Why Thailand???

1) I have been before, if you have ever been to The Land of Smiles, you will under stand that it's not the kind of place that you can ever visit just once, it draws you in with it's beauty, it's culture and it's wonderful people, it takes a piece of your heart and holds it hostage so that you have no choice but to return to reclaim it.

2) I am running away, I recently broke up with my boyfriend, well, he broke up with me. It's been a hard time and I'm basically running away for the hurt and the memory's that surround my daily life at home.

3) I'm lost. I'm not sure where I'm going, or where I want to go. I'm hoping that getting some distance and a new perspective will help me decide what I want to do with my life.

4) I want to prove that I can do it. I want to prove, not just to others but to myself, that I can do this, that I can stand on my own two feet, that I can get myself from one side of the world to the other, and not just survive but have fun, live and learn along the way.

My Packing List!

''When packing, lay out all of the clothes, and all of the money that you think you'll need...take out half of the clothes, and add double the money''

This may look like quite a long list but I can easily fit all of this into a 35litre backpack, allot of these items are small and light weight.  There is no reason that you can't take everything you need, you just have to be sensible about things...don't take anything you wouldn't use at home.  You wont need as many items of clothing as you think...take things you can pair up with multiple other items, eg; a black vest top will go with anything.


Clothes

• Socks, 1 pair- easy to wash, 1 pair is plenty, you'll be in flip-flops most of the time anyway.
• Pants, 3 pairs- easy to wash and dry, no need to take more.
• Shirt, 1- to prevent sunburn, cover up when in religious areas and to stop your backpack rubbing your shoulders.
• Vest top, 2
• Shorts, 2 pairs
• leggings, 1 pair- for the planes and trains
• Hoody, 1- for the planes and trains
• Bikini, 2- also doubles up as underware!
• Hat, 1
• Sun glasses, 1 pair- Take a cheap pair, they'll probably get lost or broken and you can buy new ones for less than a quid.
• Flip-flops, 1 pair
• Trainers, 1 pair- for planes, trains and dirty places! 

Toiletries

• Shampoo & Conditioner- if you can fit them in, its cheaper to buy at home, shampoo doubles as shower gel
• Leave in conditioner- sun, humidity and salt water is a nightmare for your hair!
• Baby wipes- always handy
• Deodorant
• Tooth brush
• Tooth brush case- to keep it clean!
• Tooth paste
• Lip balm- get one with SPF
• Moisturizer- to use as after-sun
• Sun screen
• Hair brush

1st Aid Kit

• Spray on plaster
• Alcohol wipes
• Imodium
• Ibuprofen
• Antibacterial cream
• Tweezers
• Multivitamins
• Nail file
• Safety pins
• Plasters

Electrical

• Camera- try a shockproof/ waterproof one, which will take video and stills
• Memory cards- for your camera
• Cell phone- make sure its unlocked, buy a Thai sim at the airport in Bangkok
• Mp3 player/ Ipod- load it with some new tunes, stuff you don't usually listen to, try something new!
• Head phones- take a spare pair to
• Chargers for phone, ipod, netbook etc
• Plug adaptors
• Laptop/ Netbook- only if you keep a blog or want to upload pics often, otherwise leave it at home

 Other Stuff

• Backpack- Obviously! 
• Day pack- this can also be your hand luggage 
• Sleeping bag- for overnight trains, or grotty hostels!
• Money belt- to hide your passport and cash in
• Wallet- get one that you can clip onto your belt
• Bin bags- for wet/ dirty clothes
• Zip lock bags- for liquids, shampoo just loves to explode all over your bag at 30,000ft!
• Compression sack- for clothes, this will save lots of room
• Sewing kit
• Ball of string- you'll be surprised how handy this will be!
• Lighter- even if you don't smoke
• Washing line
• Note book and pen
• Paddocks
• Chain- for chaining up your bag if you need to leave it anywhere, say, while you go on a day trek
• Swiss army knife
• Whistle- for safety, and party's! 
• Spork- I can not recommend this enough! 
• Torch- get a wind up one
• Cable ties- to make your backpack hard for thieves to get into, remember to keep your knife handy to cut them off
• An alarmed door wedge- great for safety and piece of mind

Documents and practical stuff

• Passport, plus a couple of photocopies
• Visa
• Travel insurance documents
• Money cards
• Emergency phone numbers
• Guide book

Space saving tips

• Use compression sacks for clothes and sleeping bags
• Take things that can be used for more than one purpose, for example; use shampoo as shower gel, Bikini tops and bottoms can be worn as underwear, take a Swiss army knife that has a knife, nail file, tweezers and scissors instead of all these items separately.