Everyday there seems to be another social networking site demanding our time and compromising our privacy. We are faced with the dilemma of where to invest our time to build up our social network: Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Google +, etc.
For the next couple of months I will be immersed in the original social networking...backpacking or in my case flashpacking.
Backpacking is a term associated with low-cost, independent international travel. Flashpacking is backpacking but with a bigger budget. Usually the flashpacking crowd are individuals who have backpacked in the past but now are a little older and have more disposable income. On the other hand, because they have a background in backpacking, they realize the benefits of budget travel, but also the little quirks associated with it too. Shared bathrooms with clogged shower drains, sleeping in bunk beds in a huge dormitory with twenty snorers, riding public transportation with a fellow backpacker who hasn’t showered in a week and with a local whose pet (i.e. rooster) attempts to poke your eye out at every opportunity.
Occasionally I will still engage in my backpacking roots by staying in a hostel and sleeping in a dormitory. It’s a great way to meet other travelers and to get up to date travel information. For the most part, I stay in guest houses with private rooms with a bathroom and hot shower. The only snoring is my own.
Flashpackers also happen to travel with laptops, iPods and fancy Canon cameras which perfectly describes me.
Traveling independently on a budget is a great way to network with fellow travelers and locals. Unlike Facebook, Twitter and Google + you don’t post photos from ten years ago when we were thirty pounds lighter and had less facial wrinkles. What you see is what you get. You talk, exchange travel stories and share where you’ve been and where you’re going. The best part is there’s no typing involved, thus giving your fingers a rest.
I started my trip a month ago in the beautiful city-state of Singapore. The moment I landed in their world class airport I fell in love with the city. What’s not to love? The diversity of cultures and religion, the amazing food, clean streets, low crime and they hang (that’s right hang) people who are involved in any drug related crimes. My type of city.
The moment I arrived at my hostel I met John from England. He had been in Singapore for over a week and offered to give me a quick tour of the city. We covered Little India, Burgis Market and the Clarke Quay. We had dinner at a great hawker stall and then headed out to the Marina Bay Sands Resort. Billion dollar views and the construction costs to match it.
This is a photograph of the ArtScience Museum (part of the Marina Bay Sands Resort) with the Singapore skyline in the background. I shot this handheld as I didn’t bring my normal Manfrotto tripod for space considerations (I did bring my table top Manfrotto tripod but I didn’t have a place to elevate it for this shot). A great introduction to a great city.
Stay tuned for more of my adventures in Southeast Asia.
Happy Travels!
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Or rather good afternoon from Vietnam!
When you mention the name Vietnam images of jungles, pho noodles and the Vietnam War as portrayed in Francis Ford Coppola’s classic movie “Apocalypse Now,” and Stanley Kubrick’s “Full Metal Jacket” come to mind. So what does a young Vietnamese woman walking through sand dunes have to do with Vietnam?
This is the Red Sand Dunes in Mui Ne, Vietnam. Mui Ne is a beautiful beach resort that looks nothing like the rest of Vietnam. Inundated with backpackers, boutique resorts and tons of Russian tourists (where’s John Rambo when you need him), this is where you go if you don’t want a slice of the real Vietnam. I came here for some welcome relief from the madness otherwise known as Saigon otherwise known as Ho Chi Minh City. Besides the beach, Mui Ne is famous for windsurfing and their white and red sand dunes.
Walking through the dunes was a surreal experience. It reminded me of a mini Death Valley National Park and at other times I had my “Lawrence of Arabia” moments.
After walking through the dunes for an hour or so in the hot sun I wasn’t feeling the inspiration for a great shot. So I walked back to the cafe across the street where I parked my motorbike to get a cold beer. I met this young woman and an older woman in the cafe who were models for a photo shoot earlier in the day. I asked them to be my models and in return I would send them copies of my photographs. They agreed and we headed back out to the dunes.
The sun was setting quickly so I had only about ten minutes to photograph them. Under the time constraints and changing lens in between shots (not a good idea with so much blowing sand around you), this was perhaps this best of the series of shots I took.
Stay tuned for more of my adventures in Southeast Asia.
Happy Travels!
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Happy New Year!
I know I’m a couple of days late, but I was on the road for New Years. I did a quick little road trip to Arizona visiting the red rocks in Sedona, ringing in the new year in the mountain town of Flagstaff and taking in awe inspiring views at the Grand Canyon National Park.
Sunny days and mild, year-round weather make San Diego’s beaches a world class destination. Winter in San Diego is the best time to photograph landscapes due to clear skies (no haze or fog).
Imperial Beach or "I.B." is the most southwesterly city in the continental United States. I took this photograph of the Imperial Beach Pier right after sunset while standing in the water. Well, in all truthfulness my camera and tripod were in the water and I ran like a little child back to dry sand after I clicked the shutter button to avoid getting wet. If you were standing on the pier you would get a clear view of the country of Mexico which is only a stone’s throw away (that is if you have an arm like quarterback Cam Newton).
So now that the sun has set on 2011, a new chapter in my life has open up for 2012.
A little less than a month to go for my South East Asia trip. For some reason I haven’t done much research or planning for this trip. I learned after years of traveling that flexibility is far more important than research.
For my South East Asia Flickr contacts I would love to get together with you when I’m in your city for a photo shoot, to grab a cup of coffee or to just say hello. Please drop me a line.
So far my itinerary is shaping up to be flying into Singapore on February 3, 2012. After a couple of days I’ll head north to Kuala Lumpur and the rest of Malaysia. Then onto Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos. Also on my radar will be the Philippines, Myanmar, Hong Kong and India.
Thank you to all my Flickr contacts for your friendship and support in 2011 and here’s to another successful year in 2012.
Happy Travels!
Text and photo copyright by ©Sam Antonio Photography
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I’m lazy.
I didn't photograph the lunar eclipse this past Saturday morning. Yes, I missed a rare celestial phenomenon: a total lunar eclipse when the Earth passes between the sun and the moon, throwing the moon into shadow. On top of that I had the best seat in the house being here on the West Coast.
I did get up at 4:37 AM and witnessed the start of the lunar eclipse and I planned to get back out at 6:06 AM to photograph the total lunar eclipse when the moon would be engulfed in a bright red glow.
I went back to sleep.
I'll leave the lunar eclipse to Twilight movie fans and early risers. I'll take a sunset anytime.
Since returning to the West Coast and after two winters in Wisconsin, I decided to spend my time photographing sunsets at the beach. So later that day I headed down to Oceanside Pier and photographed your typical California sunset beach scene.
Surfer in the frame: check!
Pier: check!
Amazing color in the sky: check!
The next lunar eclipse to be seen in the U.S. will be on April 15, 2014. I’ll probably be sleeping in on that one too. Besides my taxes will be due on that day and Uncle Sam can be very unforgiving.
Happy Travels!
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Winter is upon us here in Wisconsin and the thing that drives me crazy is that the snow here is perfect for snowboarding but there are no mountains! Elevation is something that is devoid in Wisconsin.
Devil’s Lake State Park is Wisconsin’s saving grace. The park is blessed with a scenic lake and 500-foot bluffs. It is these bluffs that provide excellent hiking and rock climbing opportunities. Along the way are some unique geological formations.
A short but steep hike will take you to one of those unique formations. Balanced rock has defied logic and the harsh Wisconsin weather. That in itself makes it worthy to photograph.
The fall colors peaked already by the time I got to the park, but you can see there was still some remnants of color.
The rock wasn’t the only one with a balancing act as I precariously walked toward the edge of the cliff to compose this shot.
Happy Travels!
This photo is for sale over at Getty Images.
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