Poll
Question:
What kind of tourist are you?
Option 1: When I'm on a trip, I'd rather go sight-seeing than sit and talk with other people
votes: 18
Option 2: When I'm on a trip, I'd rather sit and talk with interesting people than go sight-seeing
votes: 7
Option 3: I rarely if ever go out of my basement (Raz option)
votes: 7
Inspired by garbon's thread.
Of course, I am asking more about a general preference/tendency than one choice to the complete exclusion of the other.
The Languish Meet way, ie. death marching with occasional heavy drinking brakes appear to be best!
Quote from: Tamas on January 08, 2013, 05:34:06 AM
The Languish Meet way, ie. death marching with occasional heavy drinking brakes appear to be best!
Yeah but I would say this fits in the "prefer talking to people" category. Why did you vote for something else? :P
One of the problems with modern tourism is that the premier league attractions are often so busy that they are a bit of a nightmare. My last trip to Versailles, for example, I saw the queue and promptly got on the train back to Paris and did something else. On the other hand, there are so many interesting places that barely make it on to the tourist maps, so sightseeing can still be a lot of fun.
I voted that I preferred the second option though, eating and drinking, especially with the locals (can be a lot of fun if one is off the beaten track). Apart from anything else I find 2-3 hours of sightseeing quite enough for one day.
Boat trips are especially good of course. You get to combine sightseeing with food and drink, plus the other passengers are there and usually up for a drink and a chat.
Totally site seeing.
Though often not so much the famous sites as just the ambience of a cool place in general.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on January 08, 2013, 06:08:05 AM
One of the problems with modern tourism is that the premier league attractions are often so busy that they are a bit of a nightmare. My last trip to Versailles, for example, I saw the queue and promptly got on the train back to Paris and did something else. On the other hand, there are so many interesting places that barely make it on to the tourist maps, so sightseeing can still be a lot of fun.
I find preparation and pace is everything.
Don't take a lap through Notre Dame in twenty minutes but spend three of four hours there and the rushing crowds just melt away, you'll barely notice them because they're no longer in your way. Also, read up thoroughly and bring some books along and you'll be seeing things the hundreds of people around you won't.
Quote from: Martinus on January 08, 2013, 05:44:10 AM
Quote from: Tamas on January 08, 2013, 05:34:06 AM
The Languish Meet way, ie. death marching with occasional heavy drinking brakes appear to be best!
Yeah but I would say this fits in the "prefer talking to people" category. Why did you vote for something else? :P
It's an even mixture of options 1 and 2 so I can't vote. Arguing the toss over real ale is all very well, but if I've hauled ass all the way to Paris I'd better see the Eiffel Tower and be mistaken for a Finn or I could have cracked open a bottle of Shiraz in my living room and stirred up a straw man in Languish instead.
Quote from: Martinus on January 08, 2013, 05:44:10 AM
Quote from: Tamas on January 08, 2013, 05:34:06 AM
The Languish Meet way, ie. death marching with occasional heavy drinking brakes appear to be best!
Yeah but I would say this fits in the "prefer talking to people" category. Why did you vote for something else? :P
I haven't voted :P
Null vote, traveller, it's the getting there that counts.
Raz Option, insert "garage" for "basement."
:ccr
The other day I went to Ikea. I bought 6 shelves kit all without talking or making eye contact with any human being. A very successful trip.
What do you think I like to do?
Sorry these poll options suck. I like doing both in equal parts.
Quote from: garbon on January 08, 2013, 09:30:20 AM
Sorry these poll options suck. I like doing both in equal parts.
This.
And depends on the length too, how long is a trip? On longer vacation I tend to relax more and meet people, whereas on shorter stays I usually go for sightseeing.
Quote from: garbon on January 08, 2013, 09:30:20 AM
Sorry these poll options suck. I like doing both in equal parts.
Agreed.
Generally there are so many things I want to see and do that more than fills up my day...that and when I am on vacation I tend to stay out late and sleep late.
I'm the type that deliberately goes out and gets lost. I like to wander and see stuff most people don't go out of their way to find. That's why I've never taken a cruise. It's too...packaged.
There's something energizing about putting myself in the middle of a completely strange place and figuring out how everything ticks. It reminds me that I'm not going to be useless as a human being if there's an EMP apocalypse or something that makes my professional job skills obsolete. :P
I think I'm becoming more comfortable talking to people than I ever used to be, but that's not the natural thing even now.
Definitely #2. It's way more fun to get to know a city by mingling with locals.
There are sites you go see just so you can punch your ticket and tell people you've seen it, and there are sites that blow your mind and you can just sit for hours soaking it in.
Hey Larch, did you ever give an AAR on your West Coast Boertrek?
The kind that hates travel.
