buying a camera

I've been doing some research over the past couple of months on Digital SLR's, as I'm keen to buy one to get creative on our trip .. or at least take some photos with it. Mum has always taken beautiful photos on her SLR, and I really enjoyed using SLR in high school photography and other times that I've had the chance to use one. The added benefits of digital will be perfect for capturing and (deleting and trying again, then) downloading images to Hank's iPod, to CD and to this blog. After searching on choice.com.au I was originally keen on the Canon EOS350D, and I was lucky to meet an owner who let me use hers ~ I was soon smitten.

I was all but sold on the 350D, but went into a retail store to do a bit of asking around as well. The guy there thought I'd be better suited to an Olympus E500, which was very similar in specs, but also has a built-in dust reduction system and needs fewer lenses to cover a greater range. Seeing as we'll be in a range of environments, and having to carry the weight of an SLR, these were definitely benefits that had appeal.

The main thing that I wasn't keen on with the Olympus, though, was that the start-up time (between turning on the camera and being able to take a shot) felt like ages, whereas the Canon's is instant (practically). I felt that this would be something that would annoy me when it came to taking 'spontaneous' photos. I won't want to keep the camera on, as it will waste battery when not in use, but if I have it set on auto, I'd like a camera to be ready to take a quick shot of something when I do want to use it.

I did some more reading on dpreview.com, and was still dreaming about the Canon, when I read that they were about to bring out another model ~ the EOS400D ~ which had fixed up some problems of the 350D, and includes the cleaning system similar to the Olympus.

Well, now there's no swaying me. I like the look of the Canon; it's familiar to me because Hank's had a compact digital of theirs for about 5 years; and it's still in the price range that I expected to pay. The only other thing that could make it a better decision would be in reducing the weight of the lenses. I'll just not complain too much on those long treks ...

I really wanted to buy it for my birthday which is at the end of this month but if I wait, and buy it within a month of us leaving, I can get the duty-free tax amount back. That makes good sense. I'll be able to use that saving to buy another battery and extras, and I'll still have a month to play with it and get use to handling it before we leave...but I just have to endure the extra month wait before buying it!

north america

Hank's Mum, Josephine, lives in San Francisco, California. She moved there about 6 years ago, so I've never met her, and Hank hasn't been in touch with her a lot in that time, either. Our original thought of going overseas was to visit her for three weeks, or there-abouts, but we decided that spending over 2-grand to travel that far ~ and for such a short time ~ felt as though we'd be left wanting more. So instead of doing anything in half-measures, we're now going to travel around the world and re-locate to another country for a year... and we'll probably still be left wanting more.

Our plan now for California ~ after talking with Hank's Uncle Rune about his North America adventures in the '60's ~ is to land in LA and hire a winnebago (that could be a bit delux) or campervan, then travel north to San Francisco, through the Redwood National Park (being careful of lions and elk and bears, oh my!) and Yosemite National Park. We haven't yet worked out exactly where Josephine is, but we will definitely be catching up with her around that area.

From the coast region, we'll be making our way south/east through Death Valley and Grand Canyon NP's, then out of nature and on to the busy strips and bright lights of, you guessed it, Las Vegas! I don't know which I'm more excited about, the desert or neon, and it doesn't stop there...

My friend, Jade ~ who I worked with at Spa Chakra ~ left Sydney a couple of months ago, and should now be comfortably shacked-up with her beau in Dallas, Texas. It would be cool to see her, and a great reason to go somewhere I hadn't expected to be visiting. Now that I have the idea in my head, though, I can't wait to see how BIG everything really is there! Apparently Dallas' slogan is: Live Large. Think Big .... so I think we'll be sharing meals.

From there we'll be heading south to Mexico for a few weeks to relax on the beaches as do some walks, before flying to Chicago (hopefully hang out with Lynne in her home town) and then on to New York. So much to see, I'm glad we've got the time. There should be some fun to be had.

philippines

So, now that we have a good itinerary, we need to do some research and find out what we're going to do at each stop. Hank has family in Manila and on an island called Mindoro, which is apparently and 2 hour ferry trip from the capital. We'll probably spend a few nights in Manila, then cross over to the island, which looks to have great snorkelling, hiking and other chilling-out activities. We'll have 3 weeks in the Philippines, with most of that time on Mindoro.

