Don't go to Russia. Every once in a while you can encounter this atrocity. Yes, it has holes right out of the roll, no perforation whatsoever and not even a hole that you could hang it on and therefore outer layers are always dirty. And, of course, feels like a sandpaper, tears when wiping, but stretches when you actually try to get a piece. Please don't tell me that this exists outside of Russia, that'd be way to much assrash for this world.
There are some commercial rolls I've seen in the US that seem to be a happy medium...the holder itself in the stall has a thin plastic rod for the TP to go on, and the rolls have a very small opening in the center (and no cardboard) to go on that rod.
The roll is smaller, and they market it as being made for camping (takes up less space in the pack, etc). It also, of course, costs more because of this, since modern camping gear loves to price gouge.
If you’re going to pack TP though, just spool what you need around something smaller in diameter (like a skewer). Or if you know what you’re doing then just use leaves instead, those are free.
I dont think i saw any TP in VN. Everything was bidet and wash hands.
wasnt terrible. Cold showers constantly and no water pressure were by far more of a culture shock to me. It was more similar to when I would go and hike for weeks on end in college.
The toilet paper I used in Taiwan was in the form of individual pieces folded up like American tissues for blowing your nose. I even accused my host of making me use tissues, but she showed me that they were actually marketed as toilet paper. Oh, and I couldn't flush them. That was not embarrassing at all.
In Brazil I saw a toiled paper that the center was filled with another roll, so you'd need to remove that center to put it in your bathroom and use it as a "portable toilet paper" to carry with you
Just yesterday I was reminiscing with my wife about how TP rolls used to have no tube when we were children and how hard it was to find the center to put them on the holder.
That's an option here in Japan, though most don't use it. I'm pretty sure some people sell that style in the US as well. I use one that has a hole but no cardboard insert.
Solid TP rolls are quite common in Asia. Not sure if this is still true, but a lot of public toilets don't provide toilet paper for fear of people stealing them. You have to bring your own TP, at which point including the cardboard insert takes up too much space to carry around.
That's called coreless TP and you can get it in the US too, mostly from institutional suppliers. You can also try Asian markets like Ranch 99 if you are near one.