Brandon O'Brien

Tuesday, June 25, 2013 @ 11:13 PM in 2013 Europe

18 hours until I get on my plane to start my journey to Europe and I've finalized everything I'm bringing and I've tied up all the necessary loose ends here. The last major thing I needed to finish today was to handle my vehicle registration renewal issue. My NM license plate is set to expire in November 2013 but since NM requires an emissions test for each renewal it makes things difficult. In order to get my license plate renewed I needed to run around town today to get a VIN inspection and some documents notarized. Then, when I get my license renewal form I have to send all of that along with the renewal form.

I also had to pre-write all my checks for the bills I don't have set to auto-pay as well as all of my business estimated taxes that will be due while I'm gone. My parents will simply throw the envelopes in the mail on the specified dates and everything should be good to go.

Since the last test pack I did a few weeks ago I changed a few things up. I ditched my Nikon D50 in favor of a Canon G15. The DSLR simply took up too much room and the technology crammed into the G15 is so much better. Due to feedback from other travelers I also picked up a couple more pairs of boxers and decided I'd bring a pair of jeans as well as a dress shirt.

That's it for now. It's almost time for this crazy journey to start!

Teaser photos:

Everything I'm Taking

Everything I'm Taking (w/ captions)

Everything packed w/ what I'm wearing on the flight

Tags: preparation

Posted from: United States

Tuesday, June 18, 2013 @ 10:17 AM in 2013 Europe

After my "test packing" post I started to think a little bit more about what I had packed. I really like my Nikon D50 but the sad truth is the camera is 8 years old and the lens already has some focusing issues and the whole thing takes up a lot of room. I did some research into some compact point and shoots and ended up purchasing the Canon Powershot G15. The G15 is basically a DSLR crammed into a point and shoot body. There are full manual controls for setting the fstop and shutter speeds plus it has full 1080p movie shooting modes. It feels very sturdy when holding it and the rear LCD is amazingly clear. I'm going to be much more inclined to carry this around than lugging around my giant D50.

I also went to REI and purchased a couple more pairs of quick drying boxers. That should be everything I need to change up for now. 8 days to go!

Tags: preparation,

Posted from: United States

Monday, June 10, 2013 @ 9:53 AM in 2013 Europe

It's only 16 days before I jump on a jet for Dublin, Ireland so I decided it was time to lay all my gear out and take some photos. This was the first time I laid everything out to see what I'm taking and then to try and pack it all into my backpack. 40 liters sounds like quite a bit of room until you start laying everything out and then look at how much stuff you have. The stuff that takes up the most room by far is my clothes. My DSLR is a little awkward to fit just because of the shape.

You can see a full list of everything I packed by visiting the Preparation link at the top of the page. The last photo also has everything identified with numbers.

I'm getting really excited now. These last couple weeks are going to blow by!

Teaser photos:

Everything unpacked

Starting to consolidate

Everything in the pack

Detailed list of what I'm bringing

Tags: preparation,

Posted from: United States