Bit of both. But mainly number 2. I like walking round, eating and drinking and meeting people.
Ideally I like to be a place a few days (or know I'll return) so I can balance it and not kill myself trying to see lots of things.
Our number one focus is eating. :ph34r:
A distant second is sight-seeing.
Shopping is another one.
I don't understand how "meeting people" can be a goal for a tourist :unsure:
Eating is pretty far up there for me too. :P
I'm more of a stay-at-home tourist.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 08, 2013, 04:32:05 PM
Hey Larch, did you ever give an AAR on your West Coast Boertrek?
No he did not <_<
Where does sex tourist fall under? :unsure:
Quote from: katmai on January 09, 2013, 02:16:36 AM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 08, 2013, 04:32:05 PM
Hey Larch, did you ever give an AAR on your West Coast Boertrek?
No he did not <_<
Where does sex tourist fall under? :unsure:
Under the "Meeting people" category, obviously :P
L.
But very little talking going on!
Quote from: katmai on January 09, 2013, 02:59:54 AM
But very little talking going on!
It's the universal language of fucking your brains out, STDs and getting conned out of more money than was agreed on because suddenly parts of the agreed services cost extra and then the pimp shows up and ... that's what I hear, anyways.
Whatever happened to Disturbed Pervert anyways?
Quote from: katmai on January 09, 2013, 04:08:46 AM
Whatever happened to Disturbed Pervert anyways?
I'd love to hang at that guy's crib for a couple days. Maybe a week.
Quote from: katmai on January 09, 2013, 02:16:36 AM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 08, 2013, 04:32:05 PM
Hey Larch, did you ever give an AAR on your West Coast Boertrek?
No he did not <_<
What the esteemed Alaskican said. I still owe you guys that. :P
Quote from: Monoriu on January 08, 2013, 10:26:32 PM
I don't understand how "meeting people" can be a goal for a tourist :unsure:
I travel to learn about a different culture. The best way to do that is to mingle with the locals, talking to them.
Quote from: Monoriu on January 08, 2013, 10:26:32 PM
I don't understand how "meeting people" can be a goal for a tourist :unsure:
Why not? Great way to learn of the best parts of a locale.
Quote from: Monoriu on January 08, 2013, 10:26:32 PM
I don't understand how "meeting people" can be a goal for a tourist :unsure:
What's not to understand? :huh:
Quote from: merithyn on January 09, 2013, 10:07:06 AM
I travel to learn about a different culture. The best way to do that is to mingle with the locals, talking to them.
That I can get. What always drove me crazy was my traveling companions meeting and talking to the other tourists the whole time.
'You are from Cleveland? Hey we are from Texas! How about Florence eh? Italians are funky am I right?' :bleeding:
Talk about a waste of time. It was like traveling abroad to eat Tex-Mex.
BUt my last big trip out of the US was in 2000 so I guess when I heard talking to locals I was thinking about going to meet real authentic Coloradans...OMG! What a weird and exciting culture!
Quote from: Valmy on January 09, 2013, 11:37:02 AM
Quote from: merithyn on January 09, 2013, 10:07:06 AM
I travel to learn about a different culture. The best way to do that is to mingle with the locals, talking to them.
That I can get. What always drove me crazy was my traveling companions meeting and talking to the other tourists the whole time.
'You are from Cleveland? Hey we are from Texas! How about Florence eh? Italians are funky am I right?' :bleeding:
Talk about a waste of time. It was like traveling abroad to eat Tex-Mex.
BUt my last big trip out of the US was in 2000 so I guess when I heard talking to locals I was thinking about going to meet real authentic Coloradans...OMG! What a weird and exciting culture!
When I was abroad at Oxford, we made a big point of making sure we talked to English students rather than doing the easy thing of talking to other Americans (as we were really concerned we'd end up doing the latter). Of course, I think the British students would have liked it better had we not been so garrulous. :D
Quote from: Valmy on January 09, 2013, 11:37:02 AM
Quote from: merithyn on January 09, 2013, 10:07:06 AM
I travel to learn about a different culture. The best way to do that is to mingle with the locals, talking to them.
That I can get. What always drove me crazy was my traveling companions meeting and talking to the other tourists the whole time.
'You are from Cleveland? Hey we are from Texas! How about Florence eh? Italians are funky am I right?' :bleeding:
Talk about a waste of time. It was like traveling abroad to eat Tex-Mex.
BUt my last big trip out of the US was in 2000 so I guess when I heard talking to locals I was thinking about going to meet real authentic Coloradans...OMG! What a weird and exciting culture!
Well, there are good reasons for that ... locals are mostly busy doing stuff. What sort of person has time to sit around and talk all afternoon in a cafe? Well, for one, tourists. :D
One of my best tourist experiences was sitting in an Amsterdam hash cafe and chatting with locals. Two chicks getting stoned on their lunch break from beautician school, one dude getting stoned on his lunch break from working a jackhammer.
