Flashpacking: Travel & Tech
Rather recently, we had a post in our Travel Forum about the use of Pocket PC’s in backpacking, and I figured it might be interesting to delve into the subject a little more. If you’re a backpacker, you probably like to rough it a little more than those that tend to bring their rolling luggage. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to leave behind all your cool tech stuff. Admittedly, I usually leave most of my good stuff back home when I stay in hostels and travel by public transport in foreign countries. This is mostly because I’m one of those cautious backpackers – always on the lookout for a scam or a pickpocket.
If you’re somewhat of a seasoned backpacker, you know that caution like this is usually warranted and wise! We’ll save our stories of scams and thievery for another article or discussion, but let me just say that it’s definitely a pretty common occurrence, depending where you are of course. Just be safe and alert and hopefully your gear will remain safe as well!
The term “flashpacker” has been coined by some, referring to those of us that prefer to travel with our tech gear. Laptops, digital cameras, pocket-pc’s, cell phones, mp3 players, and gps’s all play a roll in “flashpacking” nowadays. These items can come in handy, often helping to enhance the experience, as well as allowing one to feel a bit less separated from the new community in which you’ve just arrived. In my travels, I typically leave everything behind except for my digital camera and my Dell Axim pocket pc (before it was stolen from my luggage enroute to Las Vegas). I’ll tell you something – that little Axim was handy for quite a few reasons:
- GPS capability
- Multiple language translations
- Journal writing/note taking
- Photo storage
- Can be used as an mp3 player
- Wi-fi!
I found that little pocket pc nearly invaluable! When I was enroute to my next destination, on a train or other automobile, I could write my emails and attach photos to them, saving them as drafts. Later, I would pop onto a free wireless signal and send all of my emails out immediately. Through this method, i could let my family and friends know I was still alive and kicking, and probably having more fun than they were! I traveled for 3 months and through a couple dozen countries with that little gadget, with no problems at all. The only issue you run into is in finding an unsecured wireless network in some underdeveloped countries.
If you’re thinking that I’m one of very few backpackers that would risk a rather expensive piece of equipment, you’d be wrong:
“A survey completed earlier this year by 2,561 visitors to the hostelworld.com website found that 21% of them travel with a laptop, 54% with an MP3 player, 83% with a mobile phone and 86% with a digital camera.” from USA Today, “‘Flashpacking’ Don’t Forget You Still Need Room for Extra Socks“, 20 June, 2006
In any case, I’m all for minimalizing and leaving behind my unnecessary gear, but when the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, there’s no reason to leave that piece of tech behind to collect dust back at home!
bravo! i have taken a lot of flack for bringing some tech equipment with me to eastern europe. first of all, i would NEVER leave on a backpacking holiday without my digital camera, but i do leave my mp3 player behind at times, because i feel that i am not able to see as much going on around me if i’m listening to music.
Good article. I cannot imagine carrying a laptop while backpacking through some countries though. In central america, you would probably be knifed for a laptop computer! But I do love my HP pocket PC. I make sure not to bring it out in certain public areas, as it would attract attention and possibly attract some hooligans! I’m also a music nut, so I always bring my Ipod with me, as well as my digital camera of course. These items have been with me throughout my travels, and have become very familiar and useful.
Your points are well taken. Ironic that your pc was stolen flying within the U.S.! Guess
the warnings apply no matter where you are traveling!
[...] Flashpacking: Travel & Tech. The Global Guru A different suggestion for the tech Flashpacker: ever thought of bringing on your trips a pocket PC instead of a laptop or notebook? Flashpacking vs Backpacking. Izuno Travels It is indeed difficult to draw the line between these two ways of travelling. Izuno Travels agrees on that. [...]