My Top 10 Favorite Things

Preface:  Unless you're passionate about traveling and love gadgets, you won't enjoy reading this blog post. However, if you're a geek like me, strap on your money belt with the secret compartment and check out these cool tools...

There are certain personal belongings everyone loves to have with them when they travel.  

For some it might be a blow-dryer or a set of golf clubs.  For others, a scented candle or a chainsaw for that special occasion.  And if you're an international spy,  don’t leave home without a white dinner jacket and a pair of night vision goggles.

As I begin my 21st month of travel, having culled my worldly possessions down to about 100 items ( today I got rid of a pair of shoes, a wind-breaker, a wool cap, a pair of gloves and a thermal undershirt) here's a list of my favorites: 

#1 and #2: iPhone with Mophie Juice Pack

These are the two most useful items I own….they have saved my bacon more times than I can count.  I can access Google maps, check my email, verify foreign currency exchange rates, translate any language and read books I've downloaded.  


I much prefer turning the pages of an actual book, but it's not practical to lug them around.  I have almost 150 books on my phone which enables me to make use of time on trains, planes and automobiles.  Plus, it's slightly less obvious that I'm a clueless tourist when I discreetly consult my Lonely Planet guide on my phone rather than ostentatiously unfolding a map that's 2 feet square.

When I arrive in a new country, the first thing I do after going to the ATM machine at the airport is to buy a local pre-paid SIM card.  This only works if your phone is "unlocked".  Chances are your phone ISN'T unlocked unless you purchased it without signing a contract, or you paid someone to unlock it. Once it's unlocked, it will work with with any SIM card anywhere.


Beware:  Unlocking your phone will void the warranty and means you won't be able upgrade  phone's software without running the risk of having problems with your phone. You'll need your passport to buy a phone or a SIM card. 


If you're a short term traveler, this isn't a practical solution.  What you CAN do is download apps like Skype or Viber which allow you to make phone calls to any number anywhere for very little money or even for free.  The only hitch is that you have to be in a wifi environment for this to work.  The other solution is to buy an inexpensive local phone and then remove the SIM card and give the phone away when you leave.  Or, you can try to sell or trade it. (I traded one in Fiji for a massage!)  

Because many of the applications mentioned above put a lot of drain on the phone's battery, the Mophie Juice Pack is a extremely handy accessory which fits snugly around the phone like a stream-lined case, and is an external battery.  When not in use, it can be turned off, and can be charged via a USB cable from your computer.

#3 and #4: 13" MacBook Pro and Verbatim External Hard Drives 

I love it in a way that is unnatural for a man to love a machine. I love it for its ability to do all of the above, plus it’s the repository for all my thoughts, travel schedule, emails and photos. It has enough horse-power and hard drive space for me to run Adobe Photoshop and to store hundreds of high resolution photos.  It's not the lightest or least expensive computer on the market, so you might want to consider one of the options below.

I see a lot of other travelers whose primary need for a computer is to check email and store photos.  There are very small laptops made by Acer and Hewlett Packard as well as the ubiquitous iPad.  There's now an iPad case which even includes an external keyboard.


Equally handy are my two 500GB external hard drives...the smallest ones money can buy....made by Verbatim.  I make a double back up of all my photos and keep them in a separate place from my computer.  I hear so many travelers talking about losing all their photos when the have their camera stolen.  The question is not "will I lose/break my camera/memory card?" but "when?".  Like death and taxes, it is inevitable.

#5: Oral B Electric toothbrush

A battery powered toothbrush?  Seriously? You bet.  

I used to think this was quite an indulgence...at least until I stayed in a dorm recently with a Dutch couple who had "his and hers" ultra-sonic toothbrushes with plug in chargers and matching carrying cases.  Now THAT's some serious oral hygiene.


I've heard you're supposed to brush your teeth for two minutes.  That's about as much time as it takes to sing all 6 stanzas of "Amazing Grace."  I'm lucky if I make through a rushed version of "Happy Birthday" before I spit in the sink and call it a day.  But what I lack in quality I make up for in quantity. So I brush several times a day.


At age 53 I still don’t like to brush or floss my teeth, so an electric toothbrush makes that chore a little more palatable.

