Feature Photography

5 Tips to Start Using Your Camera More

Posted on June 11, 2018

If you own a digital camera there is one thing that you should be doing with it and that is taking photos. Whether you have bought a cheap point or shoot or a high-end Digital SLR, it does nothing sitting at home in the cupboard. You want to be getting out there and using it to capture the images that you bought it for. A camera is only a good investment if you take the time and make the effort to use it.

When I look back at the different periods that I have owned and used my camera there are some big differences. If I look at the last four months of 2016 I took a total of zero photos. It was not because of a lack of opportunity to take photos, far from it. But it was more a lack of consciously making an effort to get the camera out of the bag.

In contrast, the past four months to date when I am posting this have seen me take over 1500 photos. Yes, there was a day with over 740 images alone, taken for an event. But no I have not used the camera every single day either. I do not expect to capture award-winning photos every day or even all that often. But I do want to continually be applying myself and using my camera as often as the opportunity arises.

1. Set The Intention

If you want to find yourself taking photos on a daily basis you need to set the intention to take photos each day. You need to commit to doing what it takes to ensure that you give yourself the best possible chance of success. To me, there are four parts to this commitment.

  1. You need to carry your camera with you on a daily basis.
  2. Be aware of your surroundings and be looking for inspiration and photo opportunities.
  3. You need to take the opportunity and get your camera out to take the photo when you see it.
  4. Finally, make use of the photos that you capture. Share them on social media, print them out or create a blog with your images.

2. Carry Your Camera

There is one sure way to never capture any photos and that is to leave your camera at home. But of course, if you are reading this post there is a good chance that is not what you want to do. If you want to take photos on a regular basis you need to take steps to have your camera with you.

There are two considerations when thinking about taking your camera with you. Both could possibly be answered with one questions. Why do you not carry your camera now?

The Camera

Is the reason that you don’t carry your camera now, the camera itself? For some people, the practicality of carrying the camera they have is the greatest concern. Either it is too cumbersome or just plain too heavy. If this is what is holding you back, it might be time to consider selling your camera and buying something a little more practical.

How You Carry Your Camera

The bag that you carry your camera in can be an important consideration. Maybe you have left the camera at home because you don’t have something suitable to carry it in. The only way to overcome this is to find a solution. Do you need to buy a camera case for the camera? Maybe you need to buy a new bag that fits everything you need each day.

I used to have concerns with this needing to have a specific bag for my camera. However, I have more found myself just putting my camera in my backpack. While it is far from ideal, I do own a rather rugged camera and it has not had any problems doing this.

3. Inspiration In Your Surroundings

When you are looking to capture images every day, finding the inspiration for what to photograph can be difficult.

Inspiration can come in many different forms, both externally and internally. However, it may not always be driven in the way that you might expect. While you need to be prepared for inspiration to strike. You also need to help give it a push in the right direction as well.

Coffee - Banter Coffee House, Manly

I have personally taken steps to try and give myself extra reason or motivation to use my camera. For example, the photo that I share my coffee every day. While the photo is not always taken on the day that I share it, I do find that I use my camera a lot more often. Also being open to doing this has led me to other opportunities to use my camera more. Days such as when I took a walk around Manly Harbour Village or my visits to Cleveland Point and Victoria Point Reserve.

4. Take The Photo

No matter if you have your camera with you or what inspiration you find, it is all for nothing if you don’t take the photo. There can be many different reasons you might use not to take the photo, but you need to throw them all away.

A common reason I used to use was that the lighting was not great or the angle I wanted I could not achieve. The end result was days if not weeks without taking a photo. Often not even thinking of the excuse but just deciding it was to difficult to get the camera out.

The truth is that more often than not, these things are all but irrelevant. So much can truly be fixed up in post-processing, especially lighting. But you cannot fix up anything without having the photo to start with.

The ultimate result is that you just have to take the photo. Get the camera out and take the picture. It does not matter if the photo that you take looks good or bad. Take the photos to give yourself practice, no one ever mastered anything without first practising. Remember that you don’t need to create a masterpiece with every push of the shutter. But not pushing the shutter will not create anything.

5. Get Accountable

One of the absolute keys to doing something on a regular basis is finding accountability. Being accountable to yourself is something that very few people can successfully achieve. There is often a need to find some form of external accountability to if not ensure success at least help it along.

I hinted at one form of external accountability in the pervious section. You can share the photos that you capture on either social media or a blog. Initially, not many people might be paying attention but over time people will come to expect to see your posts. Over time this will give you a need to continue sharing images so you don’t disappoint your visitors.

Another form of accountability can come from not wanting to break a streak. If you work on taking photos each day for 30 days. You then post a photo each day for 30 days to social media. On the 31st day, you are going to be less inclined to forget or want to skip posting.

Go Take Photos

Bulimba - Brisbane River

While I do hope what I have shared above does help you, at the end of the day it comes back to you. No one is forcing you to take photos, but if you want to make it part of your day it is easy to do.

