Wedding Crasher

Nomadic Amateur-Azerbaijan Part I

Going through my pictures from last year and earlier this year is a daunting and surreal experience. I'm not even bothering with the pictures from the days of yore, a.k.a. pre-2010, because of the gargantuan size of the collection.
It's disorienting.
I have experienced too much in too short a period of time; I have forgotten so much.
Fragments of memories are scattered all over, never in a coherent manner; random bits come back at an unexpected timing.
Or perhaps, I'm just going senile.

I normally neglect to write down details of my trip mainly because I tend to either travel myself to death, or have too much fun to take the time to sit down and write a few things down. If anything, I rely on occasional Facebook status updates to keep some people updated on recent nonsensical episodes.

I do love the process of jotting things down though, so sometimes I make random memos here and there, only to come across them a few months later and stare at them for hours, hoping the intense scrutinization will help break the code.
I'm convinced that I have the next bestseller of prophecies written down somewhere.
We'll never know.

Looking up some photos from Azerbaijan left me cackling maniacally and feeling nostalgic at the wee hours. I've been to a number of places, some more popular than the other, but perhaps Azerbaijan is the most unknown territory amongst my social circles. So people still ask me from time to time-what is there in Azerbaijan? What did you do? To tell you the truth, I didn't do much. There were some glorious sights, of course, but I didn't do much sightseeing compared to my other trips. I didn't have a set schedule to be anywhere aside from the return ticket to the States, so I just lingered in a few places, hanging out with the locals and just…living.

I crossed the Georgian-Azeri border in a rather hasty manner, even for my standard-got my visa a few days before, picked a town to arrive, then off I went via a long van ride.
Not knowing where you are can be hard.
Not knowing where you are going can be hard.
Not knowing anything about where you are can be hard.
Yet it has somehow worked out pretty well; it can be an inconvenient, yet alluring experience.

My usual cynical attitude (read: bitchiness) doesn't translate well, as I tend to smile a lot more out of nervousness, so I accidentally portray myself as a pseudo-friendly person in unfamiliar territories. It had been a while since I last had visited a country whose language I didn't speak(2007). My Azeri was non-existent, so I figured I'd rely on my Russian instead.

I don't speak Russian.

Most of the Russian words I knew were rather inutile; Much of my teenage years were spent around Russophones so consequently, I have amassed a mixture of limited vocabulary.
Random class instructions? Check.
Your usual silly teenage vulgarism? Check.
Practical basic phrases? Niet!
Another regrettable wasted childhood period? Check.

"Lost in Translation" doesn't really begin to describe my experience. I found myself on second class Soviet trains with every eyes in the room following even the most minute action I was making. At that point, there isn't much to do besides laughing at the whole situation. People were eager to converse with me and were consequently perplexed to find out that I, who appeared to be an Uzbek, didn't speak Russian. My ethnic background has been a subject to much speculation more often times than an healthy allotted amount, and it's been guessed anywhere from an Australian to half-Mexican-some people get real specific-so while I normally expect people to wrongly assume my ethnicity, I was puzzled at why people kept on thinking why I was an Uzbek since I really didn't see a resemblance to my Uzbek-American friends. (A few months ago, I got to meet a group of kids from Uzbekistan, and I guess I look more Uzbek than others)
People were confused. Why did this Uzbek-looking girl claim that she's an amerikanskii and cannot speak Russian? I certainly wasn't going to "impress" the fellow passengers with the display of my classy knowledge of Russian vulgarism.

The suspicions soon wore off-they probably decided I was an imbecile-but the novelty didn't. Between blatant staring and bashful exchanges of smiles, people offered their food and help in any way they could provide. Perhaps the saying "it takes a village to raise a child" most accurately describes what went on. Even the simplest, most mundane activities never failed to provide people with a source of amusement. As I struggled to make my bunk bed with the provided sheets, people offered their help to tuck me in. You read it right, yes, I was 24 at the time and people were tucking me into my bed. They motioned me to lay down so I can be tucked in nice and proper for the night(restrain yourself from making sexual innuendos) while I chuckled the entire time, and the rest of the passengers continued to gaze on with a proud look on their faces for showing the Azeri hospitality.

