Wednesday, January 30, 2013

San Francisco

My first day of travel was a bit rough.  Arriving in San Francisco at midnight wasn't the best idea, and I really didn't give it that much thought.  The BART rail system just finished the last run, and a taxi or shuttle would've cost a good bit. On top of that, I hadn't booked a place to stay, but knew where I was staying the following nights.  I chose instead to sleep at the airport until morning, and then venture into the city.

The airport was empty, except for the few stragglers in the same position as me.  Somehow they managed to sleep on chairs with armrests, and still haven't figured out how they pulled that off.  Not much sleep was had so I walked around an empty terminal and attempted to sleep.
The empty international terminal

Some mosaic artwork in the terminal


In the morning I boarded the Bart rail which is an extensive rail system.  There was no chance I was lugging my main pack around San Francisco all day. I did a quick Google search, and saw that the Chancellor Hotel was willing to hold bags for free, regardless if you were staying there.  They tagged my bag and gave me a stub and asked when I would be returning to claim it. 

Alcatraz was first on my list, so I wasted no time going to the ticket booth at Pier 33.  Normally you must book a ticket two weeks in advance, but being the off season I was able to buy a ticket and board immediately.  The pictures do a better job at depicting Alcatraz.
Leaving San Francisco

Arriving at Alcatraz

We were given a quick statement on rules and regulations



Alcatraz used to be Civil War base so there's some resemblance of a fort 

Guard Barracks

Sailboat circling the island

The workshop and machine shop


Water tower


One of the cell streets

The yard were inmates could go outdoors

The stairs to the yard

Another view of the yard

View the yard outside of a steel door

The hole

Control room

Golden Gate Bridge form Alcatraz

The warden's house

View of San Francisco

Warden's house from below
Returning to San Francisco I walked through Fisherman's Wharf as well as the Aquarium of the Bay.  During a walk through the wharf you can view a group of Sea Lions laying on docks.
Sea Lions

View from the wharf

Pier 43 Ferry Arch

An artist who works with spray paint

Soup in a bread bowl

Transamerica pyramid

Transamerica Pyramid

Dahntahn
 More to come, but my flight to New Zealand is boarding now, and I must go.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

To the Sky



I would describe Saturday morning as a frantic rush of last minute odds and ends.  Copies of my identification information, credit and debit cards, as well as documents pertaining to my insurances were made.  I wrapped up the last bit of my taxes and finished the “thank you” cards for my family.   The calls were put out to my financial institutions about my itinerary and my car insurance company halted full coverage.  The bedroom I used for the last three months was organized and the last few items were put into boxes.  I need to thank my brother, Matt and his girlfriend Jenna for the accommodations.  An extra thanks to Jenna for putting up with our antics, although I don’t think you’ll fare much better when I’m gone.  So on that note, take Jenna snow tubing Matt.  I attempted to finish the laundry, but came up a bit short.  Sorry mom, but there’s about three loads left.  You’re the best.   Accomplishing all those things leaves a thought in my head, “What did I forget?”  That thought has been stuck in my head since I left. 

Debriefing took place at my parent’s house at 1400.  I ran down through the copies of my information and directions for what needed to be done.  I feel confident that they received everything they needed in case of an emergency.  We all loaded up in the Saturn and Matt and Jenna followed us in his truck.  Well, I should say that we followed them, because we weren’t going fast enough.  At the airport we grabbed a bite to eat and I continued to think to myself, “Do I have everything?”  Looked at my watch and with an hour left till my flight, and we said our goodbyes.  No tears, just hugs and smiles. 

It’s been awhile since I’ve been on a plane.  The last time I’ve flown was in 1996, and that’s far before the significant increase in security.  So needless to say, I was a deer in headlights making my way through it.  At least for my sake, I only had to do it once.  My packs and laptop were put on the belt and I proceeded to walk through the metal detector, until I was told to remove my shoes.  Now I’m ready.  Ding, ding, ding.  What did I win?  Oops, forgot my phones.  Now that I’m through, I’ve been randomly selected for a hand check for chemicals, along with the next two people.  I heard one of the TSA employees say, “The computer selected three in a row.”  Eventually I boarded the flight to Philadelphia and the plane is just about full, except for the seat next to me.  I’ll take the extra room over someone to talk to.  No sooner did we take off and 50 minutes later we’re back on the ground.  An hour and 45 min separated my next flight, so I just listened to my iPod, and used the airports Wi-Fi.  I arrived at the gate for my next flight and waited for boarding.  Boarding was to begin at 8:15 and it was 8:25 and they hadn’t started.  I knew something was up, so I went over to the courtesy desk to ask, only to find out that the gate has been changed.  Basically, I had to run to another wing of the airport, and was the last one to board.   The woman at the gate called me by my last name before I even made it to the desk.  I’ll be double checking with the airline from now on, regardless of what’s on my ticket. 
Airline salad, mmmm

This post is being composed on my flight to San Francisco.  I wouldn’t think about trying to work on my laptop if the plane was crowded, but I guess I’m a bit lucky, and have three seats to myself.  In fact everyone on the plane has three seats to themselves and are taking advantage of the extra room.  It’s time to get a little sleep and then some more when I arrive.  

PS  Alcatraz photos to be posted soon.

