Photography on the west coast

Instead of reading my India book or booking hotels or some other productive vacation planning activity, I am taking a Nature and Travel Photography class. When I am in school and have homework due, this is what I call busy work (quasi homework). I appear to be preparing but in fact am not.

Anyway, my current vacation busy work is that I am learning to take awesome travel photographs. At least that is what I thought would happen when I signed up for the course. What I discovered is that I have no idea how my camera works or really how to take a decent picture. The course description did mention that I should have taken an introductory photography class but I figured - how hard can it be to take a picture. Well, let me tell you, I will never again look at photos in a gallery and say 'I can do that'. Everything is F stop or ISO or shutter speed. I'm not even going to get into lighting and shadowing and extra lenses and filters and who knows what all else. I pretty much stop paying attention when the instructor starts talking about anything that isn't already stuffed into the camera itself. (Cause there is no way I am spending any more money on anything else that might get nicked). But that still leaves those shutters, ISOs (don't ask me what that stands for) and aperture. APERTURE for the love of god!! First day - he starts up with the depth of field and motion and light etc and I have no idea what he is saying about all of the above mentioned mysteries. But I am smart (I think to myself) so I can figure this out. So I nod wisely for two hours and go home and crack open my camera manual. I know, I know, who goes to a photography class without reading the manual... Anyway, my little book tells me how to adjust my shutter speed and aperture and what not but it doesn't tell me why. I need to know WHY!!

One exciting thing I learned about my camera while reading my manual in bed was how to take Macro (close up) shots. Gingy Puss was the unhappy model for that revelation. Like a haughty supermodel, she didn't enjoy her shoot but she looks gorgeous.


Saturdays are our field trips. So the first Saturday we met at Beacon Hill. Our mission, composition. Armed with my new knowledge of how to speed up and show down my shutter speed and adjust my aperture (when I say knowledge, I mean at midnight, the night before, I skimmed the manual, said 'holy cow, who knew my cheap camera had so many functions' and fell asleep), I tried to adjust everything wilynily. Every time I adjusted something, I ended up with a black screen. It seems that shutter speed and aperture effect each other (in some unknown way). Plus, everything is backwards, the bigger the number, the smaller the aperture, the smaller the fraction, the faster the shutter speed. Too many variables! Too many variables!! Plus, if it wasn't bad enough, I added my tripod that I could barely figure out.

Did I mention it was pouring rain too. So I was trying to do all of this with an umbrella and my camera encased in a ziplock baggie with a hole cut out for the lens.HaveI mentioned the plethora of variables. The PLETHORA! But for all that I did take a couple of half decent pictures. At the beginning of the next class, we critiqued some of each other's work. I submitted two for comments.

Here is the photo that I took that the class liked.


And this one - not so much. At least it had stopped raining by then.


The next field trip was to Goldstream but I must admit, it was raining again on that Saturday so I didn't go. Tomorrow, the next trip, is to Witty's Lagoon. And guess what. It is supposed to rain. I will cut the hole in my baggie tonight to save time in the morning.

But, despite the rain, the class is interesting and gives some good tips on taking better pictures (I would get in trouble for saying 'taking pictures' we are 'creating images' cough cough). So today I bought a Digital Photography for Dummies book - in colour, no less. That way I might be able to catch up on what the heck an ISO is and how it affects my aperturittude. Let's all see if I actually read it or just skim it and fall asleep. Of course, I could be reading it now but you will notice that I am updating my blog instead. The sacrifices I make for you people...

Pictures from Witty`s Lagoon

Bite Me with Dr. Mike Leahy (India episode) is NOT about food!!

So, more research. My next research project was very enjoyable. I went to Vancouver and met up with Melissa's friend Alisma (who is awesome by the way). She has been to India twice and she was willing to have dinner with me and discuss some tips and ideas. She was very positive about both trips. She backed up what my book had said. Occasional inappropriate touching and disconcerting staring but nothing too too bad. She and her companions weren't robbed or assaulted. People were friendly, the food delish etc. Travel was inconsistent and prices cheap. Excellent tip: in the south, hotel means restaurant. Always just ask for lodging to avoid confusion. Good stuff. Alisma brought pictures and the scenery is amazing. She has visited both the North and South so she has lots of places that she recommended and a few to avoid. I am keen on the camel safari (once I research the state of the animals well being) in the North and a backwater boat trip in the south. Are both possible? - that remains to be determined. Stay tuned for itinerary updates. I have now spent several hours with my nose in my Lonely Planet India and am realizing just how big a place India is. For comparison's sake, from what I can tell - Camels = Vancouver and Backwater Boat = Toronto. Bit of a distance. One month - can I do it??

So, all excited about my trip again, I get home and sit down to watch a show I had taped, Bite Me with Dr. Mike Leahy. I thought it was about foods of India. The Dr. part should have tipped me off. Not about food, Dr. Mike is a virologist who likes parasites.