#6: Mack’s Earplugs

Wherever I lay my head, or whenever I fly, I can absolutely guarantee you that one of the following will begin within 30 seconds:


• A dog howling
• A cat fight
• A rooster sounding the alarm...at 3 a.m.
• A circular saw
• A pile driver
• A jack hammer
• A sledge hammer
• A baby screaming
• A woman screaming

#7: Canon G12 Compact Camera

The question I'm asked most frequently is "What kind of camera do you use?"  The answer is the Canon PowerShot G12.


When I first started my trip I had two digital SLR bodies, 3 lenses, an external flash, a monopod, an underwater housing and an underwater flash.  After three months, I got tired of lugging all that stuff around, and I found that for the vast majority of situations, I was using my compact camera. 


It's small enough to fit in my pocket so I can carry it all times, which means I'm able to capture a lot more of those "fleeting moments" than I would if I were fumbling to get my SLR out of the bag and find the right lens.  Not to mention the fact that I'm a lot less conspicuous, making me less of a target for theft


I always ask someone if I can take their photo, unless they're far enough away that they won't be recognizable, and if they still decline after a few polite attempts to persuade them, I don't try to "sneak" a photo.  During my travels I've had a few people try to take photos of me without asking, and it's a really creepy feeling. 


The great thing about the internet and digital photography is that if someone has an email address, it's a simple matter to send the photos to them.  But please don't promise to do that if you're not going to follow through.  It gives the rest of us a bad name.


I’m on my 4^th Canon G12 because I keep dropping them, losing them and scratching them.  I've learned my lesson and I now keep mine on a lanyard that I made from heavy duty nylon rope that I keep clipped to my belt  when not in use.  I also keep the strap around my wrist when using the camera, not only to avoid dropping it, but to minimize the risk of someone snatching it out of my hand and making a dash for it.  Unless you've actually won a medal for sprinting, and have some advanced qualification in martial arts, beware if a stranger approaches asking if you'd like them to take a photo of you with your own camera.  Many an unsuspecting tourist has lost their camera this way.

#8: Energizer Headlamp

Really handy when walking at night where the sidewalks are uneven, or full of 6 foot deep holes, or where there are no sidewalks.  


Also particularly handy when there's a power failure in the middle of the night.  


I keep mine on the bedside table or in within easy reach it's dark.  And by the way, you look like a dork if you wear it during the daytime, so don't forget to take it off when you wake up.

#9: Leatherman CS4 Multi-Tool

A bit on the heavy side, but handy to have.  It has every tool from a saw to a Phillips head screw driver to an awl for punching holes in leather, should you need to tighten your belt.  


Within the past week I’ve used the corkscrew for medicinal purposes, the pliers to adjust the settings on an air-conditioner that had all the knobs broken off (classy place), the beer opener (some people refer to this as a “bottle opener”), the scissors for opening a pesky package on a bar of soap, and the knife blade for spreading peanut butter.  


But I always have to remember to put it in my checked luggage when I'm on my way to the airport.  I missed a flight once because I got nabbed by security for having it in my carry-on, and it's too expensive to throw away.

#10: Screw-top Bottles

These are ideal for shampoo, sunscreen, vodka, vitamins, ibuprofen etc.


We've all had the experience of arriving at our destination, opening our toilet kit and finding a gooey mess because something has exploded all over everything.  I don't know why product manufacturers package ANYTHING intended for travel in a container that doesn't have a screw-on lid.


The other option is to pack everything in plastic bags, but when your bottles leak, and they will, you still have to rinse out the bag, wait for it to dry, or find a new one.  When you're on the move as much as I am, that's just no fun.


There's only thing that's really missing from my travel accoutrements and that is a quiver of...

Blow darts

Ideally, these would each be filled with a different dose of extra strength horse tranquilizer...starting with just a few drops for screaming children sitting near me on airplanes, departure lounges and in restaurants.  A slightly larger dose would quiet the barking dog next door.  And an adult dose to restore the peace and quiet that has been disrupted by the guy who insists on hammering before 7 a.m.


Footnote: I just realized that 6 of my 10 items require batteries...and one of them IS a battery!  When there's no way to charge them, they become very expensive paper weights...with the exception of the toothbrush, which can still be used as a weapon or a jaunty fashion accessory. 


What would Robinson Crusoe say...if he had access to email or a cell phone?

