Luggage And Bags: I went for 3 weeks, took a small duffel bag and a small backpack. I was visiting family, so didn't have to worry about where to stay etc, and didn't want to check any luggage lest I then be forced to stand watching the carousel for half an hour at the other end!
Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Travellers from England should keep in mind that winter temperatures in Brisbane average 2oC WARMER than the same day ('summer' day) in London, and should pack LIGHT jackets. If you are travelling in summer, take fans. No, seriously, take a LOT of sunscreen, plenty of long, loose clothing, sandals an absolute must (please GOD no socks), and be aware that every 3-4 days we have a massive electrical storm with thunder, strobe-effect lightning and torrential horizontal rain/wind. :>
Toiletries & Medical Supplies: sunscreen. can I say it again? I think I will... SUNSCREEN. Australia has one of the highest skin-cancer rates in the world, due mainly no doubt to the great big gaping hole in the ozone layer which the Yanks and the other big industrialised nations have created but which centred over us instead of somewhere more deserving in the Northern Hemisphere...
Photo Equipment: keep in mind if from northern climes that bright sunlight sometimes INcreases the need for a flash, particularly if taking pictures of the native inhabitants. The background glare is often so high that when the camera over-compensates for it and dulls down the picture it also reduces the person at the front of your photo to a featureless silhouette - this effect significantly worsens as the skin tones of the subject darken.
Miscellaneous: a relaxed attitude, and possibly the slightest smidgen of cultural awareness so that (if American) you are not offended by our easy-going tendency to insult each other in public and (if English) you don't offend by calling anyone a 'convict' or a 'colonial' within hearing distance. :}
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on Aug 25, 2002
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