The annoying aspects of travelling

[mr-turisty]

Crowded stuffy dorms.

Loud snorers.

Loud snorers that have the cheek to complain when you come back late and "disturb them".

I was sometimes aware of eating alone, more so in small restaurants. I get annoyed by backpackers who think its a sin to eat at McDonalds once and a while when your away, i was lectured by one once. Im all for eating in local restaurants and its something i particularly enjoy about travelling but sometimes i just want a cheap and nasty big mac.

Not meeting anyone in a place can make it alot less enjoyable, it sucks when you get stuck at a hostel with no atmosphere and you dont meet anyone. Especially if you want to go out at night.

Ive only ever gone out drinking by myself once lol. I was in Levoca in Slovakia which is a tiny little town. I went out for a meal by myself then spent the night drinking in a place called "euro pub", I then walked back to my super cheap hotel and had a few more pints. Woke up in the morning and saw all the crap I had written in my travel diary.

I get annoyed by people whose only topic of conversation is President Bush or American foreign policy etc etc (both for or against), i enjoy having political discussions but sometimes it just gets a bit tiresome and you wish they’d change the record and talk about films or something.


I get annoyed by people whose only topic of conversation is President Bush or American foriegn policy etc etc (both for or against), i enjoy having political discussions but sometimes it just gets a bit tiresome and you wish theyd change the record and talk about films or something.

Getting off at the wrong stop on a train then missing your connection, then spending 12hours hanging about the staion for the next one.

[mr-turisty]

oh i forgot something.

Ryanair...

I love the fact that its so cheap and allows me to just hop over to somewhere in europe for next to nothing.

But it bugs me that the whole way to your destination they try to sell you stuff. "why not buy a ryan air cash for kids scratch card" "if you want to call home we sell a range of calling cards" "ryanair are pleased to reconmend hertz our car rental partners" even the sick bags have adverts on them lol.

Fair enough they've got to make up for the cheapness of the flight somehow but cmon! The fact i know it all of by heart now doesnt help.

Beggers cant be choosers i suppose.

[U2fan]

Mine isn`t so much annoying as it is just plain rough/sad.

The hardest thing for me is meeting really amazing people and occasionally the really amazing person who you`d otherwise date, and then having to say goodbye and go your separate ways and not knowing if you`ll ever see them again. And then having to head on to your next destination a little sad and start making friends all over again.

[mr-turisty]

Originally posted by U2fan@Mar 5 2006, 05:19 AM
Mine isn`t so much annoying as it is just plain rough/sad.

The hardest thing for me is meeting really amazing people and occasionally the really amazing person who you`d otherwise date, and then having to say goodbye and go your separate ways and not knowing if you`ll ever see them again. And then having to head on to your next destination a little sad and start making friends all over again.

[snapback]105364[/snapback]

yeah definatley a hard part of travelling, I found that i took a day or two before i wanted to start making new friends again. Of course its always good running into people again accidentaly or randonly getting an email when your back to reality.

[mark-0]

I've got no problem with people wanting to go out and party until really late. Most of the time, even though people are drunk they'll try and be quiet when coming into the dorm, but the poeple that don't seem to care are really a pain. Like when you're trying to sleep a bit early so that you can actually get up while museums and and sights stuff are still open, and your dormmates come in at 4 AM and decide to have a waterfight and you get soaked. Having to decide whether to sleep in a soaking wet bed with sheets, or sleep in a kind of wet bed with no sheets sucks, especially at 4 AM.

[ajb3000]

Trying to working out which train station to get off at is a real pain, espiecally in eastern europe where the trains never seem to stick to their schedule and all the station names are in Cyrillic.

[treacle]

other people packing to leave at some ungodly, early morning hour.... there is nothing more annoying in a hostel than zippers and plastic bags... period.

so there.

[tumblezweedz]

I get annoyed by backpackers who think its a sin to eat at McDonalds once and a while when your away, i was lectured by one once. Im all for eating in local restaurants and its something i particularly enjoy about travelling but sometimes i just want a cheap and nasty big mac.

Oh, yes. My husband loves Pizza Hut. After we'd been living in Lithuania for a little over a year, we went to London, and he was soooo excited about the prospect of their pizza. So we went and had a horrible, greasy, overpriced pizza dinner and he was so happy to have the special treat. But because he's American, when we came out we got all these scornful looks, "Oh, those Americans! Come to London and eat at Pizza Hut! How parochial." Assumptions drive me batty.