Simulacra + Vera Icon-Wellington, New Zealand

Environmentally speaking, Wellington was the most ideal place for me with its waterfront downtown surrounded by numerous hills. The downtown waterfront was the most beautiful free wifi spot ever! Despite its (relatively) small size, it has a burgeoning art scene, replete with various exhibitions and gigs all over the city. I spent the first week basically moping around all over downtown but by the time I booked my return ticket to Tokyo, I was really enjoying the beautiful city and a bit sad to leave so soon. It's too bad I had to leave under these circumstances but because I left it on good terms, I'm really looking forward to going back there in near future, hopefully when the weather is better. I really can't get use to living in the Southern Hemisphere though. 

This is one of the latest sets of photos sitting on my hard drive-I have pictures from my extensive traveling from last September and on, so hopefully I'll get around posting them in near future. As I've mentioned, I'm now in Tokyo until...god knows when, so if you have an interesting assignment, send them my way! 

Back in Tokyo

Yep I'm back in Tokyo, will remain here at least several months.
I finally have my own room for the first time in....ages.
It's good to finally unpack and by unpack I mean have my stuff strewn all over the floor & playing involuntary Twister to get around.
Will expand on it in a few days. :]

Nomadic Amateur-Teach and Learn With Georgia-part III

A typical Georgian public school consists of grade 1 to grade 12. They don't have separate buildings for Elementary/Middle/High School. The building itself is a typical Soviet-era edifice. It looks sturdy and imposing on the façade, but crumbling to pieces inside-perhaps an apt representation of the Soviet Union during its last years. Electric wires are hanging out of the ceiling, lights don’t work, chalks are usually unavailable in most classrooms, wall paint is chipped everywhere, the hallways/stairwells have random potholes, and the bathroom visits are best saved for dire emergency cases only (even then, think it over again), etc. At least my school has heaters that actually work. Some of the fellow volunteers have told me that in their schools, the heaters were never turned on even in freezing weather.

My co-teachers are all women, in their 40s-60s. I think the youngest teacher at school is 37. Most schools have very few male teachers because, as men are the “bread-winners” in Georgian culture, they can’t afford to be teachers since the salary is quite low.

In my school, most grades start at 9 in the morning, while the younger students (1st and 2nd) come later in the evening for a shorter schedule.
Not everyone can afford books, and apparently their families don’t care so some of them just come in and sit there without doing anything the entire day. Most students who speak English pretty well have either taken or are taking private lessons. The teachers' unabashed display of favoritism and casually hurling disdainful expressions at the others-"he is very lazy"/"she's very weak in Georgian, too"-can be quite shocking, to say the least. Perhaps my mind has been poisoned with the encouragement-based American education system. The wasted years thinking that I could do anything I wanted...

One thing I found quite interesting is that the other volunteers were horrified to see the students go ape within a few seconds during the 5/10-minute breaks between classes. I guess I should mention that during my Elementary school years spent outside of the U.S., I was one of the buffoonish monkeys. We had no recess so I allocated my time very wisely during the breaks to innocently beating up boys, non-homoerotically lifting up girls’ skirts and running away, and/or being chased around. Let's just say I busted my face open a few times in school.
I, however, feel like it helps releasing the extra physical energy that kids have, and focus better in classes-when I came back to the States at the age of twelve, I was shocked to find kids acting out during the class with complete disregard for the teachers. Well, at least we had the detention system in the States to keep kids in line. Here, the teachers have very little authoritative power over controlling students’ behavior since they don’t have a strict enforcement system. It mostly has to do with the fact that school grades don’t matter when it comes to entering universities and neither does a teacher’s recommendation. The college entrance system changed while I was there, which I will cover in details later on.

The students routinely, even during a completely unrelated lesson, ask a few rhetorical questions: Do you like Georgia? Do you like Tbilisi? Do you like khinkali (boiled dumpling)? Do you like khachapuri (cheese-filled bread/pastry)? The answer is, whether you mean it or not, always a yes. Then to produce a few giggles, you throw in random Georgian words/phrases you know. Write a few Georgian alphabets you can remember and you got yourself some adoring Georgian fans. To my defense, it was done unintentionally on my part.

To give you an idea of how brilliant their learning materials can be, I present an excerpt from the 11th grade textbook, a very flattering comparison between the British and the American:

Britain and America
1. Americans aim to do three things in life: 1. Look after themselves; 2. Live forever and look beautiful and young for as long as possible; 3. Make lots of money and/or become famous. They will do anything to achieve these goals.
The British are very different. They would like to be quite rich, but are happy to accept their life as it is. They would never dream of putting themselves before others and this is why they like to queue so much and allow people to go in front of them in all kinds of races.

