Plenty of reasons to pack less.
Over the years I am proud to self-proclaim that I am great at travelling light. I am pretty good at it, that I checked in with just 10 kg when I flew out to my trip to the United States, and 11 kg flying back. Every staff member at the check-in counters at airports gave me that look and asked if I were to seriously check in my small, hand-carry worthy, fit to cabin luggage. I said yeah.
So for my trip to the U.S., I only had two pieces of bags - a small luggage (cabin-sized) and a backpack that fits about max 10 kg of stuff. I normally keep my laptop, tablet, GoPro and electronics in here. Surprisingly these weighs a lot already but it is a no-brainer to leave it in your checked in bag.
Other things I hand-carried with me (all the time) is travel essentials like the inflatable neck pillow, blanket (any plane-friendly blanket, tips is to steal it from the plane), eye mask, ear plugs, socks and toothbrush with a small bottle of toothpaste. Even better, try to make your own travel essential bags - most airlines don't give you this anymore. Also never underestimate bringing a blanket, very few airlines are providing this and I'm that type of person who can't sleep when it is too cold. Long waits at airports are more comfortable too with a blanket to keep you warm.
I tried to bring in lotion/moisturiser whenever I travel, because I get really, really dry from the air conditioning and hand washing. It is also a must to carry a lip balm and a reusable water bottle to keep you hydrated. Sometimes I will take a book with me, and a notepad to write a little travel notes, feelings and reflections.
I don't normally take showers when I travel as there isn't many airport that offer free shower room (Brunei Airport does by the way) so I take with me some wet wipes and deodorant to clean and freshen up myself. For safety, I do use a travel pouch that fits my phone, passport, boarding passes and money/credit cards and I hang it around my neck. I always remind myself to keep a habit of whatever I took out from the pouch, I need to put it back to the pouch so I won't have a problem finding it elsewhere.
That's pretty much for the hand carry bits but travelling in the U.S. means preparation is different as we were visiting different places with their own climates too. Hawai'i was tropical, but in California we stayed for a few days in Yosemite so that is outdoor glamping and needs some tough outer wears. Then the mainland U.S. was still winter-ish and the temperature was as low as 4 degrees C in Washington D.C. so we needed warm clothes to pack too.
A general rule of thumb was I packed outfit for 7 days; 7 different tops and 3 bottom wear (jeans, tights and skirt), 2 jackets and appropriate amount of inner wear (1 bra, 1 sports bra, underwear and socks). I had a pair of sport shoes, black flats, flip flops and sneaker. Other things are like a pair of bikini, sports pants, Karrimor wind and waterproof + fleece jacket, a hat and 2 wool sweaters.
Remember that you don't need to bring more than you should, there is washing machine services everywhere, and there are shops to buy the necessities if you don't have enough. Oh and I did brought a small packet of washing powder to manually wash my clothes when I travel. It is particularly useful especially when you run out of clean underwear!
As part of the YSEALI program we were told to bring a traditional clothes and formal attires with us, some gifts for our host family and maybe ingredients for cooking our traditional food. These are easy, I took with me the simplest gifts, the ones that fits into my bags and do not add significant weights (its keychains and pencils) and at the end of the day, remember it is not the material things that matter.
Buying souvenirs can be tempting and for me, I had a problem with museum shops. They are so good at selling cute little trinkets and the mindset that 'oh this money will go to helping the museums', that made it really had to hold myself from buying it. One good mantra that I carry with me when I travel is,
'you may want it, but you don't need it.'
So that helps me to rethink, while avoiding wasting money that could have been used for other needs.
I can't deny that it does take time for me to get rid of things I thought I needed when I traveled. For example I used to bring 2 more shirts than I needed and I learned to bring just the shirts that I know I will wear not just because they are pretty so I want to take them with me. Other craps I used to pack is a speaker, a big Beats headphones, more cosmetics than I need, etc. I have just recently gotten rid of my laptop when I travel and I would bring just my tablet instead.
The key to packing light is realising the balance between need and practicality. I am lucky that my clothes are generally tiny, so less space and weight. Also the destination of where you are heading is a big factor. I happen to visit warm places more often so clothes are simply some t-shirts and shorts.
Packing light means you will have to leave loads of other things behind, and for some people this is difficult. There are some sort of attachments we created with material things which gives us comfort and a piece of home wherever we go. But it will be a bliss once you have learned to live outside of your comfort zone.
Travel simply, leave the luxury behind and it may be safer that way too. I look very 'homeless' when I am on the go, with no jewellery and wrist watch, no makeup and strictly no flashy bits. When you travel light, you have less worries and have more flexibility to move around, or even made it in time to catch your train! ;)
