When Michael and I travel, we often take DVD’s to watch on our computers when we are in countries where there is nothing to watch on TV….at least nothing in English!!!

The problem arises because the computer volume is not enough to allow us to be able to easily hear the dialog of the DVD’s.  We make quite a sight sitting close together and leaning toward the computer so that we can hear!!!

The answer came to me while reading Bonnie Hunter’s blog.  She wrote about having a small external speaker that travels with her.  I went to Amazon and started searching, having two main criteria….

….firstly, that it had rechargeable batteries that were charged by using a USB plug

…..secondly, it had to be SMALL and LIGHTWEIGHT!!!

Enter the “X Mini II Capsule Speaker”

It is 2.4 inches  x  2.4 inches  x  1.7 inches and weighs  2.9 ounces!!!!

….and even better, it can be collapsed down to this…..

It arrived today and adds a whole new level of sound to our computers and I-Phones so we are looking forward to using it on our next trip….only three weeks till Turkey!!!!

This past weekend my husband and I spent a few days in Augusta, Georgia (about 1-1/2 hours from home).  The purpose of the trip was to visit the Augusta Cutting Horse Futurity (more about that later), but the first order of business was a bit of relaxing with a “Bahama Mana”…..

 

On Saturday we started the morning with a walk around the Canal area…..

  Then on for a walk around the downtown area.  One stop was to visit one of Augusta’s favorite musicians….the ever talented and apparently very short…..James Brown…..

  We laughed at the name of this pub…. “Tipsey McStumbles”!!

Then, on to the futurity.  Before the contests started, we walked around the vendors and I was amazed at all of the things that could be purchased….much like our quilt show vendor malls……

  How about a leather cell phone holster……

A sea of saddles…..    And it came as no surprise that Cowgirls love their bling…..

But the highlight of the evening was the cutting horse competition.  It is such fun to see the way that the horse and rider work together.   Here is a video that I shot….

While we were traveling, I realized the need for a smaller camera……not that I am going to give up my Digital SLR  but sometimes you want to be surreptitious and you just cant do it with a camera that size.   During our recent trip, I used my cell phone as my “sneaky” camera and also for videos, but the quality just wasn’t quite up to par.

So, once home I started researching various small cameras.  After talking to a lot of people and reading a lot of internet reviews I opted for the Sony Cybershot……

 

It is a 16 mega-pixel camera with a 10x zoom.  There were several features that I really liked about it, including a great panorama feature.

The next day we left for a few days at the beach with our friends Roy and Diane so it was the perfect time to put it thru it’s paces. 

Here are a few of the things that I learned…..

 

It works well for the “hold the camera out and take a photo of yourself” shots….

The zoom really ZOOMS……

 

The “Macro” feature lets you get up close and personal……

Long distance scenery shots are great……

By the way, this shot was taken at Cumberland Island….only 300 people on the entire island and many of them were out bird watching so that meant a VERY empty beach!!!!!

The panorama feature is amazing……

And it will even let you do a little bit of playing with it……
    

  

It takes great stained glass shots and believe me, those are sometimes hard to get….. 

It handled the low light really well……

I also used it to film a video of some of the shore birds and loved the quality of the video but also the quality of the audio. 

 

But the best part of the camera…….

This great photo on our last night!!!!

OK….now I come to the part of traveling that I have the most trouble with……what to take to work on!!!

On our first long trip (2 months in England), I didn’t have any idea of how much time I would be spending in the house while Michael was at work.    Consequently, I took lots of fabric to work on a quilt and even took a small sewing machine with me.   I set everything up on the dining room table, plugged the machine into the convertor and turned it on.   Everything worked great until I pushed on the presser foot…..then there was a loud pop and a puff of smoke!!!!  Apparently the convertor hadn’t worked properly and I blew up the machine!!!! 

I ended up buying a VERY basic machine while in England (for less than $50), but I couldn’t use it for much except paper piecing.  BUT, what I learned was that I don’t tend to spend much time sitting in my apartment and sewing.  Instead I prefer to be outside, observing the newness of the place that I am visiting.

 

For the 7 weeks in Italy, I took fabric and doo-dads to work on an undersea collage.  I spent a couple of days working on it, but am not sure that it was worth carrying all of the stuff for it……

I also took a lot of drawing supplies, thinking that I would be sitting in various piazzas and sketching what I am seeing.   That particular idea didn’t work because there is simply no place in Rome for people to sit!!!  

On many of the shorter trips I have taken an unfinished Counted Cross Stitch project.  But face it…..I will NEVER finish it, so why waste the time and effort in carrying it with me!!!!

So, now I am trying to decide what to take to China.  This trip is a bit different because Kunming is not a huge tourist attraction and there wont be lots of museums or other things to see.   Having said that, my favorite thing to do when we were there last year was to sit at one of the parks and watch people.   Also, we will be visiting during the Rainy Season, so I may be forced indoors more.