2. Americans love food in large quantities and endless varieties. American plates are very big, but many American meals don't even fit on them. Americans buy food that is already prepared and ready to be cooked in the microwave. This is true unless of course they are Californians, in which case they eat what they call "raw energy food," and which the rest of the world calls salad.
The British only eat food to survive and would never dream of enjoying it. They prefer to cook their food for twice as long as necessary just to make sure it's done, and they don't have too many choices on menus as they find it difficult to make up their minds about which ones to choose.

3. Both British and American parents are proud of their children, but here the similarity ends. American parents publicly admire their children, and they like to tell everyone about their successes because they assume that everyone else is interested. If they don't like the way they are, they change their children by, for example, straightening their teeth or boosting their self-confidence by organizing extra activities for them.
British parents think that, if they gave their children too much praise, this would make them overconfident. British parents are happy to accept their children as nature wanted them to be, even if it means their teeth look terrible.

4. America has thousands of TV channels because most Americans have a very short attention span. TV and film companies won't film any one who isn't blonde and beautiful, who's slightly overweight or who doesn't have perfect teeth, unless they are appearing on a talk show.
Britain is well-known for its comedy, drama and award-winning commercials and the fact that it has only five TV channels. However, as most British people would never want to appear on TV, they don't need more than five channels.

Nomadic Amateur-Teach and Learn With Georgia-part II

*I wrote a part of this post back in September, along with some other aspects of the program but I finished the program as of 19 Dec 2010.

After spending a week being mentally prepared for the optimum experience (read:brainwashed) at the government training facility, the volunteers were taken back to Tbilisi in an excruciatingly hot bus, sweating profusely in our best attire that we had put on in hopes of impressing our host families.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Georgian driving, let’s just say that I’ll be buying a lottery ticket once I make it alive in one piece at the end of the year (I did!). It probably ranks on top of the world’s worst driving list- I would say rivaling India’s, if not worse. As our bus was driven through the narrow and perilous winding roads, we came across a burning bus, which emitted a disturbing amount of heat. Being thoroughly perturbed by the scene, I decided at that point that a heatstroke-induced voluntary unconsciousness would do my mental health good.

Back at the Ministry of Education and Science, we encountered our host families who seemed to be arguing clamorously with the programme coordinators. I was dazed from recently being awakened. I just sat there nervously, trying my best to get a grasp of what was going on around me. I was dazed.

Once everyone settled down, they called out the names of the volunteers and host families in rapid succession so I gave whoever was nearby awkward hugs and headed outside with my school director and host father, who didn’t speak any English. I was still dazed.

My host family consists of the father (52), the mother (43) the father’s older sister (54), two sisters (20 &18), and the little brother (7). After the whole financial arrangement fiasco during the training, I was a bit worried to see my host father’s jalopy in the sea of sleek foreign cars, only because I was afraid of becoming a financial burden to the family. The concern was amplified when I learned that the host father doesn’t work; in our ever-so-helpful cultural training class, we were told that in Georgia, men are viewed as the “bread-winners” of the family. They don’t really have the concept of “stay-home dads,” so the host mother works part-time as a seamstress and runs the household, although the host father cooks every once in awhile. The older host sister works as a customer service representative at the airport, while the aunt works as a pharmacist. The older host sister still attends university part-time, studying animation while the younger one just started this year, studying Business and English. To much of my relief, I learned that the two sisters speak pretty decent amount of English. The host father, mother and aunt, like most of the older generation, speak fluent Russian and some German but almost no English.

Apparently the residence is located in the “hood.” My host sister’s words, not mine. The first thing she told me about the neighborhood was, “this neighborhood, not so nice.” I just smiled awkwardly and nodded masterfully, hoping what she meant to say was “bohemian.”

The family has been living here for generations so they are familiar with many neighbors, some of who are their relatives. It's nice to see the family know so many people in the neighborhood as I’ve never had that kind of experience in my life due to my frequent relocation. They often have guests over and it seems that they tend to hang out at each other’s house rather than going out together.

