My Round the World Trip

[Fallenphoenix]

Hahah...so I presume you have nice biceps with all the workout?
5kg (camera) + 1kg (lens)+ 25kg (backpack) =

lol...similar~ that's how i travel, hence, 1month max. a good comfy heavy duty backpack makes life a lot easier but not enough for me =P
That's one advantage that most gals do not enjoy. Big biceps are great deterrent for petty muggers and bullies (people who find fault with photographers on the street). Here's an interesting observation I made in Aus: winter + long sleeve + jacket + cam in market = confrontations from both asians and caucasians. summer + sleeveless + cam in market = 0 confrontation + people made way for me to shoot. The funny thing is that the market is a tourist attraction. lol

 

[ManWearPants]

" hmmm, so many shelter , why must he rigged up together with me?"
anyway I got back to my hammock, all tensed up till I heard his snoring..

In the middle of the night...I was suddenly woken up by some strange loud noises..

"eeeeeooooooo.... oooooowwww" its really scary, like some eerie horror film. ( I have not watched horror movies for more than 10yrs and am afraid of the dark). I was really really frightened... the sound went on for nearly 20 minutes and stopped as suddenly as it started.

Next morning when i talked to the guide (who didnt hear a single thing coz so sound asleep) he told me it was probably the howling monkeys.

Are you certain it's not the guide that is howling? There are werewolves in this world. At least I believe so. They prowl around for girls that sleep in hammocks.

There is another option to keep your gears light yet still get reasonable IQ. Get tiny manual focus lenses and adapt them to your FF or whatever camera. More details here

 

[gnohz]

Gnohz, I want to buy D7000, not the D700. $$$
You know many times on the journey,when the days are long and tiring and I was trudging around town looking for hostels, or sturggling uphill to get to a hostel, or sinking into the mud roads in africa because of the overall weight - in my heart I wish I didnt have such a heavy camera and lens.. ( in that moment of frustration la) really can die sometimes..
As for your question about the hostel - If i have a guidebook for that area I will pick from it ( BUT i always stay away from the foreign owned party hostels). If i dont have a guidebook ,I'll google for the next destination and get the names/addresses, or i'll go to the tourist counter at the bus/train station and ask for recommendations and map. Sometimes, I asked fellow travellers who gives me reference then when i get there, the bus driver/taxis will usually know whre is it. Its best also to ask for the estimated fare to get to location so you can bargain like a pro and not be ripped off. I ahve also depend on taxi driver in times of desperation. There were a few times I also let the touts make some business from me (it is not necessary a bad thing)
I remember I end up sleeping in somebody's home for a fraction of the price in Morocco, Essaouira (which is the by the coast = pricey). It was interesting to see inside the moroccan home.
Another time through a tout, I end up on the rooftop of an Englishman living in Morocco Tarifa who is making some extra bucks.. I sleep on the thin mattress under the stars and surrounded by marijuana plants.:kiss:

The most drama has to be this one - I arrive in Tikal, Guatemlala the night before so I can have a headstart before the hot day starts. Realised the cheap hostel was full, no tents for rental and the expensive hotel cost USD 70. A local suggest I rent a hammock for USD10 and rigged in the shelter. I happily did that with some local's help.... till night falls... it was totally dark, and I was alone surrounded by the forest and when I get into the hammock, I was wrapped around so I cant see anything else outside of it.. I was freaked out when I suddenly hear the crackling of twigs... and then realised there wa a man... eeeeoooooowwwww. jumped out of the hammock.
turned out it was a guide who wanted to stay the night because he wants to get customers early in the morning.

" hmmm, so many shelter , why must he rigged up together with me?"
anyway I got back to my hammock, all tensed up till I heard his snoring..

In the middle of the night...I was suddenly woken up by some strange loud noises..

"eeeeeooooooo.... oooooowwww" its really scary, like some eerie horror film. ( I have not watched horror movies for more than 10yrs and am afraid of the dark). I was really really frightened... the sound went on for nearly 20 minutes and stopped as suddenly as it started.

