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50 Years of Travel Tips

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Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#181

Post by ayuhito »

titanomachy wrote: post #126

> In 53 years of travelling with all kinds of people, I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems, so to maximize the enjoyment of local foods, my rule of thumb is to eat wherever healthy-looking locals eat. An interesting one. Tracks with my experience, although I have far less data. I’ve gotten sick a few times, but not after the sketchy meals that I thought wo…

To be fair, a lot of this is attributed to your gut microbiome being adapted to the bacteria in your usual diet. Some food may not sit well with you — not necessarily because the food is “bad” but because your system isn’t used to the new bacteria.

That’s why locals are fine but tourists aren’t in most cases.

On a funny side note, when I was in Nepal we did get some food at a pretty popular restaurant. Everyone had horrific food poisoning later that night, except me since I didn’t touch the cheese!

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#182

Post by throwaway290 »

astura wrote: post #96
throwaway290 wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no "the locals" usually. It sounds a bit condescending, like the article. If people look different than you it doesn't mean they are all the same. People have different life situations. Maybe even in your home country too. If you go somewhere on a moto taxi in Bangkok all those taxis and fancy SUVs you see are not silly foreigners who are scared of motobikes, they are also locals who manage risk.

Exactly! I grew up in the US. I grew up in a family where drunk driving was totally normal. Car wrecks happened with regularity. As a child I road with my parents while they were drunk and actively drinking. I road in the bed of my dads pickup truck while he was speeding on backroads while drunk. I never wore my seatbelt until I started driving. One of our cars growing up didn't even have seats, cuz my dad took them…

As a child my parents drinking/hangover is some of the worst memories but this sounds another level. Respect for not passing it on to kids.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#183

Post by fortran77 »

ghaff wrote: post #176
fortran77 wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In certain countries I will always ask the hotel to get a ride for me from the airport, and I will not hail a random cab.

Certain countries? Maybe. I have ordered a hotel limo in Bangkok but certainly not the norm and probably a bit extravagant.

Countries where you're likely to be kidnapped (or driven to a bad neighborhood, and charged a lot of money to get back, etc.). Russia, Brazil, Mexico, etc.

I don't travel to Russia anymore, and won't go to Rio or Mexico City without private security.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#184

Post by jdeibele »

ghaff wrote: post #54
zeroq wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This! Only other thing I would like to add is CASH. Not a lot, just enough to keep you afloat when your credit card is not cooperating. You may end up in a place that only accepts cash and there's no atm nearby or these that are available won't accept your card for some reason. And it doesn't have to a remote place like Laos or Bali. This happens in places like Berlin.

Yeah, some cash, debit card, and a backup credit card that is hopefully as independent of the card you normally use traveling as possible. (i.e. not two Chase cards.) Also, be careful that your backup isn't a card you normally never use--especially internationally. The card companies seem to have gotten better about random fraud alerts but they still happen.

If you're traveling with a SO and have joint accounts, check the account numbers. My wife was pickpocketed in Madrid and 2 of our 3 joint cards had the same number, meaning that even though I had the physical card, it was cancelled until we got the new cards.

We weren't aware of the issue before this happened.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#185

Post by red369 »

qkeast wrote: post #122
jonasdegendt wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If that happens, aren’t you pretty much walking to the closest mobile phone store? A basic device that’ll give you access to the internet, mail and maps is basically a commodity the same way a toothbrush is.

The thing I haven't figured out (mostly because I haven't sat down and done so) is how I'd access mail and such—without my password manager on my own phone, I don't have access to anything.

I've sat down and tried to figure this out, and never been happy with the solution. I carry an old phone as a spare, which also has my password manager and 2 factor codes.

I asked HN about this recently because I couldn't believe everyone, especially people who aren't interested in designing backups, i.e. the type to come to HN, were all thinking this through enough to have good solutions.

HN consensus seemed to be for hardware keys like Yubikey, and paper backup codes.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42427443

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#186

Post by jdeibele »

danparsonson wrote: post #48
Ylpertnodi wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With the prices of electricity these days I turn off everything by remote control per room each time I leave the house for work etc. Not even extension cord lights are left on, only the very bare necessities - fridge etc remain on.

