Travel Tip--A Bag of Rice

Recently I led a group of clients on a trip to Africa.  As part of the trip we visited Victoria Falls.  The falls were so magnificent that I'm leading another group there next year!  (See the blog entry posted just before this one.)

We were warned that you need to protect your camera equipment because the falls are so powerful, you literally feel as though you are in a massive downpour of rain during much of the walk to view the falls.

Because I didn't know believe it would be "that wet" my camera was destroyed...or so I thought. When we finished the tour, none of the electronics worked, the shutter wouldn't release and all functions were silenced.  I happened to talk with the general manager at our hotel that night.  He gave me a bag of uncooked rice and told me to put my camera in the bag and seal it overnight. 

To my surprise, the camera worked great the next day.  The rice serves as a sort of "blotter" to soak up any moisture.  Might my camera have worked the next day anyway?  Perhaps...but I wanted to share this "trick" that many people have told me really does work.  

All of this said, if you visit Victoria Falls be sure to bring a waterproof bag for any electronics you carry with you on your visit. 

---