I like clothes. Studies show that you get more satisfaction and happiness from spending your money on experiences rather than things (and I think we’re definitely on track there), but I would like to argue that clothes can also be an experience. When I get a new item of clothing, there is the experience of shopping for it or receiving it which is exciting, and then there is the experience of wearing it. There are some items that I feel pretty happy every time I wear them and new items are also generally always exciting to wear.
Little Pack, Small Wardrobe
Anyway, living out of a backpack has been a little difficult for me, though at the same time, maybe not as difficult as I anticipated. For the most part, when I packed for Korea (we didn’t know exactly what we’d be doing afterwards), I chose items that I enjoyed wearing, which I thought would be versatile, but also that were not soo special that I could not bear to lose them. I could not bring too much because well, not much fit! Because we started off our journey in Korea and would be there for the winter, we had to pack winter clothes which meant I did not have a ton of room in my pack for summer clothes (except, primarily, ones that I could layer). We sent home a few small boxes of things (including a large coat, winter face masks, etc.) when we were in Korea which freed up some space in our packs. We have also dropped a few things along the way including both clothing items such as very worn socks and some non-clothing items.
Kyle Had All The Summer Clothes
When we arrived in Kuala Lumpur (the first time) we realized that Kyle literally had over ten times the amount of summer clothes as me! Not only that, but my clothes are a fraction of the size of his clothes- all of my summer shirts combined still took up less room than just one of his t-shirts. Anyway, we decided I could get a little bit more clothes. They’re kind of like souvenirs, anyway! I hesitated on every single purchase because:
- These things take up room.They cost money.
Kyle always says he will make them fit and that I should get things. In the past 9 months I have picked up 10 items:
- 2 dresses
- 1 shirt
- 1 pair of shorts
- 1 pair of pants
- 1 pair of sweatpants
- 1 pair of sunglasses
- a pair of flip flops
- a scarf
- and a pair of sunglasses
That’s about 1 item per month. Two of these items were replacement items. The total for all of it is $50. I normally do not buy clothes but I needed/wanted certain items which I could not initially fit. It was important that the items were reasonably priced in the event that we found that we didn’t have the space. I still kind of feel like I mostly wear the same clothes everyday and miss my clothes back home and the ability to wear more variety but I guess it’s good there are less decisions to make in that department when I am constantly making so many others.
Now, I also should note that I was sent a few items when we were in Korea but I’m not counting them because we did not pick them up in other countries or purchase them ourselves. Here are the 10 items in sequential order:
1. Neck Scarf Thing
Found in:
On the metro up to Bukhansan National Park in Korea (October)
Cost:
free
About:
This one might be cheating. We were on the subway when this nice older man just decided to give us (each) a neck scarf thing (along with food and his seat). I will have to write more about Korean gift culture in another post. Mine has people skiing on it. It takes up very little space. Usually I stick it inside one of my shoes.
See it in Action:
Kyle wore his quite a bit more than me. These pictures are us out in Korea on cold days.
2. Sweatpants
Found in:
I believe I found this at the Homeplus closest to Songtan but it could have been Emart (November)
Cost:
15,000 won ($13.17) (Most expensive item)
About:
Now, we work from home so we are able to lounge around the house. Because of winter in Korea, we had to bundle up a little. Jeans are just not really comfortable when you are sitting cross-legged, etc. and while I would occasionally wear my pajama pants around the house, it just didn’t seem right or good habit to do this too often.
I would also obviously wear leggings or tights/skirts, etc. but what I really wanted (and which I had debated bringing dang it!) to wear inside sometimes was a decent pair of soft sweat pants. I kept my eye out for a pair for a while and tried on a few pairs before I eventually decided on these. The inside is soft, they reach the bottom of my leg, and they have pockets!
See it in Action:
Me chilling with a beer in the kitchen which makes me look like a giant because it’s Korea.
3. Soft Floral Socks
Found in:
A shop on the road leading away from Osan Air Force Base in Korea (December)
Cost:
Kyle says $2
About:
This was a birthday present from Kyle (aside from us getting more film/getting film developed and an outing of my choosing). Doesn’t take up too much space.
See it in Action:
Not pictured. I realize I don’t have that many full body pictures of myself, at least lounging around or whatever. I do like to wear socks inside, especially when it is cold, though.
4. Elephant Pants
Found in:
Central Market in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (January)
Cost:
$5
About:
I can’t believe I strongly debated getting these! Especially considering this was the best deal I found on these sort of pants. I had almost brought my most similar pants but I was trying to pack lightly. Anyway, they are great for SE Asia because they are light, yet cover your legs/knees (for places that require such). Yes, they definitely mark you as a tourist but so what! There’s a reason these things are popular!
See it in Action:
Temple near Angkor Wat (on film).