Set the intention, carry your camera, look for inspiration and take the photo. If you want to make it a regular thing then add in some external accountability.

Bookings Feature

When Great Planning Falls Apart

Posted on June 8, 2018
When Great Planning Falls Apart

When it comes to planning and booking a trip, I have had both good and bad experiences. My fourth overseas trip was rather well planned with nearly 80 days of travel booked before leaving home. With every flight and hotel booking matched up and no problems. In comparison, there was my second trip overseas where I had no plan for the last two weeks. In fact, it was not until three days before I needed to board a plane and travel to somewhere I booked a hotel in Dallas.

For many when it comes to planning, they are somewhat split into two different groups. The first group plan everything in meticulous detail, much like that fourth overseas trip I mentioned above. Everything just fits together, and it works because they planned it out. The other group are those who do the least possible and hope to pull things together as they go. The thing is that no matter which group you spend the most time in, there is a good chance you have drifted to the other side.

You would think that with four big overseas trips down that I could manage to book two weeks in New Zealand. The simple idea of visiting three cities over a period of 14 days should have been a walk in the park. Especially after booking nearly 80 days without a problem just a few years earlier. But alas I managed to wander into a few issues that end up getting sorted along the way.

Travelling To New Zealand

The initial reality of booking my two weeks in New Zealand looked great. I somehow managed to do all of the planning and booking in under six hours, which I talked about here New Zealand – Getting It Booked. Everything seemed great, and I was ready to go, that is until little things started to pop up a couple of days before departure. Booking Incorrect hotels, trying new things and a couple of other small problems, so let’s take a look.

Booking The Wrong Hotel

Researching hotels can be something of a challenge at times. Especially as you try and balance the best price with the best location and facilities. I suppose this was one of the downfalls in the speed with which I booked my trip. I flicked through a few too many hotels and recorded the wrong hotel as the one I would book.

The hotel I thought I was booking in Auckland was a nice hotel in a downtown location close to everything. What I accidentally booked was a run-down hotel on the fringe of the bad side of town, and in the past six months, the reviews had gone from bad to worse. I know some people would say too bad, but the reality is that sometimes things can be changed if you just ask.

Thankfully this was not the first time that I had experienced issues with hotels bookings and decided to call Hotels.com to see what could be done. A short conversation and explanation of the situation and it turned out I was able to cancel the hotel and get a full refund. That was great, but with only two days before flying to New Zealand finding alternate arrangements was a challenge in itself.

With the prices of hotels in Auckland somewhat higher now I decided to change my arrival to Christchurch. The total solution was staying a single night in Auckland, near the airport and fly on to Christchurch the next morning.

Changing Flights

The flight I originally booked between Auckland and Christchurch was a cheap one around $59. But being just a couple of days before travelling this was not likely to be repeated. In fact, I think the change fee would have been more than the original cost of this flight, so it was just easier to book another ticket.

I looked at the options and found that I could book a very early flight the next morning for $79. It would have cost $50 + fare difference + potentially a service fee to change the original booking. So to make things easier I just booked the new flight and let the other ticket pass without doing anything. I am likely about par either way for the extra it cost here. But it was just a whole lot easier booking another ticket than trying to go through the online change process.

At this stage, I could have taken the approach to change the flight from Brisbane to Christchurch. Potentially, in the long run, this might have worked out cheaper. But in the end, it was taking me more time to try and work out these problems than I had spent planning and booking the whole trip in the beginning.

Campervan Conundrum

After a little more research on what to do and where to stay in Christchurch, the easiest option turned out to be a campervan. That is especially without knowing what the accommodation was like with only one reasonable price option on short notice. I figured it could not be that bad since the Campervan option was what I had booked while staying in Christchurch anyway.

Being the first time that I had ever driven or stayed in a campervan, I soon discovered some little problems. The first is just how difficult it is to drive a hi-top camper in high winds. I had planned on driving south from Christchurch initially with the extra time but turned around about 20km south of the city.

The second problem I discovered for me, the model I choose was somewhat uncomfortable. It was not a practical vehicle at all, with the bed in the middle and kitchenette towards the back. It was only after I made changes to the second campervan booking I found there were better options.

These two problems after the first day led me to cancel the booking for the original campervan I had booked. It was difficult decision as I would lose 75% of the booking fee. However, it was around $170 not a lot in the end. But also meant that I had to find some alternative quickly. I end up staying in a room onsite where I would be attending the event for which I came to Christchurch.

It All Worked Out

In the end, everything did work out fine, I had somewhere to stay every night. I was able to get around and do everything that I wanted to. There was some added cost due to the cancellations and changes. Which without having fully recorded the numbers, I estimate around $1000 extra. With the unused bookings, of $59 + $160, additional accommodation bookings of around $500 and a rental car for $200 for a few days in Christchurch.

Ultimately there are some aspects that I would have been unable to avoid. Such as I had no idea what staying in a Campervan would be like. Whereas I could have avoided the other parts mostly by doing the research a little better in the beginning. But as with many things, some lessons cost money, and this one was the same.

