Another factor in a beginning player playing 'lefty' is that his chords will all appear different from yours. That's true, but if the lefty considers the righty's chording hand to be a mirror of his own, it won't be so bad. When I (a righty) was learning to play by watching other righties, I had difficulty because I couldn't just mirror what they were doing! Go figure.

One option that hasn't been discussed yet (except for the passing mention of Hendrix) is that a lefty can learn to play a standard right-handed guitar left-handed (did you follow that?). In other words, the lefty can hold the guitar as if it were a left-handed guitar, and can finger the chords on the fretboard with his right hand. Now, that means that he's going to have to be a bit inventive because he'll have to ignore part of the instructions on the standard fingering charts (the ones that say "put your index finger on this string at that fret, put your middle finger on that string" etc.). The chords would have to be formed using different fingers (the ring finger in place of the righty's index finger, etc.).

It sounds complicated, but Jimi Hendrix did it. I personally know a lefty who plays that way also (in fact, he uses a right-handed cutaway guitar, and plays the highest notes overhand).

As to the issue of portability, that is quite an important factor in the purchasing decision. I recommend avoiding the Martin "backpacker" guitar like the plague -- sure it's portable but it sounds awful -- and, if you want something small to carry around easily, get a parlor guitar or a small classical guitar instead. For example, I recently found an old made-in-Japan classical at a thrift store for $15, great for taking to the beach -- and it sounds more than half-decent!

Sharon