Pardon the photos - they're the only ones I snapped!
semi one-bag fail as I came to India with effectively one bag and left with.. 2.5 😀
I came for a month to complete my 200 hour yoga teacher training in Rishikesh, India, with 5 days after to see Delhi and Agra (Taj Mahal). Packing was a bit of a challenge since Rishikesh is in the mountains and ranged from ~15C in the mornings to 35 in the evening. Toward the end of the trip, temps in Delhi reached 40C. Rishikesh is also conservative in dress but sandals are near-mandatory, which posed a challenge given the heat and the fact that I'd be doing asanas half the day.
Here's how it went!
*WORN*
- muji linen pants, cotton long sleeve, cotton t shirt layered, hoka trail running shoes
*PACKED INTO THULE AION 40L*
Clothing and shoes:
- 3 pairs of pants: Patagonia hiking pants, loose athleta pants, tighter athleta pants
- 1 pair of leggings
- 1 pair of loose shorts
- 1 pair of running shorts
- 3 sports bras
- 2 sports tops
- 1 Uniqlo linen shirt
- 1 Uniqlo cotton shirt
- 1 bra regular, 1 merino wool bra
- 3 pairs of socks
- Compression socks
- 1 very thin scarf
- Like 15 pairs of underwear
- Tevas sandals
- Havianas flips
Stuff:
- Manduka travel yoga mat (the non-clothes heavy hitter)
- Filter water bottle (Gravyl)
- 2x exercise/stretching balls
- Bug wipes
- Cleaning wipes
- Tissue packs
- Toiletries including cleaning bar, shampoo bar, conditioner bar
- Microfiber towel
- Mini pharmacy (bandaid, ibuprofen, pepto bismol, Imodium, dramamine)
BONUS - not pictured, personal item (medium BAGGU crescent):
- Small book
- Two journals
- Sunglasses
- Hand sanitizer
- Eye mask
- AirPods / earplugs
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What went well:
- I used everything in my bag (!) at least twice (!) even the long sleeve, originally worn out of necessity since my origin was cold, got used
- First experience with bar shampoo/conditioner was decent. I bought the brand Kitsch and felt that the results were pretty decent!
- Washing clothes daily was a breeze in Rishikesh since it's dry
What didn't go so well:
- I barely had 5 clean outfits worth of clothing when I got to the final leg of my trip in Delhi/Agra, and I definitely didn't look nice traveling around there
- I didn't need to pack a scarf seeing as I was going to scarf capital of the world 🤦♀️
- Narrowly avoided getting cow poop on my tevas. Really don't know what the contingency plan would be there
- Exercise balls were not worth the space
- the Gravyl water bottle doesn't hold much water. It was super convenient for me to just get some tap in between classes, but I ended up giving up on morals about halfway in and just started getting bottled water...
- I didn't account for how much stuff I'd inevitably accumulate after a month, and needed to grab another bag to check on the way back from Delhi. So, considering it a partial failed one bag
An aside on the Thule Aion 40L:
- I've only seen this reviewed a few times, so wanted to throw my 2c in. I have the blue color
- This bag is growing on me after some initial irritations. The clamshell design means it fits way more than you'd expect, and there are a lot of thoughtful organization compartments that can be accessed easily.
- The zippers! They're extremely strong and reassuring even when packmaxxing.
- No waist strap, which personally I like since I'm already short and look absurd as it is. However, it's uncomfortable for long walks.
- I really like the textured canvas look.