Funny thing is, whenever we went to McDonald's in Vilnius, it was filled with locals...same thing in Sweden, Germany, Greece, Japan...hmmmm. I like trying the regional "dishes" they serve - deep fried broccoli and mixed berry pies in Lithuania, corn soup in Japan, Greek salads in Athens... and just to reassure you, I've eaten at McDonald's twice in the last 6 months in Germany. Plenty of time to sample the "real" cuisine!

[Esterina]

Now, that we have vented a bit, if we think of it, without
-long transportations
-packing/unpacking
-money issues
-days of loneliness
-dormitory «mates» !
-toiletteries limitations
-clothing limitations !
-communication problems
-having to carry our heavy backpack
-lack of comfort
-and saying goodbye

would it be backpacking ? and would we love this as much ? Nah, not in my case anyway. Backpacking is challenging and this is what makes it formative and memorable !

Originally posted by carol.+Mar 3 2006, 05:48 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(carol. @ Mar 3 2006, 05:48 PM)</div>

Yes !


<!--QuoteBegin-Canadian Bacon@Mar 4 2006, 04:18 PM
I dunno... for me, I find that the tough times in travelling end up being the best and more hilarious stories.

Huh... yes, but afterwards though !

[aliz]

something that annoys me on long trips is when you'll be spending the day in a big city and suddenly you get in a tired mood and all you want to do is curl up on your couch and watch your favourite movie or tv shows or something. parks are awesome in that you can get a book and lie down and libraries are cool too, but sometimes i get so tired that nothing can compare to lounging around in your own home. then i get mad at myself for wasting a good travel day

[mark-0]

Originally posted by tumblezweedz@Mar 6 2006, 03:59 AM
Funny thing is, whenever we went to McDonald's in Vilnius, it was filled with locals...same thing in Sweden, Germany, Greece, Japan...hmmmm.* I like trying the regional "dishes" they serve - deep fried broccoli and mixed berry pies in Lithuania, corn soup in Japan, Greek salads in Athens... and just to reassure you, I've eaten at McDonald's twice in the last 6 months in Germany.* Plenty of time to sample the "real" cuisine!

[snapback]105485[/snapback]

Last summer in Europe I met and ended up travelling with an Irish couple. They had just started their trip and a few days in (in Nurnberg, Germany) we ate at an irish pub two nights in a row. I didn't mind. The food was alright. I wouldn't have gone out for some "canadian food" so soon in my trip, but I have no problem with that sort of thing.

The only "regional" MacDonald's dish I think we have here in Canada is the McLobster which you can get in most McD's on the East Coast. Never tried it, though. Anyone tried the McLobster? How was it?

[bluepea]

McLobster!? Scary.

Sometimes you just need those comforts of home. We ate a McDonald's a few times. Sometimes, you're just in a hurry and want something cheap. Like you said, they were ALWAYS packed!

One night, we went to Mainz, Germany and were drinking outdoors at this great little bar. Time was coming for us to catch the train back, but my brother in law HAD to stop at Pizza Hut. We were definitely the giggly (but not obnoxious!) Americans that night, almost closing time at a Pizza Hut in Germany. The waitresses were so nice and were having a good laugh with us though.

[tumblezweedz]

McLobster, eh? I might pass on that one...

[aliz]

on the topic of fast food, what's that pizza chain in italy called? I was trying to remember it the other day

[noke_travel]

just like the 99cent "crabcakes" at long john silver's, the mclobster is something i'll never try. the though of fast food shellfish is too much.

[Esterina]

Hey people, you're highjacking the thread !!!! You wanna talk about McDo and pizza ? Start a new thread !

[Joker]

Ahhh, the stuff that annoys me...

--I love traveling solo, mostly because the solitude can be very relaxing, but sometimes its just plain boring. 5 hour bus rides by yourself are a bit tough on the brain if you don't ever sleep in transit (like me)
--Travelers cheques are in fact useless. It cost me money to use my own money. Never again.
--Dead batteries in iPods- i forgot my charger and mine died on the flight down. carried an expensive paper weight around.
--unpacking everything every time i stopped off... its a pain, but necessary. I got really good at it though!
--stranger in a strange land syndrome does sometimes hit in when you don't speak the language well. You really have to be on your toes to make sure you don't get taken advantage of financially.

But there are so many positive aspects, too.