ilikeanswers

21 hours ago, donaldsc said:

Considering the cost of the cruise and what optional stuff you buy on your trip, I would think that an additional 7 E expense is hardly worth worrying about.

 

DON

While it might not make or break some one's European trip, it doesn't mean people aren't going to be annoyed at having another expense on top of all the other expenses. There are a lot of other things I would rather be spending €7 on than a fee😂. 

48 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

There are times when some places are best simply avoided.  But, back to the point: going to a place when it is more crowded (because you have not bothered to figure things out) is contributing unnecessarily to a crowd.

Not everyone has the luxury to visit a place at the "right time" plus trying coordinate every visit to the least crowded time isn't easy or necessarily realistic especially for travellers with time constraints unless someone can figure out how we can be in two places at once😂. 

And while I do enjoy a good after hours tour they are pricey, doing one for every famous place I visit would eat up a chunk of my budget so at some point I have to  prioritise and just join a crowd.

Besides some places can be more authentic with crowds. I remember in the Palace of Versailles they said during Louis XIV reign up to 10,000 people were living in and around the grounds. So having wall to wall tourists is really in keeping with the crowded authenticity of its history😜. 

To be clear it is not a visa waiver to Europe just the Schengen Area. Nothing changes with the non Schengen countries entry requirements. 

4 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

If one has done the appropriate research of a site, one ought to be able to anticipate crowded conditions and adjust their expectations accordingly.  

 

When I visited the Taj Mahal and the Vatican Museum, I was prepared for the crowds and planned what I hoped to be able to do to get the most out of my visits.  

I would agree with this. I think I have written before that I never travelled pre mass tourism so for me crowds are part and parcel of the experience of a famous destination. When there is no crowds I consider that an added bonus like my visit to Kyoto's Fushimi Inari shrine. It is was great not to have a crowd and probably did elevate the experience but I would not have been disappointed had it been wall to wall humans as that was what I had been expecting. 

2 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Our beloved cat, Niki, passed away peacefully earlier this evening. He will be missed.😪😪😪

😿💔🫂

My rule has always been tip according to the local custom of the destination not the cruise ship or your home country's culture. The reality is every country views tipping differently so tipping in the local rates will be culturally and economically appropriate. The way I see it as tourists it is not really our place to change a destination's culture after all we go home so we are not the ones who have to live with the consequences of these changes. 

49 minutes ago, Mareblu said:

Wish we could rename our Australian team.  I never use the word soccer, which is originally derived from "Association football" in the UK.  It's football, as it's called just about everywhere in the world except the US.  

Footballeroos doesn't quite roll off the tongue😝

On 6/8/2022 at 5:10 PM, Mareblu said:

A friend and her husband travel regularly to Robertson Pie Shop, in the Southern Highlands, for what they claim are the best pies in the country.  I haven't tried them, but she's so convincing it's tempting to hop in the car and bring some home for the freezer.

Been there about five years ago and their pies were very good. We got a chicken pie and two types of beef pie along with a really delicious cherry pie. 

On 6/8/2022 at 2:13 AM, cruisemom42 said:

So, would that be a case of a painting being famous because it is expensive?

 

(If so, I have a whole raft of Monets and Picassos to add to the list...)

Actually I think it is more famous for being so derided😂 which personally I have never understood why🤷‍♀️ they don't seem that bad to me and kind of reminds me of Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit. 

2 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

What is in gazstapo soup anyway that it is cold.

The common main ingredients are tomato, cucumber and bread but it is less about the ingredients and more the region of origin that makes it a cold dish as Andalusia has mainly warm weather so the people there eat gazpacho as a cool refreshing dish to beat the summer heat. When we travelled around Spain we had various gazpacho and when done well they are pretty delicious. 

4 hours ago, ldubs said:

BTW, Dogs Playing Poker is definitely on my personal list!  

One of those 18 paintings sold for $US658000 so they seem to be popular than people give them credit for. 

6 hours ago, ldubs said:

I wonder how many of the expert's list of top 20 paintings would still be appealing to everyone if they were not worth a ton of money.  Just sayin.   

Isn't it usually the opposite, the experts claim it is the best and the price magically goes up😜. 

40 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

There has always been speculation about who the sitter for the portrait really was. A very good recent paper suggests that rather than being the wife of a Florentine merchant, it represents someone else entirely. 

 

....and then there are those who say it is a self-portrait of da Vinci -- in drag!

