Dogeared

There is a reason why 'fast food' was invented. It wasn't because MickeyD makes the world's best hamburgers.

Fast food was invented out of necessity because people today live at an ever increasing pace. As one acquaintance of mine put it, 'I'm so busy living the life, I have no time to live my life.'

We in the Western world are used to rushing everywhere and have no time to 'stop and smell the roses' as the saying goes. Everything is done in a rush and things like speeding in your car seem to be a necessity. Does anyone actually understand what it means when a highway sign says, 'Maximum speed X'? Most seem to think the word 'maximum' actually means 'minimum'.

When you go on vacation, you may have your one chance in the year of getting off the merry-go-round for a short period of time. Yet what we see over and over again, is people planning to vacation at the same hectic pace as they work at.

It is not just that different people prefer to travel differently. To me the question is whether they have ever questioned why they travel as they do.

If asked, the usual answer is some version of 'we want to get the most we can out of our time.' The problem with that is the definition of 'most'. Again, we are conditioned to define 'most' as somehow synonymous with 'many'. Doing 10 things vs. doing only 5 is better right? So zipping through 10 places must be better than strolling through 5 right?

When I read something like, "We like to see more within the given number of days as our vacation days are limited.", I know exactly what the person's mindset is. 'More equals quantity, it does not equal quality, it's all about numbers.

When someone then writes, "Arrive in Milan and hire a car and head towards Varenna - spend 2 nights - visit lake como and bellagio(if possible)"

The evidence is clear. A jet-lagged half day at best to explore Varenna, then a day for Lake Como and Bellagio! The 'if possible' is a bad joke.

Everything you have written from the start of this thread PCtravels is about quantity and only quantity. It is a 'list ticker' plan. The question I have is whether that is really all you want to do, tick names off a list?

A lot of people will also write some version of 'we want to experience the local culture'. Yet they clearly won't have any time to do so. Take lunch for example.

In many European countries, the 'lunch break' is 3 hours. Yes, 3 hours and businesses close for those 3 hours. Many tourists get annoyed when they find stores closed for 'half the afternoon'. But that is part of the culture. Lunch is to be enjoyed, not rushed through. Often a short siesta after an enjoyable lunch is the norm. Imagine stores closed for 3 hours in N. America! Outrageous, ridiculous, foolish, senseless are the terms most likely to be heard if someone suggested it.

In many places like France, restaurants have strict hours when they serve meals. If lunch is from 12-2pm. Do not show up at 2.05 and expect to be seated or served. Restaurant staff have a life of their own outside of their job and they are not going to give it up to serve you. The kitchen is closed!

To experience a culture, you have to spend your time in the same way as locals do. You can't plan to whizz from Varenna to Lake Como, snap some selfies, grab a quick lunch and try to squeeze in Bellagio before heading back to Varenna. Got back at 8pm, changed for dinner, found a restaurant, walked in at 9.05? Sorry, the kitchen is closed.

I know different people choose to travel differently. The question is should they? So rather than being politically correct and agreeing that it is a case of 'to each his own', I prefer to express an actual opinion and say NO it is not a case of to each his own. There is a better way.

No one has to agree with me, we're all allowed an opinion but I am not about to agree with anyone who says, 'to each his own'.