Monday Travel Updates – Upgrading My Gear Edition

I’ve been in Wisconsin now for a bit over two weeks so there is little in the way of travel to report. I’ve been spending my time editing photos, writing and upgrading much of my gear.

I wrote last week about my quest for a bag. I still haven’t figured out which one I’m going to buy, and I have to act quickly. I’m on the road again in a little over 2 weeks.

I have however been upgrade most of my electronics. I’ve been traveling with some of the same gear for over 4 years. My laptop was one that I purchased in Vietnam in November 2008. My backup hard drives were purchased in Australia March of 2008.

My upgrades this month include:

• My laptop. Getting a new MacBook Pro.
• My had drives. Moving from 300gb to 2tb drives.
• My smartphone. I moved from an iPhone 4 to and iPhone 5.
• My eReader. I got the new Kindle Paperwhite.

With the exception of my camera gear and clothes, I’m doing a complete overhaul of my gear. I’ll be doing an extended post on my electronics and my travel workflow soon.

I’m also taking time to catch up on movies and TV shows that I’ve missed while traveling. I saw the Hobbit on Friday which was OK but didn’t quite seem up to the level of the Lord of the Rings movies.

I’m going to keep plowing ahead to finish my photo editing before I leave again in early January. FYI, if you will be attending New Media Expo (aka BlogWorld) in Las Vegas I’ll be speaking. Come and watch my session!

Sponsor Updates

G Adventures is running the 12 Days of G. Each day until December 24 G Adventure will be giving away promo codes for tours around the world. Plus, you can also enter to win a trip to the Galapagos Islands! I went to the Galapagos in 2011 with G and it was an awesome experience. The Galapagos is home to some of the most unique animals in the world and there isn’t nothing else like it anywhere on Earth. If you have ever wanted to travel to the Galapagos, sign up to win.

What I’m Reading

Last year I watched the movie “The Big Year” with Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson. I became interested in the story and decided to read the book that it was based on. The book tells the real life story of Sandy Komito, Al Levantin, and Greg Miller who all pursued the North American birding record in 1998. A big year involves traveling all over the US and Canada (but not Hawaii) in pursuit of see the highest number of unique bird species. The lengths these guys would go to see a single species is incredible. They literally traveled from the north of Newfoundland to the end of the Aleutian Islands. The level of obsession it takes to break the big year record is amazing. I’ve also started to read more about the birding subculture and found that the current lifetime record holder just saw his 9,000th species this year! It is a very interesting book and I highly recommend it.

Links

• Stateless man stuck in American Samoa CNN
• Newfoundland’s Love Affair with … Bologna CBC Radio
• World’s greatest birdwatcher sets a new record – then hangs up his binoculars Independent
• Why Japan is Obsessed with Kentucky Fried Chicken on Christmas Smithsonian Magazine
• United Airlines Top Flyer Reaches 1 Million Miles In A Calendar Year Johnny Jet
• More Americans are Moving Overseas to Work Washington Post
• Chinese Woman Writes With Both Hands Simultaneously in Different Languages YouTube
• In truth, Ravi Shankar couldn’t stand the hippies Telegraph
• Time spent away from electronic gadgets can stimulate creative abilities Independent
• Argentine cruise ship row is harming the Falkland Islands Telegraph
• Swedes are moving to Norway to get jobs The Billfold
• DHL returns century-old Antarctic whisky back to New Zealand Logistics Weekly
• Zoroastrians restore death ritual NYT
• How do you pack your bag for a seven-year, 22,000-mile international reporting assignment? Nieman Journalism Lab