RAW question

I've only shot JPG so far. I'm going on a trip in a few months to a really cool place, and want the the best possible for the images I take. I've always heard about RAW, but haven't done that due to the hassle (editing time) factor.

But I'm wondering about one thing, and forgive me if this is a stupid question: I read over & over about how when one makes editing changes to a JPG, then those changes are permanent, (I understand that) as opposed to a RAW where you can go back to the original file for other effects if desired, and all the original data is there. Well, isn't that the equivalent to shooting in JPG, editing your JPG, then saving that as a copy of it as a new & separate file basically the same thing as saving a JPG from a RAW?

I have Photoshop 5 (not LightRoom).