Feature Travel Tips

Time Zone, Daylight Savings & Travelling

Posted on June 6, 2018
Time Zones, Daylight Savings & Travel

When it comes to travelling unless you are staying near home you are likely to face some difference in the time zone. Whether that change is a simple one hour change for daylight savings or crossing the international date line. The topic of time changes can be a tricky concept to work through at times.

For the most part when you are travelling finding out the correct time is easy. Especially these days with smartphones, there is a good chance you won’t even need the internet to find out the correct local time. But in saying that it is always worth doing just a little research to make sure. Making assumptions almost never ends well.

Time Zones

I think for the most part we are all aware of what a time zone is. But more the challenge is knowing which time zone we are travelling to at times. Especially when we have connecting flights travelling across long distances.

The variances that time zones create around the world are very beneficial to maintain the concept of day and night. But make it rather difficult when travelling and have created a whole market for websites just on this topic online. Sites Such as Time and Date have functions you can look at every aspect of time and date for any location in the world. So it does not take a lot to find and research the location you are heading to.

Time Zone - Salisbury, Canada on Time and Date

Above you can see a random location that I searched for on Time & Date when I typed in Salisbury. Even though that is a suburb of Brisbane I clicked the town in Canada. It gives you the details of the current local time and also details the actual time zone and the fact they currently are observing daylight savings time.

Daylight Savings

While time zones are something that is fairly consistent, the observance of daylight savings is not so clean cut. Not all locations within a time zone will observe daylight savings. Additionally, depending upon the hemisphere can depend on which time of year it is observed.

Again the Time and Date website does offer an answer in some way. First, if you are looking at the individual place you will see it above. If you are more interested in a general look you can see it notated on their World Clock Difference Page. If a location is observing daylight savings it will be marked with a red asterisk. At the time of writing on the 12th of March 2018, there is a total of 112 locations marked as daylight savings.

The issue with daylight savings time is that it can change on different days. If it happens to be the day you are travelling, that hour can make a difference. So it is something worth knowing in advance, and a simple check is all it takes.

Cruise Ships

When it comes to travelling by cruise ship on some routes you will be sick of changing your watch by the end of the cruise. Because cruise ship travels at a reasonably slow pace, they rarely pass between more than one time zone at a time. So you are gently moved forward or back one hour at a time. Even if you are undertaking longer crossings such as a Transatlantic cruise, you will likely be moved one hour at a time instead of the entire difference all at once.

I can tell you that I much prefer the one hour per night approach over the big differences you can get when flying. But in saying that it is not all that fun to have to change your watch 8 or so times in a 28-day cruise. It just feels like you are always changing the time.

Relying On Technology

While there is potentially the option to rely on technology for getting the time right. It can also be a bad idea and soemthing that I have personally experienced the bad side of. I had travelled to Auckland for work and I thought I would just need to change the time on my phone, which I did. After setting my alarm I went to bed thinking nothing more of it.

The following morning I woke up to the alarm, thinking it was 7 am. However, at some point in the night, the phone had automatically reset to the time zone it was set for instead of the time I had set. It was actually 10 am, so instead of having four hours to get ready and get to work, I had just one. Kind of annoying but one of the downfalls of relying on technology.

Time To Travel

Whichever way you look at it the more important aspect is the fact you are travelling. That you are getting out there and seeing the world. The time is somewhat secondary to the travel unless of course, it causes you to miss a connection. So at the end of the day take a minute and look up the information and know before you go.

Feature Travel Tips

Travel Security Check Without Losing Anything

Posted on June 4, 2018
Get Through Airport Security without Losing Anything

If you have done much travelling there is a good chance that you have visited your fair share of security checkpoints. Whether you are travelling on a cruise ship, through an airport or even just visiting some attractions they are a prominent feature. Although we might find some of the aspects of the security check extreme at times, we do accept them as a necessity for safety.

The process of getting through a security checkpoint though often feels rushed and can be a little stressful. That is not because you are doing anything wrong but just because you don’t entirely know what to expect. At the same time, you are trying to make sure that you do not forget anything while pulling everything out of your pockets and trying to get it all back in.

I might not be able to change the process, help you remember everything or even make it less stressful. But I hope to give you a couple of ideas on how you can be a little more prepared.

Know What You Cannot Take

The list of items that you cannot take through a security check when travelling is rather long. The list includes quite a few items that are somewhat common sense items not to carry through security checks. Items like weapons, chemicals, flammable and explosive items definitely are on the do not carry list.

There are many other items that are much more ambiguous in nature and it is worth checking items you are not sure about. The Australian Government Travel SECURE website includes a list of What you cannot take onboard. However, it is worth noting that different countries and airports can be different to this list. So it is still worth looking for your specific departure airport to be sure you are not going to have any problems.

