6 weeks, 3 countries, 1 bag

How to Travel Light While Looking, Feeling (and Smelling) Good

by Wendy Reeve

When my husband decided a 6-week train trip across Russia, Mongolia and China was his idea of a grand birthday celebration, who was I to argue? Travel is a balm for the soul, and the Trans Mongolian was just the thing to put a lightness back in our step.

The challenge: what to pack for 6 weeks across 3 distinct climates (from cool to sweltering), varying acccommodation (from hotels and yurts to train compartments), and travelling light.

We’d decided that with all of that movement, we really didn’t want to be slowed down dragging cumbersome luggage behind us. Our favourite bags are convertible, soft-sided, and fit in the overhead compartment. You choose whether to carry as a tote or backpack - and the thick, comfortable shoulder straps can be tucked away when not in use. They also make a wheeled version that converts to a pack, though it has slightly less internal capacity. We tend towards the pack and the non-wheeled bag since it provides maximum space, is balanced (not slung over a single shoulder), and allows your hands to remain free.

With minimalist bag space, we needed to be strategic about what to bring. Layering would be key, as would easy wash/dry. In many ways, quick drying would be most important as wet clothes shoved back inside a bag don’t remain odour-free for long. Clearly, doing laundry en route would have to be a regular part of our routine to make travelling light work.

While we don’t tend to be big shoppers in general, and certainly are not ones to go out and purchase new travel wardrobes, we soon realised that we didn’t have a lot of the essentials in quick dry and odour resistant fabrics. Already familiar with of Silk Living, we decided to add a few key items from their collection to our bags as silk and merino have natural anti-odour as well as excellent thermal properties. Silk, in particular, keeps you cool when it’s hot, and warm when it’s not. Equally important is to coordinate all of your clothing to mix and match with each other, maximising the different outfit combinations and making you feel like you have more clothes in your bag than you actually do.

My packing list:

  • Coat (light puffer jacket that compacts down to near-nothing)

  • Rain jacket (ultra light weight for athletes, but high water resistance rating)

  • 3 shirts (merino and merino/silk)

  • 1 pants (black travel jeans)

  • 1 hiking pants (light weight quick dry)

  • 2 dresses (merino/silk and quick dry)

  • 1 skirt - a skort (quick dry)

  • 1 sandals (made for walking/comfort, but attractive enough to be dressed up)

  • 1 trainers (all black and low profile, so dress up/down possible)

  • Sun hat

  • 2 pairs of socks (quick dry)

  • 4 underwear (quick dry)

  • 1 bra

  • Accessories: 3 scarves (1 large/wrap style), 1 black belt

Of course we had to be strategic about toiletries and personal items, too (from Kindles, phones and cameras to chargers). On the toiletries front, we went with solid soap, lotion (yes, even facial moisturiser), shampoo and conditioner to make our liquids limit easier to manage.

The next items are the ones that really set us apart from travel novices:

I could talk a lot about each of the items on our list, as all were very thoughtfully chosen. In quick summary, we actually finished the trip feeling well-pleased with ourselves. We weren’t overloaded, and were able to vary our wardrobes enough to stay looking good (even attending an evening of Opera at the Bolshoi Theatre). Importantly, we could rotate things through washing, drying and wearing at an acceptable rate. We had some extras that made things just that little bit easier – a little bit nicer. And by the end we felt like we could have kept going: a real sign of a successful trip.

One of the favourite items we brought with us was actually something I wasn’t even sure we’d use: our silk sleep sacks. My rationale for buying these ultra lightweight silk “sleeping bags” was actually fear of the unknown. I didn’t really know what to expect – especially on the trains – but really, throughout the trip. While not germ-phobic, I wanted to feel like I had a sanitary place to sleep. So I bought one for each of us, wondering if they would spend the entire trip in our luggage. I was sure I my husband would protest, but I figured, “At least they pack into a tiny pouch and are as light as a feather.” I carried his in my bag, just in case.

Why did we both love our silk sacks? They are incredibly soft and light, but also warm. The trains we were in actually provided decent linens. But they were hard and scratchy. We put the bottom sheets down, then crawled into our silk sacks and were cocooned in softness. Not just for trains, they were soon pulled out of our bags at apartments, hotels and yurts as well. Silk is surprisingly adaptable in terms of heat. My husband tends to overheat easily, but never felt the need to escape his sack. I tend to be cold, and always felt cozy and warm inside mine. On the plane home, I even put mine in a more accessible part of my bag to use instead of the airline blanket left in my seat.

A clear (surprise) winner, the silk sack will be a permanent resident in our travel arsenal. Oh, and a water bottle with an integrated filter is right up there, too. We filled up literally everywhere, including bathroom sinks, and never got a stomach bug! *be sure to check what yours filters out to ensure you’re covered

Now we need to start planning our next epic journey! We can call it: Have silk sack, will travel.

This piece was originally written as an unsponsored guest blog post for Silk Living in September 2019