Have a wonderful time! Can't wait to see all of your pictures.

Oh, Jodi, that sounds beyond exotic! You'll have a fabulous time. What camera/lenses did you get?

Green with envy here. Have a fabulous time.

Jodi, it will all be wonderful! Once you are on the plane, you will relax and and enjoy. If any of your plans change~~that is just part of this wonderful adventure you are on;) Life Is Good have a great time.

Susan, got a 50mm (which I'm leaving at home), a 18mm-55mm and 75mm-300mm, which I'm taking. The camera is a Canon 60D.

Jodi-

Hope you'll board the plane, relax, take a nice long nap. Whew! This 'getting ready' stuff is exhausting. It will all be worth it.

I have to chuckle. The Asian tourists in Hawaii are famous for constantly taking photos. You'll be the American clicking away in Asia! Don't forget to enjoy the views through your own two lenses.

Jodi, have fun! We've got the T2i with the 18mm-55mm and the 75mm-300mm lenses. Love them! And DD has a long lens, don't know which one. They are interchangable with our cameras, which is nice. Hope you are feeling better. May I ask how you SIL is doing? Both are in my prayers.

Tami

Ohhhhhh......a tang horse shopping excursion! ;0) Buy a few snuff bottles while your there too....souvenirs....lol

Have fun!

Sounds excellent, Jodi! Won't you be traveling through electronics buying territory, or doesn't it work that way anymore? It's so easy to develop a lens addiction..... lol

WOW! Oh, Jodi, I'm sure you will have a fantastic time. I don't know how you did it! I was exhausted booking to Ohio! ahahahah

Yep Chisue, I am *that* American ... always looking like a tourist! I plan on buying a photo vest (with a zillion pockets) in HK so that will only make it worse, for sure. LOL

OMG Nicole, believe it or not, hadn't even thought about the Tang horse connection. OMG. Geez, where is my head??? I have a friend who collects snuff bottles. Thanks for that reminder.

Susan, yes, my first stop in HK will be the electronics area. Plan to buy the photo vest and maybe some specialized filters. Probably no lenses, but will price some out before I leave anyhow just in case I can ship them home cheaply. My bags weigh just shy of the 50 lb limit and we refuse to take two bags because of all the land travel we'll be doing.

Oh, and I hope to have at least one piece of clothing custom made in HK. I am taking a very favorite jacket that I would love to have recreated, perhaps in one or more other fabrics, and a size larger since I am "maturing" nicely thankyouverymuch. :-)

Kat, I think I'm going to do a domestic vacation next year. This international stuff is so expensive and complicated. Been talking about going back to a dude ranch in the White Mountains of AZ next year. EZ PZ ... drive to Scottsdale or Williams, spend the night and drive to the ranch the next day. Spend a week riding horses and breathing fresh air and then head home. $650/pp for the week. Can't beat that! We did this twice when the kids were growing up and even though they are in their mid and late 20s, they want to do it again some time soon.

Jodi-

DH has made the trip twice to China and really liked it. Take antibiotic wipes with you as when he went and the Chinese people from the US always wiped the silverware before they used it. Also some used throwawy underware, not sure where they got that. He took ONE suitcase and a folded empty one and he also had stuff mailed back. He mailed them as gifts so he did not pay taxes. Tell the men in the tour to always keep their wallets in their front pockets. The women had simple purses with one credit card, and ID and medical information. Prescriptions? In the original bottles, and with them on the plane. Camera? NOT packed, carry on and labeled. He also enjoyed the terracotta warriers and the great wall. He charged everything, but did not use the card as a debit card. He did not take a debit card.
Good luck
Marie

Oh you lucky traveler, you!!! Don't worry, the plane won't crash and the ship won't sink :D Had to smile when you wrote that.

You'll have the time of your life. Enjoy, relax and have fun Jodi and hubby!

I never feel like I need a vacation until I go through the process of getting ready to go on one. Them I'm so frazzled, I really need a vacation. Have a wonderful trip...I know you will.

Have a wonderful time.....have fun, be safe, stay well.
We are looking forward to lots of pictures when you get back home.

Gravey says- have a wunnerful trip, Auntie Jodi and Uncle Whatshisname! And I hope you have the time of your life, too! I can't wait to see your photos of everything, but especially the Great Wall.

Have a great time Jodi!

I hope, you are at least taking a point and shoot back up camera along.

Have a GREAT time! The great wall of China would be an incredible sight! I would love to see it one day... as well as the floating opera house in Australia.

I am looking forward to your pictures.

Moni

Sounds like an interesting trip, but why are you leaving 5 HOURS early for your flight out?

As to the wallets in the front pockets, I'll add: put a rubber band around the wallet, too. It makes it stick to the pocket, so you feel it if someone is trying to pick your pocket. Good idea here at home too. Have fun!

Thanks Carol and Gravey and Flamingo and Tami and Joann.

Grammy ... we live an hour south of Los Angeles and having a shuttle pick us up at our home. I chose the time the shuttle suggested. Plus, I just hate to be rushed. Seriously. :-)

Goergiesmom ... LOL ... I know exactly what you mean!

Jasdip ... I'll think of you smiling as the ship goes down. :-)

Marie, thanks for the tip on anti-baterial wipes. I am taking a-b bottles and lots of hankies and tissues so that should do the job if I can't get to the store before we leave.