I had difficult going back to sleep later and my ears perk at any little sound..stressful, I imagine monsters, ghosts, eveil spirits, animals that will gobble me up

Next morning when i talked to the guide (who didnt hear a single thing coz so sound asleep) he told me it was probably the howling monkeys.
Aiyoh... this small monkeys but their voices are booming loud... so be warned about this creatures


then agin, I am not fussy about my accommodation.. so its much easier. All those lumpy beds and pillows were starting to feel the same

Pupuce, you mentioned that some friends here encouraged you to get a full frame so I just wrote some of my views but yeah, if you're going on a long journey, the D7000 will be much better ;p Not to say that DX lenses are significantly lighter than FX ones or else a FX body can be 1kg, and each lens can weight at least 1+ kg too, plus a travel tripod of 1 kg = 3 extra kg. If you bring 2 lenses, then easily 5 more kg... which means 30kg.. :bigeyes::bigeyes: For a DX system, it should be about half the weight.

Thanks much for the info on looking for accommodation. So you searched for the next destination first before reaching the place. That should set your mind at ease, instead of having to search high and low, and still worry about the accommodation. But some of your experiences are really out of this world (sleeping on rooftop?!, sleeping in a hammock)

It's a good thing that you're not fussy, although there is a need to be careful! The howling monkeys incident cracks me up....Never imagined it could be monkeys of all things... :bsmilie:

 

[gnohz]

Syria - Damascus, Bakdash ICe Cream palour atSouk Al Hamidiyeh.
Local snack - ICe cream with crushed pistacchio. very yum! Long queue for ice cream

Haha nice pose! ;p

 

[Will03]

I did safaris in Kruger Park, Etosha National park (Namibia), Chobe National park (Botswana) , Serengti and Nogorongoron (Tanzania) - they all offered different experiences.
Kruger is good and I saw all the big 5s but over a 3 days period. We were also lucky to ahve 3 rhinos to ourselves for about 20mins.
Chobe offers lots of close up elephants experience and Namibia for the very intresting waterholes.
personally, Serengeti and Nogorongoro is my favourite. The plains are amazing and it offers sceanary and animals. It also has a more "WILD" factor compared to the rest of the NP.

Like I mentioned- it depends whether you are more a traveller or a photgrapher (although both are closely link) I like to capture the moments but i am also lazy.. travelling experience is more important. The whole haversack of camera and lens is just too much for me for a 20 months journey and I am living my life in a 25kg backpack.
If I am on a holiday for 2-3 weeks then it makes a difference but still 2 lens is the max for me:devil:

though i have only been to serengeti and ngorongoro.. and not the rest.. i have to agree that these 2 places are amazingly great...

 

[pupuce]

Thanks much for the info on looking for accommodation. So you searched for the next destination first before reaching the place. That should set your mind at ease, instead of having to search high and low, and still worry about the accommodation. But some of your experiences are really out of this world (sleeping on rooftop?!, sleeping in a hammock)

It's a good thing that you're not fussy, although there is a need to be careful! The howling monkeys incident cracks me up....Never imagined it could be monkeys of all things...

Gnohz, one note - train/bus stations are probably the most vulnerable place for backpackers. Lots of the petty theft and snatch jobs happens here. Never never take out your guide book to decide where you want to stay over here. Decide where before you arrive in a new city, write your address down on a piece of paper and upon arrival, grab your bags from the bus and just walk out from there to get a taxi/bus. just dont linger in there for anymore time then needed.. this is especially after a overnight bus when you are tired and not so alert. If you take out your guide book ,leave your bags down for a second.. its like saying to the thieves.. "COME SCAM/SNATCH ME!!!!!!"

