I'm going to [insert place]. What can I do there?

[mez]

I am truly at a loss to explain these types of threads..

Someone on TA asked "a couple of friends and i are planning on coming down to new york for 4 nights at end of march but have no idea what to do or where to go."

Can someone explain to me what type of person decides to travel somewhere but has no idea what to do there? Granted, you don't always know everything about a destination, but surely there is something/someone that initially draws you there.

Am I missing something?

[Becky (Berkeleytravelers)]

Nope, not missing a thing! They probably don't know whether "they" like something - restaurant, movie, hotel, whatever - until they find out what others think.

I think for some people, going to a particular destination is all about telling people they went there. I feel sure that the people who post things like that are the same ones who have a camcorder jammed to their eye at all times and seem to think they have not actually experienced a place/thing/whatever unless they have filmed it, often with an accompanying commentary (or "interviews" of their traveling companions). I mean, doesn't this help to explain the obsession with taking photos of the Mona Lisa, actually consisting I'm sure of the backs of lots of other tourists' heads, plus a blurry object that might or might not be "somethinng famous" if only the (forbidden) flash hadn't cause such a glare . . . . (this phenomenon also reminds me of a thread on the TA London forum a year or so ago started by a woman who went to high tea at someplace very uppity - don't recall where, maybe the Ritz - and was truly and genuinely outraged that she was not allowed to take photos during the event, saying she would not have gone if she had known that she couldn't use her camera there - because clearly, for her, the whole point was the picture, and not the actual event/experience)

[GitteK]

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

The mystery of Mona Lisa never ceases to puzzle me ! It is really not a very good painting and the model looks totally goofy. And moreover it's so ridiculously small - I would steal it even if I had the chance.....

[Shoesy]

It sounds to me as if the person who started this thread is genuinely lazy , starting from the way he/she expressed himself/herself on the thread. I am certain that he/she is aware of certain major sights that he/she would like to visit in N.Y., but didn't even feel like taking the time to mention those in the thread. He/she found it a lot easier to speak in very general terms. As for all the other goodies that N.Y. has to offer, the OP obviously prefers to sit back and let other people do the work for him/her.

[denise]

I think you are being a bit hard on people here.
Sometimes when people visit a new place, especially somewhere large like a city, they are a bit overwhelmed by all the things they have heard bits about and don't know where to begin. So they turn to the "experts" for advice.
I also think they are afraid of missing something. Thats often why people try to see EVERYTHING in Paris on one 3 day trip and often miss the "real" city that WE all know you discover by just wandering about. Maybe it's THAT sort of information that they are after but don't know how or what to ask for.
In the past eight years I am still finding new things to see and I must say thanks to asking maybe vague questions on forums is how I found out about them.
Denise
love from england

[Happygoin]

I totally get what Mez is saying. I've gotten to the point where I can't respond to those threads, because I don't want to get snarky.

I remember a thread, not too long ago, where someone asked the following, "I'm thinking about going to Paris. Is there anything there worth seeing?"

I mean...come ON!!

[sandy]

What I don´t understand is why people ask those kind of things, instead of buying a book and finding out for themselves!

[sunshine817]

I try not to, but sometimes I just can't help replying "find a guidebook. READ IT"

Snarky, I know...but it was them, not me, who painted that large bullseye right in the middle of their forehead and dared me to take a shot!

someone a few weeks ago asked where they should go in France! A country of 60 million people and as much real estate as the entire state of Texas, and we should recommend where they should go without knowing anything about them.

shrug.

[Happygoin]

Honestly, I think they are the kind of people who land in Paris, walk up and down the Champs Elyseés, go up the Eiffel Tower and take in the Moulin Rouge one night, then come home and whine about how awful Paris is.

(Oh and maybe they fit in a visit to the LORVUE museum and take a quick spin by the Mona Lisa to snap a few pics a la Gitte's review above)

There. Rant over. I feel better now.

[Becky (Berkeleytravelers)]

My first thought when I read a question like that (and there are a surprising number of them!) is, why did you pick this place to go if you have no idea what's there or whether you would like to see what's there???

Really, I would rather someone that clueless just stay home - Happy is right, they are going to be the ones who just "don't get it" (as I saw on one thread started by a 20-something who said that Paris was old and dirty and just not very interesting and she didn't see why people thought it was a big deal but maybe she would "give it another chance sometime" or words to that effect . . . . And I must confess, I did say something pretty snarky in return, along the lines of "please, if you didn't like it don't go back, just go somewhere else"! )

[sunshine817]

and please let me know WHERE you intend to go, so I can plan to go somewhere else!

My chiropractor and his family just returned from a trip to Europe to visit his older son, who is studying in Seville this year.

He didn't like the food in Barcelona (!!!).

They spent one (ONE!) day in Paris, and took the hop-on, hop-off bus to the major sights. His opinion of Paris is that it's crowded and dirty, that Parisians are rude and downright mean, and that he'll never go back.