The house itself consists of two floors with separate entrances and a small yard. In the typical Georgian manner, only the second floor is newly renovated. It’s very common to see only parts of a building renovated here, probably due to the financial matter. Basically, the idea is to fix one part at a time when there’s money. 

The second floor consists of a small rest room, three bedrooms, a living room, and a dining room/kitchen. I stay in one of these bedrooms. My room belonged to the older sister but now she’s moved into another room with the other sister.

The “first” floor seems more like a basement as it is hidden underneath the second floor. Only a scarce amount of sunlight passes through as the result, creating a grim ambience, adding to its already ramshackle dungeon-esque vibe. There’s also a small kitchen/dining space, as well as an outdoor restroom.

One peculiarity that personally affected me was that there were tons of mosquitoes swarming around due to the lack of window screens, yet no one was getting any bites. I, on the other hand, was devoured mercilessly as usual and immediately upon releasing my bare skin free for all consumption. It wasn’t pretty. I ended up having to go to a hospital in my first week because of my allergic reaction to the bites. The insurance company told me that the doctor speaks English, and by that they meant her repeating, “I don’t understand” over and over again to any question I had. Great.

Among many of TLG’s brilliant deeds, was misinforming the duration of our stay. The Ministry of Education and Science apparently told all the host families and schools that the volunteers signed up for a year. It was awkward explaining to the family that the most of us signed up for only one semester and explaining that their government has indeed, misinformed them. This for some reason caused a lot more friction than I had expected-the host family kept on repeating “but the government told us this,” while I kept on repeating that it was a mistake made on their part. At the time, I didn’t realize the magnitude of this false “promise” that the government made to the host families regarding hosting us volunteers and ended up paying dearly for it later on. 

Nomadic Amateur-Teach and Learn With Georgia-part I

It's been almost 2 months since I arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia but I have put aside updating since, as the story of my life goes, I've been distracted by a plethora of drama and general good times.

Before I left the States, I had asked on numerous occasions for a tentative orientation training schedule during the first week. Not that it would've done any good, but I figured at least I could mentally prepare myself for a potentially arduous schedule. Well, now I realized why they hadn't told me about the schedule beforehand; I, along with a few volunteers, arrived in Tbilisi International Airport around 3 a.m. after spending 11 hours zombie-walking around Munich. We waited for a few hours for a few more to arrive, and then were informed that our presence will be required for breakfast and check-out by 9. We arrived at our hotel at 6. Sleeping has never been so overrated.

In my jet-lag delirium, I was herded along with other volunteers to the Ministry of Education and Science, where we found ourselves in a small press room full of media personnel who were still eager to film us, even though there had been three groups already previously. Afterwards, I was driven to a lab for various blood tests to make sure that Georgia hasn't just let in a diseased junkie. If I remember correctly, I'm pretty certain that the building bore a sign "Maternity Lab/Fertility Center." I think I'm fetus-free.

The training itself took place just outside of Kutaisi, the second biggest city in Georgia 3 hours away from Tbilisi, at a sterile-looking government training facility. A few days before our departures, we were informed that most of us will be placed in Kutaisi, which, according to the Greek Mythology, was the last destination of Jason and the Argonauts. Being a huge Greek/Roman Mythology enthusiast (read:nerd), I was ready to let my not-so-secret inner nerd come out and frolic. Once we arrived in Kutaisi, however, we were told that most of us will be heading back to Tbilisi for our placement after the training.

Apparently the previous group had wreaked havoc on the program's reputation so we were under a lockdown, save for brief outings to the nearby bar and market. The training schedule was quite gruelling; we had an intensive Georgian language crash course(useful), cultural learning class(useless), and methodology class(utterly useless). In my futile effort to work off excessive energy and remain (relatively) sane, I ran across the hallways and went for a walk in the evenings. By the end of the week, I was used to the schedule. Funny how easily human beings can be conditioned. 

One major drama occurred one night during the training due to a change in contract clause. I had taken some Benadryl, which consequently knocked me out for good, so I missed the post-dinner meeting where, apparently, all hell broke lose. The pandemonium was caused, well, basically by the false advertisement: the free housing isn't really free-the host families are not contractually obligated to feed us and we would be expected to make a financial contribution. I should mention that the host families are not getting any financial assistance for hosting volunteers. The administrators assured that the host family will probably feed us and will be hospitable, but the volunteers are expected to give them 100 laris a month. I don't think some volunteers(myself included) were necessarily upset at that one clause specifically, as oppose to the fact that many things have been changing since we had arrived: the actual contracts (one in Georgian-call me selfish, but I'd like to keep my kidneys intact, thank you very much), placement location, on top of the fact that we were under a lockdown-what else was going to change? The following few days, the administration became more flexible, granting us more free time, probably in order to compensate for the chaotic night. In the end, everyone was too exhausted and reluctant to bring up the issue again so we didn't really reach any solution. 

Some volunteers from previous groups came to share their experience so far; I figured it would be quite inutile since they had been here for only two weeks by that point, still enjoying the welcoming-phase. Surprisingly, some of them had been already told to pay up by their host families, only a week in their stay. It was the exact situation that had concerned me; in Chile, some host families(who were being paid by the government for hosting volunteers) asked the volunteers for money because they assumed that he/she must be loaded in order to volunteer in a developing country. Well, guess what, after 2 months here, I can confirm that it is the same situation with my host family-they were expecting me, an American, to bestow them with money. 

I think the concept of volunteering is foreign in many developing countries and people don't realize that you don't have to be wealthy to want to help others. Speaking on the phone with my mum, she confirmed that most people volunteer when they have money. I'm a victim of the typical American Saviour Syndrome(not an intentional acronym), what can I say.

Backpacking 101-Packing part II

Sorry about the lack of updates for the past 2 weeks. As I have mentioned before, I have been quite busy with my self-imposed exile moving abroad business, as well as watching the entire series of Lost-which turned out to be a huge waste of time; I want my life back-and now with FIFA World Cup 2010, I can't find time to do a decent blog post.

Believe it or not, putting together posts for this blog takes time, anywhere from an hour to almost a day, to make something of a "quality." I'm not begging for your sympathy, I'm just ranting for your understanding. :)

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While I'm a huge bag lady, I'm not known for carrying a huge wardrobe, unlike some lady backpackers I've witnessed to be guilty of this charge. It's been easier for me to narrow down my wardrobe over the years without sacrificing much of the style, albeit I tend to dress much more conservatively than I do back in New York.

Although I had to resort to living in sweatpants during the last few months of my trip due to my small backpack due to my amazing dresses getting stolen & a broken hand, I usually love dressing somewhat nicely when I travel. Vanity issues aside, here is why: I don't know about your preference but I prefer to not walk around with a huge "Tourist" sign stamped on my forehead. There is no easier target than an obviously lost foreigner in a pair of expensive hiking boots and utilitarian cargo pants(or worse, the ubiquitous unofficial "backpacker pants" that awfully resemble clown pants) with his/her backpack worn in the front, a guidebook in hands.

Here are some tips:

-Pack layers of lightweight clothes rather than one bulky item.

It's much easier to travel with layers of lightweight clothes that weigh the same as one bulky item, especially if you are traveling across various climates. Not only is it more practical, but it also gives you a variety to choose from. It also helps to preserve heat better if you dress in layers than wearing one item. I usually pack a few light sweaters or cardigans and shirts and layer them. 

-Pack easily washable, wrinkle-free items.

If you are traveling for more than a week, you will probably have to do laundry while you are on the road. Try to pack clothes that are pretty easy-maintenance, meaning they can be hand/machine-washed, and better if they are wrinkle-free as well. 

I had these amazing jersey dresses purchased in Japan that could be rolled up into a small ball and still come out wrinkle-free. Since Japan is the master of layered-looks, they were great for layering; I could wear a different type of shirt + tights/leggings underneath to suit the climate. Unfortunately, they were stolen along with my backpack in Chile. ::shaking fist::

-Research local fashion/customs.

Some countries' strict dress codes are more (in)famous than others. A well-known example is the dress code for women in Muslim countries, where women are required to don hijab as well as to cover their bodies in more conservative regions. Some countries/regions' customs are not as well-known to outsiders, but still, they are expected to be obeyed. 

When I was preparing for my trip to India, I came across an unfamiliar dress code: sleeveless shirts are considered revealing. I had read this before leaving for India but unwisely chose to ignore this, because I thought it was an absolutely mad idea since the traditional Sari consists of midriff-baring choli. Different countries have different standards; while in some countries, sleeveless shirts maybe considered less revealing than midriff-baring shirts, in some countries, they are not. I foolishly packed mostly sleeveless shirts and ended up having to cover my shoulders with a shawl in scorching weather with a heat index of 110-120 degrees Fahrenheit(roughly 40-50 degrees Celsius). 

