Packing

Oh I do hope I don't forget anything, although I don't see how I possibly could have, given the number of times I have triple-checked.

What She Carried With Her:

In the backpack:
Medicines (anti-diarrhea (I got a hep A vaccine, but you never know), anti-allergy, and ibprofen).
a couple of extra plastic bags
a notebook, 5 moleskine cashiers, and 2 lined small reporter-type notebooks.
toiletries (shampoo, toothpaste, soap (body and clothes washing) deodorant, wet-wipes, and anti-bacterial hand gel)
Clothing Wise:
3 long sleeved shirts, 3 short sleeved, 2 tank tops
2 pants
1 running outfit (I worked too hard to work up to running 10+ miles at a time to get out of shape while I'm there!)
Chacos and I'll be wearing Running Shoes on the plane, since they take up more room.
...and underwear of course. Oh, and 3 pairs of socks.

In the Carry-on
Passport,visa, plane info, traveler's cheques, a little cash, and a small notebook/journal.
Fieldwork related:
Camera & memory cards, Video Camera, two audio recorders (one battery powered voice recorder, and one you charge and is better for recording music), small t mike, laptop, and portable hardrive (just in case) and extra batteries and chargers for everything. Whew! I think this bag actually weighs more than my backpack. But I don't really see how I could cut back and still feel good about it. At least I'm not carrying, say, wax cylinders or stacks of tapes. It could definitely be worse.


And the extra items: Having made connection with Gebre at the Hope Orphanage, I asked if there was anything they needed, then passed the request on to my friend to see what would happen. What happened (so far) was 36 lbs. of clothing and another 25 of notebooks, pens, and first aid supplies. I love the people of West Texas, especially Mrs. You Know Who, who brought an incredible amount of brand-spanking new clothing for the kids at the orphanage. Bless you, and I can't wait to hand over the goods to the orphanage. So much for packing light, but I think it will be worth it. Luckily J is a light packer, so we're well within our overall weight limits.

Pictures: http://s221.photobucket.com/albums/dd63/sgbrinker/Ethiopia/