I always stick to my this rule "walk as if you know where you are going, even if you dont"
(although sometimes you do get more and more lost..hahahha)

its always good to have an idea where to stay before arriving but in some cities, there are limited hostels, have mid range hotels and might be running full. I remember in Quito, I had to walked about 4 hotels before I found a room.. and on those uphill cobblestone streets *sob sob*

As for the places I've slept in... let's see.. airport benches (more than once) roof tops (more than once) courtyards with goats and chickens, hammocks, bed bug mattress, boat deck, buses...(I've lost count) just be prepared to see a chiropractor when you get home after the journey:devil:

Hey, think I'll be bend-over by the time I am 50 years old if I continue to travel and with this kind of bag weight

 

[crystal1993]

That was a compliment

Sticky threads appear at the top of the section in a forum.

Your thread is considered so wonderful and useful that it shouldn't get buried amongst the thousands of other posts in this section. Hence it was suggested that it be made a sticky ;-)

Like what he said. Don't misunderstand. @_@

 

[pupuce]

Are you certain it's not the guide that is howling? There are werewolves in this world. At least I believe so. They prowl around for girls that sleep in hammocks.
There is another option to keep your gears light yet still get reasonable IQ. Get tiny manual focus lenses and adapt them to your FF or whatever camera. More details here

It wasnt full moon so i am sure it wasn't the man howling.. in fact there was no moon... aiyoh talking about it brings back memories of how frighten I was to be sleeping there, surrounded by the dark forest..one of the experience that is hard to forget.
Luckily I didnt know about werewolves who go around for girls sleeping in hammock then, if not I'd taken the bus and head the other direction back to town.

Thanks for the link - but first let me figure out what is IQ (not mine but my camera I presume),FF and OM1, OM2.....:think:

 

[pupuce]

Like what he said. Don't misunderstand. @_@

hahah... "sticky sticky, stick to me"
ps - new to clubsnap, thats why. Thanks for wanting to be sticky, its a compliment indeed

 

[crystal1993]

It wasnt full moon so i am sure it wasn't the man howling.. in fact there was no moon... aiyoh talking about it brings back memories of how frighten I was to be sleeping there, surrounded by the dark forest..one of the experience that is hard to forget.
Luckily I didnt know about werewolves who go around for girls sleeping in hammock then, if not I'd taken the bus and head the other direction back to town.

Thanks for the link - but first let me figure out what is IQ (not mine but my camera I presume),FF and OM1, OM2.....:think:

IQ means image quality i suppose. FF is full frame which is regarding the sensor of our cameras. OM1 OM2 i not sure...=/

 

[pupuce]

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#20 Syria - Damascus, A bustling evening in the Old City
The capital, historically called the Fragrant City , is believed to be the oldest continously inhabited city on planet. Much of the interesting sights are inside the Old City encircled by a massive wall​

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#21 Syria - Damascus.
Minerat of the Umayyad Mosque

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#22 Syria - Damascus, Umayyad Mosque
Visited this mosque with the 3 guys, who were all strangers to each other till our chance encounter in Jordan the day before. They whisked me off to Syria together with them and we crossed the border in a shared taxi. One Italian, One Arabic french and one American turned Muslim. To this day, i still find it funny because the American told us " its prayer time, can wait for me? I have to pray" When we asked the Arabic french if he is joining the american, he replied " no problem no problem, let me take photos first" then he zoom around with his camera and totally forgetting his prayer duty...​

#23 Syria - Damascus, The prayer mats​

 

[mervin82]

Very very nice series you've got, Pupuce! Thanks for sharing!

 

[pupuce]

If you don't mind, I would like to hear more about your experiences in Latin America.
What are your thoughts on Quito? Do you feel safe moving around there on your own?

Quito is bustling colonial town where i stayed for a few days, enroute to galapagoes. There were lots of unfavourable reviews of Quito but perosnally I didnt feel any threat while there. I stayed in Old Quito but there are few hostels and mostly mid range hotels costing about 30-40USD per night. is better to make prior reservation because i had to walked about 4 hotels before i found a place to rest for the night.
If I dont remember wrongly, there was a hotel listed in Lp which was under renovation and one has closed its doors. I need to check that in my dairy before i can confirm, in case if you are using an old edition of LP.

