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DFW

(54,058 posts)
Tue May 7, 2019, 02:06 PM May 2019

Tourist season has started here in Europe. Coming? I may be able to save you a ton of money

If you're planning on doing the same thing as the hoards of tourists I have so far run into from China, the USA, Japan, Australia and other "developed" countries, I can save you a lot of money.

STAY HOME!

The sidewalks of the cities here are jammed full of groups of people with their noses glued to their smart phones. They might as well be horses with blinders or dogs on leashes. They bump into their neighbors and locals alike, stray into the streets, and are totally absorbed in their little rectangular devices. They are completely oblivious to their surroundings, and they probably have no earthly clue what country they're in, or what language is being spoken there. If they're lucky, they'll accidentally have caught a famous landmark or two by a chance clicking on some photo function. Since getting back over here 9 days ago, my work has taken me to Brussels, Zürich, Paris, and a few etc. In each city, it's the same scene. Armies of cell phones leading their owners around by the nose.

The local economies are cool with this, of course, because the tour guides, hotels and tourist restaurants get their seasonal jump in business no matter what the visitors do. But from a purely human standpoint, why bother? If all you're going to do is keep your face glued to your smart phone while visiting France, Switzerland, Prague or Budapest, then your phone is smarter than you are. Put the damned thing down and look around. You might even see something!

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MANative

(4,105 posts)
1. Same thing happens here in NYC. Add to it...
Tue May 7, 2019, 02:10 PM
May 2019

the hoards of NYers doing the same thing, and the only deviation you get is when someone stops dead in the middle of the sidewalk to take a picture of the jumbotron in Times Square. It's fun (not) getting to work everyday.

One of the most fascinating and diverse cities in the world, and everyone is glued to a screen.

Ohiogal

(31,672 posts)
2. In all honesty,
Tue May 7, 2019, 02:10 PM
May 2019

Isn't it this way it is in any big city no matter where you are? Tourist or not?

Although I can't imagine being in Paris or Prague and being glued to my phone .....

DFW

(54,058 posts)
5. Prague is one of the most magnificent cities in Europe.
Tue May 7, 2019, 03:44 PM
May 2019

But in Prague, watch your pockets and hand bags. Like Italy, Spain and Germany, it is a mecca for professional thieves from all over Eastern Europe.

I'm in Paris pretty much once a week for work. I'm so used to the place, it's like crossing the street for me, and I probably talk in French in my sleep half the time. But then, I don't use a "smart" phone when I'm over here. I use one in the States because my top brass insist on it, and they see me when I'm at our HQ. But the second I'm back here, I switch it off and go back to my 12 year old "primitive" device that only functions as a---*gasp*---telephone.

Staph

(6,245 posts)
4. That attitude has driven me crazy for years!
Tue May 7, 2019, 03:32 PM
May 2019

I took a Viking River cruise five years ago (highly recommended!). There was a couple on our ship that used a full-sized iPad to record every single town we visited. Photos and video. Video with full and full-voiced commentary. A full-sized iPad held at eye-level and arm's length, so that the rest of us had our view blocked. Argh!


(Side comment -- why do I recommend a Viking River cruise? Unpack once and sleep in the same bed for a week or two. Stops in fascinating towns or cultural locations (like castles!). Your choice of a slow and gentle tour for those with mobility issues, a tour for most of us, a tour for the adventurous (climb that hill to visit the monastery overlooking the town), or, no organized tour at all - be back at the ship before the scheduled departure time. The tour groups are only six or eight people, and each of us have a communications device with earbuds, so the world does not hear you coming. I'm getting too old to plan out a European tour and deal with different languages.)


rsdsharp

(9,042 posts)
6. LOL. A couple of years ago my sister and her husband visited their daughter who lives in the UK.
Tue May 7, 2019, 03:55 PM
May 2019

On a trip to the British museum my BiL got one of those tour devices, basically an iPad with ear plugs, and set out on his own, looking at the display on the iPad rather than the exhibits themselves.

He did actually look at the Rosetta Stone. His description of it is much like his head: "It's a rock!"

ProudLib72

(17,984 posts)
8. Ha! The first time I was in Dublin, I received a warm welcome because I didn't behave like
Tue May 7, 2019, 04:06 PM
May 2019

an American! Yep, went skinny dipping at the all men's swimming hole at Sandy Mount. The other men there couldn't believe an American would do such a thing. Instant Irish cred.

Maybe all those tourists will forget to use adapters when they charge their phones.

steve2470

(37,457 posts)
9. good advice!
Wed May 8, 2019, 05:11 PM
May 2019

I am proud to say that when I was in Prague, Berlin, Amsterdam, Hamburg, Ratingen, and Copenhagen, I did NOT engage in that phone-obsessed behavior. I had to use my phone at times to make a few calls and to look at some maps, but otherwise I didn't look at it unless I was at lunch or dinner by myself.

I am kind of at the other extreme of that spectrum of "taking pics and videos and looking at my smartphone" behavior. I have always felt that taking pics and videos take me away from the thrill and immediacy of being in a great new place, but I will take a few pics just to jog my memories when I get home.

All the best to you and your family

eta: article about Germany here with bad Google Translate included lol https://www.democraticunderground.com/1016231728

DFW

(54,058 posts)
11. Hate to disappoint you
Wed May 8, 2019, 06:07 PM
May 2019

Not even WE have deluxe accommodation at our place.

However, we do have adequate accommodations, as indeed the poster above you has experienced personally.

DFW

(54,058 posts)
13. Pretty much, thanks!
Thu May 9, 2019, 05:15 AM
May 2019

Our eldest (in NYC) is getting married this summer and her little sister (in Frankfurt) will celebrate her daughter's first birthday on May 25th. AND--we have to run down to Portugal for two days starting in about 3 hours!

zanana1

(6,086 posts)
14. We all need a rule book about using smart phones.
Thu May 9, 2019, 10:05 AM
May 2019

I've never been big on rules of etiquette, but we need one for the damn cells! I have one and use it when I need it, but constantly checking your cell phone for messages, etc. when you're with another human being is just plain RUDE! I'm always amazed at how a seemingly mature, level headed person turns into a teenager when armed with a smart phone. Why do we suddenly have to keep in touch with everybody every five minutes? Why do we take calls when we're in the middle of a conversation with a real, live person?

I guess I sound like an old grouch, but I'm just a pissed off 67-year-old woman who'd like some human, person-to-person communication.

DFW

(54,058 posts)
15. My wife and I are 67 this year, too.
Thu May 9, 2019, 10:19 AM
May 2019

And yet, I had to wake her out of a cell-phone stupor in the check-in line here at the airport (I have to run down to Portugal for two days, and she decided to tag along), so that her/our suitcase could be checked in. Even 67 year old people are not immune to the addictive effects of these things.

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