8 THINGS I HATE ABOUT TRAVELING
For me traveling is the best thing in the world (besides golf). And I know I am not the only person who thinks so. There are uncountable reasons why traveling is so incredibly awesome but today I want to talk about the things I really hate about my favorite hobby. Are you curious what a travel blogger hates about travelling?
Okay, here we go:
1. Free Wi-Fi EVERYWHERE
Free WiFi is not very communicative
I am pretty sure you think I am crazy . Who could hate good, free Wi-Fi? Especially as a travel blogger? I DO! Actually it is not the fact that you have free Wi-Fi almost everywhere, that’s pretty awesome. It is how the traveler handle it. Do you see the picture above? THIS is reality. Sad but true.
Sometimes I wish I started traveling the world 10 years earlier. Man, that must have been such an awesome time. People in hostels were actually talking to each other . Of course I am exaggerating now, because it doesn’t look like in the picture all the time, but I think the whole free-Wi-Fi-everywhere issue changed traveling forever.
I still remember when we volunteered in a hostel in Guatemala. The hostel was located in the middle of nowhere in Lanquin, close to the natural pools of Semuc Champey. We worked behind the bar which was also the meeting point for all travelers. If you believe it or not, the very first question we got from the freshly arrived backpackers was in 90%: “What is the Wi-Fi code?”. There was no “Hello!”, no “How are you?” Nothing. Just “What is the Wi-Fi code?” We heard that every day. 20-30 times. It really made me angry and one day all of a sudden the whole town of Lanquin had a power blackout, and therefore no WiFi. You cannot imagine how the travelers reacted. They were sooo pissed and of course it was our fault. And normally you would expect them to start talking to each other, right? No, they left the bar and went to bed.
Please travelers out there remember: The coolest thing about traveling is to meet other travelers from all over the world!! Take this chance and get to know them and their stories. You won’t regret it!
2. Ruthless travelers in dorm rooms
Not to much space in a normal dorm room
Haha, I am sure every traveler knows those people. Coming back from their party at 4am they fall into the dorm room, switch the lights on and shout “SORRY!” For 15 minutes they search in their backpack for a flashlight and once they have it, they can’t even remember why they were looking for it. The stinky shoes are nicely located in the middle of the room and, of course, they close the window because it is so loud outside. Finally they make it into their bed and start snoring… keeping the lights on.
Oh man, how much I hate these people. And it is actually the same when you try to sleep a bit longer in the morning. They don’t even try to be quiter and to whisper. Nooo. They talk about the last party right next to your head and don’t care about anybody. Please people, if you are sleeping in a dorm room, at least TRY to behave properly. The other travelers would appreciate it.
3. Flying
Unfortunately I can’t enjoy those views anymore
Haha, yeah right. I know this sounds a bit weird. A travel blogger who hates flying. Wrong job, Lars! But why exactly do I hate it? First of all, I am a man and my star sign is lion. So I am kind of a control freak. I hate being dependent on an unknwon pilot’s judgment (even other car drivers I do not know). Does he really know what he is doing? How was his sleep? Is he fully concentrated? Arghhh… these questions go around in my head the whole flight long. And yes, of course I know it is generally considered to be one of the safest forms of transportaion and I know all the numbers and statistics. But I don’t give a sh… I also know the many tips and tricks against my fear but to be honest they usually just help for a short period of time.
On the other hand I think it is totally okay to be afraid of something. Thinking about it, this is the only fear I have in my life and every time I step into a plane I am also very thankful for my life, for all the amazing things I could see, taste and feel. It is sometimes good to remember that life is a gift and that we should make the best out of it… but still… I hate flying
4. Traveler who do not respect other cultures
Nice butt young lady but not the right dress for a historical sight
This is a big topic in the media right now. Some travelers took pictures of themeselves while posing naked on a Malaysian mountain. Unfortunately a few days later there was a very strong earthquake right at this point and people were killed. Many Malay people now think that the travelers caused the earthquake with their stupid and disrespectful behavior.
Why the hell are people doing this shit? I don’t get it. Also some travel bloggers pose in front of landmarks or just somewhere in the nature half naked just to get some more clicks. And what pisses me off the most is the fact that it works out great. Unfortunately. Sex sales, always. But every traveler should not forget that he or she is not just a traveler. You are representing your country and your culture as well.
It is sometimes hard to understand other cultures, but if you do not respect them, stay at home!