That's also one of the advantages of Jamaica: all kinds of people just loafing around trying to sell you ganja and nicknacks with nothing better to do than jaw with you.
Quote from: Malthus on January 09, 2013, 11:58:48 AM
Well, there are good reasons for that ... locals are mostly busy doing stuff. What sort of person has time to sit around and talk all afternoon in a cafe? Well, for one, tourists. :D
Retirees, for another, and they usually have the best stories. :)
I like to be active during tourism. Hiking, climbing, skiing, swimming, husky tracking, safari etc. That would be a third category I guess...?
Husky tracking?
Dog sledding maybe. If so, pretty fucking hard core.
I did that in 2011 in Finland. Was fun, but not particularly hardcore. ;)
Quote from: Zanza on January 09, 2013, 12:16:55 PM
I did that in 2011 in Finland. Was fun, but not particularly hardcore. ;)
:mad: At the very least it must have been cold.
I did it in late March, when it is already a bit warmer again, so the coldest was -25°C/-13°F. We got pretty good clothes from them which kept us warm. I bought a balaclava with fleece on the inside and that was a really good investment as the wind is very chilly when you cross a frozen lake or so. However, we slept in huts, not in tents, so at least at night, we had a sauna and a cozy place to sleep.
I am sorry going to Finland in March for dogsledding is pretty hardcore. I know it may not seem like it when you are a mighty macho man like yourself. I mean Meri would have gone to a retirement home and hear stories from Finnish Grandmothers.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 09, 2013, 12:23:46 PM
Quote from: Zanza on January 09, 2013, 12:16:55 PM
I did that in 2011 in Finland. Was fun, but not particularly hardcore. ;)
:mad: At the very least it must have been cold.
Nah - the hardest part is having to watch out for any flying dog crap.
Quote from: Malthus on January 09, 2013, 11:58:48 AM
Well, there are good reasons for that ... locals are mostly busy doing stuff. What sort of person has time to sit around and talk all afternoon in a cafe? Well, for one, tourists. :D
I don't know. Europeans strike me as exactly the sort who have time for such things. :D
Quote from: Valmy on January 09, 2013, 12:32:06 PM
I am sorry going to Finland in March for dogsledding is pretty hardcore. I know it may not seem like it when you are a mighty macho man like yourself. I mean Meri would have gone to a retirement home and hear stories from Finnish Grandmothers.
:mad:
I'd have brought knitting needles! That's pretty hardcore! :contract:
Quote from: merithyn on January 09, 2013, 12:41:32 PM
:mad:
I'd have brought knitting needles! That's pretty hardcore! :contract:
:lol:
Quote from: Valmy on January 09, 2013, 12:32:06 PM
I am sorry going to Finland in March for dogsledding is pretty hardcore.
It's a lot less physically demanding than I would have expected before. The dogs do all the hard work.
Climbing or a long hike are more demanding. This summer I want to learn walking with crampons and ropes on glaciers and iced mountain tops. I guess that will be hard as well. ;)
Quote from: Valmy on January 09, 2013, 12:32:06 PM
I am sorry going to Finland in March for dogsledding is pretty hardcore. I know it may not seem like it when you are a mighty macho man like yourself. I mean Meri would have gone to a retirement home and hear stories from Finnish Grandmothers.
In Finland, they hitch the tourists alongside the dogs. :P
As an aside, they were offering dogsledding at a place I went to in Muskoka with some friends ... we didn't do it because it was very expensive. We skiied on the same trails though.
Malthus: soft.
Quote from: Zanza on January 09, 2013, 12:30:34 PM
I did it in late March, when it is already a bit warmer again, so the coldest was -25°C/-13°F. We got pretty good clothes from them which kept us warm. I bought a balaclava with fleece on the inside and that was a really good investment as the wind is very chilly when you cross a frozen lake or so. However, we slept in huts, not in tents, so at least at night, we had a sauna and a cozy place to sleep.
Hmm,Germans with adequate winter clothing for North-Eastern Europe. :worried:
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 09, 2013, 12:56:49 PM
Malthus: soft.
Mathus: not willing to spend $120 on a doggy ride. :lol:
It looked like fun though.
Malthus: cheap.
Quote from: Zanza on January 09, 2013, 12:46:31 PM
Quote from: Valmy on January 09, 2013, 12:32:06 PM
I am sorry going to Finland in March for dogsledding is pretty hardcore.
It's a lot less physically demanding than I would have expected before. The dogs do all the hard work.
Climbing or a long hike are more demanding. This summer I want to learn walking with crampons and ropes on glaciers and iced mountain tops. I guess that will be hard as well. ;)
[mongers]
Better do that soon, before they all melt.