"Writing = Freedom" by Matt Fangman

I met Matt Fangman several years ago when I showed my photography portfolio at his design firm.  A few years later we were on the same team in a scavenger hunt on a Saturday afternoon.  I always knew Matt was a smart, talented, likable guy, but aside from bumping into him occasionally at advertising functions, we didn't hang out or socialize together.

Flash forward to the present and through the magic of email and facebook,  Matt and I have developed a friendship that really means a lot to me. He and I were chatting recently about our mutual enjoyment of writing, and we decided to each have the other guy "guest host" his blog.  

It turns out Matt's not just a smart, talented, likable guy...he's also a great writer with a sharp wit, an acerbic sense of humor and an insightful view of the world.  Enjoy!

Writing = Freedom.

This is the truth for me. I don't think this statement is for everyone. You have to figure out for yourself what your first word is—and then you start to become more free. I've come to the conclusion that I have to write. Daily. I have to commit the time to it. I have to put it out there and connect. At some point it may make me money. At some point it may make me friends. But, if neither happens, it will still have been worth it.

We are in the midst of the most fascinating communication explosion in human history. Never before has the ability for one person to directly connect to another been so easy. Meaningful connection, however, is never easy.

Meaningful connection is why I write. I write to clarify my thoughts. I write to satiate the creative impulse. I write to connect. It's painful. Frustrating. Rewarding. Lonely and loving at the same time. I'm not always sure if I'm doing it right and I'm making it up as I go along. It's a journey.

The weird thing is that it's a very new journey for me. I've only been writing on my blog for a year. I am and have always considered myself a visual communicator. Initially trained as an artist. Developed professionally as a designer. Eventually became a businessman on top of it. Somewhere along the way, I shifted. The muse changed. Or maybe I did.

I talk about this sometimes on my blog, not to draw attention to myself for approval (yay! Look at me! I'm an awesome self-actualized artist! This is cheaper than therapy!) but to communicate openly about the process of creation, why it's important, and to give encouragement to others to do the same. I think sometimes people need permission to create.

This journey has allowed me to continue to develop my own voice. Something that has been sorely underutilized. I bet you have a voice too. Have you practiced it? Do you let it sing? Or is it hidden away? Not quite a fit for your job. Not quite a fit for friends. Not quite a fit for your daily life. If this is you, then you are missing out. You don't need to be perfect. You don't need to be great. You just need to be. That is why I write.

Writing makes me free.

You can read more of Matt's writing at www.fangmarks.com

Writing About Writing About Writing

I fell in love for the first time when I was 17. 

She’s happily married now and lives in London, but we still exchange e-mails a few times each year and catch up on each other’s lives.  I’ve been in love a few times since then, but my longest relationship is with photography, my constant companion for more than 25 years. 

I feel so fortunate to have spent a quarter of a century being paid to do something I love. And now that I’m not doing photography for a living and just doing it for fun, I feel more creative than I ever have.  No rules or regulations or art director standing over my shoulder wanting me to shoot it six different ways.

But this is supposed to be a blog about writing.  I know nothing about writing except that it feels good.  I love it.  Just like I love mowing the lawn or washing a sink full of dirty dishes...there’s a real feeling of accomplishment when I look at what I’ve done.  Although with mowing the lawn or doing the dishes, you know when you’re finished.  Writing is never completed, just abandoned.

When I was In the eleventh grade, there was a girl in my English class named Georgia Hodges.  She had thick blonde hair and straight white teeth and a dazzling smile, as well as other moving parts that a 16 year old boy couldn’t help but notice.  I sat right behind her, but she didn’t know I existed.  One day I glanced over at desk of the guy sitting next to me in class and saw that he had written the words “You’re my blue sky, you’re my sunny day” in his notebook.

After class, I saw him talking to Georgia as he handed her the folded up piece of paper.  It wasn’t until years later that I found out that those are the lyrics to an Allman Brothers song.  I don’t know if Georgia knew either, but she sure was smiling that beautiful smile of hers. 

I’ve kept a journal for years. When I got rid of all of my possessions a year and a half ago, I found a box containing about 40 notebooks that I had accumulated over the years.  I painstakingly scanned or photographed every single page so that I can keep them on my computer. Clearly I get something out of writing.

