| robertwilliams.org |
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| T r a v e l s a n d T r a v a i l s | ||||
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With the summer approaching thoughts often turn to travel. I would like to pass on some understandings that I have gained of various common phrases found in travel guides. My particular take on such phrases is based on my experiences of travel here and abroad, and from long talks, longer slide shows, and endless bouts of photographs being passed around with my friends. I offer them to you, gentle reader, for your contemplation. What the travel guide says: "This spot offers a scenic view." What the travel guide means: The magnificence of a natural or human-made sight is there for our wonder and amazement. But bring along a telephoto lens for your camera if you ever hope to be able to show the folks back home the breathtaking views. Otherwise when you show your slides or photos: "It’s over to the right. No---further---next to the second clump. By the big tree that looks like cousin Mabel’s hibiscus bush, you know the one I mean." What the travel guide says: "Call ahead for the hours of operation." What the travel guide means: Their time is not your time. So don’t expect to find the place open when you think it should be. Relax. Go with the flow. As I learned in Spain many years ago, eat your dinner at their lunch time and your lunch at their dinner time. And in between, snooze a bit, and then spend the afternoon sight seeing. Repeat as long as the trip lasts. What the travel guide says: "The building is dimly illuminated." What the travel guide means: Read here "near dark"---perhaps with small, incandescent bulbs hung at wide intervals. A small flashlight is a handy tool to have packed in the over-the-shoulder bag or camera case. Also prepare ahead by learning some phrases in the local language. Important ones include "Excuse me, but is that your foot that I tripped over in the dim lighting?" and "Pardon my bumping into you. I am not a bat." Use of such phrases may soothe tempers that flare up in the dark. Remember, we must all do our part to avoid international incidents. Wars have been started for less. What the travel guide says: "Expect transportation delays." What the travel guide means: This phrase is usually used in reference to trains, ferries, finiculas, tour buses, trains, and the like. Travelers want to pack a lot into a trip, maximizing the sights seen when there is minimum time available. And delays of the tram are costly. So don’t expect to see two major attractions on the opposite sides of the city in the same afternoon. Plan for separate days. You’ll find that other tourists like yourself will encounter the local people coming home from work and n’er the bus or taxi will move, locked as it is in the daily rhythms of city life. Of course, you will see much of the fashions, habits, and mannerisms of the people around you. As Traveler’s Maxim No. 12 says: "Be prepared to learn." (See also "Call ahead for the hours of operation."). What the travel guide says: "Souvenirs are available for sale." What the travel guide means: Really? Bring along enough currency or a credit card for all in your traveling party and some to spare---because you never know when something will leap out at you, crying "Buy me! I’ll fit so nicely on the shelf by Grandma’s painting of the Grand Canyon at Dusk." Remember that you are not only buying Uncle Joe and Aunt Edna wonderful keepsakes to put on the mantel to admire for years to come, but you’re also helping the local economy. We must help our fellow humans to succeed---at least until it hurts a bit. What the travel guide says: "Some climbing is involved." What the travel guide means: Hmmm. The best stuff is always way up high or deep down low---right where the original inhabitants, who may still live there, wanted to put it in the first place. (Ponder that for a moment.... Okay, please continue reading). Elevators might be available, but you must figure that they’ll be crowded. (See also "Expect transportation delays"). Otherwise, stairs will be the major way up or down. So get on that treadmill or exercise cycle today. What the travel guide says: "Expect the unexpected." What the travel guide means: This simple phrase sums up quite nicely what holidaying is all about, both good and bad. Although we cannot anticipate all "situations," we can bring stuff to help us in many instances (of course, subject to airline weight restrictions). And as Einstein’s Special Equation for Vacations ( E = mc2 ) states: Enjoyment equals Methodical planning multiplied by Cash squared. The End
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| © 1999 Robert Williams | ||||