I think the more unfavourable the reports, the more careful we are so nothing tends to happen. Both times when i was pickpocket and snatched was Argentina and Chile respectively.

Enjoy!
http://busytravelbee.wordpress.com/2009/05/27/55/

 

[pupuce]

#24 Syria - Homs, Krac de Chevaliers​

During the Crusades of the 11th - 13th centuries, the massive towers and ramparts of Syria's krak de chevalies were the site of many fierce battles and sieges. The enormous castle has 13 towers, and could hold nearly 5,000 soldiers and their provisions for as long as five years in a siege. Today it's one of only a few places where visitors can see frescoes from the time of the Crusades.
This is also where I sent some postcards to friends. My friend in paris received his card 1months after I FINISHED my trip.. meaning nearly 12 months from the day I sent it:devil:

^^ Anyone feels that this photo's composition is strange with the chop-off?^^
From the so many photos, you can probably tell that Syria is one of the few favourite countries I've visited.. Next stop.. Israel

 

[pupuce]

Big biceps are great deterrent for petty muggers and bullies (people who find fault with photographers on the street). Here's an interesting observation I made in Aus: winter + long sleeve + jacket + cam in market = confrontations from both asians and caucasians. summer + sleeveless + cam in market = 0 confrontation + people made way for me to shoot. The funny thing is that the market is a tourist attraction. lol

Confirmation that weather creates the mood of humans. The sucide rate is also higher during winter season...

 

[pupuce]

Dunno if you have stated this anywhere on the post. Did you have a idea of the places you wanted to head to before you left ? if so, may i ask how long it took for you to plan the trip ?

Hello Kenji87, Sorry for the late reply. Just saw your question as I run through the thread. I had an idea of countries to go because I need to put in the destinations when I buy the Round the World ticket. How I planned the route? I just "chase the summer season around the globe" due to the limtations of the backpack and I didnt want to take any winter clothings.
Along the way, the plans did change .. I was planning to go to the Scandinavian countries from Europe and flying out from Russia but in the end I continue my journey into West Africa after Morocco. In the end I also had to buy winter clothings which the weight of my bag as lots of cities are in the highlands and its freezing cold. I go to bed fully clothed with layers of singlets, jacket, hat and gloves

It took me about 4 months to plan for this trip. I mentioned in the other discussion thread - I had the thought before but when I spoke to some friends, they all gunned me down for the craziness of it. I shelved the idea and went back to working. 6 months later, this urge surfaced again and I was losing motivation and dragging my feet to work, I know it is time for a change. This time, I planned without telling anyone - i start doing research, reading up on countries, slowing down my sales in the office so that it will be easier for me let go, start clearing my work, selling my car, getting rid of possessions. I told my parents about 3 months before I left..
All in a haste, I cant wait any longer but also I was afraid I will change my mind because like everyone else, there were lots of doubts and apprehension about the future after I finished my trip.

 

[Fallenphoenix]

Confirmation that weather creates the mood of humans. The sucide rate is also higher during winter season...

I would say...people generally won't bite on what they can't chew. Cos other photographers suffer the similar frequency on confrontations

wow...the composition in ur pics is not like fr someone who just start on photography.

 

[Will03]

i am sure in your next trip.. u will have images that will wow us even more.. cos i think you have the talent for photography.. cheers

 

[davidtkl76]

Mind sharing with us how much you spent for the trip? Also, did you fall sick due to differences in climate,hygiene etc? How did you deal with those?

 

[m3lv1nh0]

You are truly amazing and inspirational! Hats off to you. With family commitment and the usual debts that comes along with it, I really cannot imagine myself doing this. I can only hope.
:thumbsup: