Gear and equipment forum

maybe a pair of socks or two. but even those are fairly easy to buy in thailand now. i've also seen people be very pleased with those travel-style pants that zip off at the knee to convert into a pair of shorts. they are lightweight, meaning they don't take up much space in your pack and are easy to clean - quick to dry.

make sure you buy a hat once you get to bangkok too. have a great time.

Trousers- well cotton is best for the heat and cargo pants with lots of pockets for your wallet, phone etc as you spend most of the time in a tee-shirt with no other pockets.
Bum bags or fanny packs as the Americans call them are a fashion faux pas.
As an aside do the Americans know what fanny is to the Brits?
Maybe Madmac can answer.

Thank you for your replies. I certainly wont be in a rush to get to clubs and if i do, will buy a shirt out there, im only 5'7" so imagine i wont struggle.

Advice taken on the tshirt colour, i figured that would be the case.

Will I be able to buy some comfy sandals or are they primarily cheap quality? Also, any recommendations of where to get trousers from (uk)?

Thanks again, i just can't wait now!

@ sayadian. yes, we know. but it is funny to watch our UK friends shoot beer out their noses when we say "fanny pack", so we keep saying it, knowing full well the other meaning...

OP - yes, clubs are almost always air conditioned.

Sayadian - why is it Brits still struggle with getting their vocabulary up to date? Hell I heard some Brit the other day complain about the "fookin' Thai drivers". Fookin' ain't a word.

I always bring a pair of jeans and a fleece for if I find myself in the hills and it is chilly. I've never really had a problem wearing jeans around and you'll see a lot of people in the hotter areas wearing them during the day anyway -- and they can stay clean for a long spell . . . or seem clean with a few good wacks on the porch railing. I'm imagining with 6 months you're going to end up in places like Paksong or Sapa and you'll be happy to have them.

i'm afraid i agree with casey on this one. jeans have come in really handy in the hills or wandering around at night. same with the fleece. plus, so many times buses and trains are air-conditioned to the "meat locker" setting that i'm glad to have something a little more substantial to wear. jeans tend to hold up more to heavy use too, and have a better chance of lasting the full six months. besides, they aren't expensive either, so if it turns out the OP doesn't need them, he can always just drop them off someone for someone else to use. ta.

great ideas, particularly the fleece pullover, snorkel & mask, and silk sleeping sack. on a long trip, those will come in handy often and are easily worth the weight/space in your pack.

The pockets are too tight, my 3/4 pants have side pockets on the lower legs w/ zippers and are excellent for a note pad, a small camera, my glasses. I just don't like jeans - lol - I don't find them comfortable at all for travelling. I think army style pants are way more practical.

You're list looks quite similar to what I had for 6 months in Asia. I had only quick-dry moisture wicking stuff so that I could wash it easily. I also brought 2 pairs of zip-off pants. That way you can wear them as shorts during the day and as pants for a nice evening or a cool day. Plus, if you are hitting up some temples where you need pants, you can just throw the pant legs in your day bag and zip them on before going in.

That stuff was enough to get me through southeast Asia and a cold spell in the Chinese mountains, Mongolia, and Siberia.

If you take jeans, you'll be have to pay to get them dried every time you wash them. They will also be heavy in your bag. Very bad idea in my opinion.

Nope, no problem. I wash them, then I hang them and they dry. But the area I hang my clothes in is covered. So the rainy season isn't an issue.

Madmac
I used to hang stuff in a covered area too but the air was so damp the clothes took an age to dry and usually smelt bad.
As far as not carrying much. When you are travelling it's really nice to have lots of zipped pockets so your passport,wallet etc are safe and no temptation to the local scalliwags.

Pat lom sounds like a good idea.