One key point worth remembering when you are travelling internationally is how much you can carry in liquids in your carry on and how to pack them. The limit almost world over when travelling through an airport is 3.4ounce (roughly 100ml). The limit is a defined limit that is not to be exceeded, even if the container is sealed. So just keep in mind anything over the 3.4ounce (100ml) limit cannot be taken through a security checkpoint at an international airport. Even if you just purchased a bottle of water or can of coke at the kiosk before approaching security you will have to throw it away. The restrictions though may be different at domestic airports or other security check points so just check before hand.

Additionally, if you have any doubt in your mind there are three options you can take.

  1. If in doubt pack it in your checked luggage.
  2. Leave it at home
  3. Do some research, visit the website for the airport and check their information. Otherwise call the airport or airline and ask the question if it is allowed.

Did You Pack The Bag Yourself?

It might be a simple question, but it is essential that you do pack your own bag. Allowing someone else to pack your bag is the start of many problems for travellers. Especially the bag you are carrying with you through the security check just be sure to check what is in the bag before leaving home.

Taking just five minutes to completely empty the bag out and repack it could save you any problems. Empty every pocket and every crevice of the bag, especially if it is one that you use often and put everything back in. Taking these few minutes now is much better than being surprised when you are at the security checkpoint by something that you do not remember is in there.

Prepare In Advance For Security

The security check is an ideal point to lose things. Everything from leaving a few coins in the tray to forgetting you took your laptop out of the bag. While I do not ever recall leaving anything behind I quick enough worked out a process to help minimise or avoid this happening altogether. The process basically sees me prepare for the check before approaching the checkpoint.

  1. Before approaching the checkpoint, I take everything from my pockets and put it into my carry-on bag. This includes my wallet, phone, keys, coins, earphones and anything else in my pockets. Along with passport and boarding pass if practical.
  2. I also remove my belt and put it into my carry-on bag.
  3. I ensure my laptop is an easy to access place, ready to remove from my bag.
  4. Where I know I need to remove shoes, I loosen my shoelaces and ensure they are tucked in to avoid tripping over them.

What this process means is that I only have two things to do when I arrive at the front of the security line.

  1. I remove my laptop and place it on a tray.
  2. My bags and tray with the laptop get put on the conveyor.

Once I am on the other side of security, I return the laptop to the bag. I pick up the bags and walk away.

This process saves all the fumbling making sure your pockets are empty as you enter security. But more importantly, it significantly decreases the chances of leaving anything behind. No more trying to scrape up all the coins in the tray. Even less chance of being run over by the next person in line trying to race to their flight.

Enjoy Your Holiday

I hope that I have been able to give you some ideas to make the process of passing through security easier. The idea is definitely to enjoy your holiday and not end up feeling violated because your bag was searched.

Just remember to know or find out what is and is not allowed to be carried through security. Be sure you have packed or at least checked everything in your bag to ensure you are not carrying anything prohibited. Finally, take a couple of minutes to prepare before approaching security to save some hassle.

Cruising Feature

What Happens When You Miss A Port?

Posted on June 1, 2018
MS Volendam at Anchor

A cruise holiday can be an excellent option to see a lot of great places without as much hassle. The majority of the time everything goes as planned and the ship visits all of the ports on the itinerary. However, as with everything, there are times when things can go wrong, and a change to the itinerary happens.

Do Cruise Ships Miss Port Calls?

The short answer to this question is that yes cruise ships do miss port calls. Weather is the most common reason that cruise ships miss port calls. However, there can be other reasons as well which will depend on luck or circumstances.

Just how weather can affect the cruise though depends on a couple of different factors. Where severe weather such a cyclone or hurricane is forecast you could see the itinerary changed before you get aboard. On the other hand, if it is just poor conditions on the day, the port might be missed at the last minute.

Another Sea Day

If your cruise arrives near to a port and the current weather conditions prevent them from docking, there is a good chance that you will get another day at sea.

When I was on a South Pacific cruise, this is what occurred at one port. The ship arrived near the port in the morning, but due to the weather conditions, the captain decided that the ship could not anchor. As a result, the ship continued cruising, and we had another day at sea.

Sun Princess - Mystery Island

Because this can occur at the last moment, you will often wonder what there is to do. But the entertainment crew will usually put together a program of events somewhat similar to a regular sea day. However, it might just take a little time to get those updates out to the passengers.

An Alternate Port

If the weather forecast is bad well in advance, the ship may deviate to an alternate port or arrive early into the next port. Often the options are limited and will depend on many factors but with enough notice they can sometimes work something out.

I have not personally experienced this, but do know of people who had had their whole itinerary changed due to possible bad weather. It can occur especially in areas such as the South Pacific or the Caribbean due to cyclone’s or hurricanes. In one case I had a friend who was booked to visit the South Pacific Islands, and the itinerary was changed to visit Tasmania.

Extra Time In Port

Very similar to getting to visit an alternate port is getting extra time in a port. Usually, this will be the result of a forecast for poor conditions the next day where there is an ability to arrive early into a port. I have experienced this on two occasions now.

The first time was after crossing the Pacific the ship was supposed to visit the port of Eden, just south of Sydney. Due to extremely high winds and the fact that Eden is a tender port it would have been impractical to visit. The result was the ship arrived one day early into Sydney.

