Warning… lots of “first-world problem” venting here.

So I am fortunate that I get to go to Bali for both Vacation and Work. Work is getting a pretty sweet deal considering I used my AAdvantage Miles to buy my ticket (because I wanted and upgrade, and there is no way work was going to pay for a $10K Business class ticket). As excited as I have been, its also been quite anxiety-inducing. Planning a hotel before and after the working week (company already booked hotel), and not knowing what part of the island I should stay on to get the best experience, as well as not having to commute all day long, has been a monumental task. Pair that with my general travel snobbiness AND my Miser nature, and it’s become near impossible. I literally had to just click the submit button on both locations before I gave myself the opportunity to second guess… like I have been doing for a month, no joke, a MONTH.

Accommodations

Cottage in North Kuta

So I’ve ended up renting a stilted cottage in North Kuta for the first week. The location is at least covered in most tours pickup routes, and is pretty close to central for both Cultural and Tourist things. It’s also the mix of a “jungle hut” with “resort amenities”. I considered going all out jungle since I’m in resorts the rest of the time, but I’ll save that for the second trip. And the price was GREAT, at only $66/night.

 

Resort in Nusa Dua

Work is planning this one, so it was an easy choice. Our Sales Bootcamp and Partner Symposium is at the Courtyard Marriott in Nusa Dua. I like that it’s in the lower island, so that it will force me to spend SOME time here. Originally I thought it was the other Courtyard in Seminyak, which had much more of a block-structure-vs-Bali feel, so I’m pretty happy its here instead.

 

Resort in Nusa Dua… part Deux 😉

So this was actually the first I booked impulsively so that I’d force myself to move on. I wanted to do another Marriott/SPG location to get my status, but the deal for booking with points on Hilton was just too sweet. I’ll be at the Conrad, just 10 minutes down the road from the Courtyard, so that should make for a nice easy move. Since its with Points, and has a good cancelation clause, I have the flexibility to change this for some other location if I find I really love an area during day trips.

 

Activities… or lack thereof

Accommodations aside, the other big stress is “what to do”. I hate the habitual “cram as much into every day as possible because we won’t get another vacation” mentality, and want to take it easy… but the Miser in me wants to make the most out of it.

I saw Eat Pray Love the other day, and while I’m sure I’ll get the obligatory: “ewww, that’s a sappy girly movie” comments, I totally thought it was great. It almost got me to pull the trigger on just going to a temple/commune and camping there for the whole trip.

But the photographer in me will prevail, and I’ll setup a couple tours when I get there. The only for-sure activity I MUST put in to the trip is Scuba Diving (and maybe Snorkeling if not additional dives). However, water and camera-worth-2-mortgage-payments has caused a LOT LOT LOT of anxiety. I’ve been researching waterproof cases, clear bags, dry sacks, dry backpacks, everything, for a month. I REEEEALLY want to bring my main camera, but until I get a REAL case made specifically for my camera, I don’t think it’s worth the risk. So now I have a Dry Sack (with backpack straps), 2 waterproof pouches, and a waterproof fanny pack. All I need is a Rambo Knife, and I’m set.

 

So What’s In My Bag?

It’s literally been a hell to try and be as efficient as possible, yet be prepared. I had at least $1,000 worth of stuff in my cart, not including the $1,000 drone I was soooo going to get.

Everyday Carry

First the bag itself. I picked up this one at Best Buy when I returned my Bose headphone, and had to spend the returned $350 credit in store, RIGHT THEN. I’ve loved this bag since, but the one pain is it won’t fit my laptop (15″ macbook pro).

It has an adequate-though-tight top section for my camera… because I hate using the bottom section of most bags. As well as a decent sized open section at the bottom. 2 straps on the side to latch on my monopod, tripod, water bottle, and now my dry bag too. It even has quick zipper access at your back to put your wallet/passport/small-item, so it’s secure, but saves you from having to take the bag off just to reach.

 Manfrotto MB MA-BP-C1

Then the most important piece of equipment: The Camera.

I’ve had my Nikon D750 for over a year now, and still love it. I’m really wanting to go mirror-less, just to save on space/weight since I travel so much, but it really still is awesome. If I get a new camera it’s either some crazy expensive medium format camera because I won the lottery, or the Sony Alpha mirrorless, because its kick ass and small… just sadly too much to drop unless I had someone buying my current one.

 Nikon D750

Because I’m just so paranoid, I got a Dry Sack so that I can put clothes, Camera, etc, in it during the days I know I’ll be in water… like Diving and Snorkeling. This one is great because it will also float if you put air in it, and has backpack straps. Plus it came with the waterproof fanny, so if I leave the bag behind after taking out camera, at least I can take passport, phone, and cash, so they aren’t stolen and I’m stranded somewhere.

This thing is pretty solidly made, and I love the extra handle to carry by so that you don’t accidentally undo the clips by carrying it that way. I was hoping it was big enough to put my entire camera bag into, and it COULD, but the opening is JUST too tight to force it through. The only other option is a massive 40L, so I’ll go with Tara’s idea of just putting the camera stuff in there, and then putting it inside my camera bag… in the event I need to go INTO the water with my bag. I’ll be on the hunt for a 30L one I like

 Blusmart Dry Sack (20L)

I had the genius idea to save myself the money of getting a hardcore encasement for my Nikon, as well as saving on getting a waterproof action camera, and just using a IPX8 rated case for my iPhone, and using that instead. I found some Youtube videos of people doing that, but ultimately fear of draining battery and being stuck somewhere, or accidental leakage and losing a $900 phone, drove me to get an Action Camera in addition.