5. Traveler vs. Tourist discussion
No matter if traveler or tourist, just enjoy your trip
Oh my God how much I hate this discussion. You are probably asking yourself now what the difference is between a traveler and a tourist, right? Well, you find hundreds (I am not kidding) of posts, books and websites talking about this topic and there are so many stupid arguments. Here are a few:
– Just want to see the notable “must sees”
– Seperate themselves from the people and the local culture
– Constantly make comparisons between here and home
– Immerse themselves in the culture
– Are aware and respectful of cultural norms (we just saw that in Malaysia)
– Make friends and connect with the locals
I don’t want to talk about these unfounded arguments but if you are interested to know more about the topic, I recommend to check out this post on the Huffington post website.
The most important question is… WHO CARES?
Actually what makes me even more angry about this ridiculous discussion are some of the so called travelers who think they are cooler or better than tourists. I remember a party hostel in Cartagena, Colombia. For the first time I saw people wearing a t-shirt saying *No soy un tourista – soy un viajero*; I am not a tourist – I am a traveler. And it was not just one, every second person had one. To be honest I was a bit surprised because for me there is no difference. If you are visiting a country, you are a tourist no matter what you do.
Back to the topic. During our travel we met many of those “cool” travelers and very often they talked bad about others. One guy told me he didn’t like Machu Picchu because there were so many tourists. He was really pissed because of all the toursit groups and all the old people? Okay, so HE has the right to see Machu Picchu but nobody else? Great.
Unfortunately I had so many of these encounters that I could write a single post about it but for now I just want to say: STOP this ridiculous discussion and enjoy your trip!
6. Getting sick while traveling
Being seasick is one of the worst feelings I ever had in my life
Luckily that has not happend too often to Liane and me. *Touch wood* But being sick during your travel is probably the most annoying thing that can happen. During our time in Peru we worked on a coffe farm. We slept on the floor side by side with rats, roaches and thousands of mosquitos. I know it doesn’t sound like the best place to stay, but to be honest, we like these kind of adventures from time to time and it didn’t bother us at all. But unfortunately we ate something wrong on the coffee farm. Something really wrong! All volunteers (we were 6 at that time) became super sick. We couldn’t eat, we couldn’t really drink and the toilet was our best friend in these days. And there was just one. Imagine 6 people sharing one toilet when eveybody has stomache problems. Not funny and we were sick for almost a week.
Luckily it was the only time during our 18 months traveling through Central and South America where I dreamed of a clean bed, a clean toilet and a hot shower. It was the only time when I felt homesick (besides our horror boat trip).
I am sure you had a similar experience and know why I had to put it on my list.
7. Dirty hostels
Luckily this “bathroom” was not in a hostel. We had to deal with it on our Amazon river boat ride
We stayed in hostels, hotels, apartments and even slept in a transformed chicken bus. But no matter if it is the cheapest hostel or a five star hotel, I hate dirty places (when I have to pay for it). If you read reviews on TripAdvisor or hostelworld, you will read one sentence very often; especially for cheaper hotels who have a good rating: “You get what you paid for”. It seems like many people just don’t care about a clean place. Probabaly the same people who run barefoot in a public toilet. Disgusting.
I think a hotel or hostel needs to be clean, no matter how cheap it is. It is actually no big deal to clean a toilet at least once a day and to provide clean bed sheets. I don’t understand why dirty hostels can still be out there but like so often it seems like many people don’t care as long as the price is okay. I hope this will change in the future but I almost lost my hope.
8. Being away from family and friends
My family… obviously
Everybody who is a longterm traveler has to face this problem. Being away from your love ones is probably the hardest challenge for every traveler. Luckily we live in the 21st century and, like I said before, there is usually free Wi-Fi everywhere. To be honest, it quite often doesn’t really feel like being thousands of kilometres away from home when you see your parent’s smile on the screen of your laptop. Thanks skype! But still it is not the same as looking into their eyes.
What I miss the most are the normal things one does at home with friends. Going to the cinemas, having a nice dinner, rocking a party or just meeting in a bar or café and talking about football and video games for hours . I am a very social guy and without Liane and BoB I would never ever travel for such a long time. I am a bit scared that my friends have changed during the time I was away. But I am even more afraid that I have changed. And that things will not be as they used to be before I left home. I am not a dreamer, I know things have changed, but I really hope for the best.
These are my 8 things I hate about traveling. What are yours? I am sure you have something similar in your mind right now. So please share it with us and leave a comment below!
All the best my friend and safe travels!
Lars