My comments:
- moleskin ruled notebooks rock
- I have been resisting #20 for years.not sure why. I use a big ziploc bag instead (as for everything else).
- I don’t like to carry a big roll of duct tape. So I take 4-5 pens and I wrap around each of them one inch of duct tape and them put them in various locations in my luggage: I hate to look too long for duck tape when I need it, and hate to look around too much for pens. Same thing for energy bars: spread them everywhere.
- my advice of the day: have a pelican case 1510-carry-on as you’re main carry-on on the plane (http://www.pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1510). Take the foam out, just use ziploc as separators if needed. It is fully water resistant, shock resistant, rhum resistant, you can sit on it during in long line ups or dusty air ports, can use it as a working table. I also use it as a portable safe box with two big “masters” lock on each side. Before leaving any hotel or house rooms for a day of work, I throw (literally) all my important stuff/docs in it and lock it. If you are slightly paranoid as I am, the psychological effect only is worth the investment. I’ve had one for years, and they are impossible to destroy. On my last story in Cuba, I got back to my Hotel room at night after a day of torrential rain to find rain pouring everywhere also IN my room, and most precisely over the pelican case: every thing in the room was ruined except my laptop (and not a light and cheapo) and my backup cameras. all safe and dry. Lastly, if you happen to travel with western military once in a while, the pelican case makes you look very cool and gain you immediate respect (no joke). If you look scruffy enough and spit out some key jargon very quickly, they might even think you are some kind of weird special forces or other secret services which is better because then they’ll stop trying to impress you, might even stop talking to you. But don’t take out the moleskin notebook, that would be a definite and painful sell out.

(I’m also the kind of guy who appends backpacking adventures to overseas placements, so take this advice with a grain of salt.)

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2009/02/24/122-moleskine-notebooks/

I too suggest flip flops for the shower and casual wear.

I always carry a visine bottle that is clearly marked with bleach to add to water. I also found that the teeth whitening gel that you can brush on consists of peroxide and is great for your first aid kit.

I worked many years on the equator where it would rain every few hours so I too suggest ziplock bags to put your clothing and items in if you need to do some travelling in the field. It also makes your pack more manageable.

Totally with Jasonized on the Keens. They have some cute Mary Janes with solid soles that can handle just about everything from rocks and mountains to meeting officials or going to church (which everyone who does political fieldwork in Africa should do – they cover politics every single Sunday). Add a pair of flip flops for nasty showers.

For clothes: bring minimal and get them tailored *in country*. Wherever you go, there are tailors, and in a day or two you can have yourself a few shirts and trousers cheaply that use fabrics far more appropriate for the heat. Plus, they’ll fit you better.

For cellphones, note that data plans are relatively cheap and (at least in rural Ghana) you can set yourself up with a tethered modem really easily–i.e communications in the field without concern for electrical outages! YAY!

As for copies of documents: I scan and email to myself image files of passports, visa pages, credit cards, etc. If you lose that stuff, you generally have to get to a place that has an internet connection to deal with replacement and damage control. It’s far easier to handle than scraps of paper.

Protect your feet and let them breathe with the smartly engineered and affordable shoes that Keen makes (http://www.keenfootwear.com/wall/shoes/men). You can hike with them AND wear them to meetings AND not have sweaty feet ever. It’s brilliant.

Pepto is essential, as is a clean needle kit. (Having spent time in too many central African hospital, it’s worth the extra 3 ounces.) I also take flat duct tape (check around, it’s cheap and easy) and a needle and thread on a piece of cardboard.

Make sure that all-purpose tool has scissors. And I’m partial to the unruled Moleskin notebooks.

Besides some stuff really related to the tropics (like a hat), most of the things you need at tropics you will need at otherplaces as well, dont you think?