I went to my bank yesterday in regards to using a debit card and decided not to because mine is linked to a large account and if the account/debit card is compromised, we chance losing a lot of money. They did suggest linking the debit card with a special account with just $1000 or so in it but I don't think I will bother. Our only issue is that we need a few hundred dollars in Beijing dollars to pay for our whirlwind tour and am still trying to figure out how we will manage that at 8am on a Sunday. The tour company will no accept anything but cash.

Jodi-

Jodi, can your bank issue you the Beijing $$$? I am not a world traveler, so I don't know. Just worth a thought. Or perhaps you can get it at the airport in Beijing when you land, before your tour. They should have told you how you can get the cash when you booked the tour with them.

Tami

Tami, can't get Beijing dollars this close to departure. We are hoping we can get them at the Beijing airport but might have to have tour guide take us to a bank. We are on an extremely tight schedule in Beijing so that we don't miss our flight home so I'm very unhappy with this development.

Bon voyage! Quite an exciting trip.

Hope you have a wonderful time!

Jodi.....jade snuff bottles are "hot" right now. Clear, celery green shade and bangle bracelets in that same jade too. I've been giving the bracelets as gifts with the note, "In China they give a gift of jade when they want to wish someone Health, Wealth & Happiness" ....think hostess gift....:0)

It's been a hit so far....:0)

Sounds like a fabulous trip! Love Celebrity! That is a trip I want to make one day...soon!

Can't wit to hear all about it.

A friend emailed me a little while ago and told me one of her friends is on the same cruise. It will be nice to meet them on board.

This trip we are traveling with another couple who live in the same city as us. We met them on our 2011 Panama Canal cruise. Actually we met them before the cruise even started. We took the train to San Diego where the ship departed. While waiting for the train to arrive in our city the other couple walked up and sat down near us. Same age, same amount of luggage, same look on their faces. I asked if they were going on a cruise and was it Panama Canal. The answer was yes and yes and a friendship was forged. :-)

Jodi-

DH used the debit card at the ATM in the foreign country he was in or a American Express card at a ATM machine at the airport or at a big bank.
Another thought, jet lag: he found that when he got to the location, he DID NOT take a nap at that time, he stayed up all day, then went to bed as early as he could the first night. Also drank water (bottled) more than he usually he does for a few days. OH yes, don't forget to take Imodium and/or Airborne tablets or even tynolnal. For some reason it is hard to find the simple meds especially for those travelers sicknesses.

I'm so envious of you -- what an exciting trip!

Can't wait to hear all about it (and see photos, too)!

Might I add a tip? Since you can no longer lock bags on domestic flights, not sure about international, I take zip ties (cable ties) and secure my bags. If my bags are tagged for a look through, it is easy to cut. If not, then it's harder for thieves to get in. Just because they give baggage handlers government clearance, doesn't mean they aren't still thieves. I also put a very small pair of nail clippers in my carryon to cut the zip tie at my destination and put extras in an outside pocket. They are good for securing your luggage when left in a hotel room when you are gone.

Thanks for the reminder Pawsitive, I do the exact same thing.

Jodi in so calif...if you are departing from an int'l airport, there is probably an off-site office of one of your larger banks who deal with foreign currency. I know at Logan/Boston we can buy $$ in most countries' currency. Have a wonderful trip. I can imagine how tired YOU are...I've only been doing a trip for next week w/friends from England coming with us to Tucson & L. Vegas for a week w/ return to England, and am tired already, too!

I read this to my husband....brought back a lot of memories for him...He spent most of his Navy years over there in all the places except Thailand .

He said some of the people in Hong Kong...lived in boats that never came ashore. They lived their entire life living on the little boats.

He wishes he could go back to see some of it again...

That was in the 60s

He is anxious to see the pictures you bring home

Have a wonderful time and I hope all goes well for you there.

patti

Make sure that you have a way to upkeep the power to your camera and other devices. The residential electrical power varies greatly in the places you mentioned. except for the USA, most of those places uses 50 hz, the US is 60hz. You will need a charger that is compatible with the power source of the country you are in, or use disposable batteries. The voltage of most disposable cells in the US is nominally 1.5 volts. However, many newer camera use Lithium-ion batteries that have a much higher voltage. I don't know if there are disposable cells made in these higher voltages. In this case, one alternative is to carry multiple sets of charged up rechargeable cells, and re-charge any time you get the opportunity.

It would be a shame to be at a world heritage site with a dead camera.

Naturally, when you are on the cruise ship, that power source will be constant, but do check to see what it is. Do not assume it is the same as state-side power. So click the camera all day and recharge when you return to the ship. When you leave the ship for a day, go with several sets of freshly charged batteries.

Below is data from a 1967 booklet. Chinese provinces were not listed because travel restrictions were in place at that time.

Hong Cong 50 hz, 200/346 V; 2,3,4 wire

Vietnam 50 hz; 230/380 V; 2,4 wire
50 hz; 120/208 V; 2,4 wire
50 hz; 127/220 V; 2,4 wire

Thailand 50 hz; 220/380 V; 2,3,4 wire

Singapore 50 hz; 230/400 V; 2,4 wire

USA 60 hz; 120/240 V; 2,3 wire (3rd wire is safety ground)