When I was a scout as a 7th grader, they taught us to pack “a sack of sacks.” Today, that advice still applies — for missionaries and short-term missions travelers too. This is a great use for those plastic grocery bags from your neighborhood grocery. You can either pack socks all in one sack, underwear in another, shirts in another, etc., or pack by day, i.e., all the changes of clothing you need for Monday, another bag for Tuesday, etc. Double-bag the electronics gear (in a clear bag if you can), soccer cleats in another, soccer ball in another, shin guards & air pump in another, a couple of “kits” or soccer outfits in another, you get the idea. Some say to pack your underwear on top, but I figure the terrorists have all heard that advice by now anyway, so forget it. :-) Send as many liquids as possible through your checked bag. For those liquids you have to carry on, don’t forget to have them ready in a clear zip-lock bag, and send them through the x-ray machine separately.
zip locks are fantastic for this…and I buy the travelspace bags for clothing…they really do work to compress things! Just make sure they don’t work so effectively your bag is overweight!
Pack-Mate travel bags are great for modular packing. Although after 14 years, the vacuum doesn’t hold as well, they come in five sizes and keep things organized and easily accessed.
See http://www.packmate.com/rollbags