The thing about Mexico is that type of thing is completely random and arbitrary. Its a good idea to avoid all police at all times in Mexico, crossing the street to avoid drawing their attention if necessary. An obvious gringo, I've always carried my pocketknife on my belt for all the world to see and never had any problems.
Pack what you think you'll need, and then leave 1/2 of it at home. No one ever gets on the road and wishes they brought/more/ stuff with them.
Forget the laptop. On my first extended backpacking trip through Western Europe, I took a laptop with me and shipped it home within two weeks. It wasn't worth the hassle.
Doing laundry on the road is expensive and can be a major hassle. Get used to being dirtier than you are at home.
A sleeping bag isn't as important as I thought it was going to be, but I was still glad I carried it. Most hostels provide (or require you to use their) linens.
A small shoulder bag or backpack is a good idea. Something to carry your camera, lunch, book, etc. while you're out and about during the day.
Don't pack a year's worth of supplies. Take sample-sized products (shampoo, soap, etc.) with you to start out, and then replace what you need as you go.
Buy the largest travel towel you can find. They're the ones which feel like thick felt, absorb crazy amounts of water, and dry out super fast. One of the best investments I ever made.
Take a padlock with you. Most places that provide lockers expect you to bring your own lock. A combination lock is better -- no key means one less thing you have to no lose.
Everyone has different ideas about security based on their own experiences. I happen to think the fancy cable/mesh things you can wrap around your backpack aren't worthwhile. They just make it look like you've got something worth stealing. A simple combination luggage lock on your backpack's main zipper compartment should be all you need. Of course, do whatever makes you comfortable.
Don't be the American guy who dresses up like Ranger Rick to walk around foreign cities. Having said that, I usually preferred to travel with only 1 pair of shoes so they have to be versatile. I usually wear my light Timberland walking boots. Sometimes I'll take my Vans with me too. I also carry flip-flops 'cause I have a thing about the floors of public showers.
A small flashlight for digging through your bag while everyone else in the room is sleeping. A cheap watch. A pocketknife. A few books. Don't worry about running out of books to read - books are a commodity and other travelers will always trade with you. Many hostels have a take one/leave one bookshelf.
The biggest piece of advice I can give you is something that took me a long time to learn. Forget about trying to take fancy pictures of every architectural marvel, work of art, and scenic panorama you find. Take some of those, sure, but what you'll want when it's all over is pictures of the people you met and spent time with. Trust me. I have thousands of pictures public sculptures, beautiful buildings, cityscapes, mountain ranges, etc. None of them are half as interesting as the group shot of everyone crowded onto the bed in the dirty hostel in Rome, or the girl who cooked you a birthday dinner in Seville, or the guys you played soccer with that one afternoon in Taxco. For some reason, it wasn't intuitive to me that the really good memories revolve around interesting people, not interesting things.
There's a thousand tips that people can and will give, but most of them you'll have to learn on your own. Have fun!
I'm not trying to start a pissing contest and all, but I don't think I agree. You bring up a good example that I can speak to somewhat - I lived in Arendal for about 6 months, and Malmo for about 2 months. I agree that these are wonderful places to live - I felt very comfortable and enjoyed my time there. I also felt Scandanavia was the most America-like part of Europe for the very same reasons we are discussing. Other than the previously mentioned government healthcare system and superficial things like language and food, I really saw no difference in the basic lifestyle or working conditions.
I also don't think you can compare crime levels because the population profiles are so different. Scandanavia is a small, sparse, and relatively homogenous society. Human nature dictates that such a society will be quite a bit smoother. Just driving across (north-south or east-west, you choose) my home state of Texas is like driving from Paris to Vienna(Wien). And that's only one (admitedly large) state among 50. There is nothing in Europe that can compare to the mix of cultures you will find in the US, although I think that will be changing in the future. Just let the current immigration trends continue, blending 'Old Europe' with the new, and let it stew for a couple of hundred years and you'll start to see something comparable to today's America.
Health care? OK that one might be a bit of an issue, but I honestly believe that the rest of your items are as good as or better then anywhere else on the planet. Especially anywhere in western Europe, which I can certainly speak about having spent significant time living in, working in, and/or visiting.
My school required us to take the FE exam before graduation, whether we intended to pursue a PE or not. We weren't required to pass it, but we (graduating Engineering students) had to take it.
Not knowing the relative sizes, I got curious. According to Wikipedia Ontario=917,741 km^2 and Texas=695,622 km^2, so about 1.3 Texases (Texi?) per Ontario.
This morning I accidentally knocked over the bicycle next to mine on the bike rack, which in turn hit the next one over. Thankfully the cascading failure didn't spill over into the hospital's life-support systems!