My plan (at the moment) is to take the quilt that was made by my friend, Pat and add some beads and hand quilting…..

Here is the post where I talked about this little quilt….

I am also planning to take some drawing/water color supplies and hopefully spend some time playing with those.   I have just watched a great video that I will tell you about in a few days……

My question to end this post……what are your ideas about what to take on long trips?????

OK…the bags are packed, the tickets are booked and you are ready for take-off!!!  How can you make those airline hours better……

On most flights you are allowed one carry-on bag and one personal bag.  In the earlier days of our travels, we used every ounce of free luggage that we were allowed and carried a backpack and small suitcase each.   This becomes problematic when you arrive at your destination and each have to pull TWO suitcases, while carrying a backpack.  Make it easier on yourself and limit your bags!!

On an aside….when we moved to Australia back in 1982, we couldn’t afford to ship our stuff.  Back then, you were allowed 3 suitcases each and two carry-ons each.   AND, you could check an extra 3 pieces of luggage with limited additional cost.   SO……we arrived at the airport with 1 suitcase, 10 boxes (weighing between 50 and 70 pounds) and 4 carry on pieces!!!  Sounds crazy to do, but it only cost us about $300 to get everything from Lubbock, Texas to Canberra, Australia!!!!    Mind you, when we returned back to the US….6 years and 2 children later……we shipped over 40 boxes and carried 3 suitcases and a huge Hiking Pack filled to the brim.

I carry  a Swiss Gear computer backpack ……

this one was purchased initially because it was the only one big enough to hold my laptop.  I have since moved to a smaller computer, but still really like this bag.

These are the items that we always carry with us and do not check…..

– Computer with necessary power cords

– Camera with batteries and cables

– Prescription medicines

– Books (or Kindles)….by the way, we bought one with the idea of sharing, but then fought over who got to read it so we have a second one winging its way here!!!

  –  Short socks…..  I take my shoes off as soon as I get onto the plane and put on socks.   They are comfortable and keep my feet warm.

I also carry a small, zippered bag that has the things that I might use during the flight…… puzzle books, reading glasses, Kindle, Nintendo DS (I LOVE games), I-Pod (for music and podcasts), small packet of Kleenex, and lightweight jacket.   This bag will fit into the large pocket of my backpack, but I take it out as soon as we get to our seats.  That way the big pack can go into an overhead bin.   I use a zippered bag since I lost my reading glasses (prescription ones) because they dropped out of an open bag.

We normally take a few snacks with us, but have started limiting them somewhat.   We DO try to find a place to buy a Sub Sandwich and take that on the plane with us.  We eat it sometime during the flight and try to avoid the airline food as much as possible.   Our favorite layover is in Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris because we can get wonderful French Bread sandwiches.

We also avoid alcohol on the flights and try to limit our caffeine intake….we have found that this helps us to get over Jet-Lag upon arrival.    Also, it is important to stay hydrated on the plane!!

Speaking of Jet Lag, we have learned that it is important to stay up on the first day….even if you fall into bed at 7:00pm……DONT TAKE A NAP!!!!  Also, it helps greatly to get out into the fresh air and sunshine.    (On our first day in Italy, we had a late dinner with some friends and fell into bed THIRTY EIGHT hours after we had woken up the day before.)

We always ask for an Emergency Exit row.  These are wonderful because you can stretch your legs out in front of you and the chair in front of you cant push back into your lap.  You don’t always get them, but they are wonderful when you do.

During the flight, Michael and I have different strategies.   He reads and works on his computer and seldom naps.  I tend to watch the movies, read, play games and nap.   I used to worry when I couldn’t sleep on a flight, but have finally relaxed with the idea that I wont die from lack of sleep.  Since coming to grips with this, I have found that I often sleep for several hours on the flight.

It is also important to get up during the flight and walk around.   I sat for 14 hours one time and my legs hurt and had Charley-Horses for several days.   I wont do that again!!!!

As for dressing for the flight, I was once told that you should always wear baggy, comfortable clothes (think ….jogging suit) and tennis shoes.    We do wear comfortable clothes but prefer to stay somewhat fashionable!!!!   My clothing of choice are Capri pants and a short sleeve shirt.

My best advice for airline travel is to just “go-with-the-flow”.  We once flew into Los Angeles and found out that our flight to Australia had been canceled.  We had a slightly longer layover, but ended up on a Qantas flight that was much nicer.  We also ended up spending the night in the Newark Airport which could have been a disaster.  Instead, we  sat in a McDonald’s and chatted with the other weary travelers who were in the same situation. 

Finally, be sure that you are kind to the people behind the desks!!!  On one flight where the kids and I were delayed over 6 hours, the ticket agent took one look at the line of angry passengers behind us and promptly closed his booth and personally walked us to our terminal.  AND, one  attendant (once she heard that we had been in the airport all night)  moved us onto a flight where we were only on stand- by.  As we walked past I heard her say….”I hope the ticketed passenger doesn’t show up now”.

So…..take off……and have fun!!!!