Accommodations

• Flashlight: for power failures and midnight trips to the bathroom.

• Bug dope: cheap hotels rarely have screens or mosquito nets.

• Soap: I always drop those tiny hotel bars down the drain.

• Towel: a small one, just in case. I sometimes pack an extra cotton t-shirt for a towel. It also doubles as a clean pillowcase and in emergencies can be worn as a shirt.

• Toilet paper: always carry toilet paper.

• Heating coil: this is a little device that plugs into the wall and heats up a cup of water for tea, instant coffee or bouillon. I wake up very early, before most cafés open, and the heating coil saves me from coffee withdrawal.

• Tea, instant coffee, bouillon, Postum, etc.: saves money if you make it yourself. Nice for times when you can’t or don’t want to leave your room.

• Cups: cheap hotels rarely provide drinking glasses or cups.

• Drink: A liter of water is a must, so buy your own. Don’t expect purified water in cheap hotels.

• A small high-intensity reading lamp with a long cord or a 100-watt bulb to replace the hotel’s low-light bulb.

• Good book: for bad nights.