The parasitic worm called the Ascaris

In fact he seems to like them so much he actually drank from the Ganges and had a little swim about. I could barely watch. Surprise, surprise, we then got to watch him take a stool sample to a clinic because he had 'an upset tummy' which changed to diarrhea, gas and bloating when he was talking to the doctor. It seems he has giardia. I figure he got off lucky. But that was far from the worst things he showed us. Alisma mentioned that she didn't like the monkeys. I have tried to keep a healthy respect and distance whenever I have seen them as well. Not so Dr. Mike. He was telling us about the many diseases they carry while sitting in a temple dedicated to monkeys. I expected the rabies but apparently they also have a form of herpes that causes brain swelling and goopy eyes (perhaps not listed in order to importance). The best part though was that as he was talking to us, a monkey attacked him and bit him. No trip to the clinic this time, fortunately it bit his pocket with a notepad inside. He looked scared though as he dropped his pants to check for punctures ( we saw way to much of this guy with his pants down or off but that is another issue).

Monkey Attack!!! Watch out for the shifty eyes.

Ok, so we have rabid dogs, treatable if quick enough; crazy monkeys, hopefully avoidable; body lice, wash your clothes with hot water; scabies, itchy but unlikely to kill me if I have a healthy immune system; round worms growing in my gut, some quick anti-parasite medicine before they enter my heart; leeches, no swimming in swamps. All good, I can live with any of those. It was the elephanitis that got me. It is caused by worms that breed in your lymph nodes. It makes your limbs swell up, well, like an elephant. And it is incurable.

Elephanititis. 'nough said.

It has only been a half hour since the show ended and I have already forgotten how to contract or avoid that parasite. Clearly, I will have to re-watch Dr. Mike. For some reason, I feel itchy.

A quick end note. I looked up the website for Dr. Mike's show and found his blog about his trip to India. There, I learned that the the giardia was not just a bit of discomfort and the quick fix he mentioned on the show. Apparently, he pooped himself mid-filming while in a crowd of people. Further reinforcement for my decision not to drink from the Ganges!! although he thinks it might have been unwashed fruit - harder to avoid but good to know.

Research - not for the weak of spirit

I finally got my Lonely Planet India book but I haven't had a chance to crack it open yet. I know it is going to take a lot of time. And a lot of space.

Lovely Melissa, always so thoughtful, gave me a big (BIG) map of India that is specifically designed for planning your trip. I know it is going to be fully spread out with post-its at the ready for when I start Lonely Planeting.

What I have read so far is Wanderlust and Lipstick for Women Traveling in India. The linked review calls it a pre-guidebook guidebook. Too true. It doesn't really tell me anything about specific places. But it is full of advise on how to behave and what to expect. The chapter on Indian Men was eye opening. Basically, never be alone in a room with a man, don't look a man in the eye, don't where sleeveless shirts or you will be presumed a prostitute etc etc. Always assume that whatever you say, any gestures or basic North American politeness will be taken as some sort of sexual invitation. Female tourists will be generally ignored or harassed. Book advise - learn to avoid what can be avoided and live with what can't.

This was really only a couple of cautionary pages. Overall the book was very positive about travelling solo in India. One just has to be ready for transportation delays and impromptu festivals where people throw things at you. I think my time in Mexico will work as a primer for living in a slow moving culture. The book also mentioned (numerous times) that the people are beyond friendly and tourists will have lots of opportunities to meet Indian folk who will invite them to their homes for visits and meals. All good (unless the invitation comes from a man).

It also has interesting advice about what to wear and where to buy appropriate clothes. How to get around and how to find safe and cheap transportation - trains, cabs, cars for hire, in country flights. There was even a bird watching mention!

So I am trying not to let my pre-guide guide book scare me too much. Especially since I didn't start reading it until after I had already bought my ticket.

Shots, drinks and pills - Maybe we need rehab instead of vacation.

So Judy and I went to Nova Travel Clinic on Friday. It turned into quite the epic event, almost two hours with the nurse. I figured I must be almost immune to every travel issue on the planet by now but not so apparently.

Judy was starting fresh so she got two shots, Twinrix for Hep A&B and tetanus. I got the Twinrix to complete my Hep A, I have to go for my last booster for Hep B after I get back. We are both good for polio, rubella etc. India doesn't have Yellow Fever so I didn't need to worry about whether or not mine was still active from our Africa trip. My typhoid shot was only good for two years so I have to update that. Judy and I both decided to go for the drinkable version which is good for 4 years but apparently it is quite the regiment. Drink, day off, drink, day off, drink, day off, last drink on day 7. No food before or after, keep refrigerated. I can barely remember to go to work for a whole week, this is going to be a challenge. I think that is why they usually just do the two year shot. They even gave us a reminder bracelet (although I will just look like I am supporting Lance Armstrong) and stickers and a magnet. I wish it came with reminder phone calls too. We know who to blame if I get typhoid - Lance Armstrong!!

