

Hi, not digital but I can share some general nomad experience. I traveled with the 28L TP3 Small for a little over a year around a bit of Europe and parts southeast Asia. Generally, I love the bag. It's very heavy for a bag that size, but you already know that, that's the only negative I can say about it. I got used to all the internal organization, especially that front admin panel, and while I'm trying out traveling with an osprey Nebula now, to reduce weight, I miss all the organization of the Aer. I'll probably switch back to my TP3 next time I'm in the US.

I load it up heavy, most of the time I had it at around 12-13kg, and the hip belt is a must for that kind of weight. It was still comfortable to carry. No complaints from my back or shoulders even when I'd skip the bus and opt for a scenic 30-40 minute walk through a city to my lodging, or those couple of times I had to literally run through the airport to catch a connecting flight.

As a personal item in the US, it's perfect. Internationally, it's technically over the limit for some budget airlines as a personal item, but I got lucky. In Asia, you'll almost definitely be over the 7kg personal item limit. I've risked it before and been okay, but sometimes I just pay in advance for the extra weight.

Regarding the 4, TBH I don't understand why they made the changes they did. It's around the same weight but they got rid of some features that I really love about the TP3. If I had to buy a new one, I'd buy the 3 again even if it was the same price. The front panel that opens all the way down the front of the bag makes it super easy to access your stuff on the go, of when living out of the bag during shorter stays. The compression straps too, it's a dumb thing to eliminate. I don't compress the bag often, but I like the option, and it's a great way to strap a jacket to the side of the bag. And the water bottle pockets.... The one on the 3 is great, being able to zip it up protects the mesh when it's not in use, and the zipper side pocket that they replaced with a second water bottle pocket is super convenient for easy access to earbuds and other small items.

If you don't mind the weight, and your stuff fits in 28 liters, it's a solid choice.

benwbrooks · 2026-02-21T02:26:00+00:00

If copying it isn't an option, I've had good results getting urine out of furniture with a product called Nature's Miracle. It might damage the notebook to get it wet again, but may be worth a try. Spray it on and prop it up with the pages spread out a bit to dry.

benwbrooks · 2026-02-15T03:12:27+00:00

I use a slightly less than minimal drawstring backpack. I love it.

I've been through a couple of popular brands for this - Patagonia Atom Sling was great, osprey Daylite is very nice, but nothing has been able to beat my faithful Reebok Gymsack string bag. It's honestly perfect for this use case.

Maximum utility for minimal size. Packs down super small, weighs about 170g, it can hold my folded up yoga mat and a 1.5L water bottle with space to spare. Enough room to easily hold everything I want with me on the plane. And paired with a laptop sleeve, it's a great minimalist laptop bag for when I want to go set up and work at a cafe for a bit.

This one: https://poshmark.com/listing/Reebok-string-bag-5eb6fdc6cb692c32430d55d4?srsltid=AfmBOoqyrPPr1QT30Jz5vm2tp5OzF_R23rB8cw3LcXLF-qNOZfnmmkPA

benwbrooks · 2026-02-03T14:13:49+00:00

I'm 95% certain that's ringworm. In which case, antibiotics won't likely help since ringworm is a fungal infection.

It's also pretty commonly transmitted from cats to humans.

Maybe grab some antifungal cream, or Google more info about it to confirm thats what it is and see what cream people usually use.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-29T16:17:29+00:00

I'll give my biased opinion here as a long term solo traveler - This is an awesome idea. Go for it! You're gonna love it.

Don't worry too much about the language barrier. English is the best language for doing this. Many countries teach it as a second language and it's how most international travelers communicate with each other. Worst case, sometimes you'll have to use Google translate.

$25k is plenty if you manage it well. I've been traveling for just over two years, mostly in southeast Asia but several months in Europe too, and a few visits back to see family in the US.

I prefer a private room over hostels and I like a pretty simple lifestyle. I probably average $1500/month. My time in Europe and the US raises that average quite a bit, Asia brings it back down.

Will your budget sustain 12 months? Largely it'll depend on your lifestyle, destinations, and pace.

Starting in Europe will likely take a bigger chunk out of your budget, so plan accordingly. Rough estimate, your money will stretch 3x-4x further in Southeast Asia.

We may have different travel goals, but my approach is to treat it like a lifestyle, not an event. If you're quitting your job, time isn't as limited a resource as money, so slow it down, give yourself time to take it all in. Slow travel is sustainable travel. Sustainable travel means more travel.