Police officers for the University of Texas system (nine universities and six medical-related schools) are actually a branch of the DPS, and as such have jurisdiction anywhere and everywhere in the state. They are in fact more powerful than their corresponding municipal police force.
i feel sort of like a hypocrite for being a net neutrality fanboy and using QOS inside my firewall...
I see no disconnect there. The key difference is you're making the decision based upon your needs and your traffic. You're not having the decisions forced on you based on back-room extortion fees paid to your ISP by unrelated 3rd parties.
The researchers concluded that the generally ambiguous ads, which appeal almost entirely to emotion rather than fact, tend to confuse viewers.
I've concluded that the generally unethical vacation packages and incentive programs, which appeal almost entirely to emotion rather than fact, tend to confuse doctors.
Forget about whether or not this will ultimately solve the perceived problem - I'll let folks who are smarter than me debate that point. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that a government is actually looking at issues that are affecting it's people and trying to address those issues with the peoples' interests in mind. What's next? Ensuring everyone has access to basic health care services? Due process for everyone in the court system? Accurate and verifiable state elections?
I tried the Activa last year and had to quit eating it before I even got through the first 8-pack. It made me itch, particularly on the back of my neck and ears. I liked the flavor and texture (very creamy), but I guess I was just allergic to something in it.
and the result is platoons on single (and some double) lane roads, with the platoon leader, aka slow driver, at the head. Yes, they're really called that, according to the USDOT.
I remember the term 'wolf pack' being used in my driver's ed handbook and by the instructors. That was about 12 years ago, in Texas.
Yet more evidence that Douglas Adams was onto something with his pan-dimensional hyper-intelligent mice who control the outcome of the human race through deceptive manipulation.
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The thing about Mexico is that type of thing is completely random and arbitrary. Its a good idea to avoid all police at all times in Mexico, crossing the street to avoid drawing their attention if necessary. An obvious gringo, I've always carried my pocketknife on my belt for all the world to see and never had any problems.
Pack what you think you'll need, and then leave 1/2 of it at home. No one ever gets on the road and wishes they brought /more/ stuff with them.
Forget the laptop. On my first extended backpacking trip through Western Europe, I took a laptop with me and shipped it home within two weeks. It wasn't worth the hassle.
Doing laundry on the road is expensive and can be a major hassle. Get used to being dirtier than you are at home.
A sleeping bag isn't as important as I thought it was going to be, but I was still glad I carried it. Most hostels provide (or require you to use their) linens.
A small shoulder bag or backpack is a good idea. Something to carry your camera, lunch, book, etc. while you're out and about during the day.
Don't pack a year's worth of supplies. Take sample-sized products (shampoo, soap, etc.) with you to start out, and then replace what you need as you go.
Buy the largest travel towel you can find. They're the ones which feel like thick felt, absorb crazy amounts of water, and dry out super fast. One of the best investments I ever made.
Take a padlock with you. Most places that provide lockers expect you to bring your own lock. A combination lock is better -- no key means one less thing you have to no lose.
Everyone has different ideas about security based on their own experiences. I happen to think the fancy cable/mesh things you can wrap around your backpack aren't worthwhile. They just make it look like you've got something worth stealing. A simple combination luggage lock on your backpack's main zipper compartment should be all you need. Of course, do whatever makes you comfortable.
Don't be the American guy who dresses up like Ranger Rick to walk around foreign cities. Having said that, I usually preferred to travel with only 1 pair of shoes so they have to be versatile. I usually wear my light Timberland walking boots. Sometimes I'll take my Vans with me too. I also carry flip-flops 'cause I have a thing about the floors of public showers.
A small flashlight for digging through your bag while everyone else in the room is sleeping. A cheap watch. A pocketknife. A few books. Don't worry about running out of books to read - books are a commodity and other travelers will always trade with you. Many hostels have a take one/leave one bookshelf.
The biggest piece of advice I can give you is something that took me a long time to learn. Forget about trying to take fancy pictures of every architectural marvel, work of art, and scenic panorama you find. Take some of those, sure, but what you'll want when it's all over is pictures of the people you met and spent time with. Trust me. I have thousands of pictures public sculptures, beautiful buildings, cityscapes, mountain ranges, etc. None of them are half as interesting as the group shot of everyone crowded onto the bed in the dirty hostel in Rome, or the girl who cooked you a birthday dinner in Seville, or the guys you played soccer with that one afternoon in Taxco. For some reason, it wasn't intuitive to me that the really good memories revolve around interesting people, not interesting things.
