Dumbbells, DVD Players And All The Crazy Things Malaysians Stuff In Their Luggage Bags
If a rice cooker is a compulsory addition to your luggage, you're not alone.
Published for Samsung, 09 Sep 2015, 12:11 PM
When it comes to packing for a holiday, there are those who memorise space-saving packing hacks like their life depends on it:
And then there are those who can't quite imagine a trip without some unusual additions to the luggage:
1. "I brought 13 novels along... for a weekend trip."
"I love reading on vacations but my main problem is actually deciding on a book to bring! One time, I brought 13 books with me (plus 1 sudoku book) on a weekend trip to Port Dickson. I finished a grand total of ONE book!" - Michelle, 31, marketing executive
2. "I travel with my rice cooker, complete with frozen home-cooked food."
My children still prefer my cooking compared to hotel breakfast buffets (I didn't bribe them to say that, I promise!) so I always cook and freeze a few dishes before our trip. I'd then heat up the food every morning in my trusty rice cooker before we leave the hotel. Saves us money too!" - Marina, 46, TV production crew
Ps. If you're looking for a new rice cooker, you could get one for 20% off when you claim your [Gemfive coupon]!
3. "My dad doesn't know how to travel without a DVD player in his suitcase."
"For some reason, my dad INSISTS on bringing along our DVD player on family vacations. At the end of each night, he'll take 45 minutes just to decide which of the DVDs to watch, and 5 minutes into the movie, he'll start snoring." - Elias Mokhtar, 15, student
4. "I couldn't bear to break apart my completed jigsaw puzzle so I stuffed it into my bag."
"I had followed my sister on a business trip, so while she was at work, I stayed in the room playing with a box of jigsaw puzzles I'd bought on the way to the hotel. I was done by the end of the trip and didn't want to break it up all again, so I had it framed and managed to squeeze it into my luggage." - Ken Wong, 22, student
5. "I once travelled with unlabelled baking soda in my bag. It did not end well."
"I don't generally use shampoo and conditioner, and wash my hair with baking soda and vinegar instead. My travel case always had these two items, until this one time I made the grave mistake of bringing an unlabelled box of baking soda on an international trip. Now I see that it makes more sense to just find a convenience store when I'm at the destination and buy these there." - Natasha, 25, blogger
6. "I always have coarse salt with me to keep evil spirits away."
"Whenever I went camping as a kid, my aunties would ask me to bring coarse salt with me as a safety measure against spirits. I'm not sure if i really believe it, but nothing's bad happened to me so far and it is now a staple in my travel suitcase!" - Rina, 25, graphics designer
7. "I brought tom yam cup noodles... on a trip to Bangkok."
"Come on, which Malaysian can travel without cup noodles in their bag? It just so happens that tom yam is my favourite flavour. Don't judge me!" - Suresh, 34, sales executive
8. "I packed my dumbbells into my bag so I could stick to my favourite workout routine."
"I had a 2-week training session to attend in a remote resort that doesn't have a gym (the horror!). So I sacrificed some luggage weight to make up for the pair of 5kg dumbbells I was carrying." - DJ Lee, 31, IT specialist
9. "I brought along a year's worth of pads and tampons."
"When I was leaving to the UK, I brought along as much as pads and tampons as I could with me. Totally unnecessary, I know, but I'm insanely particular about the kinds I use." -Nicole, 28, fashion buyer
10. "I was addicted to Crash Bandicoot so I always brought my game console along on balik kampung trips."
"This was at a time when games on phones and tabs have not existed, so I had no choice but to bring along my bulky game console (not to mention the controllers and the endless cables) when we went back to Penang for Raya. For a while there, I reigned as the coolest cousin!" - Azhar, 27, teacher
11. "I can't travel anywhere without my bantal busuk."
I can't imagine a bedtime without my favourite lumpy pillow. I'm turning 35 soon. - Edmund Bastian, 34, senior PR executive
So what's the weirdest thing that has ever made it into your luggage? Let us know in the comments below!