The province where we will be spending most of our time will be Oriental Mindoro.

Which is divided by a mountain range from Occidental Mindoro.

Look like we'll find plenty to do while we're there.

travel plans and preperations

This is our itinerary. We decided on a 5-continent, around-the-world ticket. This way we get ~ I think ~ 4 stops in each continent, with 6 stops in North America. There is a base cost of the ticket ($3,500) then you pay taxes on top of that. Apparently the tax works out at about $50 per stop you make, so each flight is cheap, but then the more flights you take the more expensive it gets as an up-front expense. We still have a few changes to make, but it's a good plan, so far.

Our travel agent, Tim, has been really great. Even though it's the same package at each agent, he was the only one to go through our options and offer alternatives that might have worked out cheaper. Plus he sounded excited about the trip, as well. I like him. He also has told me of some amazing places in South and Central America that he has been to, as well as in Asia, so I'm keen to have a good chat with him about that next week.

We're also seeing a doctor early next week to start getting any shots we might need, and we've both been getting our dental problems sorted out - which has already involved a root canal and two extractions between us, with another two extractions and a crown still to come. This is definitely an expensive time in our lives.

20 NOV 06 - DEPART SYDNEY
20 NOV 06 - ARRIVE MANILA
07HRS 55MINS

11 DEC 06 - DEPART MANILA
11 DEC 06 - ARRIVE HONG KONG
02HRS 00MINS

11 DEC 06 - DEPART HONG KONG
11 DEC 06 - ARRIVE BANGKOK
02HRS 50MINS

From Thailand we will make our way to the southern part of Vietnam and travel North, possibly going to Laos along the way, and then to Hong Kong for a few days.

27 JAN 07 - DEPART HONG KONG
27 JAN 07 - ARRIVE SAN FRANCISCO
11HRS 55MINS

27 FEB 07 - DEPART SAN FRANCISCO
27 FEB 07 - ARRIVE DALLAS
03HRS 19MINS

03 MAR 07 - DEPART DALLAS
03 MAR 07 - ARRIVE MEXICO
02HRS 47MINS

21 MAR 07 - DEPART MEXICO
21 MAR 07 - ARRIVE CHICAGO
04HRS 00MINS

We might extend our time in Chicago as our friend, Lynne, will be back there for a friend's wedding, but so far, this is how it looks:

21 MAR 07 - DEPART CHICAGO
21 MAR 07 - ARRIVE NEW YORK
02HRS 13MINS

28 MAR 07 - DEPART NEW YORK
28 MAR 07 - ARRIVE LIMA
07HRS 40MINS

From Lima we'll make our way to Bolivia and then Ecuador.

08 MAY 07 - DEPART QUITO
08 MAY 07 - ARRIVE MADRID
13HRS 05MINS

09 MAY 07 - DEPART MADRID
09 MAY 07 - ARRIVE LONDON
02HRS 20MINS

Nov 07 - DEPART LONDON
Nov 07 - ARRIVE SYDNEY
23HRS 10MINS

This last flight home will most likely be forfeited in order for us to stay longer, if we're working and having a good time, otherwise it's good to know we have a way of getting home if things aren't going as well as we'd like.

travel blog

Hank and I are getting pretty excited ~ and occasionally anxious ~ about some travel that we'll be starting in the the next 11 weeks (and counting down). The plan is to travel for about 6 months in Asia, North America, and South America, then land in London to get some work ~ and earn some pounds to pay off our travel debts (eick!) From there we will be able to travel around Europe a bit and see what the other side of the world is like. Not something as easily accessable from Australia, and we're getting to the age where this is our last chance to get working holiday visas. So here we go!

I've started this blog primarily to record our travel stories and photographs, for our own journal as well as to share with friends and family. We would love to hear of any travel tips, unmissable destinations, and general news and greetings, so please leave comments and keep in touch.