Sony DSC-HX1

One of the items almost every traveler takes on a trip is a camera. Capturing images of the people you meet and the places you visit is of utmost importance.
Since all we had was a 5 year old Sony and a 7 year old Minolta (both compact cameras) it was clear that we needed something new. Something better.

Our first thought was to get a DSLR, the Canon 500D. It is a great camera and equipped with a 18-200mm lens it would have suited our needs perfectly. Unfortunately, the camera together with that lens weighs over 1 kg. Too much for the trip we planned. Moreover, due to its size the camera would not have been easy to store in our backpacks and carrying it around our neck all the time was not an option either.

We soon agreed, that we would have to get something lighter, something we could preferably carry in a case attached to our belt. A bridge camera would have all that. After reading hundreds of reviews on the internet we finally made our choice in a photo shop store in Lucerne.

The Sony HX1 (pics below) was what we wanted. It has a great 20x optical zoom, allows us to take sweep panoramic pictures and record movies in HD quality, shoots 10 frames per second ...
After a few days of testing, we definitely don't regret buying this Sony camera. Now we just need to find a case for it :)

UPDATE: case found and bought =)

Another small companion :-)

We have been searching for a daypack for quite a while now. We did not want to take another 3rd backpack along, but still wanted something that we can take on a walk around a city. It had to be big enough to carry a water bottle, some extra clothes and maybe some snacks. But it had to be small enough so we can pack it without loosing any precious room in our big backpacks.

Fortunately, this year, Sea To Summit came out with a the Ultra-Sil Day Pack Ultralight. This seems like the perfect solution for us. It's so tiny and so light, it's absolutely perfect. Hopefully it will also be comfortable to wear around town... we will see ;-) For now, we are happy :-)


To see more pictures, check out this page.

A special date and new disappointments

Today's date:

01022010  =)

Nothing special happened today. Although, we almost booked a hostel in Hong Kong. The Hop Inn. Great location, great rooms, great reviews...until I wanted to pay... took out the credit card...and right then, somebody booked the last room.
Oh well. It wasn't meant to be. It's not the first disappointment, and it will surely not be the last one.

And the trip hasn't even started yet ... =)