bring a purse?

[cis230]

I'm backpacking for a month this August and I'm not sure if I should bring a purse in addition to my backpack. I don't want to be carrying it around all day, but I need something little to bring with me to bars/clubs. If I should bring one, what kind should I bring??

[pointofnoreturn]

I brought a foldable Roots tote bag that goes on my shoulder and it was easy to carry and definitely carried a lot of stuff (camera bag, wallet, etc). I wouldn't bring a small bag cause it's kind of redundant.

If you're not a purse person, stick to making special pockets inside your pants/skirts.

[sandradee]

Firstly, and I'm sure others would agree, is that a money belt is an essential. It's worn under clothes and it is the best way to guard yourself from pickpockets. As it is under your clothes, it is a lot less noticable and you can take out money as you need it (away from others eyes of course). Buying a backpack with a detatchable day pack is also a good idea, as you can use the daypack while sight seeing.

As far as having a purse for smaller change goes, I'm all for it. Sometimes you just need some change for the bus and having a small purse is always handy, although like point said, its completely up to you in if you want to have a purse with you... At least if you have a purse and a money belt and your purse goes missing, your trip isn't ruined as you have back up funds

Hope that sort of helped, otheres will probably have more suggestions..

[madamtrashheap]

cis230, here's a previous thread dicussing this very topic: pretravel.proboards1.com/index.cgi?board=anythingelse&action=display&n=1&thread=1352&page=1

[pointofnoreturn]

I brought a money belt with me but I didn't use it one bit. I never experienced any problems with pickpockets whatsoever. I always kept my purse close to me and zipped up at all times. I'm a pretty strong person and if anyone tried to grab my purse, I'd give them a good ass-kicking.

My friend, however, sewed some pockets inside her jeans where she could put her passport and any money that she wasn't using for the day. Her idea was more convenient than a money belt.

Bring one anyways - you'll never know when you'll need it!