There was much discussion about Japanese Encephalitis, a mosquito borne nasty that is in India. Apparently there is a one in a million chance of getting it. We would have to be hanging out for extended periods in rural areas and living in a barn with the livestock, eating live mosquito salad. Plus the vaccination is almost $400 (!) for three (!) shots (!). I will be there for a shorter time than Judy so it was a no-brainer for me - no thank you. But Judy wisely weighed all of the factors and then also rejected it. I think it was the discussion about the brain swelling side effects (you lost me at "don't fly for 14 days after the last shot or you could die because they can't get you to a hospital fast enough to save you")

Then the standard rabies talk, don't touch dogs, don't play with bats (although what if I want to hang out with cricket players?). Even cats are off limits. I know they can't be serious about that though, because who can say no to a kitten, even a rabid one, if it is fluffy and big eyed.


No surgery, sex, dental work, manicures, knife fights, intravenous drugs, eye poking, vampirism. So many rules. I can handle those but the food restrictions are too much. Don't eat at street vendors (phsshh, whatever), don't eat raw veg, ice cubes, under cooked meat, eggs, food of any sort, beverages of any sort, water. I can say already that I will ignore most of that. I think Val and I were in Thailand only a few hours before we were buying food from a moving buffet table in the street in Bangkok. I can pretty much guarantee that the temperatures on that did not meet food safe recommended levels.


Cholera - something to avoid

Which leads me to the Dukoral. E-coli in a cup. Yes, despite my whining about the disgusting flavour, I will be partaking again. I only need one dose this time so at least that is better. Judy gets the full two fizzy-lisious doses.

Dukoral - poop in a cup.

Plus we each got a prescription for the don't-die-of-dehydration anti-diarheal pills but the ones I got for Africa haven't expired yet. Knock on wood, I haven't had to take them yet.

I got my ticket and it was almost painless!!

So after speaking to Ms. RBC Travel yesterday, I called them on my lunch hour (I use the term lunch HOUR loosely as this story will show). I called up new RBC guy, Abdoul. Abdoul was very pleasant and looked at the 1700 flight that I had discussed the night before. He called the 'consolidators' and was able to save me a couple of hundred bucks. Excellent. But there was no way around the overnight in Delhi. So, I said I would do it as long as I could check my bag all of the way through to Bangalore. That way I would only get robbed of my carry on. He checked and found that, no, I would have to keep my bag with me overnight in the airport and then check whatever was still in my possession in the morning onto my connecting flight to Bangalore. He suggested that there might be lockers at the Delhi airport but then he had the decency to laugh at his own suggestion. I said I would rather just buy my ticket through Flight Network and save my points if this was my only option.

Just for fun I searched for images of the Delhi Airport, Instead I found the The Guide to Sleeping in Airports website who gave Dehli the title "past worst airport winner".

After an hour of me rejecting options and whining about Delhi, Abdoul moved up several notches in the best phone service ever poll. He suggested that maybe a Vancouver departure might work. I had sort of rejected that option earlier when I was doing my own online search for tickets. I had found that to fly out of Vancouver would cost several hundred dollars more than from Victoria and I would have to get to Vancouver to boot. But at this point, I figured if it cost a bit more, it would be worth it so that I could avoid the whole Delhi issue. So Abdoul ticky ticked away on his computer for many minutes of silence and announced that he had found a ticket from Vancouver that got me into Bangalore at 1:30 AM. I don't even have to land in Delhi. Excellent. So then Awesome Abdoul asked if I wanted to know the price. He seemed almost giddy. It was three hundred dollars cheaper than the overnight Dehli option!! By now Abdoul and I were old buds so we had a over the phone high five. It turns out I am booked on the Lufthansa flight from my first attempt, the one that cost $3000 yesterday. But the consolidators came through for me. Abdoul checked the price without the consolidator and it was still almost 3K but with the consolidators, less than $1500 minus my $1200 in points = only $240 out of my pocket. Yeah!!!

I can't seem too happy here so I will add a Air Canada rant just because I can. When Abdoul went in to see if he could book my seats, he said that he could reserve my seat from Frankfurt to Bangalore because it was with Lufthansa however the Van to Toronto and Toronto to Frankfort legs he couldn't reserve because the actual airline is Air Canada. Arrrrg. Stupid Air Canada doesn't let you reserve ahead. Many of you may remember my last encounter with AC so you will know I wasn't too keen about flying with them but the price is right so I will survive (hopefully).