Based some of Leonardo's "anatomical research" drawings I would be very surprised if it was the last option😜. I really hope it is Lisa del Giocondo. The idea of the most famous female portrait being a nameless unknown woman to me would be sad☹️. 

22 hours ago, donaldsc said:

Did you go to Red Rock or Valley of Fire or Lake Mead and Hoover Dam?  Did you go to Death Valley.  Did you go any of the very interesting museums in Las Vegas?  Did you go to the Pinball Hall of Fame.

 

My point is that w a bit of research there are lots of interesting things in and near Vegas that don't involve ever entering a casino.

 

DON

I think sometimes places won't always agree with you despite what activities you partake in. It is something I experienced after my New York City trip. I did great things that I really enjoyed but overall it doesn't rate as my favourite place I have visited. IMO there is something intangible an overall vibe or atmosphere that can make you love, like or hate a place despite how much you research or do the things you enjoy. 

On 5/31/2022 at 8:39 AM, cruisemom42 said:

 

Sorry, but I have to challenge that. This is one of those internet "tropes" that people read and believe.

 

The truth is that Leonardo's painting was highly regarded even in his lifetime and shortly thereafter. Other artists copied it directly, or copied his approach (the pose, the background).

 

Only 30 years after his death, the pre-eminent art critic and historian (actually he was probably the first modern art historian) Giorgio Vasari wrote in glowing detail about this specific painting. And what's more, he never even saw the painting at first-hand, but read about it in accounts from others praising it. (There is an earlier written source from a Spanish cardinal who visited da Vinci in France before his death, was apparently shown the Mona Lisa and two other paintings and declared them "Bellissimi....perfettissimi!"

 

So, no....not buying it that only its theft made it "famous".

I think when people say the Mona Lisa became famous after its theft they mean to the public conciousness not the art world. Prior to the theft outside of the industry few people had ever heard of the Mona Lisa, it wasn't the go to painting when visiting the Lourve or reproduced enough that people instantly knew what it looked like. In that respect the theft did make Mona Lisa famous in the way Star Wars is famous rather than critically acclaimed in the industry but never on anyones playlist famous 😂. 

On 6/3/2022 at 2:06 AM, slidergirl said:

Mona Lisa - the Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian of her time.  At least it wasn't a sex tape that made her "famous" 🙀

Paris and Kim are famous but I don't think many people know who Lisa del Giocondo is😂. 

17 hours ago, Mareblu said:

Thanks, it's what I suspected.  Pizza pie is a very American expression, but whatever you want to call it, just never plonk pineapple on it.  That'll start something😉

How about jack fruit😂? One my local pizza shops does peppered jack fruit pizza. Not personally to my taste, I prefer my jack fruit for dessert😋. 

Watching Masterchef and they had an ep featuring the pie makers of Country Cobb bakery. They made two pies, one a scallop curry pie another was BBQ beef with quail eggs. They both looked delicious😋. Here's the video if any one is curious the pie section starts at 12:45

Masterclass 2

I can't say the Sagrada Familia was appealing to me either, though oddly I did find the crypt quite nice. 

On 5/17/2022 at 5:08 AM, rkacruiser said:

My traveling companion booked two tours for us in Amsterdam through Viator.  The first tour was a dinner Canal Cruise; the second was a Canal cruise during the day.  Both tours were excellent with no issues.  Maybe we were lucky?  

I guess I must be lucky too😂. Mind you I have only booked three experiences with Viator. It is not my go to aggregate site though so far no bad experiences on any sites🤞. 

While I do like to try and book direct sometimes I do find aggregation sites more convenient in certain circumstances like road tripping where I find it easier having all the accommodations on one website and in Japan we had a unique experience where places didn't have English language websites and I found the aggregation site translations much better than Google Translate so I preferred to book via them.

There is one particular tour guide site where you find guides you would not be able to access otherwise. They don't have their own websites or direct booking facilities. I once asked one of these guides why they don't have their own websites and she said the costs associated with having a website along with payment platform fees, advertising and search engine fees were more expensive than the cut the aggregate site took. 

13 hours ago, possum52 said:

Last Sunday we had been out watching grandson play football and Rob was feeling unwell later in the day, cold symptoms. As he had a medical appointment Monday morning, thought he should test - he was positive. I started to feel unwell a few days later and tested positive last night. I am feeling quite fatigued and have a very sore throat. Yesterday had a shocking headache, but not today. 