The second time was somewhat similar but was a part of my third cruise. After departing Lisbon, the next port should have been Portimao, Portugal. However, at the time ships needed to anchor and Tenders were used to get ashore. Due to poor weather conditions, this would not have been possible. The result was that the ship headed directly to the next port of call which was Cadiz, Spain. Instead of spending one day in port, we arrived the day before and got an extra half day in port plus time overnight.

Cadiz - Fountain & Nieuw Amsterdam

Compensation

To date, my experience is that you don’t get any compensation when a port is cancelled or changed. Depending upon the exact circumstances sometimes you might get a small credit for some port charges. But this will heavily depend upon the circumstances around which port you missed and what the outcome is. But to put it simply I would not expect to get any compensation.

Enjoy The Cruise

I can understand how disappointing it is to miss a port of call on a cruise. To date, I have missed a total three ports. While they were places that I would have enjoyed visiting, I made the most of the situation as it was. In different circumstances, I got to enjoy more time onboard or more time in port. It is always a matter of the situation is what you make of it.

Feature Travel Tips

5 Quick Travel Tips To Think About

Posted on May 30, 2018
5 Quick Travel Tips To Think About

When it comes to travelling there are somethings that make it better and somethings that make it worst. In general what I want to do is try and help you to make your travel better. So today I have a quick post with five great tips for better travel experiences.

1. Smile & Say Hello

When you are travelling the easiest and cheapest thing to share with others is a small and a simple greeting. It might be with a fellow traveller on a flight or tour, or the service personnel that you encounter. But the simple act of saying hello or giving a smile can make a difference in their day and maybe yours as well.

2. Get Lost

If there is one great way that I have found to explore new cities is to go and get lost. In some cities this advice might need to be taken a little less literally. But there are many cities around the world that getting lost will help you find a whole lot more. The number of times that I have just let myself wander aimlessly through a city and only grab the map out when I want to get back to the hotel.

3. Try New Things

When you are travelling it is sometimes hard to avoid coming into contact with new things or experiences. It can be as simple as a new approach to the cooking of a dish. Or even a totally new food that you have never tried before. Right through to a totally new experience that you never thought you would try. Just take a little chance on something and try something new.

4. Take Less With You

The amount that we travel with sometimes can be rather a lot. One thing that I would challenge everyone to do is see how they can travel with less. There are many ways to do this, but take a close look at what is truly essential for your trip. Do you have maybe to many clothes, or to many shoes, to many devices or anything else. For many people I could almost be certain that you could leave at least one thing behind.

5. Look Both Ways

You might think that this seems a little silly and in some ways it is. But when you are travelling to different parts of the world sometimes it can be a little tricky remembering just which way the traffic is coming. So that is the safety aspect of this point, but on the other hand there is another little point to this. There have been plenty of times when I just looked the other way and spotted something worth looking at. Maybe a building, a square or park, there are so many things you miss by not having a look.

Get Out There

I hope that these are interesting or useful for you. Why not leave your quick travel tip in the comments below, I would love to see what you have. If I get enough people leaving comments I will look to share another post highlighting these tips.

Feature Inspiration

Where Do You REALLY Want To Travel?

Posted on May 28, 2018

Today I wanted to do something a little different and pose to you a question. When the conversation turns to the topic of travel, this is a question that is often thrown out there. Where do you want to travel? It is a simple question but a question that likely triggers a desire in many people to think of their dream destination.

The Two Types Of Answers

There are two types of answers that you might commonly find when it comes to answering this question. You will have the quick answer and the considered answer. Let’s take a look at both of the answers and why you should always answer with the considered answer.

The Quick Answer

You can often pick someone who is answering with a quick answer. Their answer drifts between various locations whichever one is most likely top of their mind. Asked multiple times over a period of months the answer will change for no good reason. It might be Canada one week and England the next week. It just seems like you could book the trip and by the time it came to leave, they would want to change the ticket and go somewhere else.

When you find someone who is answering with a quick answer, it is rarely the result of any deep thought. There is a much better chance that the destination they want to travel to was on TV or in the newspaper. They are happy to go anywhere that is being promoted as a great travel destination. One of the reasons why the answer changes so often because the destinations being promoted change so often.

The Considered Answer

On the other hand, you will find some people who know where they want to travel and that is the place. You will find that when you ask the question “Where do you want to travel?” The answer will remain the same over an extended period.

Often when asked the question they will smile and get a little bit of a dreamy look. The answer is something that seems self-evident like travelling to this destination is the only reason for their existence. Often you may not even have to ask the question, and will just chime in with a thought. Usually making mention of how great it would be to travel to this one destination.

Why The Considered Answer

You may be wondering why the answer you give matters so much. Well, to be honest, it doesn’t. That is unless you are happy to settle for never living up to your dreams.

If you had the option to travel to any random place or the place you have always wanted to go without a thought for the cost. Which would you choose? I can assure you that choosing the destination you have always dreamed of visiting will likely be much more rewarding than any random place.

