May 23, 2007, 05:39
Hey all, guess what? I'm back!
I actually flew in on Sunday, but was really tired and sick from flu/cough that I caught while in the Philippines. I've been resting and returned to work yesterday, and am glad to be back!
The trip itself was an awesome experience - Europe is such a wonderful place, with magical sights in each city we went to. From the canals of Amsterdam and Venice, to the churches and buildings of Germany and Italy, to the scenery of Switzerland, or the wonders of Paris - I loved every minute of it. The 2nd half of my trip - Malaysia and Philippines - was completely different experience altogether. Did lots of shopping in Malaysia, but we stayed with relatives in the less well off parts of Philippines, and that was a real eye opener.
I'm happy to be sleeping in my own bed, and not living out of a suitcase, although I miss the travels already.
In terms of photography - I took photos in Europe like it was going out of fashion. I'm going to have a fun time sorting through all the pics - my wife and I used up a combined total of 60GB (photos and movies though), and I'm sure glad that I brought my portable hard drive along.
30 days of carrying a 2.5kg bag around on your shoulder gave me the worst shoulder aches though - next time I think I'll rethink my bag strategy. I was carrying my D50, 18-70mm, 55-200mm, 28mm, SB600 flashgun, and Nexto portable hard drive. I hardly used the 55-200mm and 28mm, perhaps it would have been better to get a 18-200 or all-in-one. It got so bad that I left my gear in the hotel in Malaysia for a couple of days to give my muscles a break (plus we were mostly in shopping centres anyway).
Anyway, I've got a ton of discussions to catch up on, plus thousands of photos to sort through... I missed everyone greatly - and not being able to log on to ST everyday was definitely a challenge for me. I'm thankful that things didn't fall over while I was gone, and I'm even more thankful for the awesome job the moderators seem to have done... thanks heaps guys, I owe you one. Thanks to everyone as well for giving them your support.
It's great to be back!
I actually flew in on Sunday, but was really tired and sick from flu/cough that I caught while in the Philippines. I've been resting and returned to work yesterday, and am glad to be back!
The trip itself was an awesome experience - Europe is such a wonderful place, with magical sights in each city we went to. From the canals of Amsterdam and Venice, to the churches and buildings of Germany and Italy, to the scenery of Switzerland, or the wonders of Paris - I loved every minute of it. The 2nd half of my trip - Malaysia and Philippines - was completely different experience altogether. Did lots of shopping in Malaysia, but we stayed with relatives in the less well off parts of Philippines, and that was a real eye opener.
I'm happy to be sleeping in my own bed, and not living out of a suitcase, although I miss the travels already.
In terms of photography - I took photos in Europe like it was going out of fashion. I'm going to have a fun time sorting through all the pics - my wife and I used up a combined total of 60GB (photos and movies though), and I'm sure glad that I brought my portable hard drive along.
30 days of carrying a 2.5kg bag around on your shoulder gave me the worst shoulder aches though - next time I think I'll rethink my bag strategy. I was carrying my D50, 18-70mm, 55-200mm, 28mm, SB600 flashgun, and Nexto portable hard drive. I hardly used the 55-200mm and 28mm, perhaps it would have been better to get a 18-200 or all-in-one. It got so bad that I left my gear in the hotel in Malaysia for a couple of days to give my muscles a break (plus we were mostly in shopping centres anyway).
Anyway, I've got a ton of discussions to catch up on, plus thousands of photos to sort through... I missed everyone greatly - and not being able to log on to ST everyday was definitely a challenge for me. I'm thankful that things didn't fall over while I was gone, and I'm even more thankful for the awesome job the moderators seem to have done... thanks heaps guys, I owe you one. Thanks to everyone as well for giving them your support.
It's great to be back!