Before we locked in the booking, I had Abdoul check how much it would be to throw on a connector from Victoria to Vancouver since I was going to be on Air Canada anyway. Ok, remember, my ticket from Van to India is $1485. Add in Victoria to Vancouver - drum rollll - $2300+. $800 more!. Honestly. Another good laugh with my new best friend Abdoul. One more travel agent to add to the list of AC haters. We are legion. Any way, Abdoul checked the price of a ticket from Victoria to Vancouver without the official connector status. Air Canada price - almost $500. I would rather swim there than pay that so I left that leg of my journey open for now.

So, e-ticket in email inbox, I finally officially requested my previously unofficial vacation time and it was officially approved by Lynda and all is well in the world except for an extra long lunch 'hour'. I will make up the time, I promise.

Next on my to do list - travel clinic. I can't wait for the liquid e-coli raspberry delight beverage mix - yum.

my vacation time is sort of approved, now I just need tickets

Let me start at the beginning. My friend Judy From Work (abbreviated to Judy from now on) told me a couple of months ago that she is going to India for two months this winter (Dec/Jan/early Feb). I, as always with other's vacations, was wildly covetous. I jokingly suggested that I should join her in January. Wait, let's go back a bit more. Judy is going to India because she has a friend, Priscilla, who has an apartment in Bangalore (in the south). Priscilla was going to India from August to (not sure of return date but 6 months or so) in order to sell her stuff and give up her apartment. Judy realized that this was likely her last chance to visit Priscilla in India so she took extra time off work, wangdangled her vacation days over two years (end of 2009, beginning of 2010 - so smart) and is booked to go. Now back to me and my very unsubtle hints about wanting to join in. Judy thought this was a fine idea. I had dinner with Priscilla, who read my previous travel blogs as a form of travel-companion resume, and she agreed that it would be ok if I showed up too. I have to say, very gracious of her since I will likely be crashing on her floor (apparently with the bugs and monkeys - MONKEYS! India is a whole different world). I plan to stay a week or so after Judy leaves and bum around wherever the mood strikes me.

Ok, so that is how and why I am off to India. It has taken me these two months to get my act together because of my recent job change. I had to wait to know which job I would be in so that I knew which boss/co-workers to ask for time off. I now have my new job and my lovely new boss said ok to time off in Jan/Feb and my colleagues were kind enough not to want the same time off. All good eggs.

So, here is what I have done so far. You can see my priorities from this.
First - bought India bird book. yeeeeeee (6 weeks ago)
Second - had vacation time verbally approved (two weeks ago)
Third - created Blog (last night)
Fourth - pre ordered new Lonely Planet India Book - due out Sept 15 (last night)
Fifth - tried to order airline tickets (today)

Which, to make a long preamble even longer, is the subject of my first blog entry: trying to redeem my RBC points to buy a plane ticket. Unfortunately, it will be an ongoing saga, I can tell already.

Let me say right off the bat, RBC ticket agents have so far been very helpful and friendly (I haven't forgotten you, Air Canada agent!). I called one of the RBC agents a week or two ago just to find out the lay of the land. I don't have the fancy dancy Avion card, I just have the regular gold card.

Not my actual card

I have approx $1200 worth of points toward a ticket (that only took 10 years) but I have to book my ticket through the RBC travel centre. I figured this would be the best time to use them since I will be flying alone. Mr. RBC said to find a ticket online and call them to book it. It sounded so easy but I know better than that. But one has to try. So today, work is over and I am staying late at the office to deal with this. RBC travel closes at 6 pm so no time to go home first.

A small digression: While searching for tickets I have discovered that flying into Bangalore involves three options. 1. arrive mid day but pay much more. 2. arrive middle of the night and pay less. 3. over night in Delhi - aacck - who cares what it costs - I don't want it.

Back to my ticket search. So I go online, find a connecting flight with Lufthansa through Toronto and Frankfurt, arriving at Bangalore at 1:30 AM for $1576. (Another kudos to Judy and Priscilla who are willing to meet me at the airport in the wee hours). This is good, no overnight and it will only cost me a few hundred bucks over the $1200 I have in points. So I call RBC, nice lady, who punches in the particulars of my desired flight. The price she gets (they have to go directly through the airline, not through Flight Network) is almost $3000! That would cost me all of my points and plus more actual cash than I would pay if I booked directly through flight network. So, a big NO on that. Ms. RBC looked around and found a ticket for $1700 but it included the dreaded overnight in Delhi. hmmmm. Now I have to think. But nice Ms. RBC suggested I call in the morning and ask about 'Consolidators'. What does this mean? I do not know. Apparently, there are agencies (?), people (?), airlines (?) who offer even cheaper tickets that RBC can purchase. Is anyone else imagining a guy in a black overcoat in the alley - "psst, psst, I have a ticket for you pretty lady, almost free". So, I will call tomorrow and see what I can buy out of some travel agent's Econovan with the stolen plates. What can go wrong!!