Why am I telling you all this?  Because of the joy I’ve received from writing this blog. Having spent most of my adult life as in a creative profession, it’s such a wonderful surprise to discover a new outlet for my creativity, and one that exercises a completely different set of muscles.  I’ve found that it brings me as much pleasure as photography, and unlike the latter, doesn’t require any particular lighting or special equipment.  What it does have in common with photography is the need to focus, to pay attention to detail and to have a clear subject in mind.  And to get rid of anything distracting that dilutes or diminishes it.

Because writing a blog is still relatively new to me, I’m not bound by all the rules and experience that a seasoned writer is. As an expert photographer, I found that often times I would rule out certain possibilities because, based on my experience, I was certain they wouldn’t work.  But sometimes, because I’d run out of solutions or because an inexperience assistant suggest a naïve approach, I’d try it anyway and find to my astonishment that something I was absolutely positive wouldn’t work, did.

That’s where I am as a writer.  A beginner.  I don’t know enough to know what writers aren’t supposed to do, so all possibilities are open to me.  I’m beginning to develop a sense of style.  And as was the case when I started taking photographs, I’m doing it for fun…for self-expression…for me.

And just like my ongoing trip around the world that has taken me through 24 countries in the past 20 months,  writing is a journey with twists and turns and often unexpected destinations.  I can’t wait to see where I wind up!

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.” :: Zen Master Shunryo Suzuki

Ten Types of Terrible Travelers

Having been on the road continuously for more than a year and a half now, I have identified, and can speak with some authority regarding the 10 different classifications of annoying travelers.

1. Mr. Angry Businessman:


This is the guy who, if his flight is delayed for some sort of insignificant reason like a blizzard or one of the aircraft‘s engines needs maintenance, becomes highly indignant and berates the airline staff in a loud voice….as if they had the power to control the weather or should tell the mechanic who’s working on something that might keep us aloft to hurry up.

Mr. Angry Businessman is a legend in his own mind.  He talks loudly on his cell phone while waiting for the flight to board, and continues to do so even after the flight attendant has asked him 3 times to turn it off.  The minute the flight lands, he’s at it again, making calls and taking calls while opening the overhead bin despite the flight attendant’s frantic gestures for him to wait for the plane to stop rolling.  Then he makes a mad dash to the front of the plane, clambering over little old ladies and mothers with children so he can make it to that all-important meeting.

2. The Hair People:

a. The White Chick With Corn Rows.  This look is favored among women who go on vacation for a week and get their hair braided and beaded on the beach for $5.00.  They are usually seen wearing tube tops and sporting tattoos of a dolphin or a rose on their right shoulder.  Their skin is the color of a lobster because of their efforts to get a dark tan in the 3 days that it wasn't raining and the hairstyle which will enable them to return home looking exotic. Trust me…this is not a good look for anyone over the age of 12.  

Braided/beaded hair only looked good one time in the history of the universe and it was on Bo Derek in the movie “10” which came out in 1979.  And nobody was looking at her hair.  It hasn’t looked good on anybody since. Especially if you’re white.  Even Stevie Wonder would shave his head if he could see how bad his hair looks.

b. White People With Dreadlocks

Or as a fellow I sat next to on a plane called them,  “credlocks”…short for “credibility”. This affectation signifies to everyone that you’ve been on the road long enough that you’re a full time vagabond, that you don’t work for “the man”, and that you’re “alternative”.   This look is usually accompanied by multiple tribal tattoos, facial piercings and constant fidgeting with and re-arranging one’s nasty hair.  After all, if your “do” looks like a dirty mop that that’s been left out in the sun to dry, it’s gotta be in perfect disarray.

Only problem is, travelers with dreadlocks are so ubiquitous that they conform with other full time gypsies wearing dreadlocks.  Face it, no matter how much ganja you smoke or Bob Marley music you listen to, you’ll never be as cool as he was. 

3. The Native

This is the traveler who adopts the wardrobe of whatever country they’re in.  The white woman in the flowing sari with a red bindi on her forehead or the guy with the scruffy beard, white flowing shirt and pants and sandals.  Here’s a message to anyone wearing the baggy 100% cotton trousers with the crotch down to your knees purchased at some point during your travels through India. When they can stand up by themselves, it's time to consider a wardrobe change.  Besides, M.C. Hammer called and he wants his pants back.  So he can burn them.