What’s The Difference?

I have experienced the difference between travelling to both a destination that was a quick answer and a considered answer to this question. Both destinations were part of my time that I spent in Europe in 2012.

When I sat down to start planning the trip I asked myself the question, if I could go anywhere in Europe where would it be. The first place that came to mind for me was my considered answer and the city of Vienna in Austria. It came to mind, not because of a promotion or being prompted, but because it was on a list of places that I wanted to visit in the world. Not just for a week, but for somewhere over ten years.

Vienna - Schloss Schoenbrunn Palace Gardens

On the other hand, later in the planning stage, I started making some poor decisions. Instead of following my heart and allocating time to the places I wanted to visit, I began adding destinations to increase a number. One city I added was Nice in France, not particularly somewhere I had even ever thought of visiting before. At the time it seemed good, but now I realise it was just a quick answer to fill in some time on the trip.

The difference between the experiences was night and day. In Vienna, I spent 10-days enthralled by everything the city had to offer. I explored churches and museums, attractions and the city streets. While on the other hand, I arrived in Nice with three days. It was an interesting place to visit, but by the end of my three days, I was happy to be moving along.

Nice - Night Time

Be Amazed, Not Just Happy

If there is one thing that I want for you when you travel it is for you to be amazed. To go out there and explore a city, town or country, and be ready to explore more. If you are travelling to a destination that means something to you, then you should not want to go home at the end.

Where Do You REALLY Want To Travel?

I would love to hear where it is that you REALLY want to travel to? Is there a city, country, state or anywhere that you have a strong desire to visit. I mean somewhere that the media has not thrown in front of you in the last week. What I mean is a place that you have thought about travelling to off and on over the years.

There is a place that is like that for me, even still after visiting 35 countries. The one country that is top of my list as a destination I would love to visit is Japan. There is nothing much standing in the way of me making this trip, beyond that of planning it.

Feature

Where Does All The Time Go Every Week

Posted on May 17, 2018
Where Does All The Time Go Every Week

Each and every week we start out with 168 hours to allocate to what is important for us. To some degree, there are a certain number of those hours that are already allocated whether we like it not. We have to sleep, need to eat and a range of other little things that must be taken into account. The remainder is available to allocate to those things that are important. For some, a higher proportion is allocated to work ensuring they earn enough money to live. Others will allocate more time to leisure, and less to work earning just enough to survive.

We will get to my allocation in a moment, but what has brought this to mind for me is a recent inability to meet deadlines. Most are self-imposed, such as publishing daily posts here, daily posts on Instagram and other things. But even with very few other hard and fast things that I have to do, I still find it hard to allocate the time to achieve what I want. I could easily blame a lack of time but maybe it is a little more about how I allocate my time.

Where I Allocate Time

There are a couple of ways that I can measure my time especially when it comes to my electronic devices, sleeping and fitness. But that still leaves a large chunk of time that I cannot specifically pin down what I do. If I take a close look out of the 168 hours in a week I can account for around 128 hours. Which leaves me with 40 hours I cannot specifically account for, even though I know many small things happen during this time.

Computer – 21 Hours 50 Minutes

When I am using my computer the time is logged by a program called RescueTime. Basically, it logs everything you do on the computer and gives you a breakdown of where you spend your time. It can be specific down to each individual website you visit, but this can be a little too nit-picky. I tend to look at the big chunks and see where my time is going.

RescueTime gives you a Productivity Score which for the past week has been 65 for me. The number is out of 100 and scores your productive time against your distracting time. So in this time, I spent around 7-8 hours working on this blog and writing. I also spent 2 hours and 30 minutes on the Youtube website. While this blog might be productive, spending time on Youtube is rather distracting. Overall based on my settings, there is around 12 hours 20 minutes productive time and 9 hours 30 minutes distracting.

Tablet – 17 Hours

Although I would like something like RescueTime on my tablet and phone it is not available. However, the way I have captured the time and apps that I use is with the battery time monitor in settings. Although I am only making the assumption that this is reasonably accurate.

When I look at this for the tablet of the 17 hours I see that 14 hours and 30 minutes was used for gaming. Nearly 1 hour was used for web and email and the other 1 hour 30 minutes various other little things. While I do not question these as minimums I do wonder if it could be under-reported. Because I do know that I spent around 15 minutes reading a book using Amazon Kindle, which is not listed here.

Phone – 6 Hours 30 Minutes

The breakdown of the apps used on the phone is a little more detailed. There are numerous apps that I might have used for a few minutes for a specific purpose. The biggest individual use was on Instagram for around 2 hours and 30 minutes and 20 minutes with Facebook. I find it hard to say if this is productive or distracting specifically though since Instagram is part of my blog strategy.

Fitness – 25 Hours 13 Minutes

When it comes to fitness I do allocate a significant portion of the day to this. A little over three hours per day in fact, of which some is an estimated figured. There are three things that I do for fitness walking, bicycle and vibration.

