Documenting Your Trip

You are strongly encouraged to document your trip, so that at some point down the line you will be able to remember the name of that great hotel, that awe-inspiring or funky cultural site, a fabulous restaurant, or bizarre market when you need to. Friends might want recommendations for their trip to the same locale, you might be going back on a solo trip, or you may need the name of a restaurant for a referral or photo caption. Whatever the purpose, having a small notebook and a pen handy while traveling is always a good idea. Collecting your thoughts on paper at the end of the day, or during a lull in the action, helps bring everything into focus, and saves memories for later. In our personal travels we even take a digital photo of every dish we eat, annotate the restaurant information, and write a full description of the dish in our journal for use later.

If you don’t have photographic evidence of the incredible sights you’ve seen (or meals you’ve eaten) your friends just won’t believe it. Whether it’s video cam, digital photos, or conventional film, make sure that you have all of the storage media (tape, compact flash cards, film) that you think you will need. It’s almost always cheaper to purchase it at home before you leave. Make sure that you have sufficient battery capability, especially if you require rechargeable power, and don’t forget to recharge every night while you are sleeping. You do not want to be caught in the field with dead batteries. Also make sure that your American battery charging system will function properly on the electrical system of the host country (most newer chargers will operate on both 110 and 220 volts). Be sure to place your film in your carryon or pack it into a lead-lined bag when in transit, or request that it be hand-inspected.