June 16, 2009
Now that my itinerary is set for my living and traveling abroad experience in Thailand starting in July, I have finally started consolidating my lengthy to-do lists so I have no excuse not to get a moving on my preparations.
Particularly, packing and choosing clothing to bring to Thailand is somewhat tricky. Nearly every source I’ve read says ‘don’t pack a lot of clothes for Asia and Thailand‘ Good quality clothing that will fit your needs is plentiful and very affordable in Thailand, so in reality it’s easier and best to pack lightly on clothing and just buy your clothes in Thailand.
Then, however, disclaimer time comes along: Be aware that Asian and Thai clothing and footwear is obviously smaller due to the physical difference between Thais and Westerners… (more…)
August 11, 2008
For the past week or so I’ve been breaking in my set of Plane Quiet Platinum Noise Canceling Headphones in order to be able to share my thoughts on this brand new headphones coming from the “Outside the Box” group, and able to be ordered directly from ProTravelGear.com. If you’re too lazy to read, or in a hurry to get some noise canceling headphones - here is my early conclusion for you - these noise canceling headphones are very affordable and a great deal at only $99, so you won’t be disappointed for not spending the extra $200 for the comparable Bose Quiet Comfort 2 headphones.
But looking at them closer, here are my first impressions + commentary. (more…)
July 11, 2008
Travel Guidebooks might be dead in some people’s minds since the internet has all the information we need for free. However, I still wouldn’t consider venturing abroad without a published, reputable travel guidebook. You’re not going to have internet access everywhere, and when you need some quick go-to backpacking or travel tips, a big fat travel guidebook from Lonely Planet, Frommers, Fodor’s, or Let’s Go is your best and easiest option, unless you’d rather hunt down an internet cafe to read some restaurant reviews. Now I present you…. (more…)
March 19, 2007
As I was mulling around on the internet after returning from my short time away (reason for infrequent posting, sorry) I ran across an interesting travel discussion on Slashdot fueled by the following question.
“I’m planning to spend a year backpacking around the world and the hardest question I have to answer is: What technology do I take with me? Aside from the obvious (digital camera, ipod, et. al.) what technological devices would you you take? Specifically, I wonder if I should bring my nice and shiny MacBook Pro. I can think of lots of uses for it (offloading pix, updating weblog, email, etc.), but I’m worried it will be lost or stolen along the way. Does anyone have experience with travel while toting technology?”
So should travelers Backpack around with a Laptop?
The (more…)
January 10, 2007
Lifehacker had a great post awhile back warning travelers of the dangers posed from using free Wi-fi internet at airports around the nation. In JFK International’s Jet Blue terminal, Jet Blue is kind enough to set up a free Wi-fi network for its customers. Unfortunately, as in many other instances, this lead to someonesetting up their own rogue wireless networks using the free network to extract sensitive information from surfers.
When wi-fi users attempted to connect to the wireless connection in this particular Jet Blue terminal, there were two options available: “Default” and “JetBlue free hotspot.” It turned out, the dangerous, rogue network set up was the one cleverly labeled “JetBlue free hotspot.”
So while traveling, be very skeptical about the free wireless internet signals offered in airport terminals. If there’s any doubt in the security of the wi-fi, just don’t use it. These bogus networks set up by phishers evidently occur very often in free airport hot spots.
(On a sidenote, JFK also offers Wi-fi in Terminals 1, 8, and 9)
July 19, 2006
So you want to backpack internationally, but do not know what backpack to get. Hopefully this guide will give you guidance to what type of backpack you should choose.
First, you have to decide whether you will be using your backpack as a daypack, or as your luggage. It’s a better idea to just pack very light, and to use it as your luggage. So assumming it’s your luggage, continue reading.
Since the only thing you will have is your backpack, it will have to be a pretty decent size. Check out a recommended packing list to see what you will all need.
For backpacking through europe, the industry leaders for bags are High Sierra and Eagle Creek. They make the high quality bags most often chos by backpackers. Here are some of the bags that can be purchased through Worldtravler.com (aff.)
All Eagle Creek bags come with a lifetime warranty.