Also in Korea, a few Western girls told me that they have experienced random old ladies coming up and pulling their midriff-baring shirts down to cover the bellies. 

Do your research ahead about the countries/regions' unique customs and adhere to it. You may think it is oppressing your individuality and feel the urge to rebel, but following the local dress code shows a sign of respect towards the region's culture. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. 

-Have at least one comfortable outfit for long bus rides/flights/sail etc.

I know, I know.

Style always wins out in the end but, it's excruciatingly painful to sit through 12+ hrs of journey in a pair of skin-tight, blood-circulation-obstructing skinny jeans.(Kudos to you rare ladies who travel in skin-tight dresses and 5+ inch stilettos with perfect hair and makeup) Not saying you have to resort to wearing sweatsuits, as there are plenty of comfortable options which can be stylish at the same time. Even if you can endure suffering in the name of fashion, pack at least one comfortable outfit for your trip; your body will thank you. 

-Have one fancy outfit for going out. 

Although you might not expect to attend a fancy gala in uh, say, Himalayas, you never know what occassion/who you might run into. 

I'm a firm believer in "Good shoes bring you to good places," although in my case, it's more about the entire outfit than just the shoes. I'm not saying you should be anticipating an event-of-the-century in the middle of nowhere, but you should have at least one dressy outfit that can be easily maintained for going out to any place that requires a "fancy" dress code, such as theatres, galleries, restaurants etc. 

-Keep a basic sewing kit handy.
Sewing is one of the most necessary life skills on the road. Learn how to sew basic stitches-such as mending a hole, sewing a button etc-and pack a small sewing kit. Also, pack a few safety pins: they come in quite handy when you don't have time to sit down and sew or if you are too lazy to sew like myself.

-Go shopping and donate/leave behind or discard old clothes.

Update/upgrade your wardrobe by going clothes shopping when you are traveling. It doesn't have to be a guilty spending spree-there are plenty of affordable options available-check out local thrift stores, vintage stores as well as bargain outlets and sales racks.

Donate or discard clothes that you don't need anymore. The key is not to expand your luggage, so only do this when it's absolutely necessary(of course, a "necessity" can be defined very subjectively).

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P.S. How amazing are Argentina and Germany in FIFA World Cup? I usually love Brasil the most, but their performance against North Korea was a bit disappointing.(Ronaldo & Ronaldinho, you are both dearly missed) Argentina has been phenomenal (Messi-WHOA) + I was giggling the entire time Germany played against Australia because I was uh, charmed with their prowess haha.

Nomadic Amateur-Backpacking 101-Packing part I

Before I start giving out tips on today's topic, I must confess that I am probably the best and the worst person to give advices on packing, as I am a bonafide international bag lady. No, not the pseudo-grunge "This-may-look-$1-but-it-costs-more-than-your-mortgage" a la Mary-Kate kind, but the genuine, turtle-esque bag lady kind who seems to be carrying her entire life on her back. (And front; And shoulders)

For someone who has been traveling as long as I have, I sure do detest packing. Every time I have to leave a place, the most dreadful part is to pack up my things, mainly because I pack my thing to the point where my bags are bursting and have to resort to applying pressure to decrease the volume.

Although I still have to go through the five stages of grief every time, the following procedures have helped me greatly to overcome, or at least shorten each stages of grief:

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When I pack, I usually bring all the things I need and put them in piles around the luggage-it helps visualize the load-and check off the list while I place the items in the bag so that way I don't leave out anything. but then again, my problems tend to be over-packing, not being unprepared.

-Making a thorough packing list.
If you are a frequent traveller, it's a good idea to make a basic packing list for your trips, regardless of your destination or the purpose of the trip. Keep it as a text file and email it to yourself so you don't have to make a list every single time you decide to pack.

Some suggestions:
Tooth brush, Sun glasses, mp3 player, headphones, camera, camera charger, USB cable, etc.

*Even if the items are really minuscule, write it down, the idea is to prevent omitting anything out.

I also keep a few additional short lists, sorted by the climate of the regions/purposes of the trip-for example, the list for hiking, the list for tropical regions, etc.

