Tourists suck

[pmv]

I think of travel as necessary if you want a true experience, catch a fish, ride a wave.

Climb that mountain instead of being one of a zillion with a selfie with it.

Yeah, but first you have to go to the mountain! That's the problematic part. I mean, look at how weird the Everest thing has become now - long queues to get to the top, wealthy people paying a small fortune to be almost dragged to the summit just so they can say they've done it. What really is the purpose of that?

Sure they've seen the Himalayas, but I've walked from Walthamstow to Croydon. Which of us has truly seen the wonders of the world? (hmmm....It's them, isn't it? Damn)

 

[eng2d2]

^^^^^
Experience is priceless. Different from tv. ^^^

 

[Muse]

Climbing Everest is an insane ambition... unless perhaps you've climbed a handful of the other highest peaks in the world. Absent that, you're completely off your rocker to even think of it. Read Into Thin Air. That should cure any such insanity.

 

[nakedfrog]

Climbing Everest is an insane ambition... unless perhaps you've climbed a handful of the other highest peaks in the world. Absent that, you're completely off your rocker to even think of it. Read Into Thin Air. That should cure any such insanity.

Not these days, you just need a big pile of money. Then you get to wait in line for your turn to stand on the peak for your selfies. And then you might die on the way down, being stuck behind someone who had no real business being on the mountain, but did have a big pile of money.

 

[BoomerD]

We recently moved to a small town on the Washington coast...a place where we used to go RV'ing a couple of times every summer...
NORMAL full-time population is around 6000 people, but come the major holiday weekends, it swells to about 50,000. You DO NOT try to go to a bar, restaurant, or even our only grocery store...and the 2 lane highway between here and the "big city" (20,000 people) about 20 miles away...is like a Bay Area freeway during the commute.
I once was a tourist...now I cuss them just like all the long-time residents.

 

[eng2d2]

^* like bear lake utah

 

[BoomerD]

^* like bear lake utah

Without so many mormons...

In the early 80s, we lived in Northern Utah. The gypo contractor I worked for was a wheeler-dealer, and ended up with a couple dozen building lots at Bear Lake in a subdivision he developed. He always wanted to trade for everything to avoid taxes...and pushed us to trade overtime for his lots. (I never would...pay me.)

 

[pmv]

Climbing Everest is an insane ambition... unless perhaps you've climbed a handful of the other highest peaks in the world. Absent that, you're completely off your rocker to even think of it. Read Into Thin Air. That should cure any such insanity.

I read that (a long time ago) I really liked it, but it gave me a really disquieting thought. Namely, that it woudn't have been anything like such an emotionally-engaging or interesting book if the outcome had been positive - if they'd all just gone up there, had a bit of a risky moment, then all come back down safe and intact. I really think that would have been a much less moving and memorable story.

And then the next thought was, that I was benefiting from their awful misfortune - my satisfaction in reading it was dependent on it not working out for some of the climbers. And these were real people.

That thought creeped me out a bit.

Also - a lot of people read that book, yet the amateur climbers still come, there are still bizarre queues near the summit, and I believe there have been a few more disasters since.

 

[Muse]

Also - a lot of people read that book, yet the amateur climbers still come, there are still bizarre queues near the summit, and I believe there have been a few more disasters since.

I saw a story over a month ago on the news. There were insane ant trails of climbers trying to reach the summit and they were many deaths. I didn't follow up or hear more about it. Probably bunches of lives lost. To do something just to be able to say you did it is reprehensible.

Edit:

New York Times May 29, 2019

This has been one of the deadliest climbing seasons on Mount Everest. With at least 11 deaths, many expert climbers are criticizing the number and experience level of hikers allowed on the mountain.

The pictures were astounding: a single-file line of dozens, if not hundreds, of people, perched on a jagged ridge, tantalizingly close to the summit of Mount Everest.

The masses were a sign of dangerous overcrowding on the mountain, which sits along the Nepal-China border, creating perilous delays in unforgiving conditions. The trekkers, who wear oxygen tanks with a limited supply, face temperatures that drop far below 0 Celsius as they approach the peak, which reaches 29,029 feet above sea level.

 

[Muse]

We recently moved to a small town on the Washington coast...a place where we used to go RV'ing a couple of times every summer...
NORMAL full-time population is around 6000 people, but come the major holiday weekends, it swells to about 50,000. You DO NOT try to go to a bar, restaurant, or even our only grocery store...and the 2 lane highway between here and the "big city" (20,000 people) about 20 miles away...is like a Bay Area freeway during the commute.
I once was a tourist...now I cuss them just like all the long-time residents.

Ooooo! I'd hunker down during those weekends. Have some projects, have all my shopping done, have some reading, movies, not leave the house.

 

[BoomerD]

Ooooo! I'd hunker down during those weekends. Have some projects, have all my shopping done, have some reading, movies, not leave the house.

We always make sure we're stocked up with comestibles...and have a few projects to keep me busy.

 

[eng2d2]

^^ I might be different, I would observe what is going on.

 

[nakedfrog]

How many fusterclucks does one need to see before deciding they're all mostly the same and worth avoiding?

 

[zinfamous]

Hey OP! ....have you been over to highland's shamelessly, uh "charming" homage (parody?) of your vacation threads?

