InsureMyTrip Blog

Ed. Note: Today’s blog post is contributed by our good friend, traveler and writer extraordinaire Sherry Ott of Ottsworld.  We sent Sherry on the road with our new Lytro camera to capture some images of her adventures.  Thanks to Sherry for taking us with her to Istanbul!

Photo credit: Sherry Ott

In my recent trip to the Grand Bazaar, I was surprised to discover that the shopkeepers were interested in something I had  – and it wasn’t money.  It was my Lytro Camera I was carrying on behalf of InsureMyTrip.

Crushing Stereotypes

I couldn’t walk past more than 3 shops before a shopkeeper or sometimes even another tourist, or a tour guide would stop me and ask me what was around my wrist.  The conversations went something like this:

“What is that?”

“A new camera.” I replied.

“Is it from Japan?”

“No, it’s from America.” I answered.

This answer normally received some surprised looks.  One shopkeeper even told me that they normally only see new technology from the Asian tourists.  So I was happy to dispel the stereotype a bit.

But they didn’t just ask questions about it – they wanted to use it, touch it, and see how it worked.  I found myself giving demonstrations and trying to line up shots that would be a perfect way to highlight the ‘living picture’ functionality of the Lytro.  People would then want to have pictures taken of themselves and upon seeing it they would ask for more.  There’s one thing I learned while spending 6 weeks in Turkey – the Turks love to have their photo taken!

A Perfect Place For Photography

The Grand Bazaar is full of little gadgets, souvenirs, pushing shop keepers, tea vendors, evil eye charms, leather goods, and jewelry – there’s so many things to photograph it’s as disorienting as the maze of hallways that make up the bazaar.

However I learned after traveling and playing with the Lytro for the past few months that the Lytro is best for really close up shots of objects – so I mainly tried to focus on that while at the bazaar.  This way you can have the most fun playing with the shot afterwards.  By simply clicking on an object in the image it will reset the focus of the shot – making it appear alive in a way!

My Favorite Photo

My favorite photo I took at the bazaar was at a shop selling magnifying glasses.  They had them hanging overhead and I was able to take the shot sort of through the magnifying glass.  If you click on the object behind the magnifying glass they are in focus – but click right in the middle of the magnifying glass and the image is actually refocused on the magnified jewelry creating this weird effect.

I learned that the closer you get to an image the better for the overall focus effect like this one of a ring .

But overall I learned that if you want to make friends and get noticed in the Grand Bazaar,  just bring in hot new technology and flash it around.  All of a sudden you will be invited into every store and be drinking tea with the shopkeepers!    Now the real key is to leverage that new friendship to bargain down your purchases to the lowest price possible!

Check out the whole story through Sherry’s eyes, told in images she shot with the Lytro camera while at the Grand Bazaar.

Bio:  Sherry is a long term traveler, blogger, and photographer with one goal in mind – to make you wish you were somewhere else.  She seeks out unique travel experiences and writes about her around the world adventures on Ottsworld.  She’s also a co-founder of Meet, Plan, Go!, a website and national travel event teaching you how you can take your very own traveling career break or sabbatical on October 16, 2012.

Travel insurance is a relatively unique product — it’s highly individualized in both its necessity and its scope.  What may be of crucial importance to one traveler as far as insurance coverage is concerned may not even make the Top Ten list of needs for another traveler; what one policy has to offer may be ideal for my family, but not for yours.  InsureMyTrip’s Customer Care Center has been working with travelers for more than a decade to help them make decisions about their own travel insurance needs, and during that time, we’ve learned that there is almost never a one-size-fits-all solution.

Our passion has become helping every traveler find the perfect fit for his or her needs.  When we got to know the people at Meet, Plan, Go!, an organization devoted to helping those who want to take an extended sabbatical (or “career break”) from their day jobs to travel, it immediately became clear to us that this was a community of dedicated and passionate travelers with some very specific travel insurance requirements.  It’s no small thing to take the kind of leap of faith these career breakers must take — to organize a way to purposely leave behind everything familiar and strike out into the world for an adventure that might last months or even years.  We were inspired by their courage and their spirit, and we knew we had to find a way to help them secure their travels so they could fulfill their dreams without having to worry about illness, injury, or unexpected setbacks.

We’re pleased and proud to be the exclusive travel insurance provider for Meet, Plan, Go! After extensive planning and research, our Customer Care Center now has a dedicated hotline specifically for career breakers, and our representatives are thoroughly educated on the unique needs of those taking an extended leave so they can provide specialized service to the career break community.  We look forward to working with Meet, Plan, Go! and their members, and we thank them all for taking us with them.  Nothing excites us quite as much as being able to play a small part in someone’s grand plans.

To speak with one of our licensed Customer Care representatives about insuring your career break, call 885-773-9375.