To be fair, one day on a bus to the sites touristique would definitely expose you to the worst possible scenarios, but still.

It's a good thing he's a fabulous chiropractor, as he's a lousy traveler!

There are those who should just stay home -- and that's okay -- can you imagine the crowds if we ALL traveled?

[sandy]

It´s like all of those who say Venice is smelly, dirty, old, and falling apart... I arrived in Venice with all those preconceptions I´ve been hearing all my life, and seeing that Venice what actually the most beautiful city just blew my mind. I think those auful comments made me appreciate Venice even more.

[chicchantal]

I think it's a question of attitude as well. For me when I go abroad it's not a question of 'what is there to see?' because I want to see absolutely everything. It's more a question of 'what should I not miss at any price?'

I do get a bit sad too when people on TA London forum only want to do the tourist trail, cos to me, that's not London. Same with Paris. I've been up the Eiffel Tower once, and in the Arc de Triomphe once. There's far more to Paris than stuff like that. The great thing about this website is that it's full of people who are interested in getting under the skin of Paris, the same as me.

Mwah! to you all.

[Penny]

Becky I remember that post so well, and thinking like most responders did. Why would you ever think you could?

I think it is strange in this computer age that someone would even ask the question on What to see, What to do, Where to eat, etc.

and I have said most of this before on TA.

However some people do not know how to research ( \ ;D or don't have the research gene). I think some of it is the way they word the thread/question. Ask for advice on how to research. I can bring a book.

And many are totally oblivious about travel conditions since 9/11.
Example: the overflowing trashcans (even now) at the airport security check. read an article recently that the TSA resells the unopened items and the monies go into the operating cost budget.

Even before computers I researched travel destinations (which is why I have seen some quirky tourist places, museums, etc.), using travel books, asking friends, etc.

I did this even before traveling on business and had to find out a lot about cities/towns where we had more than one location.

I have a friend who has never been more than 50 miles from her home in KY. Her husband decided a couple of years ago they would go to FL for spring break.

She wrote me Help, what do I do? I did the research for her but I did ask her some basic questions first. She didn't ask me to do it (the research) I offered, and she made the final decisions from my suggestions.

OK enough before I write one of my novelettes.

[denise]

:)Oh come on...this is just why I stopped my daily visits to TA because of snarky comments to these very people.
Some of these people have never traveled before.... Some have no concept of anything outside of their own little town or village and are attempting to broaden their horizons.... Some do not have computer skills.... Some are just stupid!
They are not all intelligent, worldly wise experienced travellers like you, give them a break and if you don't want to answer their silly vague questions don't read the thread.
I must admit though I have just posted some veiled snarky replies to one of those tiresome "can I wear jeans in Paris" questions.
Her "friend who went in 2006" told her NEVER to wear jeans or capris.
Where do these people get these ideas from?
Grrrr
Denise
love from England

[sunshine817]

I don't wear jeans in Paris, but it's for purely practical reasons -- they're heavy, hot, take up twice as much space as any other type of trousers,and take forever and a day to dry!

(I do have some tailored trousers made of lightweight denim that might make the cut...but traveling in the summer precludes anything heavy anyway!)

[Penny]

My first trip to Paris I took the Eurostar to London the first Sat in May.for just the day. I wore jeans, a nice t-shirt, a very old denim jacket and ( ) white walking shoes. Gee, did I look like everyone else? Couldn't tell the locals from the tourists that day..

This was just 2 weeks before a woman wearing leggings and a large shirt was escorted out of Harrods for being dressed unsuitably. made the paper in Dallas as she was from Texas.

Second trip got caught in the rain wearing jeans. All I could do was wring as much water out as possible and put in plastic bag. think it added 5 lbs to suitcase. Will never take jeans on a trip when I fly.

[Becky (Berkeleytravelers)]

I do take jeans - wear one pair and pack another. I couldn't live without them, black jeans are just so forgiving of travel mishaps!

P.S. Denise, you're just a lot more patient than some of us! (Must be the "grndma" gene?) I just think that unless one is being forced to go somewhere (e.g., for business) there must have been some reason that destination was chosen and if not, well, how can they expect someone else to make the choice work out well?

[laurel]

I'm with you, Denise - not very many citizens of the world have been to Paris even once - let alone several times .. or many, many times! And lots of folks have trouble articulating questions and wouldn't even know how to begin doing research. Maybe people who ask such general questions just want to connect with someone. Anyhow, some of the remarks have succeeded in making me feel a little more vulnerable to ridicule...

[sunshine817]

And Becky, the same people who can't be bothered to pick up a guidebook:

Want a complete stranger to make a recommendation without any input whatsoever, and

Will not hesitate to blame that stranger if they don't have a Perfect Tourist Experience.

(I'm willing to hold someone's hand if they say something along the line of 'it's my first trip abroad -- I'm in my 30's, and planning my dream trip to Paris. I like history/art/food/music - what would you suggest? -- at least they put some thought to it!)