I can account for the time on the Bicycle (6 hours and 33 minutes) and the Vibration (1 hour 10 minutes). When it comes to the walking I can only take an estimate which I have allowed two and a half hours per day. While I might do one specific block of walking, the rest is often broken up into small chunks throughout the day. I might like to be precise in the time, but it would take to much time to calculate specifically.

Sleeping – 57 Hours 8 Minutes

One thing that I do not avoid is getting my sleep. I generally aim to be in bed each night between 9-9.30 pm. With a wake-up time around 5.30 am. Throughout the past week, this has given me an average slightly over eight hours per night. I am not certain that the sleep I get is as effective as it could be, but it is one thing that I won’t sacrifice.

I try to maintain a reasonably similar time that I go to bed each night. It is only on occasion that I might wake up a little earlier than I will get out of bed. I would not expect that the amount of time allocated to sleep would dip much below 49 hours any week. But that would be an abnormally because I rarely get less than seven hours of sleep.

Other Unallocated Time – 40 Hours

In some ways this time is not entirely unallocated, there is a good portion that will be attributed to specific essential tasks. These would be things like preparing and eating meals, showering, cleaning teeth, dressing, changing tasks and the like. However, there is going to be a chunk of this time that is what I will call wasted.

I do feel that there is some time in here that might be allocatable. Things like driving between destinations, shopping, phone calls and such. But many of these don’t take up all that much time especially at the moment when I do not drive much.

The number of hours here could be higher than what is recorded here as well. As I think there is some overlap between usage of devices and other tasks. Such as time on the phone overlapping with when I might be walking. Or the use of one device at the same time as another device. But this is no big issue, maybe making a 1-2 hour difference.

I Don’t Have Time

The more that I find myself missing deadlines the more I catch myself about to blame a lack of time. When the thought of “I don’t have time” surfaces I do try and catch myself. The true reality is that I have more than enough time it just comes down to how I allocate that time and could I allocate it better and more efficiently.

If I am honest I could probably allocate at least another 10-15 hours from the unallocated time to my business. Likewise, I could better allocate anything up to 9 hours and 30 minutes of the time I spend on the computer. Also, I could better allocate the 14 hours and 30 minutes that I spent gaming on my tablet.

Essentially I need to be looking at how I can go from working 7-8 hours to 30-35 hours. That is working on this blog, and it will be all about choices. Making choices between where I allocate my time and what is most important to me. For example is a game with no real world value, a good use of my time? Probably not. Is sitting down and writing a post for this blog a good use of my time? Definitely.

End of the day it is not a case that I don’t have time, but I don’t make the best choices with my time. I am looking at how I can improve this and I guess time will tell how I go with that. I am going to have to make some changes very soon. As I approach a launch date for another little project which I will be sharing soon.

Feature On This Day

On This Day: 2012 in Reykjavik, Iceland

Posted on May 15, 2018
On This Day - Houses in Reykjavik

In some ways, I wonder how much I knew about the country of Iceland until I started looking at my trip to Europe in 2012. However, when I started doing bookings for a trip to Europe it showed up as a good option to get from Europe to North America. Of course, how can you transit through a country without taking the opportunity to stay for a few days?

Initially, I had just booked the transit stop on a flight from Manchester, England to New York, USA. It was a little later in the booking process that I realised I would need to fly the same route again. So a little look and I was able to book a flight from Amsterdam, Netherlands to Toronto, Canada with a three-day stopover in Reykjavik, Iceland.

Staying In Reykjavik

The booking turned out to be three nights, which gave me two full days in the city of Reykjavik. With the time I wanted to see the city and also spend a little time seeing outside of the city as well. Since Reykjavik is not a big city, I decided to make my own walking tour on the first full day. However, to see a little more countryside I decided to book a tour. With some research, I found that a good option would be a day tour around the Golden Circle.

The tour that I took was a full day tour visiting Iceland’s Golden Circle. I am not entirely certain that the exact same tour is still available but I have found a very similar one. It is available on the Viator website as the Grand Golden Circle Day Trip from Reykjavik (Affiliate Link). I don’t only recommend Viator because I can earn something from it, I booked over a dozen tours through the site when I visited Europe. It was a great way to find good value tours and for me pay in Australian Dollars beforehand.

Departing Reykjavik

On This Day - Houses in Reykjavik

The photo that I have today is from the very start of the tour as the bus was leaving Reykjavik. It looked like a rather idyllic spot to live with the houses along the edge of the lake. Unfortunately, I cannot remember exactly where it was around Reykjavik as you tend to get a little lost as tours depart cities. They wind around the city from one hotel to another and soon enough you are lost.

Either way, Reykjavik and Iceland is a location that I would love to return to sometime in the future. There is just so much there to explore and discover especially when you start to travel around the island. I would definitely recommend the Golden Circle tour above for any first-time visitor or if you only have a short amount of time. However, my next visit hopefully will be significantly longer and definitely include taking in the entire circuit around the island.

