7 days and counting...

With a few days left before I embark on my trip, things are beginning to fall into place.  I normally leave packing till the night before, but this kind of travel calls for slightly better organisation.  I'll be on the road for 2 months altogether, carrying one pack.  So making sure I have everything I need and knowing where it all is is gonna be quite important.  But having said this, I'm planning on travelling as light as possible, so hopefully it won't be too complicated.

Whilst I was doing some research for my trip at work today (alt-tab when the boss comes... no problem), I found a site that organises motorbike tours around Cambodia.  It's run by an expat and is popular with westerners, so apparently it's safe and reliable (which is not what you can expect of normal modes of transport in Cambodia as far as I am aware).  Of course with the luxury of safety and the familiarity of Western organisers, the downside is cost.  At £100 per day its not cheap, but that does include rental of bike, fuel, food and accomodation.  I just can't imagine anything more appealing than riding a dirt bike through jungle tracks and over river crossings to go see ancient temples and remote villages.  It does seem to be the best way to see the country.

In the mean time, part of my trip preparation has meant learning how to use my camera.  Here are some shots so far, taken around London's Southbank after sunset.

Boys and their toys...

I did it. I finally plucked up the courage to buy it. I'm not much of a consumer. I like spending money on things that i know are worth it, that last a fairly long time and that are well-made. For me, this usually narrows it down to things like guitars, computers (well, Macs...) and cameras. And given my general lack of money, these purchases occur rarely at best.

But with my trip to Southeast Asia getting closer by the day, I decided this was a worthy buy. So i went for the Canon EOS 40D with the EF-S 17-85 f4-5.6 IS USM lens. Canon are doing a good cashback deal at the moment which made this camera and lens about the same price as in hong kong. And with a great deal on memory cards (£20 for a 4GB Sandisk CompactFlash!!) and a free LowerPro bag, this made the whole package very worthwhile indeed.  And, as if there aren't enough justifications already, I bought this Canon camera from a camera shop on Cannon Street in London, which must carry some special meaning I'm sure. 

Now all i have to do is learn how to use it...

The starting point...

After a long period of procrastination, it has finally arrived- my new blog.  For those that don't already know, I graduated last year, beginning a new phase of my life.  And with student life behind me for now, I've been adapting to a lifestyle without coursework, essays, exams, deadlines, meaning and purpose.  Yes, I am a temp.

I've been working in Bristol and London for the past few months, which has been pretty good. But since graduating I've been on the hunt for a job that makes me think, instead of one that makes me think about gouging my eyes out with the biro pens I order as part of my job.  So it was with great joy that I recently accepted an offer from a good company, for a job starting in August.  I'll be training as a consultant in London, and am told that it will be no easy ride.  But I'm looking forward to it, given that many of the jobs I have had until now haven't required much thought or effort.  Ordering stationery is, after all, fairly straight forward.

But because I have a few months before I start this new job and lose all notion of freedom, I'm heading out on a backpacking tour of Southeast Asia.  This blog will be my way of keeping people up to date with where I am, what I'm doing, what I'm eating and what this all looks like.  A photoblog if you will.

So bookmark me, and watch as the journey unfolds.