-Check the weight limits.
Try to weigh your entire luggage before leaving your place. Take into consideration that international flights usually have higher baggage allowance than domestic flights, so you might have to make some changes if you plan on taking both international and domestic flights.

-Check the appliance settings. 
You may need a converter and sometimes the travel converters are not powerful enough for some appliances, such as hair dryer and hair straightener. I should know. I burned through a hair straightener and a very expensive Apple power adaptor. For any category of packing, less is better. Some hostels/hotels may already have appliances you need, such as small irons, and hair dryers, so ditch them if possible. If it is essential that you bring an appliance, check the appliance settings of the region ahead of time-check the voltage, the plug shape, and whether your appliance needs a converter.

-Weed out anything you would hate to lose and find absolutely irreplaceable.
It may give you solace to bring your grandmother's heirloom necklace or your favorite vintage band shirt on the road. Can you imagine living the rest of your life without ever seeing those items again? Theft happens, and so do misplacement and robbery. Unless you are prepared to have it with you 24/7, (and even so, things happen) leave it at home.

-Utilize zip lock bags and pack a few extras.

I usually collect ticket stubs and pamphlets from the places I visit and by the end of the trip, they mount up. Zip lock bags are lifesavers to collect these not just for the organizational sake, but also to keeps them clean and dry. I use zip lock bags to store my important documents, Moleskine sketchbook, and books etc.

-Make a copy of important documents.
When traveling, you sometimes need to show your passport as an ID. I usually keep a color-copy of my passport (the picture page) handy and put my actual passport out of sight. I've never had a problem using the copy instead of the actual passport, so unless the situation calls for something official, you probably don't need to show the real one.

I also make copies of my important documents, such as credit cards(front and back), debit cards, visas, vaccinations, prescriptions, and insurance, etc. I needn't tell you that you can group them and make a copy so you don't end up with a novel-sized copies of important documents. I usually keep a copy with me all the time and another separate one in my backpack, both stored in zip lock bags.

-Remember, downsize, downsize and downsize!
I know I am the least qualified to lecture on this subject but learn from my mistakes, don't be a human-snail like me.

In India, someone told me that there was a saying, "You suffer as much as you bring," which is so, so, so true. Although some things might seem absolutely indispensable at the moment of packing, you won't even remember bringing them once you hit the road. I always find myself changing into different clothes a lot less than I had expected,(not to question my personal hygiene) as well as not using many of the things I bring on the road.

I am not encouraging people to go underprepared. There's nothing peskier than a bunkmate who frequently asks to borrow something you have while he/she walks around with a bag light as a feather. Be prepared, just weed out the unnecessary.

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The packing article ended up a lot longer than I had expected so I am breaking them into parts. The next Nomadic Amateur will cover the clothing.

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In other news, I'd really appreciate it if you could vote for me here.

Nomadic Amateur-Backpacking 101-Cheap Flights & Guidebooks

"The Essentials on The Road"

Welcome to Nomadic Amateur.
Once a week, or more often if I can get myself committed to it, I will share my tips and information about backpacking/traveling/visiting certain places.

When I started to travel extensively on my own back in 2006, I was the only one among my groups of friends who was doing it. By no means, I am not an expert(hence the title "Nomadic Amateur") but over the years of 3D(dirty, dangerous and difficult) "budget" traveling and working at a hostel, I've picked up some very useful tips and information from people I've met on the road as well as developing some of my own.

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Don't expect me to cover somewhere really well-known because I'm sure there is a plenty of information available out there, way better than what I have to say.

Do expect to read about relatively unknown places and how to get there, things I wish I had been told before I hit the road, some lessons learned from personal anecdotes, etc.

So the long introduction aside, let's start from the beginning.

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"Where do you find a cheap plane ticket?"
I know, I know. This question is so trite but it is indeed the most common question I get asked.

I'm sorry to say that there is no one specific place where you can look up to find the cheap ticket.

Like most good bargains, you have to do some research but here are some sites that I usually frequent:
Cheapoair (lately it's been the cheapest from my personal experience); Travelocity; Momondo;Expedia

I used to use Student Universe and STATravel a lot for my international travels several years ago, but lately they haven't been as cheap.

From Latinoamerica:
Despegar *note that different price might apply depending on your nationality

I usually find that search sites have better deals than the actual airline websites, but airlines have exclusive deals on their sites from time to time so check to compare.