Coffee Feature

Coffee, Take Life One Sip At A Time – Week 19, 2018

Posted on May 14, 2018
Coffee - Black Ink Espresso

When it comes to drinking coffee I definitely like it just one sip at a time. To me, the act of drinking coffee is something that should be enjoyed and savoured. Not something that you want to hurry along so much that you end up burning your tongue on the hot coffee.

I have found that taking your time to enjoy your coffee can in some ways be a little rewarding. The thing is that if you have a good coffee you will find that the flavour can change as it cools. What you might not have enjoyed at first can turn into something that you rather enjoy. Likewise, it is possible that sometimes it can also work the other way. But I have found that to happen on a rare occasion.

Of course, though I do drink my coffee black and will not pretend that I could say if it is the same with a coffee made on milk. Although the way that some barista’s and coffee roasters speak about the coffee with milk, I imagine it must be something similar.

So what I would like you to consider is the next time you are having a coffee is to spend a little time and enjoy it. Don’t rush through the coffee, but don’t forget it until it is totally cold either. Sit with your cup of coffee and take your time to enjoy it.

Monday, 7th May 2018

Block House Coffee and Eats

Location – 130 Ryans Rd, Nundah, QLD

Coffee – Single O

Coffee - Block House Coffee & eats

I don’t think that anyone is a big fan of traffic, but there are times that a little traffic can be a good thing. It was the cause for me finding my way to Block House Coffee & Eats. Heading north from Brisbane I saw traffic showing ahead on the map, so decided to avoid it and find a coffee. Block House Coffee & Eats was the spot and the Single O coffee they were serving up was just what I needed.

Tuesday, 8th May 2018

Caffe Impero

Location – 55 Creek Rd, Mount Gravatt East QLD

Coffee – Veneziano Coffee Roasters

Coffee - Caffe Impero

I often find that I do not pay quite enough attention to the cafes and coffee shops in shopping centres. But one thing that I have found is that on occasion you can come across some great spots. One of those is Caffe Impero in the mount Gravatt Plaza Shopping Centre. They are serving up some great coffee from Veneziano Coffee Roasters.

Wednesday, 9th May 2018

Simply Beans

Location – B6/10-14 Compton Rd, Underwood QLD

Coffee – In House Roast

Coffee - Simply Beans

Simply Beans is a coffee roaster that I find myself visiting every so often. It is a little bit to try out another coffee from the five grinders they have set up. But is also to take a look at the rather wide range of different coffee tools they have available. From things for the pros to the wide variety of different brew methods you can use at home.

Thursday, 10th May 2018

Told You So

Location – 1/14 Discovery Dr, North Lakes QLD

Coffee – Single O

Coffee - Told You So

The day that I visited Told You So happened to be on the same trip north as my stop mentioned above on Monday. It is difficult to travel any distance without making some stop for coffee along the way. But it turned out to be another great spot for a coffee, again from Single O, but a different blend this time. The location of Told You So in North Lakes is also good, a littl away from the hustle and bustle of the main shopping centre.

Friday, 11th May 2018

Lamkin Lane Espresso Bar

Location – 31 Lamkin Ln, Caloundra QLD

Coffee – Time Adams Specialty Coffee

Coffee - Lamkin Lane Espresso Bar

There is something about good coffee shops and being hidden it would seem from my experience. Lamkin Lane Espresso Bar is not exactly a spot you just happen to walk past. But once you know you are looking for it you will most definitely find it. But one thing I will say is that the locals know their way here, with a constant stream coming in for their coffee. They are serving up coffee from Tim Adam’s Specialty Coffee with a choice of four coffee’s.

Saturday, 12th May 2018

Empire Specialty Coffee

Location – 2/12 Lucy St, Moorooka QLD

Coffee – Wolff Coffee Roasters

Coffee - Empire Specialty Coffee

For those who love a little music, this could be a spot that might interest you. Not so much that the music and coffee are that linked, but for the location of the coffee shop. Empire Specialty Coffee is right in the front of Empire Studios, a recording studio. They are serving up a nice cup of coffee with beans from Wolff Coffee Roasters, worth checking them out if you are in Moorooka at all.

Sunday, 13th May 2018

Black Ink Espresso

Location – 4 Clunies Ross Ct, Eight Mile Plains QLD

Coffee – In House Roast

Coffee - Black Ink Espresso

Black Ink Espresso brings together just about everything I like about a good cafe. They have great coffee that they blend and roast themselves, although not on site. The cafe looks great and has a really nice feel to it that is open and airy, even with a city view sort of. Finally, Cameron and the staff are all very friendly and make some top notch coffee. Definitely worth a visit if you are on the southside of Brisbane.

Coffee, Take Life One Sip At A Time

I hope that you will find the time this week to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee. Especially if you are regularly grabbing a cup on the run. I know it can be difficult sometimes to do this, but taking that 10 or 15 minutes of me time with your coffee could be just what you need.

I hope that you have enjoyed this post and would look forward to any feedback that you have. You can leave a comment below or get in touch via the contact page. Of course, cafe suggestions are also welcome.

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