There's a thousand tips that people can and will give, but most of them you'll have to learn on your own. Have fun!
I knew that old LaserJet 4 would come in handy someday.
I'm not trying to start a pissing contest and all, but I don't think I agree. You bring up a good example that I can speak to somewhat - I lived in Arendal for about 6 months, and Malmo for about 2 months. I agree that these are wonderful places to live - I felt very comfortable and enjoyed my time there. I also felt Scandanavia was the most America-like part of Europe for the very same reasons we are discussing. Other than the previously mentioned government healthcare system and superficial things like language and food, I really saw no difference in the basic lifestyle or working conditions.
I also don't think you can compare crime levels because the population profiles are so different. Scandanavia is a small, sparse, and relatively homogenous society. Human nature dictates that such a society will be quite a bit smoother. Just driving across (north-south or east-west, you choose) my home state of Texas is like driving from Paris to Vienna(Wien). And that's only one (admitedly large) state among 50. There is nothing in Europe that can compare to the mix of cultures you will find in the US, although I think that will be changing in the future. Just let the current immigration trends continue, blending 'Old Europe' with the new, and let it stew for a couple of hundred years and you'll start to see something comparable to today's America.
But then again, what do I know.
Health care? OK that one might be a bit of an issue, but I honestly believe that the rest of your items are as good as or better then anywhere else on the planet. Especially anywhere in western Europe, which I can certainly speak about having spent significant time living in, working in, and/or visiting.
My school required us to take the FE exam before graduation, whether we intended to pursue a PE or not. We weren't required to pass it, but we (graduating Engineering students) had to take it.
Not knowing the relative sizes, I got curious. According to Wikipedia Ontario=917,741 km^2 and Texas=695,622 km^2, so about 1.3 Texases (Texi?) per Ontario.
I agree about GIMP's usability issues. I was just trying to make a semi-pedantic point about the terminology used.
Isn't the multiple-window model just a particular form of MDI?
Actually there are no .'s or ..'s in the file system. These little gems only denote relative directories and are never actually part of the file system
Honest question based on your statement...Why then do . and .. affect the reference counts on hard links?
Someone please think of the pants!
This morning I accidentally knocked over the bicycle next to mine on the bike rack, which in turn hit the next one over. Thankfully the cascading failure didn't spill over into the hospital's life-support systems!
Police officers for the University of Texas system (nine universities and six medical-related schools) are actually a branch of the DPS, and as such have jurisdiction anywhere and everywhere in the state. They are in fact more powerful than their corresponding municipal police force.
They're [sic] camera equipment will probably see the message but otherwise it would look like a light brite in the window.
That sounds like a bomb threat to me.
i feel sort of like a hypocrite for being a net neutrality fanboy and using QOS inside my firewall...
I see no disconnect there. The key difference is you're making the decision based upon your needs and your traffic. You're not having the decisions forced on you based on back-room extortion fees paid to your ISP by unrelated 3rd parties.
The researchers concluded that the generally ambiguous ads, which appeal almost entirely to emotion rather than fact, tend to confuse viewers.
I've concluded that the generally unethical vacation packages and incentive programs, which appeal almost entirely to emotion rather than fact, tend to confuse doctors.
Perhaps they look offended when you insult the way things work because "it's not how we do it back home".
Forget about whether or not this will ultimately solve the perceived problem - I'll let folks who are smarter than me debate that point. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that a government is actually looking at issues that are affecting it's people and trying to address those issues with the peoples' interests in mind. What's next? Ensuring everyone has access to basic health care services? Due process for everyone in the court system? Accurate and verifiable state elections?
I think I need to lay down for a while....
I tried the Activa last year and had to quit eating it before I even got through the first 8-pack. It made me itch, particularly on the back of my neck and ears. I liked the flavor and texture (very creamy), but I guess I was just allergic to something in it.
try to put your hands on it w/ rose-colored glasses**
** sorry, I'm not a native english speaker... I hope it was used in the right context :-)
Nope. You butchered it, but in an oddly pleasant-sounding way. I give you points for (unintentional) creativity.
Maybe if someone knew what the hell Provo/Orem means.
and the result is platoons on single (and some double) lane roads, with the platoon leader, aka slow driver, at the head. Yes, they're really called that, according to the USDOT.
I remember the term 'wolf pack' being used in my driver's ed handbook and by the instructors. That was about 12 years ago, in Texas.
Yet more evidence that Douglas Adams was onto something with his pan-dimensional hyper-intelligent mice who control the outcome of the human race through deceptive manipulation.
I think the laws of physics will take care of that. Buoyancy and whatnot.
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