I actually bought 2 cases though, FRiEQ and Joto, not knowing which would be better. So far I opened and did a test of the FRiEQ. I figure I’ll take it with me as EXTRA protection, and the second one will always have use with Me/Tara/Kids on some other vacation, or their frequent trips to the pool.

 FRiEQ Universal Waterproof Case

Also purchased: Joto Universal Waterproof Case

 
This one was a great addition some time last year before Japan. Nice and small, and mostly light, it’s easy to keep handy. Not as stable as a tripod, but I rarely want to let go of my camera while traveling anyways. It also doubles as a hiking staff, and a “beat stick”… which I hear will be handy in the Monkey Forest. Manfrotto MMCOMPACT-BK Compact Monopod

So I couldn’t get myself to trust a case for my Nikon, and I’m not 100% confident on using my iPhone under water, but still not willing to fork over $500 for a GoPro. The Akaso EK700 had some great reviews, and I must have watched at least 20 EK7000 vs Hero vs ____ videos on Youtube. I think this could be a pretty solid option without going all-in. Worst case, I’ve got an option that will cost me just as much as renting one at the dive sites, and can give it to the kids if I really end up not liking/wanting it.

And as a proper geek, I need to get the accessories kit, complete with handy little carry case for one more level of protection inside the unpadded dry bag.

 AKASO EK7000 4K Action Camera

+ Luxebell Accessories Kit
You can never have too many memory cards… plus I seem to have misplaced my other 2 extra ones. I’ve got another 32GB from Kingston that I use for the Nikon (which holds 2 anyways), but I figure 64GB would be good as I can store a couple hours of 4K video and not have to worry about swapping in the water. And it was only $30. SanDisk Extreme 64GB SDXC

These are an important one. I originally planed on wearing my shoes/boots, and carrying these for wet areas, I may be reversing that. I’ve been wearing them all day for 3 days, and they are pretty comfy, and I think offer enough support to walk all day. The drainage holes on the bottom, and the thin body, make it pretty breathable, even with socks on (have to test for when I go longer distance). Dreamcity Men’s water shoes

Random’ish, but I wanted to keep my bag as compact, organized, and most importantly: transferable, as possible. I picked up this cheap pencil box with the intention of it actually being for pencils, but decided it fits all my cables and dongles much better. It isn’t super solid, especially unzipped it tends to flop at the zipper, but more than plenty protection within an already padded bag… or even clipped with a carabiner on the outside.

This happens to be almost perfect vertical space for my lower compartment of bag, and is exact fit at the bottom, so it adds more bottom protection in my setup.

I’m also using some of the other toiletry cases I’ve gotten from Business class flights over the years, as cases for things like batteries, chargers, change, etc.

 ADVANTUS Large Soft-Sided Pencil Case

And probably the MOST important…. Sunscreen + Bug Repellent + Lotion. I HATE HATE HATE wearing sunscreen because it always feels like I’ve got mud dried all over me… or worse, it feels tacky all day. This one had some great reviews, and I’ve used skin-so-soft before. We’ll see if it keeps theBugs away. If not, then I’ll grab some deet-based spray (plus I’ve got the Permethrin below) for clothes/hat, and use my nice Aveeno SPF 50 so I come back silky smooth and without theFaceCancer. Avon SKIN-SO-SOFT Bug Guard PLUS, SPF 30 Gentle Breeze

I’ll go out without a couple bottles of water, I also have a nice sturdy metal water bottle that I got from some trade show years ago, that has been sitting on my bookcase since. Metal Water Bottle
Another conference schwag gain, I’ve had a tiny moleskine book from one-company-or-another for years. Couple that with a couple pencils and pens, and I should be set for recording any inspiration… plus I have 3 cameras 😉 Moleskine Notebook

 

Other Things Coming With

People who’ve known me for a while know that if I find an article of clothing that I like, I generally go and buy multiples of them. I have 2-5 of the same pair of jeans. My all time favorite dress shirt is the Van Heusen Traveler stretch shirts. These things are light (which as a “furry” man who is naturally warm, is a MUST) but durable, look nice, and actually do resist wrinkles. Generally all I need to do is hang this up in the bathroom when I shower in a hotel, and I’m good. These are the most comfy dress shirts that I have every had… and so I now own 7 of them 😀  They need to come up with new patterns soon. Van Heusen Men’s Traveler Stretch Non Iron Long Sleeve Shirt

I tried this out in Dick’s Sporting Goods, and while comfy as hell with great reviews, I just couldn’t make myself pay $60 for a shirt. I’ve been wanting this one for several months now, and when I saw cheaper ones on Amazon I jumped. Honestly not thrilled about the green, but it goes ok with khaki, so I’ll live. I’ll be watching for these to drop in price… assuming my field test goes well. Columbia Men’s Silver Ridge Lite Short Sleeve Shirt

I’ve had Malaria once… and Never want to have it again. I wasn’t smart enough to think about going and getting pills/shot from doctor, but at least I got this to soak clothes in. I got the idea from a Kick Starter campaign for bug-resistent clothing. Thinking it was too good to be true, I did some quick googling and found they aren’t the first to do this by a long stretch, and LOTS of forums talking about doing this yourself with Permethrin. I’ll be soaking my clothes shortly after posting this, so we’ll see how it goes… really should have done it yesterday, but waaaaay too busy trying to finish work before leaving. Martin’s Permethrin 10%, 32oz – 1 Quart

One idea was to book accommodation with a washing machine, and only pack enough for 1 week. But none were available the dates I needed, so I’ll be bringing enough for the whole trip. Since I’ve got a beefy suitcase, I’ll bring that and a smaller one to bring back art from Ubud. TONS of Clothes

 

 

Now if I can wrap up day-job work, and FINISH packing, I’ll be able to relax a bit.