beam me up scottie!
yup the 8" is a bit of a sweet spot. the next step up being the 10" which is starting to get heavy and generally one has to carry in 2 parts, however the 8" you can carry in one part... just a bit more convenient i guess. you do sacrifice light gathering tho.
you will be suprised what yu can see in a 8" tho.
while the moon wont actually damage your eyes, having a "moon filter" will relieve the strain and make viewing more comfortable
have fun with your scope