Packing

Sure the trip is still 164 days away and it might seem a bit premature to start packing...but Christmas is coming and maybe you need something for the trip that you could have Santa bring.

Pack light. This I can not stress enough.

I would recommend you have three outfits for building in. These are outfits that are going to get dirty, possibly end up with rips or small tears in them and generally you do not need nor plan to ever wear again after the trip.

Pants. This is a must at the build site. No shorts, no skirts and no pants above mid-calf. My preference is that you wear long pants. It is a cultural issue. We do not want to embarass ourselves, our country or worse yet, our hosts by wearing pants that the women would be uncomfortable with us in. If your pants are too short I will not allow you to wear them on the build site.

Yes, it will be super hot. You will adjust trust me. I did it. I was living in -40 temperatures and built in +40 temps wearing long pants. It can be done.

T-shirts are great for the build. Your shirt must have sleeves. Not long sleeves, but sleeves. Again, please respect the Indian culture. Shirts should not be v-neck and should not be low cut. If you lean forward and can see 'the girls' the neckline is too low. Check in the mirror before you pack it.

If you are going to wear a white tshirt you may want to ensure we can't see your bra thru it.  Think sweating, think that you might pour water over your head to cool off. This is not a wet t-shirt contest. I know this may sound picky but I don't want you to be embarassed when you are there.

We are building more than we are R&R'ing. There are laundry facilities at the hotel so you can have one outfit washed while you wear the other one. The 3rd outfit would be a good back up incase your laundry doesn't return on time.

During the evenings and when we are on R&R you are free to wear whatever you want--within reason. Modesty should be at the top of your list and I still wouldn't recommend anything above the knee or tank tops. I had a skirt that came just below my knees that I wore and it was fine. You will stand out and be noticed on the street--lets not attract unwanted attention by showing too much skin. If you are used to resorts or wearing less I understand that you might not feel the need to cover up, but please take my suggestions seriously. Bring a sweater because the evenings cool off some. It isn't cold but when the sun goes down you may experience a chill.

I had two R&R outfits. My skirt and a pair of pants. My theory of packing is that I want to bring back souvenirs and need the room in my bag on the way back. I don't need a ton of clothes to wear--laundry service is cheap and easy to use.

If you have steel toe sneakers bring them. If you don't...don't worry about buying them. Last time we wore sneakers and that was fine. No sandals at the build site--save them for R&R. I wore sandals to the site and changed when I got there. At the end of the day before getting back on the bus I would change back into my sandals. It felt soo good on the toes. There will be a lot of walking during the R&R portions and you might find that a shoe type sandal instead of flip flops will give you better support. Your call.

Work gloves. The bricks are hard and rough and will make you regret not having gloves. The staff on site were always making sure we had gloves on and many of the Indian workers wouldn't start a project with us if we didn't have them on.
A hat. Yep you will want a hat at the build site. Or a hankerchief. I wore a hankerchief over my head and found that to be very comfortable and cooling. Many of my other team members wore hats and were very comfortable as well.

Jewelry. It really is best to leave it at home. Use your own judgement on this but flashy jewelry attracts attention and it isn't always wanted attention. Pick pockets are on the loose and I would hate to see you lose something that has a lot of sentimental (or monetary) value. There is no guarantee that there will be a safe at the hotel to put valuables in.

Clothes are a very personal item when it comes to packing--some people need everything in their closet and some don't. Use your discretion--but remember you will need to take your bags with you over long distances in hotels, airports and on and off buses. There are no porters and everyone will be expected to move/carry their own bags. Less is better.

I would recommend going to see your Travel Clinic as soon as possible. Find out what type of medications, shots, etc you will need. Tell them you will be in Pondicherry, India and surrounding areas. If you are going to stay longer and do some travelling make sure the travel clinic knows that too. They are your best line of defense for staying healthy when travelling abroad. You will need an anti-malaria drug--they can help determine which one and for how long you will need it.

For your own personal medicinal/toiletry kit may I recommend the following:
-something to stop diarehha/something to soften stool--cause you never know which problem you might encounter
-pepto bismal or rolaids if you are not used to spicy food
-pain reliver
-one roll of toilet paper (just in case)
-deoderant, shampoo, soap, etc the things you need to keep yourself clean and comfortable. Do not count on being able to buy any of these items when you arrive and do not count on them coming with the room.
-bandaids, anti bacterial cream (we have a first aid kit on site but this is for blisters and evening injuries)
-bug spray (high DEET content)
-sun screen (bring a high SPF--we are going to be outside in the sun 8+ hours a day--you will get burned unless you cover up.)
-anti-bacterial wipes
-small amount of laundry soap--just in case the laundry service is unavailable
-nail clippers, tooth picks, dental floss
-toothbrush, toothpaste (like you need to be told! ;-)
-face clothes are generally not available. (My mom bought me ones that come in tablet form and expand with water. Great for at the build site to freshen up at to wash up at the hotel)

A few other things to think about bringing with you:
-alarm clock (wind up is good or you will need an adapter)
-zip lock bags (large) for wet/dirty clothes or putting toiletries in to prevent explosions of shampoo.
-camera, extra batteries, charger (and adapter if you need to plug it in)
-journal, pen (Even if you are not a journal person you may find yourself wanting to take notes of where we went for meals, what we did that day, etc. It is a lot to take in and keeping notes will help you tell the tale back home)
-flashlight (small one, I have a wind up one--no batteries and I left it with the village--we will discuss gifts later)
-snacks--we will have lots of food available to us but if you are having tummy troubles you may want a few comfort things. Packaged oatmeal is good for bad tummies, powdered chicken soup, a favorite tea

We will talk about gifts, donations, etc later in the process. There are some items that Habitat India will have on its wish list.

Because packing is such a personal thing it is hard for me to tell you what to bring or not to bring. Practice packing. It might sound odd but it works. Lift the bags, walk around the house with them and think about flying for 14 hours and then needing to lift and carry them a 1/2 kilometre to the train. How heavy are they now?

We were recommended to bring one nice outfit for the dedication or for a fancy night out. I didn't bring one with me and many on our trip didn't--but all the women had bought sari's or other Indian style clothing that we wore to the closing ceremony. It was fun--but if you don't want to you don't need too. You won't need a formal outfit--this whole trip will be pretty casual.

In my training we received a few sites for helping develop packing lists. I haven't inspected any of them yet but here are a couple of the sites:

http://www.onebag.com/list.html

http://www.travelite.org/

http://www.letsgo.com/articles/tips/planning/packing/.php

Oh, check your passport today and see when it expires. If it is in 2011 you may want to renew now. Many countries have issues with allowing you in if your passport expires within 6 months of your visit. You will also need to get a visa for India. The timing of the visa is important as they are only good for a limited amount of time. I'll update you on this next week.

Here are a few other sites you may want to visit:

http://www.voyage.gc.ca/main

http://www.xe.com/ucc/full.shtml

http://www.travelhealth.gc.ca/

Visit your local library and check out a travel book on India. Check their section on Pondicherry and find a restaurant or two that we might be able to visit when we are there.

Any questions?