Ah but the genius of such a list is that it can also cover things like closing windows, checking the gas cooker is off, watering plants... anything that you might later think "did I remember to...?", while flying to Indonesia. You might have left your fridge switched on, but did you close the door properly?

Read somebody saying that they used their phone to take a picture of the stove knobs before leaving the house.

As a person who has returned to the house at least twice to make sure the burners were off, that resonated.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#187

Post by mikem170 »

padiyar83 wrote: post #49

"People in other places are not saints. You might get cheated, swindled, or taken advantage of. Paradoxically, the best way to avoid that is to give strangers your trust and treat them well. Being good to them brings out their good. If you are on your best behavior, they will be on their best behavior. And vice versa. To stay safe, smile. Be humble and minimize your ego. I don’t know why that works everywhere in the…

My rule of thumb while travelling: Most people are good and will help you if go up to them and ask, and most of the people who initiate contact with you want your money.

While travelling I've never had a problem walking up to someone pretty much at random and asking for directions or recommendations, etc. Sometimes this turns into more than just a quick conversation, and that's great, meeting locals can be the best part of a trip. Hotel and restaurant staff are a great resource, too - ask questions.

However, most of the people who approach you as a tourist, particularly in places with lots of tourists, want your money. The swindlers and cheats aggregate in these places. They don't wait for tourists they want to rip off to approach them, they actively go after their prey, being practiced at taking advantage of their openness, confusing them, etc.

There are exceptions. Common sense goes a long way. Be way more careful when partying.

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#188

Post by throwaway290 »

magneticnorth wrote: post #82
pocketarc wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, a few of these items sound a lot like "white tourist in poor country". Like the one about asking the taxi driver to drive you to his mom, like holy cow that's creepy. Imagine asking an American Uber driver "hey drive me to your mom's" and see how they'd respond.

Extremely white, somewhat gendered as well. I travel alone as a woman a lot, and while it's not as dangerous as many people fear, I'd never ask a taxi driver to take me to (potentially) his private residence in a random neighborhood in an unfamiliar city.

also this

> People in other places are not saints. You might get cheated, swindled, or taken advantage of. Paradoxically, the best way to avoid that is to give strangers your trust and treat them well. Being good to them brings out their good. If you are on your best behavior, they will be on their best behavior. And vice versa. To stay safe, smile.

Idk I would recommend it to a single female traveler

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#189

Post by throwaway290 »

decimalenough wrote: post #147
eldaisfish wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

some are entirely incorrect. Lack of hygiene is a real problem in tropical countries. Pretending that all food everywhere is equal is some crazy level of white, sheltered nonsense. I would never recommend that anyone eat anything uncooked in a country like India. You are asking for digestive woes. Much of this "list" is BS.

No, that one is accurate. Street food is usually made to order and has high turnover if you pick a popular stall, which means it often is safer than touristy restaurants that rely on snaring a couple of visitors a day and thus has food sitting around for much longer. I spent 1.5 years in Thailand and the only time I got sick was from a fancy, touristy seafood place in Koh Samui. You still have to use common sense tho…

This depends. There are local places with cheap chicken rice in Thailand and locals go there but a savvy local will tell you: don't go there in the afternoon. Because they cook rice once in the morning and it hangs there all day! Usual customers maybe all have their gut adjusted but you don't

But yes I had a fair share of mild poisonings from touristy places. I blame fresh veg which in Asian cultures may not be so clean

Re: 50 Years of Travel Tips

#190

Post by senkora »

flippyhead wrote: post #166
swat535 wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve stopped caring about packing. Now I only pack the very basics, medication, laptop and chargers toiletries for shaving etc and a few clothes. Anything else I will most likely purchase or won’t need at all. I avoid checking bags, just a small carryon and my backpack. To me the more important items are travel requirements, road conditions, directions, etc.

I have a corollary: when I head out of my apartment/hotel/whatever, I assume I could be gone for a night or two -- you never know what will happen! This doesn't mean you need to lug around a bunch of stuff, but just enough basics to make it so you can easily say YES! at forks in the road that might require you to walk too far to get home that day, or stay overnight on a boat, or be out very late with a new group of f…

I must inform you that in my mind this makes you a wizard.

By which I mean, thinking ahead and preparing items that give you options in the event of unlikely but possible situations is a very wizard-like thing to do.

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