What not to pack

Anyone who has read any of my other thread starters will have worked out that we%26#39;re not really that bothered about a beach/pool holiday.

Our essential packing so far works out as:

1 telescope (tricky one this, but forest birding doesn%26#39;t lend itself to use of scopes)

2 pairs of binoculars

2 cameras (digital SLR + digital point %26amp; click)

1 or 2 tripods

2 camcorders (our old tape camcorder has night vision and we%26#39;ll be doing some night walks)

1 netbook (smaller and lighter than a laptop)

Alternative digital storage device (probable)

Lots of chargers/adaptors/spare batteries

1 digital voice recorder

My bat box (this will have to be left behind if we run out of space)

Field guide books

Travel guide books and maps

It%26#39;s occurred to me that we ought to take some clothes. I%26#39;ve not been able to find much out about costs of laundry in any of the places that we%26#39;re staying at, so does anyone have any ideas/guidelines? Also what%26#39;s the likely turnaround time? 24 hours? More? Is it bad form to send socks and pants to be cleaned? Are there laundries in towns/villages that will do it all for you or is it simply more convenient to use the hotel?

What not to pack

I have seen a few of your posts .....

what is your accommodation/route plan?

I can give you numbers and/or directions for laundry service in a couple of cities.

Most will do a turn around in 24 hours.

The hotels, if you use their service, will want one of your kidneys, an eye or a lung. Maybe, all 3

What not to pack

De Palma Inn, Kuala Selangor for two nights

Smokehouse, Bukit Fraser for two nights

About 8 nights as yet (and hoping to remain) unbooked so we can stay longer at BF, move on to Taman Negara, go somewhere else etc.

Ideally we%26#39;ll do another night at BF is the birding is really good, or go to TN for three/four nights and then maybe look at finding a fishing boat for a day looking for rare terns, tropic birds and the like, either on the east or west coast.

BF looks like out best bet for a bit of laundry.

HI

I%26#39;m sure you will fit in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt or two as padding for all that kit!

Esor%26#39; is so right about the cost of the hotel laundry. Think ours waivered the kidney as we had a discount voucher!

You can get kilos done locally outside the hotel for the price of one shirt at the hotel. Usually if you get your dirties to the laundry in the morning it will be ready in the evening, at worse then next morning. Georgetown and Batu Ferringhi have a choice of Laundries/Dobis.

We always wash the %26#39;smalls%26#39; ourselves and hang them over the bath!! The cleaners must love visiting our room!

Have a great one!

Sunscreen, lots of cloth for the lenses (mine get horribly foggy from the humidity), a hat would be practical, a nice pair of Polarised sunglasses since you will be looking into the shade and out frequently; a few garbage bags to wrap your luggage in when you are taking the boat into taman negara before they get all wet from the small sampan. If your backpack has got a rain cover; it wont be helping much since the bottom will get all wet. The nearest launders to the Concorde hotel in KL is the small one on the basement of the KLCC Suria Mall opposite the Post office. They do pretty cheap and they are pretty fast as well.

I usually bring a bottle of travel detergent for the handwash and small items. Almost every hotel has got a laundry line above the bath tub. A pair of long mens pants costs about RM 18++ for washing and ironing; dry cleaning costs usually above RM 20++. Hotels charge per piece of item and not per kilo.

Smokehouse and De Palma; you will need to get it done at the hotel; expect smokehouse to be fairly slower. What you can buy in KL - Mozzie sprays, over the counter medication; first-aid stuff; a pair of cheap bath slippers if you don%26#39;t like running around the hotel room barefooted and a small torchlight would also be practical unless you like to walk around without a light at night.

Thanks all for the useful tips.

The hat I can wear when travelling, so might not need to pack - toss up between either a panama, one with a huge brim that I bought in Costa Rica or both - can%26#39;t wear both at once of course.

I forgot the torches - we%26#39;ll probably have two head torches plus one or two hand-held - might by the latter on arrival though. I%26#39;ve already got a big wad of lens cleaners. Sounds like we%26#39;ll need them.

For years we%26#39;ve been packing everything in our backpacks inside plastic bags/bin-liners, but I think we%26#39;ll take a few extras.

A sombrero would be nice for the birds to perch on???

Esp Bukit Fraser; only the main part of the town near the clocktower is lighted at night; you might need a torchlight to walk back to the hotel or else you might end up like Jim Thompson; only in Bukit Fraser and not CH.

And steal toilet paper rolls from the hotel before you venture into wilderness; you%26#39;d be surprised how many public toilets in Malaysia (even in the large cities) DO Not have toilet paper at all, the Muslim Malaysians only use water and their left hand.

Sombrero? I like to think more Indiana Jones than sombrero. Sadly the reality

avengerpenguins.com/gallery2/main.php…

is often far from the self-image. :)

Wow, avengerpenguins - like the Avengers?? I see a Zebra! Here are my penguines; but they are just curiouspenguins :)

www.imagebroker.net/image_search.php…