Travel Tips

[dave lackey]

Today it is raining and my mind turns to what is important in life.

There are many things that I think about but lately, I have come to realize that it is definitely, absolutely....LATER THAN YOU THINK!😱

After the last 3 years and especially, the last 6 months, it is time to set goals in our lives. One of those is travel. Not local travel. Not even daytrips. Travel that requires a passport.

It has been a long 14 years since we last travelled internationally and spent some time on a work-exchange program in Wales and London. Much has changed with world events and also our health. Instead of looking for time off from work, I am looking for a part-time income to pay for a trip or two.

But we have to consider health issues, safety issues, packing issues, and, yes, photography-related issues.

So, where to start?

Can we start a thread on "Travel Tips" for those of us contemplating travel in the next year? Thanks in advance.:angel:

 

[marcr1230]

1. Travel light
2. Local culture - meet a local or 2. learn a bit of the local language to break the ice.
3. walk a lot if you can

 

[Roger Hicks]

Dear Dave,

You're probably familiar with this, but if not, you might care to look at it. It's oriented towards film, not digi (it's before I got the M8) but there's still a fair amount of useful stuff in it. http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subscription/travel.html

I'd completely agree with marcr1230 about 1. Travel light and 3. Walk a lot if you can but 2. learn a bit of the local language to break the ice is not always practical. First, you may be travelling through several countries, and it's not realistic to try to learn (say) Italian, Slovenian, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Romanian and Greek for one trip. Second, some languages are quite hard: trying to learn (say) Hindi, Tibetan, Kanada, Maltese or even Hungarian is probably more trouble than it's worth unless you're going to spend a long time somewhere and then go back. If you can get by in a few basic languages -- English and German are probably the most useful in most of Europe, with French and Spanish following up -- you can generally find someone whom you can understand and who can understand you.

Cheers,

R.

 

[tjh]

Another vote for "travel light" - probably the most important thing we can control. There is wonderful quick drying travel clothing these days!

 

[Richard G]

When I arrive in a foreign city I immediately go for a long walk and must find two things: the university, and a supermarket. Once you have these you can buy cheaply and you can eat out cheaply, as there will be lots of good restaurants near the university that are not too expensive. And there will be bookshops and other cultural necessities. And it will be busy and you may get up a conversation with someone at the same table and learn a lot very quickly.

 

[--s]

what about a couch surfing device in rff? would spare lots of money and provide contacts with photographing locals for travelling photographers.....

???

 

[Godfrey]

1. Travel light
2. Local culture - meet a local or 2. learn a bit of the local language to break the ice.
3. walk a lot if you can

Yup.

- However light I manage to pack down to, I always find out that I could go one step lighter. So I keep notes on what doesn't get used, isn't needed, and keep the notes in my travel bag. Useful when packing.

- I'm no longer as fast to pick up a language as I once was, but the point of travel, to me, is not so much to get to as many places as possible as it is to get to a few places and enjoy them. Enjoying them mean to me meeting folks there, getting to know them, learning the different special places there, etc etc. For instance, I've been to the Isle of Man for a week or more about a dozen times — it's an island about 10 x 40 miles in size. I have met many great folks there, several are amongst my closest friends. I still haven't seen 80% of it. I'll be going back again. If you don't know the language, use sign language or find someone who speaks a little of your language. Try to learn a little, and laugh a lot when you say dumb things. It works.

- Walk a lot even before you start your travels. It gets your body in shape and helps you slow down to a pace where you can think and see. You can't see much if you're in a rush, and you can't make photographs if you can't see. Unless you have a lot of money to spend on rental cars and fuel (and don't mind missing some of the best photo ops there are), you'll be riding busses, taxis, trains ... and walking a lot ... when you travel. Be ready for that.

G

 

[Lflex]

"Travel Light" is not only good advice for travel, but for life in general.
Bring comfortable shoes, as a prerequisite for walking a lot.
I like to seek out contemporary culture rather then monuments of the past.

 

[Bingley]

travel light is key, both in terms of photography gear and other gear. If traveling by air, pare down your stuff so that it all fits in a bag you can carry on and not have to check.

I put guidebooks, maps, phrasebooks on to an iPod Touch or smartphone that slips into a pocket. No more carrying paper. Lightens the load further.

set up a separate checking account with ATM card that's limited to travel and does not provide access to other bank accounts. limits potential damage if your card is lost or stolen during a trip.

I agree w/ others about taking a minimalist photography kit. See the article on Dante Stella's website. I currently take one film camera, one digital camera that can swap lenses w/ the film camera, and no more than 3 small lenses.

 

[raid]

I reserved a small car for our Italy trip so that we have no option but to travel light.
Take 1-2 cameras at most with you.
I would travel to one beautiful location and then stay there instead of driving around everywhere.

Focus on enjoying the trip with your wife, Dave.

