Okay, so we all know the basics, right? Passports, tickets, money, travellers cheques, clothes, camera, toiletries, condoms... We'd have to be pretty daft to forget any of those (and lets face it, those idiots you see on various airline documentaries do tend to be the moronic minority).
What I want to talk about are a few things that you might not have thought of, but which I have found essential during my various expeditions.
Before you read any further please note that the following inventory is specifically based on back-packing trips through 'Western' countries (hence the reason I have not mentioned such things as water purification tablets or mobile phones).
Read on...
1. POCKET-KNIFE
Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about one of those fancy
Swiss Army jobs (though what backpacker could afford one?). Unless you have pretty particular interests you're probably not going to have much use for a magnifying glass, a spanner or a miniature
jig-saw. A fairly simple one will suffice - one blade, a
bottle opener and possibly a cork-screw is all you will likely use (come to think of it, a
wine knife would probably suffice). The last two
accessories are fairly self-explanatory; the first will have many uses including peeling apples, slicing breadrolls, cleaning under toenails and defending yourself on overnight
train trips through
Italy.
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2. MEDICAL KIT
We've all seen the fancy little packages with the International Medical Symbol splashed across them in the travel shops: you know, the ones that cost upwards of £10 and on closer inspection contain only half a dozen cotton-balls, bandages in every possible width and length and a
small bottle of antiseptic. DO NOT buy one of these. It's much cheaper to make your own and you're far more likely to be bringing things that you'll actually use. A good
medical kit should vary according to personal needs, but here's a few things I usually bring:
* Painkillers. There's nothing worse than a long train trip when you've had a few fare-well pints with your bunk-mates the night before (or even if you've just got a ripping headache). I usually bring paracetamol as well as codeine.
* Band-Aids. These will come in handy for treating blisters far more often than they will cuts or scrapes, as you find the 'easy walk from
train station' turns out to be anything but.
* Anti-diarrhoea tablets. Pretty self-explanatory. Useful especially if you plan to sample the fare from road-side stalls or American burger franchises.
* Anti-nausea pills. See above. Also useful if you plan to take any boat/ferry trips (especially between
Spain and
Morocco).
* Multi-vitamins. Think about it. When have you known someone to come back from a back-packing trip and not look malnourished? This way, you can live entirely on burgers, tinned spaghetti and lager and not feel guilty about it :).
Other suggested items:
throat lozenges, Deap Heat (for those backpack-strap-damaged shoulders),
cold-sore cream, laxatives and
antiseptic cream (though I've never actually used the later I'm sure it will come in handy on the first trip I leave it behind).
It may sound like I'm advising you to bring your entire medical cabinet with you, but I'm not - a small jar/tube or a single strip of tablets should generally suffice. You probably won't use half of it, but believe me it'll be a godsend when you wind up with a blister/ sore-throat/ migraine/ gastro-enteritis/ septic wound.
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3. ALARM CLOCK
Absolutely vital for catching that early morning train/bus/plane, especially if you were up late partying the night before. Preferably try to find one that's compact enough to fit under your pillow so you can switch it off fairly quickly and avoid being beaten up by all the other backpackers who only got back from clubbing at 4 am.
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4. SEWING KIT
If you're doing your best to travel light, this can come in extremely handy, especially when you tear a hole in one of your only two pairs of trousers. You can usually pick up a cheap and compact kit complete with multi-coloured threads at any Pound Shop. Include a small pair of scissors too – you'll find they have myriad uses (though I can't for the life of me remember what I used mine for, I know I used them a lot. Though I think I tried to use one of the handles as a bottle opener once and they're a bit bent now).
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5. CAN-OPENER
Okay, so your average hostel should already have one of these. But chances are the only one that won't is the one you'll arrive at after all the shops are shut when you have only tinned spaghetti in your backpack. Also handy for making tuna sandwiches on the go.
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6. PLASTIC BAGS
Sounds a bit strange, I know. You probably have more of these in your house than you'll be able to use in the next decade. But when you've just taken a shower and suddenly realise you have a sodden towel to pack, you'll be glad to have one on you. They can also come in handy keeping dirty laundry, shoes, wet toiletries and foodstuffs separate from the rest of your belongings.
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7. CONDIMENTS
No, I said condiments, not condoms (we covered those in the first paragraph remember?). If like me you try to cook your own meals where possible, your basic pasta-and-sauce is probably going to get a bit boring after a while, especially if you have nothing to season it with. And realistically, even if you buy a shaker of salt or a bottle of chilli sauce while travelling it's going to be a hindrance and you'll probably just end up leaving it somewhere. So why not bring a small collection of your favourite seasonings? I usually take a small jar of mixed salt and pepper (usually an old Masterfoods jar), a bag of mixed herbs, a small jar of chillies, some garlic cloves and a small bottle of Tabasco sauce. Also, if you eat at pubs like the Hogshead or a Wetherspoon, take advantage of their condiment selection - you never know when a sachet of mustard, ketchup or mayonnaise might come in handy.
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8. PHRASEBOOK
Rather obvious, perhaps, but how often do people usually make use of them? I've tried to take advantage of long train trips by brushing up on at least a few basic phrases of the place I'm travelling to next - I've found that even if it's not enough to make yourself understood people tend to respect you more for it than if you just speak in English.
Some suggested phrases are, "Hello", "Thank you", "Can I have...", "How much is...", "Help, I'm lost" and at least the first few numbers. And of course, the most important phrase of all: "A beer, please" (I can now say this in at least eight languages).
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9. PACK OF CARDS
The ultimate traveller's companion. More social than a book, more versatile than travel scrabble/ chess/ backgammon, you will always find a use for them. Okay, so it's a bit of a bastard to go back to manual solitaire after you're used to playing a game in under a minute, but at least it will while away those long lonely hours waiting for a connecting train or bus. It's a great way to make friends in a hostel too - how better to start a conversation than offering a quick game of Arsehole or Spit? [Tip: brush up on a few bizarre variations before you go, and you'll be the life of the party.] This is also a good way to spot the really seasoned traveller - they'll be the ones with decks that have more bits of paper with the number/suit drawn on than original cards.
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And last but not least...
10. PAPER AND PENS
These are items that I never leave home without. Whether it's keeping a journal, writing to loved ones, playing
Tic-Tac-Toe or Hangman with a new friend, idle doodling or even writing Ops :), you'll find these an essential addition to your
luggage, especially when idling away the boring hours on
transport or in stations. I sometimes even take a sketch pad and pencils, especially when travelling somewhere like
Switzerland where if you have a creative bone in your body you'll feel yourself inspired to try and capture the breath-taking scenery. Even if you're not particularly artistic or literary-minded, take a pen and pad just in case – if nothing else it will come in handy for shopping lists, taking down phone numbers or drawing pictures of a toilet for a non-English-speaking train-guard.
Well, I hope you've found this useful. And I don't need to tell you that the most important things to take are a sense of fun, a yearning for adventure and an overall love of life!
Happy Trails!!!
The Bare Necessities... 
