...Well, ALMOST everything fits in there. Mic stands and mic cables are too big so I carry one stand and two 50' XLR cables in an On-Stage stands bag. I've been carrying the system around on my own for the last few weeks as I recorded Global Grooves 2008 for Harker's Fashion Show and although I look pretty ridiculous with the huge stand bag, the entire thing is actually not too heavy. I don't get tired, which is good as I hear we will be walking long distances in Italy. Just have to be careful not to trip anyone (locals or tourists) with the mic stand.
I'm going to take a moment now to cover one other detail that, while not strictly related to mobile recording, may be of interest to you if you're anything like me: how to stay in touch on the go, especially internationally. Again, if you're anything like me, you don't make too many voice calls so you would much rather have internet access on the go than the ability to use the phone. To that end, I recommend you invest in an unlocked GSM smartphone OR an unlocked EDGE/HSDPA card. Why that and not the superior EVDO? Well, because that protocol isn't as well supported outside the glorious US and A. Personally I have an unlocked iPhone, but you certainly don't need anything that extravagant just for email - woot.com sometimes has unlocked Palm Treo devices for $130. Then, jump on eBay and look for a prepaid SIM card in your destination region, and before you order it, see if you can figure out whether the carrier at your destination has a special prepaid wireless data package. For example, Italy's TIM has a 500MB/month offer for 20 euros, which I will be taking advantage of while there. I wasn't so lucky the last place I visited outside the States, Canada. I bought a SIM card there to send text messages back home but their mobile data rate was exorbitant ($50/MB) so I checked the weather exactly once the entire time I was there and ate through $3 of my $10 prepaid balance.
Why do I feel this is better than both finding a local dial-up ISP and relying on local wi-fi hotspots? Well, dial-up is on the way out all over the world, not just here, so they're becoming more and more of a specialty and therefore expensive. (Remember the netzero days? Unlimited dial up for $9.99/mo...) Wi-fi hotspots, it's harder to argue with as both technologies are wireless. If your hotel offers wi-fi or even wired ethernet internet access then you may not need a data SIM card. I'm taking this along as "insurance" since the tour director has been incredibly tight-lipped about the particulars of the hotel we're staying in. Even if I don't end up using the data because we're wifi-ed at the hotel, I still do like to call home.
I will post a complete equipment list soon and might make some posts from Italy (assuming the Blogger client works in the iPhone's web browser) about how it's going!
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