My suitcase is a nightmare. It is currently sitting in the holding cabin of this plane and I’m quite certain that if the customs officials were to find reason to open it they would be amused to see what is inside.
There is sanitiser gel, berocca, 3 types of mosquito repellent and anti-diarrhoea tablets sitting alongside my anti-histamines (for my allergy to the cold) , heat packs and cough lollies. They’d find singlets and shorts, thongs (jandals, pluggers..) and a hat, sitting atop 3 beanies, 3 pairs of gloves, two scarves, a neck warmer and a pair of legwarmers. Next to the bathers and beach appropriate onsey there is a pair of ironed black working pants and a black vest. In the outer section of my suitcase they will find ‘the folder’, full of the paper bits and pieces important enough to take this trip with me, but not essential enough to relax in the comfort of my passport wallet. My resume is in this folder, refreshed, translated and ready to impress. If they searched deeper they would find ‘old faithful’, my Lonely Planet - Europe on a Shoestring, also known as the Bible, a book that I long ago realised was more a friend than a written publication. Old Faithful is still an adolescent at a mere 3 years old but next to the younger and much less used (at this moment in time anyway) ‘Lonely planet – Malaysia, Singapore and Borneo’ she looks tired and worn. Together they represent two vastly different parts of the world, both interesting and captivating, and both pulling on my backpack straps to keep me in their time zone.
If someone were to ask me right now what my plans are for the next few months my answer would be simple. Look in my suitcase. Here they would find indecision in its most unashamed form. Packed for both the heat and the cold, the poverty stricken nations and the abundant nations, the working holiday and the backpacking holiday, the owner of this suitcase clearly has a few ideas where it would like to be and where it would like to go. It is ready for any eventuality and open to every opportunity, but right now all she can think about is lazing on the beach in Penang, sipping on a coconut and getting a massage, and what flavoured Cornish pasty to get at London’s Kings Cross station.
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