Hope you get well soon. Rest is good apparently helps to minimise long Covid. Similar thing happened to me. First my dad started to get a scratchy throat, did a RAT test and it was covid positive. Then my throat started getting scratchy also did a test Covid positive and then my mum who we thought had a stomach bug also came Covid positive. Been soothing myself with a warmed up mix of apple cider vinegar and honey. Interesting to see how different our symptoms are, my dad just got a sore throat, I got the sore throat with congestion and while my mum got an upset stomach she avoided the sore throat and any congestion issues. 

On 5/20/2022 at 4:58 PM, CarelessAndConfused said:

Since the Mona Lisa has been referenced so much, let me ask you folks something.  I've always been curious about whether people genuinely like it all that much or if it's just a fascination for the fact that it is arguably the most famous painting (and undoubtedly worth a ton).  For my part, if I owned it, I wouldn't hang it on my wall.  On the other hand, I'd give up a billion dollars to hang The Starry Night if I had that kind of money.

I recently watched a doco about the painting of the Mona Lisa where a professional artist tried to replicate the painting the way Da Vinci would have painted it. I never realised before how technically difficult the painting was. I have new found appreciation for the painting but would I hang it on my wall? Nope😂.

I remember an art dealer once saying you should buy paintings that speak to you otherwise it is just a pretty picture that you'll never appreciate. I think that is a good way to look at art and personally contemporary art speaks to me a lot more than the so called great masters and I usually find art by women a lot more relatable. Also I love crafts like embroidery, metal work or weaving. A lot of people don't consider those things real art but to me there is just as much skill and artistry as any grand painting while telling more intimate stories about people, families and culture. 

As for the value of art watching the show Fake or Fortune makes me think the whole valuation of art is very whimsical and flimsy😂. 

I haven't had a bucket list destination disappoint me, but my bucket list is pretty selective 😜. Since I didn't travel pre crowds I don't have that nostalgia. Cowds at tourists sites are the only normal I know😂. In saying that I have had three famous places disappoint me. One was Bled in Slovenia, overly touristified as if locals didn't even live there on top of that prices were 10x higher than in the rest of Slovenia and it didn't feel like 10x the value. The other was Poas crater in Costa Rica. It was one of those moments where you find yourself thinking, is this it? The other destination was New York City. I had friends who talked it up so I probably went in with too high an expectation and it just wasn't for me in the end. 

Most destinations I'm probably more "meh". I'm not disappointed but I'm not blown away. I go in with a lot of curiosity so for me seeing sights in real life is part of the joy travelling even if those sights aren't particularly amazing or maybe disappointing I'm still happy to have that experience. 

21 hours ago, NSWP said:

When you travel overseas and see the trains they have in Japan, UK, USA, other European countries etc, you can see how antiquated our trains are.🚆

You can add Morocco and Nigeria to that list😂. Maybe we should get some Australian princes who need help recovering their inheritance😜. 

22 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

 

Ah yes there is a difference between "Tips" and "Gratuities"

TIPS stands for To Insure Proper Service and are given up front, as a bribe as it were. There is a great line in a movie starring Dustin Hoffman. It is set in the 1920s, Hoffman plays an American Journalist visiting the UK. As he enters an establishment he says "Would it be considered gauche if I offered you this to insure the best possible service?" as he slips a bank note to the person being bribed.

Gratuities are given after service as a thankyou for excellent service, unfortunately in North America and other places they have become expected no matter how good or bad the service is.

You might want to add Daily Service Charge (DSC) to the list. Had someone on CC correct me telling me officially on cruise ships it is not a gratuity or a tip but a DSC😂. 

13 hours ago, possum52 said:

will see some more of Australia, starting with a trip to Cairns at the end of July. I haven't been that far north and it is 50 years or more since my husband visited so we are looking forward to some warm weather in our winter. 

 

Take care and look after yourself.

Did a FNQ trip last year, Cairns has certainly developed alot but we enjoyed the town. Crystal Cascades was lovely and if you get the chance the road up to Copperlode Dam has some excellent views. We got a really good deal on Port Douglas accommodation probably because of the covid situation so we stayed two nights. The resorts geared to international tourists were pretty much empty. The town was nice but it did feel like one big resort. Every house we saw had a holiday to let sign. It made you wonder if anyone actually lived in PD 😂.