5. Floral Dress
Found in:
Mall in Bangkok, Thailand (I think Seacon Square, but could be wrong) (March)
Cost:
100baht ($2.86)
About:
I found this piece off a rack in the mall. It was not in a specific store but rather in a sort of pseudo-store made up of racks inside the mall (not super classy, but nicer than it sounds). The person who owns/was manning the clothing did not bother me and in fact even moved away and did not watch while I looked so I was able to take my time. When someone in a store tries to talk to me, I instantly become about a hundred times less likely to buy so this was a good approach.
There were lots of options, but I tried to find something that would meet my budget (I had set a limit for myself of 200 baht, or $5.72), was cute, and would be good to wear in the hot weather. I was not able to try on the items so I wanted to be pretty sure it would fit and hang nicely as well. I thought the design and sleeves of this dress were fun. When I went to buy it I found that it was actually on sell too! If I had known, I might have chosen a second piece. It turns out this dress is very short on me but I’m used to that so it’s all good. I wear my little lace shorties underneath.
See it in action:
In front of a mall in Bangkok.
6. Crop Top
Found in:
Mall in Bangkok, Thailand (same mall as the floral dress) (March)
Cost:
200baht ($5.72)
About:
I bought the floral dress first but what I really needed (and thank goodness Kyle convinced me) was another summer shirt. I strolled through stalls and took quite some time to decide. I didn’t have the option to try this one on either but thought it would be okay. I have worn it a lot.
See it in Action:
Hello Kitty House in Bangkok
7. Flip Flops (ignore the bug bites)
Found in:
The Lucky Supermarket in Siem Reap, Cambodia (April)
Cost:
$2.65 (they use dollars in Cambodia, or at least in Siem Reap)
About:
I was starting to develop some very distinct tan lines on my feet from primarily wearing my moccasins. I also wanted to let my feet breathe a little so I had my eye out for a cheap pair of comfortable flip flops for a couple months. The first time we visited this particular supermarket and I checked out the flip flops, they didn’t have my size.
The second time I tried this pair on and they seemed to work just fine. They are actually quite comfortable but I haven’t been able to wear them much because I haven’t been able to break them in- though I plan to give it a go now as it is more possible. Previously, anytime we’d go anywhere, we would be walking long distances and I would end up with pretty bad blisters between my toes but now we have the ability to do short walks so I can get my toes re-adjusted.
See it in Action:
On the ground somewhere in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.
8. Item: Jean shorts
Found in:
A store in the mall Farenheit 88 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (May)
Cost:
43rm ($10.86)
About:
I really didn’t want to spend this much on a clothing item but SE Asia is so hot and I had only brought one pair of shorts. I actually had two but accidentally got a stain on one of them and couldn’t get it out and didn’t feel comfortable wearing them at that point. I did have skirts and dresses but needed a good pair of jean (or other neutral) shorts as my other pair was purple and floral. I have some at home, and thought about bringing them but, again, I was trying to pack light *sigh.* Anyway, I searched around for this a bit. I tried on a pair in one shop and wasn’t satisfied. I am lucky that that Asian one-size-fits-all (which is all they seemed to have) worked just fine for me. The shorts are actually a tiny bit big but I really like them.
See it in Action:
At the top of Menoreh Hill on Java (Indonesia).
9. Summer Dress
Found in:
Yogyakarta, Indonesia (May)
Cost:
26,000 Indonesian Rupeah ($1.90) Is that a deal or what?
About:
I initially saw this dress when we wandered down the wrong street (it was one over) trying to find a restaurant. The advertised prices was what really caught my attention. I thought the dress looked like a nice summer dress which might cover my knees (I have a skirt which does but it doesn’t hurt to have more).
At the time, the place appeared to be closed and we were both pretty hungry. We decided to come back when we would eat nearby the next day. This time, the door was open but no one was around. Eventually, someone came and got the woman who owns the store. She informed me that the dresses were for nightwear but I figured I could wear it however I please, especially once we were in another country.
See it in Action:
Weligama, Sri Lanka
10. Sunglasses
Found in:
Galle, Sri Lanka (June)
Cost:
900 ($6.15)
About:
One day when we were riding (the motorbike) back to Weligama (Sri Lanka) my sunglasses flew away. They were on my shirt so I didn’t realize immediately, but did realize pretty soon afterwards. We backtracked multiple times trying to find them but eventually gave up.
I was quite upset but the day had already been a bit stressful with us hitting a pig and things like that so I could hardly handle any more concerns. I had also already mourned the loss of my sunglasses recently when I thought I lost them in the Colombo train station on the way down (but hadn’t).
So many things went wrong in June that I’m not even sure I included this among our lowlights in the roundup which is crazy. Anyway, I was convinced I would never find a good pair again but what do you know, first shop we go into in Galle and they fit perfectly.
Now, the annoying thing about these sunglasses is that I cannot stick them on my head because they catch my hair and knot and pull it out but I like them, they’re comfortable, and they were a pretty good price.
See it in Action:
In front of Paphos Castle (Cyprus)
What items have you picked up while traveling?
~B~
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