Wow!
Thank you for all your help and advice and personal experiences.

I've decided I am going to take the D70 with me because I know I will be disappointed (and irritated with myself) if the photos turn out less than what I'm used to....not that I am a pro or anything but still, I am used to getting fairly good shots now.

My best friend (who is coming with me) just bought a small point and shoot so we can use that for nights out I suppose.

Thanks again and hopefully when I come back (mid June) I can show off some of my pics.

Here's another crazy idea:

The D70 is a fairly large dSLR, but Nikon's D40 is one of the cheapest and smallest. Just buy the body for not much more than a P&S, and you get a nice small dSLR body to use your existing lens with.