 

[Muse]

Alan Watts said that the only good reason to leave your home is to see the wonderful things beyond. This is out of context, but I kind of assume that he had in mind (at least partly) the wonders of nature. We've determined here pretty clearly that "tourists suck." So, in seeking those wonderful experiences you need to somehow mitigate that problem. Just musing...

 

[Brainonska511]

Just saw this story/video the other day about a bison running down a 9-year-old girl at Yellowstone National Park: https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/News/video/bison-attacks-year-girl-yellowstone-national-park-64529843

Look at how close everyone is to the creature, from the people running in the background of the video to the person shooting the video on what is likely a cell phone - you're supposed to stay at least 25 yards away from most animals (100 yards if it's a bear or wolf). The rule is for your own safety, because they will trample you.

 

[gill77]

Just saw this story/video the other day about a bison running down a 9-year-old girl at Yellowstone National Park: https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/News/video/bison-attacks-year-girl-yellowstone-national-park-64529843

Look at how close everyone is to the creature, from the people running in the background of the video to the person shooting the video on what is likely a cell phone - you're supposed to stay at least 25 yards away from most animals (100 yards if it's a bear or wolf). The rule is for your own safety, because they will trample you.

Wonder if that was the nine year old's parents running off without her. No problem cutting a nine year old some slack. The age of reason used to be seven, now probably pushing 35.

No problem handing out a Darwin award to the dude in the vid.

 

[Brainonska511]

Wonder if that was the nine year old's parents running off without her. No problem cutting a nine year old some slack. The age of reason used to be seven, now probably pushing 35.

No problem handing out a Darwin award to the dude in the vid.

I don't blame the 9 year old. The adults should know better than to be so close

 

[skyking]

Years ago, I watched a German tourist try to sneak as close to a bison as he could to get a picture with it, right out in front of Old Faithful Inn. We had been choosing walkways that went WAY around the lone bison near the lodge.
It turned on him and took a couple of steps, it could have run him down easily.

 

[eng2d2]

not so stupid with the bison- ONIY if resulted to death. There are many people who are doing this and live to tell the story. The fam and her will have a lot of story to tell plus the news to back her story. It’s one of those the family can’t blame the population if something happens and we can’t point our fingers at them.

 

[Muse]

Yeah, but first you have to go to the mountain! That's the problematic part. I mean, look at how weird the Everest thing has become now - long queues to get to the top, wealthy people paying a small fortune to be almost dragged to the summit just so they can say they've done it. What really is the purpose of that?

Sure they've seen the Himalayas, but I've walked from Walthamstow to Croydon. Which of us has truly seen the wonders of the world? (hmmm....It's them, isn't it? Damn)

Quite possibly it's you who has the better idea of the world... a song by George Harrison came to mind concerning this very subject.

The Inner Light (The Beatles, Rarities album)

[Verse 1]
Without going out of my door
I can know all things on Earth
Without looking out of my window
I could know the ways of Heaven

[Chorus]
The farther one travels
The less one knows
The less one really knows

[Verse 2]
Without going out of your door
You can know all things on Earth
Without looking out of your window
You could know the ways of Heaven

[Chorus]
The farther one travels
The less one knows
The less one really knows

[Outro]
Arrive without travelling
See all without looking
Do all without doing

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

So do the proprietors / operators of historical sites. They'll futz with the integrity of the structural remnants by expanding them to fit whatever historical narrative will bring them the most visitors.

Preservation by re-erecting fallen masonry is one thing, but ... building new additions using the same techniques as the original structure? You're lying about the past.

I disagree. Rebuilding historical sites creates interest and appreciation of the historical impact. Too many people can only see what's in front of them. I think Fort Snelling in Minnesota is an excellent example.

 

[Exterous]

Hey OP! ....have you been over to highland's shamelessly, uh "charming" homage (parody?) of your vacation threads?

I'm not sure I can keep up with that level of quality. I should probably stop posting vacation threads

Just saw this story/video the other day about a bison running down a 9-year-old girl at Yellowstone National Park: https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/News/video/bison-attacks-year-girl-yellowstone-national-park-64529843

And if anything had happened we would respond by putting the bison down because somehow it's at fault

 

[KillerCharlie]

We recently moved to a small town on the Washington coast...a place where we used to go RV'ing a couple of times every summer...
NORMAL full-time population is around 6000 people, but come the major holiday weekends, it swells to about 50,000. You DO NOT try to go to a bar, restaurant, or even our only grocery store...and the 2 lane highway between here and the "big city" (20,000 people) about 20 miles away...is like a Bay Area freeway during the commute.
I once was a tourist...now I cuss them just like all the long-time residents.

That's fully your fault. The PNW coast has been a big tourist spot for a long time. What did you expect?

 

[BoomerD]

That's fully your fault. The PNW coast has been a big tourist spot for a long time. What did you expect?

Hell, we fully knew what to expect...for many years WE were those tourists... but now that we LIVE here...we get to bitch about them.

Yesterday, I had to drive to Olympia to rent a Uhaul trailer. (Closest location for what I needed) NORMALLY, the 75 mile drive takes about 90 minutes...BUT, since we had a big biker-fest here over the weekend...and it was a beautiful summer weekend, the roads were clogged. Took almost 2 1/2 hours.... shrug...no biggie. i'm retired and have a pretty open schedule...but those damned tourists!