What kind of tourist are you?

[katmai]

It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking.

My experience is that most of the time, the people who talk to us when we are travelling are scammers 

No shit, man.  I don't trust people at the grocery store, I'm sure as fuck not going to trust someone that's got me pegged with a "HELLO MY NAME IS FOREIGN TOURIST" sticker on my forehead.

Your ass doesn't even leave Baltimore County.

[MadImmortalMan]

Not true. He met me in Columbia once. 

[Monoriu]

This thread reminds me.  When I was in France, we stayed in a lot of B&Bs.  There was usually a big breakfast table for all the guests.  I guess that's where people talk. 

Didn't happen to us though.  We always got up at like 5am and had breakfast at the first opportunity, then drove away before others woke up.  So we always ate alone with the host.

[The Larch]

The thing about mingling with locals is not chatting up random strangers in the street hoping to become best buddies with them, but to simply engage the people you find along the way and see what happens. It takes a modicum of sociability, so I understand how that's out of reach for so many Languishistas. 

[Tonitrus]

Not true. He met me in Columbia once. 

He came all the way down to Odenton for ours!

[CountDeMoney]

And I sure as shit don't trust anybody in Columbia or Odenton, either. 

[Camerus]

I don't go to "meet people" unless I'm travelling by myself, in which case I'm happy to meet a travelling friend or two.  Staying at B&B's where I'm socially expected to make chit chat with the host or other patrons strikes me as a dreadful burden that I'd happily avoid by staying at another kind of place.

[Camerus]

Also, when I was a university student working part-time for a few years in tourism, it was my experience that B&B owners were usually weirdos.  But then again, who the fuck would want a constant cascade of strangers staying at one's house?  If hell is other people, then that would be the ninth circle.

[CountDeMoney]

My mother fits the B&B demo to a T.  She'll happily sit there and chirp away with affable another stranger all goddamned day if she could.  Drives Pops nuts.

[Ed Anger]

The thing about mingling with locals is not chatting up random strangers in the street hoping to become best buddies with them, but to simply engage the people you find along the way and see what happens. It takes a modicum of sociability, so I understand how that's out of reach for so many Languishistas. 

The danger of Americans socializing with Euros is them going into lecture mode.