Oh you're right ! I have also
- one short
- one swimming pants

Wow, I thought that I was packing light but you did pack ultra light !

What about my toiletries ? Do you think as well that I carry too much ? (in case you saw the vid posted above).

When I travel I pack light weight synthetics that can be easily washed in a sink and dry quickly. Cotton=bad.

You guys are real hippi, unless you plan to buy a **** load of tailor made lothes once you are there?

Agreed.
My 2 t shirt = synthetics
My socks = ditto
My 2 shirts = ditto

Ok, so I have decided to keep the medics BUT not to take my jeans with me. Told myself that you can find jeans in asia pretty easily (and for cheap). So instead of 3 trousers (wearing my jeans + 2 pants in the backpack) I'm only having 2 pants (one that I wear and therefore just one in the backpack).

I have weighed the backpack. Don't know if the method is 100% right. I weight myself without and with the Backpack.

According to the numbers, my backpack weights 17 pounds/lbs (8kgs), and I have also my daypack that I will carry with me and which weighs 9 pounds/lbs (3,5 - 4kgs).

Good numbers ? And good thing not to take my jeans but just 2 pants ?

Exactly this.

Only exception is that I do usually take one long sleeve cotton tshirt for warmth, but it's made redundant with a fleece pullover.

Another useful thing is long pants that have legs which you can unzip and remove. Allows you to have both shorts and long pants in one item.

Columbia makes a line of clothing called "PFG" aka professional fishing gear. It's all lightweight, synthetic, and 50SPF. Uniqlo makes some awesome travel underwear called AIRism that works really well.

I didn't watch the video, but I took...

Toothbrush
Toothpaste
Shaver with 5 extra blades
deodorant
liquid soap
Shampoo/Conditioner (small one).

To be fair my first destination on the road was the USA, so it wasn't like I was going to have a problem buying stuff if I needed it.

Also all my shirts are cotton.

Yeah, but OP might actually want to have sex on the road...

I think travelling with a backpack is already enough humiliating by itself, now you want him to look like a wandering fisherman, lol.

Yup, but don't think that India is the best pick for that purpose (I KNEW I should have picked Thailand, pff).

You do find humiliating to backpack ? Maybe the dude who has to wear suit&tie to be allowed to go to work (even if he hates wearing them) is more of an humiliation ?

Backpacker don't really have good reputation towards local people. They tend to look on backpacker like they are ****.

Well, there are backpackers and backpackers. But I hear you. So now my mission is to go and spread to the world that you can be a backpacker and a very nice dude (ie : me)

idk why you wouldn't bring condoms. obv you're not planning to be a sex tourist in india but what if you meet a backpacker that's taken a shower? you might hit it off, and now you gotta buy indian condoms. and those obv don't work there are a billion people in poverty there so you can guess how well their condoms work compared to sturdy-ass french sheaths

this is worse than not planning for monkey attacks.

You're making a good point. Don't want to put curry smelling condons on my d**

Will buy some tomorrow. Thanks pal !

(still have to think tank about crazy monkeys tho)

more likely to find the lockness monster

I like the stuff from ExOfficio and Royal Robbins, but you have to be OK with looking like a boring-ass middle aged guy in slacks and a button down shirt. Which I am, because I am.

I have some ExOfficio. It's pretty good. Prefer AIRism, it's lighter and dries faster. Never heard of Royal Robbins before.

Columbia's "Tamiami ii" shirts are confirmed acceptable for maintaining BAMAG status.

BAMAG?

Blocking Any Monkey Attack Garments?

Your avatar is awesome

I would totally buy MonkeyBlock™ convertible zipper pants/shorts.

13 DAYS

These days are odd. I have the feeling not to belong to any place. I’ve not traveled abroad yet, but my mind is not here anymore neither. So, I have the feeling that I’m living in some kind of ‘in between’ mental state. Sort of a no man’s land.

I don’t have much to do now. I have bought all my stuff, I have booked the first 2 nights in Bénarès, I have put my money on various saving accounts, I have set all the bills to be automatically paid while I’m gone. Therefore, besides waiting for the departure day, I don’t have much to do to keep me busy, which gives me a lot of time, too much time to think.

This waiting stage has quite quickly become unbearable and although there are now only 13 days to go before taking my first flight, I feel like I’ve still a century to wait before leaving.

I have slept pretty badly last night, going to bed at 1am, waking up 4 hours later (in a total wreck but still unable to fall back asleep), wandering for a couple of hours before going back to bed at 6:30am before waking up for good at 10. No need to tell you how I did feel exhausted this whole day. I can’t sleep well, and it’s been so for a good 10 days. I’m worried, excited, scared, have too many questions or doubts in my mind to have peaceful and restful nights.

This journey is the biggest jump into the unknown that I’ve been going through. I don’t know where I’m going besides my 1st destination, don’t know how long I will stay there, where I will sleep besides the 1st two nights booked, don’t know where I will go after Bénarès, what I’m gonna do abroad, what I will find, who I will meet, how long I will be able to stand the heat far away from my comfort zone, if I’m gonna enjoy the ride or hate it, if I will laugh or cry all day. While this journey can look like being very exciting from an outside point of view (and it is !), when you’re living it from the inside, it’s another story.

Now I don’t forget that I’m in control of my life, I have chosen to do all this and by no mean I’m complaining. I’m just now in this stage of my life where I feel like I belong nowhere, with absolutely no goal making me feel like a child before the adults world.

Going everyday to go and work in this ****ty cubicle might be lame, still it gives a reason to wake up, a goal for each day. The cubicle might be the worst ennemy of happiness, it is still a strong protection against chaos. Not having any job, any duty to do each day puts me in a state of complète chaos. Being a slave is so convenient, and when you find yourself being free you understand the reason why people do chose to remain enslaved all their life.

Anyway, in 13 days I’ll be in that first ****ing plane heading to Bénarès and all its beggars, mad men, mystics, tourists, hindis, scams&crooks, dying persons coming there to end their lives at best, dead humans or animal corpses burning into the Gange at worse.

In 13 days I will smell curry, piss, ****, spices all day.

In 13 days my crazy journey will start.

In 13 days I’ll be a lonely man living far away with no plan.

In 13 days I will be a free man.

You are free since the day you left your job.

No need to live France to be free.

What you feel is normal. It would be totally strange if you would remain completely cool. I do think that the whole experience will bring you a TON forward and you will learn a lot.

breathe and enjoy the ride

jealous

Thank you everyone, you're all very kind.

I'll try to cool down and relax.