Monday, January 14, 2013

The Final Countdown

Yes, an 80's song is the title for my final post before leaving, and I'm making the final preparations for that countdown. Unfortunately, organization has never been a strong suit for me and my brain is fried over micro managing every detail.  I'm trying to maintain a calm demeanor, but there are periods where I freak out.  

Take for instance, the airline tickets that have been purchased online from Skyscanner. Though thousands of dollars have been spent on gear and vaccines, there's something about buying airline tickets that made me a bit nervous, shaky nervous.  Maybe it's actually having a date set in stone and watching the days being marked off the calendar.  That a commitment has been made and there's no turning back now.

On the 26th of January, I'll be boarding a plane to fly to San Francisco and in three following days flying to New Zealand. Originally, there was no plan to spend anytime in the States, but seeing how most of the flights left from California, it only made sense to check out San Fransisco. The mere mention of San Francisco cues its attractions and of course the theme song to Full House. You can't pass up seeing the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, or going on a trolley tour.

Onward to New Zealand by the 30th, but I won't touch down until February 1st due to losing a day in travel and an additional day crossing the international date line.  My first few days will be spent in Auckland and from there Magic Bus will be the main mode of transportation over the North and South Islands.  Various routes are offered with the ability to enter and exit the buses as you please.  The pass is good for a whole year but a month will suffice for my stay. As far as lodging goes, it'll be a mix of camping, hostels, and  Couchsurfing.  At some point I'll get into Couchsurfing a bit more, but for now there's a video on the basics at the bottom of the post.   Money will be saved by buying food at grocery stores and cooking it at the hostels.  That money will be needed for all the activities that New Zealand has to offer, and it's quite a list, which I'll share when I have a few good pictures.


The route over the North and South Islands of New Zealand



An addition route that was added


The currency of New Zealand and Australia that was ordered at the bank



Australia, without a doubt, will follow New Zealand.  How long will I be there?  Who knows.  I don't want to think that far ahead.  No more micro managing.  It's at that point, you realize you're adding stress and loosing that adventure.



Sunday, January 6, 2013

Decisions Decisions Decisions

Even as I'm making final preparations for my trek there's still time to do other things, whether it be parties, hanging out at the rink, or chatting online.  Plenty of time, especially since I'm currently laid off.  Everyone I talk to, for the most part, is very positive about my decision to take a year off and travel.  Over Christmas I met some new people and they had nothing but positive things to say.  It definitely makes me feel better about traveling.

There were so many choices to make, that I often zoned out or ended up talking to myself.  It helps me think.  A list of questions that I pondered.

Where do I get vaccines?
What vaccines do I get?
Do I need travelers insurance even if I have health insurance?
Where do I buy travelers insurance?
Where should I start my trip?
When should I leave?
How do I get money out overseas?
Should I buy a Round the World Ticket or buy as I go?
How will I call home?
What am I going to do with all my stuff(furniture, etc)?

These are just a snippet of the answers I was looking for, and the more you answer the more questions you have.  Long hours have been put in, reading and investigating.  I'll comment on the vaccines and how I went about the process of being invincible.

Where do I get vaccines?

This was going to be an easy one I thought.  Call my doctor up, in, out, done.  Wrong.  Every travel blog I read spoke of a consultation, an assessment of your destinations, and vaccine booklet to verify your vaccines.  Prescriptions would also be needed if you're traveling to an area that contains malaria.   All right Google, find me a place.  Entering: Pittsburgh and Vaccines, led me to Passport Health.  They have four local offices located in Monroeville, Latrobe, Carnegie, and Cranberry.  I chose the Latrobe office out of convenience and set up an appointment.  Various forms were downloaded and completed with health information and my itinerary, which I wasn't entirely sure of.

When I arrived at Passport Health I was greeted by Karen who is a RN.  She handles every aspect at the clinic from the greeter, consultation, administering the vaccines, selling products and collecting the fee.  A total of two and a half hours was spent going over my trip, weighing the risks and making suggestions for my vaccines.  You learn that no countries require you to have vaccines except for Yellow Fever, which I did not need.  In the end, it's up to you to choose what you want and what you can go without.  I relied mainly on her suggestions as well as the various blogs I read on the matter.  The prices also swayed my choices, especially since some of the vaccines required me to get second and third doses.  Japanese Encephalitis was the only vaccine that I didn't get due to the price of $295 per dose.

Personal itinerary prepared for me by Passport Health
Here is the list of vaccines I received.
-Polio IPOL
-Tetanus Diphtheria & Pertussis
-Typhoid (Vi)
-Twinrix (adult Hep A/B)

Three doses of Twinrix are required with a 4th dose in a years time.  I also purchased the "Ultimate Traveler's Diarrhea Kit" and a permethrin concentrate kit.  My clothing needs to be soaked in permethrin so that it repels or kills the bugs that land on me.  I won't have to use as much deet insect repellent which is mildly toxic.  Doxycycline was prescribed to me to combat malaria.  I'll take one pill everyday at the same time to keep a steady flow of antibiotics in me.  Doxycycline also has side effects, such as causing an upset stomach and greater susceptibility to the sun.  Sunscreen and a hat are a must.

Permethrin Kit, Diarrhea Kit, and Doxycycline
The final costs set me back $892, but overall I had a good experience with Passport Health and I would highly recommend them if anyone needs vaccines, travel supplies, or consultation on travel.  Karen is a positive person who seemed more excited than me for the trip I'm about to take.