[/mongers]
[Hansie]
Just say at home, they'll be reaching your local within your lifetime.
[/Hansie]
I like to gamble overseas.
Quote from: Ed Anger on January 09, 2013, 06:09:27 PM
I like to gamble overseas.
Having unprotected sex with furriners :rolleyes:
Quote from: katmai on January 09, 2013, 06:11:42 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on January 09, 2013, 06:09:27 PM
I like to gamble overseas.
Having unprotected sex with furriners :rolleyes:
I wore a condom when I nailed the French chick. :rolleyes:
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on January 09, 2013, 06:06:50 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 09, 2013, 01:37:27 PM
Malthus: cheap.
He's Jewish. :secret:
:yes:
...
No wait ... I'm going to stop out of this thread in a huff at such inappropriate behaviour. :mad:
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 09, 2013, 11:30:28 AM
Quote from: Monoriu on January 08, 2013, 10:26:32 PM
I don't understand how "meeting people" can be a goal for a tourist :unsure:
What's not to understand? :huh:
Like how can people chat up strangers, the where and hows. My personal experience is that I never talk to strangers.
It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking. :D
Quote from: garbon on January 09, 2013, 09:30:13 PM
It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking. :D
My experience is that most of the time, the people who talk to us when we are travelling are scammers :hmm:
Quote from: Monoriu on January 09, 2013, 09:56:19 PM
Quote from: garbon on January 09, 2013, 09:30:13 PM
It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking. :D
My experience is that most of the time, the people who talk to us when we are travelling are scammers :hmm:
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.
Quote from: Monoriu on January 09, 2013, 09:56:19 PM
Quote from: garbon on January 09, 2013, 09:30:13 PM
It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking. :D
My experience is that most of the time, the people who talk to us when we are travelling are scammers :hmm:
But there's a difference there if they are approaching you.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on January 09, 2013, 09:59:15 PM
Quote from: Monoriu on January 09, 2013, 09:56:19 PM
Quote from: garbon on January 09, 2013, 09:30:13 PM
It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking. :D
My experience is that most of the time, the people who talk to us when we are travelling are scammers :hmm:
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.
Suburban house mom, calm down.
Quote from: garbon on January 09, 2013, 10:01:01 PM
Suburban house mom, calm down.
Piss on that. Trust no one.
Cat says the same fucking thing.
Reminds me of my recent trip to France. We went to a ski resort town, and my wife picked a B&B with very high ratings in Tripadvisor. The host invited us for tea in the huge common room and talked about all the arrangements.
I knew that meant trouble on the spot.
After a long conversation he finally showed us our room. Just the bed and the bathroom. Nothing else. Not even a single chair. Wi-fi doesn't work in our room; only in the common room. Of course, he was the sort of person who only went to his room for sleep. Everybody is supposed to stay in the common room.
We were lucky though. It was low season, and we were the only guests. The host only appear to make breakfast for us. So the "common room" became our private room afterall. Actually we had his entire house just for ourselves most of the time.
Lesson learned: any B&B with a large common room is a big no-no. Also don't just rely on Tripadvisor ratings.
Mono, part of the "charm" of a B&B are quaint things like no Wi-Fi. You know, to get away from it all.
I wouldn't mark a traveling Chinese couple anyway. You people are too damned cheap.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on January 09, 2013, 10:20:42 PM
Mono, part of the "charm" of a B&B are quaint things like no Wi-Fi. You know, to get away from it all.
I wouldn't mark a traveling Chinese couple anyway. You people are too damned cheap.
My wife is the sort of person who gets very uneasy if she doesn't have internet access. If only for a few hours :lol: She won't pick any place without wi-fi.
If we want to get away from it all, the easiest way is to go to China. Everything is blocked. No Youtube, no Google, no CNN, no BBC, no Facebook or Twitter. Languish is ok though :secret:
Quote from: CountDeMoney on January 09, 2013, 09:59:15 PM
Quote from: Monoriu on January 09, 2013, 09:56:19 PM
Quote from: garbon on January 09, 2013, 09:30:13 PM
It is pretty easy. You open your mouth and start speaking. :D
My experience is that most of the time, the people who talk to us when we are travelling are scammers :hmm:
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. :rolleyes:
Not true. He met me in Columbia once. :)
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 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. :P
Quote from: MadImmortalMan on January 10, 2013, 03:14:15 AM
Not true. He met me in Columbia once. :)
He came all the way down to Odenton for ours!
And I sure as shit don't trust anybody in Columbia or Odenton, either.
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.
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.
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.
Quote from: The Larch on January 10, 2013, 06:29:17 AM
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. :P
The danger of Americans socializing with Euros is them going into lecture mode.