4. The Shopper

This the woman who, in spite of all signs, ordinances and regulations to the contrary, somehow manages to board the plane with a massive rolling suitcase the size of a chest of drawers, which is too heavy for her to lift and won’t fit in the overhead bin, plus three paper shopping bags which are tearing from their handles from the sheer weight of their contents.  In addition, she’s carrying a hand bag large enough to transport an anvil, and she’s already checked 2 steamer trunks, as well as yapping terrier in one of those pet containers.   Oh…and she’s wearing a straw hat the diameter of a satellite dish.

5. Stumbling Through LIfe 

This demographic is made up of the the self-obsessed, narcissistic, self-absorbed, constantly text-messaging, while listening to music on their iPods, while simultaneously updating their facebook status, while lighting a cigarette crowd in the 18-22 range who are generally drunk, high, hungover, belligerent , clueless or all of the above. They stay up 'til 5 a.m. partying so that nobody else can get any shut-eye, and then sleep like babies on the plane or train or ox cart you're sharing with them.


There’s always one guy in the group with one or more extremities in a cast or wearing a dirty, blood-stained bandage because he fell off the back of moving vehicle, and a girl who’s got a nasty burn on the inside of her calf where it touched the red hot exhaust pipe of the scooter she rented. 

Looking through the bottom of a glass is certainly one way to see the world, but if I go one more night without sleep I might just strangle you during yours.  No jury would convict me.

6. Mr. and Mrs. Go Back Home and Their Annoying Children.

These folks live to terrorize the inhabitants of whichever country they are traveling in.  They chastise and berate local people because the service or food or towels or the water temperature aren’t what they are accustomed to “back home”. 

Here’s a suggestion:  Ask nicely, preceded by the word “please” and followed by “thank you”, with those 2 phrases spoken in their language.  If you still don’t receive what you’d prefer, adjust your expectations, or take your business elsewhere, or go back to wherever it is you came from.


Their kids are sullen or hyper-active and squeal with a frequency and pitch that even dogs cannot tolerate.  These rug rats are the best form of birth control I think of.  Five minutes in their presence will make you seriously rethink the prospect of having any offspring and even consider reporting the children to the local authorities.

7. Loud Obnoxious Americans

The stereotype is true I’m afraid.  Americans abroad speak at 5 times the volume of everyone else, typically only speak English as opposed to their European, Asian and African counterparts, and think the entire universe revolves around the United States.  


Often seen wearing a baseball cap backwards (which has been scientifically proven to lower your I.Q. by at least 17 points) as well as a jersey from some sort of professional sports team.  Opinionated, overbearing and uninformed though they might be, you can’t accuse most Americans of being unfriendly.  Which most Europeans find obnoxious as well.

8.  Been There Done That

These are the travelers who are constantly dropping the names of all the exotic and far-flung countries they’ve “done”.  As in “Yeah, in April we did Mongolia and before that we did Zimbabwe and Suriname and Uzbekistan."  

They’re jaded and cooler-than-thou and so busy rattling off all their destinations and everything they “did” while they were there, that they’re missing whatever’s happening right now.

9. Beautiful But Bitchy

These are the "Trust"afarians who are roughing it for a few months on Daddy's credit card until they return to their posh lifestyle of tea and scones and polo matches.  They are only seen traveling in pairs or packs or accompanied by devastatingly handsome dangerous looking guys who ride motorcycles.  They wear jaunty fedoras and have Chinese characters tattooed on the backs of their necks so they can be hidden under their long tresses when they attend a royal wedding. 

They seem to have a limitless supply of short shorts, sexy sundresses and stiletto heels that just happen to be in their backpack. They are unbelievably snooty and no matter how hard I try they won’t speak to me.

10. The French

With all due respect and my sincere apologies to the five lovely French people I’ve met at various points along the way (you know who you are)...in general, French travelers are pretty hard to like. They won’t make eye-contact or introduce themselves, even when you’re sitting next to them on a 12 hour bus ride.  Seriously?

If they could figure out a way to smoke an entire pack of cigarettes all at once, they would.  They refuse to acknowledge you or anything you say in English, and if you attempt to speak to them in French, even if you’re asking them to throw you a life preserver or perform the Heimlich maneuver (which is a French word incidentally) what you’ll get instead is a reprimand for mispronouncing "maneuver".