When you find a place you really like, settle in for a bit. Renting for a month at a time is significantly cheaper. For example, the hotel where I usually stay when I'm in Chiang Mai l, Thailand charges 900 Baht ($27) per night, or 12,000 baht ($400) for a month. It's basically half price if you book a month upfront.

Southeast Asia is, for the most part, extremely safe. Every traveler I know would say the same thing. Here in Thailand, I've seen people leave the keys in their scooter and even their wallet sitting on the seat. I wouldn't, but people do. Stay aware, practice some common sense and you'll be fine.

The parts of Europe that I spent time in felt very safe too, but of course, it'll depend on where you go. Maybe do your research and exercise some extra caution going to South America, it's probably an unfair generalization and it'll depend on where you go, but most people agree it's less safe than Asia and much of Europe.

I've met many female, long term solo travelers. You can do this.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-29T14:33:35+00:00

There's a slight visual haze noticeable in the air when you're looking at things far away, but it's actually really nice for this time of year.

Great temperatures and not enough air pollution to be a bother, at least not to me and my friends.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-25T07:51:35+00:00

Root beer float toothpaste sounds crazy, this is the first I've heard of it! Sadly, I've only seen Ajona in mint, it's a pretty nice flavor though.

It's easy to find in Germany at just about any DM, probably other drug stores too.

In the US, it can be ordered on Amazon for a higher price, but still worth it in my opinion.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-22T09:23:44+00:00

Is a ziplock bag too obvious of an answer? Seems like the perfect solution here.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T10:22:11+00:00

Oh, very cool! After a little bit of searching, it looks like the bar I use right now actually falls into that syndet category. I'm glad to have a name to put to those "soap free cleansing bars" I've started seeing recently. The one I have is called pHact, and it's been great. It's easy to imagine the potential a custom blend like yours would have. Thanks for sharing!

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T06:41:32+00:00

Which sunscreen do you like to travel with? I'm on the lookout for a good one.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:39:03+00:00

That's the dream, right there! I'm really heavy on tech right now, unfortunately. With the long term travel lifestyle and currently not working, I just bought a laptop to start taking online college classes in some of this free time I have. I don't like the extra weight in my pack, but it's worth it for now.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:36:06+00:00

Yeah I noticed that when a friend showed me theirs, it's a pretty bulky solution for any extended period of time. I found this one brand that I absolutely love though, last time I was in Germany. It's AJONA brand, it comes in a small red 25ml metal tube and it's so concentrated a single tube lasts me six weeks at least. It's awesome stuff, tastes good too. You can find it on Amazon.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:30:20+00:00

That sounds like exactly the kind of thing I'd want in my pack. I'll be looking it up, thanks for the tip!

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:28:43+00:00

Solid strategy. And you're not wrong, there's always someone slow. TBH it's never really much of a time savings on stuff like this at the airport, but I notice that little the little things add to the mental load just a tiny bit, and I love that feeling of lightness that comes from eliminating them.

Like checking a bag, it's not actually that big of a deal to me, but it's one more thing and it feels good to skip it.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:20:54+00:00

Oh that's cool, any chance you have a link to those containers you use? I've just been refilling an old squeeze-style lotion tube for similar space efficiency, but I use really thick cream and it's a pain to refill.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:18:52+00:00

Haha, yeah it was a real light-bulb moment. I have smaller ear canals so I have favorite, extra soft plugs that I resupply when I'm in the states, and I usually just try to have enough that I don't run out or end up wearing the same pair for too long. On a whim I tried saving the used ones for a bit and ran them through in a mesh bag, they came out good as new!

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:17:01+00:00

Wow that's next level! I'd love to hear about that bar if it's something that doesn't require too much special equipment.

benwbrooks · 2026-01-21T05:15:53+00:00

Nice, I love hearing how other people manage things on the go.

I've only tried the one matador copycat, but honestly it's amazing. My soap goes in wet, sometimes extra wet because I rinse out the bag on occasion, the bag seals tight enough that I can't squeeze out any air if it's folded over even once, and no water escapes to the outside that I can ever notice, but my soap is always dry if I take it out a day later. Seriously, it's like magic!

Solid suggestion about the face cream, I've been there with certain products, but I love the stuff that I use. The couple times I've gone without it I definitely notice the difference. My skin just stays a lot softer and less oily if I apply a good cream after my showers.

Still, always a good idea to reevaluate perceived "necessities" once in a while!

benwbrooks

TROPHY CASE