 

[taskoni]

Come to visit my T-Unit - you don't have to bring anything but passports, Linda and yourself 🙂

If you decided to travel across Europe is all the same - you can take whatever you'll need for the trip locally from me 😛

Regards,

Boris

 

[Stephen G]

Travel slow.
I'd rather truly see and absorb one, two or.. maybe three cities over a ~2 week trip.
For major cities, I'm happy to spend a week there to give myself time to acclimate and enjoy.
To me, it takes a few days to start to get the vibe of a city, and even get where the interesting places to shoot street are.

 

[Dave Jenkins]

You can do a lot of communicating with body language and signs, the most important of which is a smile. You also need to learn four phrases in the local language: "Hello," "Please," "Thank you," and "Where is the toilet." With those four phrases, appropriate body language, and a pleasant smile you can go almost anywhere.

For more on travel photography with an emphasis on people, you might find "Foreign Faces," an article I wrote for Rangefinder Magazine a few years ago worth a read. Here's the link. [FONT=&quot]http://tinyurl.com/pzegpa

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[Roger Hicks]

Travel slow.. .

For a given value of 'slow(ly)'

My wife and I wanted to go to Greece with Aditi, our (sort-of-adopted) daughter during her gap year (the year between school and university). She was planning on studying applied foreign languages. She was already bilingual in English and French; very good in German (most would say 'trilinguial'); and fair in Russian and Italian. She has since graduated and is working in the field.

The trip to Greece meant driving down through France (where we live), Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and Kosova to Greece; and then we decided to come back via Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Austria and Switzerland. Why not take our time both ways?

Yes, there is a very great deal to be said for staying in one place for days or weeks; and we've often had the best times when we've done so. But there is also a great deal to be said for the journey itself; we have again often had the best times when we've done so.

Cheers,

R.

 

[raid]

What Roger says is true. Both options are great.

In my last three trips to Italy, I would take a flight to Germany, followed driving around in Bavaria. Then we would drive to Austria, and the cross the pass over the Alps to the northern part of Italy. The return trip was the other way back then.
This year, I want to explore a small part of Italy only. I hope that we will drive less and walk more or simply enjoy doing nothing except experience life nd culture close by.

Using a GPS makes driving in Italy more manageable for me. It can be crazy.

 

[Roger Hicks]

. . . Using a GPS makes driving in Italy more manageable for me. It can be crazy.

Driving a tank would make driving in Italy more manageable for me. Even a Series III Land Rover with rock sliders makes me worry about Italians driving into me. I am am unlikely to get hurt by flimsy Italian motor cars but I may have to deal with law suits. I've never driven ANYWHERE where there are more truly appalling drivers: India, Mexico, you name it. There are lots of bad drivers on the world (cf Malta, Greece, Turkey) but the real danger is bad, AGGRESSIVE drivers.

Cheers,

R.

 

[dave lackey]

Okay, first things first. How to get there? Mind you, we haven't flown anywhere since 1999. Checked some roundtrip tickets to a typical location on Delta and the prices were astronomical! Checked with European Destinations and they can get us individual tickets and usual travel agency packages for something like $1400 each.

That is the first issue to discuss for me as it amounts to a huge portion of the cost...and the amount of income I need to generate to pay for the trip.

And, of course, we will need to factor in the health disability issues throughout the entire trip. It is not like we can walk for hours or climb stairs, etc. We cannot. So, you see, this is a huge undertaking.:angel:

But there has to be a way.

 

[Duane Pandorf]

Dave, I'm sure you've met many other photographers on this forum. Maybe not in person, but through your different conversations here, you've met. Through another camera brand forum and since I travel extensively for my job, I've been able to meet other forum members in their home country and that has been a wonderful experience.

Depending on where you might want to go, other countries normally have great public transportation where you can plan a route and get on and off the bus line without having to do major walking. A lot of places have all day passes for all the public transportation saving a lot of money.

The hard work is before you leave and at least having a plan of attack. Food locations, photo opportunities and a schedule that can be flexible. This way both you and your spouse can enjoy the sites and you get a chance to get the photos you're looking after.

I've been to Roger's website in the past and makes a lot of sense. Your M3 with a 50 and your X1 for wider shots. That's all you'd need.

 

[dave lackey]

Thanks, Duane...we will talk more later as you know. You are a great resource.:angel:

This is a 12-month planning exercise due to ongoing physical therapy and certain health goals that have to be met. Then there is the little issue of finding a part-time job or working from home doing god knows what just to fund such an undertaking. Or I might win the lottery....

Is there anyone who can help with figuring out the best way to actually get an affordable flight into, say, Paris? Berlin? This is all new to me as we used to fly (10+ years ago) on Delta family passes. Never bought a plane ticket before.😱

Maybe it is better to use a travel agent...I have no idea.

 

[tjh]

Dave,

Yes, $1400 RT is about the going rate for US East Coast to Europe. However, a lot depends on the season. And, fares jump around all the time. I got a $771 RT fare from Miami to Tokyo earlier this year.

We can talk a bit more when I come to Atlanta in a week.

Tom