Nowadays, Twitter has been an excellent source for exclusive deals so follow some airlines' Twitter and watch out for those deals.

Internet normally finds the cheapest deals for me, but I noticed that it was cheaper to book a ticket through a travel agency in Asia. (you may also get to haggle a bit)

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"What is the best guidebook for _____?"
This has been an ongoing debate question whenever I come across seasoned backpackers. While we have different preferences, we all shared the same opinion: There is no one perfect guidebook.

I personally use a mixture of Lonely Planet; Fodor's; Footprints; and have used 100배 즐기기(I found it very helpful for finding excellent lodgings) for India.
Time Out is excellent for traveling in general but not necessarily for budget backpacking.

Guidebooks often provide a convenient snapshot of information, but it will very much limit your experience. Over the years I grew increasing unsatisfied with guidebooks for a number of reasons:

-Guidebook are not updated on a timely manner.
Although some guidebooks update more frequently than the others, it is still not up-to-date. While some cities might boast restaurants and shops from the days of yore, in other cities it is here today, gone tomorrow.

When I first visited Peru with a friend back in September 2007, we spent about an hour circling the same few blocks looking for that perfect ice cream store described in the guidebook. Imagine my surprise when we finally learned that it had been out of business when the guidebook was only five months old.

While my ice cream misadventure might not be so devastating(it was), think about this happening to you when you plan your travel around visiting a well-known landmark, only to get there to learn that it is closed.

-Being listed on the popular guide book is a huge advertisement for business.
Many foreigners will have the same guidebook as you especially when you share similar budgets, which means running into them everywhere you go. While this might be excellent for extending your international friends range, this means running into them at the same hostels, the same restaurants, and the same travel agencies etc. This can translate into thousands of steady tourism business for those listed on the guidebooks. You will actually see some places asking the visitors to recommend them to the guidebooks and rightfully so, offering their excellent services/products. Unfortunately, some listed places take advantage of this and charge a higher price for poor service because they know the tourists will keep on pouring in.

-Not every information listed on the guidebook is accurate
There have been controversies involving well-known guidebooks such as Lonely Planet, that the writers are poorly paid and that the writers don't actually visit the places.

Have you ever wondered why your favorite guidebook recommended this awful restaurant where food tastes like card boards? One of my favorite anecdotes to tell fellow travelers regarding the defects of guidebooks is the story I read a few years ago-I don't remember exactly where I read it (it might have been from Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? by Thomas Kohnstamm)-A travel writer wrote that the restaurant has a "good table service" for a guide book after having sex with a waitress on the table.

Apparently writers sometimes get bribed by the place in hopes of getting listed(for the fore-mentioned reason)

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"I don't have a guidebook, now what do I do?"

• Speaking a local language will be a huge advantage. I'll spare you the lengthy lecture on obvious virtues of learning a new language but know this-hospitality business that boasts English-speaking staff knows that they are dealing with many tourists who cannot speak the local language, therefore afraid to head elsewhere. Yes, there is such thing as "charging for speaking English," which is not a bad thing on its own but sometimes it comes with bad services at a higher price.
  
• Talk to your fellow backpackers, ask them for recommendation. There is no better source of information than your fellow backpacker who just visited the place a few days ago. Ask them for recommendations on where to visit, where to eat, where to sleep, what to do, etc.
  
• Stop by the official tourism office and pick up a map and ask for information. Often times, the official tourism office will be very helpful and can make some suggestions for you. Maybe there is a parade happening in the main square in a few hours. Fortunately, many official tourism offices will have pamphlets in English as well as an English-speaking staff so don't be afraid to go in even if you don't speak the local language.

If you have to buy a guidebook, The best you can do is pick up a guide for the city, the country in that order.
DO NOT, by all means, buy a guidebook for the entire continent. I was horrified at how poorly written they were.

I ended up carrying at least 5 guidebooks and countless maps on my extensive trip to South America on top of checking the Internet regularly for new information and asking around.

Which one of the guidebooks I have listed above do I recommend?
I'm really reluctant to say it, but I use Lonely Planet the most, despite of all its flaws because I like the writing and the layout style. However if there is a new guidebook coming out tomorrow, I'd rather try that than buying another copy of LP.

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Next Nomadic Amateur will cover the most crucial part of backpacking(at least for me): Packing.