September 18, 2005
Packing round up, the sequel
OK, so five days into my trip and I'm discovering more faults with my three weeks of planning and packing:
- Recently purchased locks for my Explorer 65 backback don't quite secure it. There are no dual zippers for the top part, so essentailly I have a house with locked back door, locked shed, locked external garage...but the front door is open. Duh.
- The USB and charging cords for my Sony DSC-T1 digtial camera are sitting at home in Zuerich still connected to my computer. Nina, thankfully, is going to post them to Chiang Mai some time soon. Good thing there is an extra battery to fall back on.
- My new, big, fat 512 SanDisc Memory Stick Pro DUO, which replaced the old 32MB Sony Memory Stick DUO is not compatible with my Sony R505 laptop. Once again, those pesky model name discrepancies have come back to bite me in the arse. Good thing I have my handy Belkin Camera-to-iPod thingy, which I can then transfer to the laptop. But...
- Apperently, also forgotten was a USB cord to connect my Belkin thingy to the laptop. Crapola with a capital 'C'.
Posted by stu at 11:03 AM | Comments (0)
September 13, 2005
Packing round up
(Warning: No spell check available.)
OK, a few notes about the planning and packing to finish this topic off:
- UBS is almost history! On Monday I closed four of six accounts with them (savings, two pensions, and USD) and did so with pure joy in my heart. The oppertunity to publicly riducule the teller who created this mess came up because closing most accounts is done at the teller windows. When I was head of the queue the same woman who caused all this stress called me to her window because she was free. I, oh so childishly, said loudly to the guy behind me "No...she is too stupid...you go." Everyone in the lobby stopped and stared first at me, then at her. Two minutes later I was closing my accounts with a young, somewhat frightened teller who I treated with friendly respect. To those who thing I'm being overly childish about this please note that it has been 27 days since the deposite was made...and I still don't have my money!
- Last moment purchase of a pair of treking shoes to subsitute for my full blown hiking boots: It's warm here and everyone on the forums seems to recommend against boots unless my trip would involve some hard core hiking.
- Child's Dream (the Swiss NGO I'm helping out, see About) asked me to ferry two laptops donated by the Swiss Stock Exchange with me to Chiang Mai. Thinking nothing of it I said 'sure!' Now my pack is about 8kg heavier, or about an additional 30-40% more than without them. "It is all for a good cause" I keep telling myself but my back begs to differ ;)
- So, I take the 19:58 S8 S-Bahn train to the airport, dump my heavey (22kg) Explorer 65 rucksack onto the ground, and proceed to wrap it up in my newly purchased PacSafe 55. It doesn't fit. In the back of my mind I had always wondered about the 55 vs 65 discrepancy between the model numbers...and now it's come back to smack me in the face at zero hour. Fuck. Thirty or so quid down the tube. How could I have been so stupid as to not have tested this out beforhand???
Posted by stu at 09:46 PM | Comments (0)
September 06, 2005
Rants and Thanks
I’ve got about a week left before my big departure. The packing and planning is nearly finalized, but a few problems have occurred. Specifically, my evil fucking bank, UBS, has managed to cock-up a $17,000 transfer from my US-based bank, Bank of Hawaii. This money is supposed to pay off my Iceland holiday induced credit card debt, pay rent and medical insurance while I’m away, and provide a source of cash while on the road.
I am livid.
Last Friday, after having heated words with my account manager at the bank, I became resigned to the fact that the money will not be available until two or three days into my trip at the earliest--four weeks after making the deposit. Hopefully things will be ok. Regardless, I’ve vowed to close out most of my accounts at UBS and transfer them to Credit Suisse before leaving for Hong Kong.
OK, rant over. My friend and former colleague, Nina, has graciously agreed to water my plants and check the post for bills. Three cheers for Nina!
The packing is just about complete also. Today I bought a cotton sleeping bag liner that is great for using in hostels and other dodgy sleeping venues. The guy at Ochsner Sport on Bahnhofstrasse tried to upsell me to a silk liner for three times the price, but that seemed a bit too kinky for my tastes. About the only thing left is to buy some gifts for the people I’ll meet up with in HK and Thailand.
Posted by stu at 11:01 PM | Comments (1)
August 27, 2005
Electric Toys
The entire packing process has forced me to rethink some things. The Marantz professional grade digital audio recorder is out. The Phillips electric razor stays home, as does the Iomega external CD burner. It is amazing that one would even consider bringing such a thing! My beloved Braun Oral-B Sonic Complete electric tooth brush’s fate is uncertain. There have been mixed thoughts from my fellow LP Thorn Tree posters. The digital cornucopia will include my Sony T1 digitcam, with upgraded memory (512MB) and underwater casing, a Belkin camera-to-iPod transfer thingamajig, and my Sony R505 laptop.
The laptop has been on and off the packing invoice for two weeks now. After reading some more TT posts, I decided to bring it, but ‘uglyfy’ it. It has survived for three and a half years now, so etching my name, email address and web site address on the casing is not a big deal. Neither would losing it to theft, stupidity or any other conceivable backpacker-lifestyle related death. Would you steal this laptop???
Posted by stu at 02:00 PM | Comments (2)
August 21, 2005
Let the packing begin!
OK, I've started packing three weeks ahead of time. Much thought and research has gone into this, but I'm sure to have left out something critical. The most exciting purchase has been the Grundig Yatch Boy 80 Shortwave Radio.
This leather clad toy will allow me to feed my news addiction even in the remotest of locations. Both the BBC and NPR have regular broadcasts over shortwave. I’ve got these romantic notions of what it will be like from watching old WWII movies as a child. The long wire running from the radio up to the roof of my hut on the beach, the high pitched squelch as I concentrate on tuning in, the hourly ‘beep, beep, beep, beep, beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep’ of BBC’s time signal.
Other exciting purchases include my trusty 40L+10L backpack, some of those nifty trousers that turn into shorts, and several hundred Swiss Francs worth of immunization shots. After reading much advice on Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree message boards, I am also getting a Leatherman combo knife, water proof pouches, a quick drying towel, and an over-the-shoulder hidden wallet/pouch.
Posted by stu at 04:49 PM | Comments (2)