What If I Really Survive My Trip?
 

That "dying on a trip" thread is so darn depressing. I want to travel wild, free, and without regrets from holding back!

Any recommendations for really cutting loose and "setting the town on fire". Give me some daring, funny or crazy things that would make the "nuns from hell" from my old high school chase me with a ruler again!

Skinny dipping in the Tevi fountain at 4AM?

A "stress release" massage in Amsterdam?

Pigeon hunting in Venice?

These are probably tame but I my first thoughts are:
Staying in the MOST expensive hotel in Paris, with nary a thought to the bills when you get home. Along with that comes the eating in the MOST expensive restaurants.
Did I mention shopping?

Hiring guides and trekking in Nepal, staying in really posh tents :)

Taking a really nice boat out with guys running everything for you and seeing all those little islands in Cambodia and Viet Nam..

Taking one of those African safaris but with just the Yankee and dozens of men who set up camp and cook and butlers etc. They would also have Insect wranglers who would make sure I never see a spider or creepy crawlie thing.

Sorry, I am not at my most extravagant now- I am going to just be happy to be on a trip and having watched them set Atlanta on fire, I can enjoy just hanging out in the Crillon for a few months and be happy ((F))

I know its hard for a refined and proper grand lady to talk of distasteful things that reek of scandal.

Still, I bet you have "kicked your pretty heels up" in Paris on more than one occasion? I won't mention that daring little red dress that made front page news!

I was going to suggest taking a baseball bat to the displays in some of the shops in Venice, the ones with the garish red swans and mottled green bowls.
I'd wear a disguise, and leave the owner lots of euro in compensation, but it would be worth it.

Be really rude to everbody .....be the ultimate "ugly American" and never look back ;-). Halter tops to the Vatican...up the down staircase anywhere. Go ahead... be wild & crazy!

>I want to travel wild, free, and without regrets from holding back! <

The problem is that if you survive, you will have to spend the rest of your life paying bills, fighting lawsuits, etc.

And what firearm would one use to pigeon hunt in Venice? And proper dress for pigeon hunting?

suggest taking a baseball bat to the displays in some of the shops in Venice, the ones with the garish red swans and mottled green bowls.


No wonder those ugly things have not sold at my weekly garage/barn sales! Letting the LW buy a crate of those was a big mistake!

kbourbon, I'd use a bow and arrows to pigeon hunt, just to be sporting and to keep with the historical setting of Venice.

What to wear? I'm considering this type outfit (plus cowboy hat) as recommended by ira:

africanacrafts.com/web_store.cgi?page=m11.htm&cart_id=3226354_195 613226354_19561

I've always wanted to hang-glide from the Dome of St. Peter's! But putting ink in the holy water fountain might also provoke a lightening bolt or two!

I've had recurring nightmares about this. Is there something wrong with me?
Here is my nightmare. I'm in Vienna. I have a huge lunch of Serbian bean soup and cabbage.
Next I am sitting in the Great Hall of the Musiksverein listening to a Beethoven Symphony.
Just when the next movement is about to begin and you can hear a pin drop...
well...you know what I'm gonna say.
The concert is over.

Skinny-dipping in the Seine?

I remember a post a loooong time ago where someone mentioned bungee jumping from the Eiffel Tower and getting your hair wet in the Seine!

Or since you mention pigeon hunting why not do the same in the Jardin du Luxembourg a la Hemingway. Who said anything about needing a gun???? ;)

I believe 'dancing naked in the moonlight', (in greece?) has already been done. Sigh. Wish I'd thought of it first.

Imagine being told by your doctor that you might feel fine right now, but you only have a month to live.
So you take care of things at home and take off for Paris, do all the things you wanted to do.
Eat Drink Be Merry, Shop, spend lotsa money, Eat Drink Shop...Spend all of your money~

When you get home, satisfied that you ended your days with a big bang, you find a message from the doctor, apologising for the mistake, that you are healthy and will live for a long time :O

Years ago we used to drink, dance and chase hot-looking babes until dawn, grab five hours sleep and start the party all over again.

Now, I'd settle for being skinny enough to have rich, sinful, artery-clogging dessert four times a day plus stop for wicked little snacks while strolling (or should I say rolling) down the streets.

How about skinny dipping in the Brienzer See in about 8 weeks. Ridethe ferry out to the middle, strip down on deck, dive in, and paddle ashore. The lake will be nice and cool by then thus giving you a prolonged adrenalin rush.

After emerging from the lake, you could ski down the Greater Aletsch Glacier from the Jungfraujoch. That would make for a wild and hairy ride.

Hi degas
>Years ago we used to drink, dance and chase hot-looking babes until dawn, grab five hours sleep and start the party all over again.<

Five hours of sleep? Slugabed!

>Now, I'd settle for ...dessert four times a day ...<

Gelato, gelato, gelato, gelato

As one on the board would profess:
One might wear linen trousers , dear, to look appropriate for pidgeon hunting. Make sure to bring the most suitable clothing for ones dangerous adventures lest you be noted for looking tacky.

robbiegirl, linen pants might be just the ticket - a welcome change from gym shorts and jogging suits. Besides, its getting harder and harder to find a lime green polyester jogging suit anymore.

Ah, my dear Degas, you are so full of ideas.

Here are my meager thoughts:

Crash every "hen party" you can find in Barcelona. I'm sure linen slacks will be proper. Bring out the old velvet wide tie and you'll certainly get glances from jealous folk. Or, you could try cross-dressing.

During the days you can celebrate your late night adventures at Cocao Sampaka with the finest chocolate. Be sure to drink lots of cava and all the wonderful Spanish wines.

I'm sure you remember it's always best to forget your white sneakers and wear appropriate "European approved" footwear. You can dress up as a metalic street mime and work the Ramblas: Can you think of a better way to live like a local and obtain an income to subsidize your adventure?

For more Ramblas fun, you could gather your own gang of n'r be good's and form your own shell game. I'm not sure what the regular gang might think... or how they might react, so do be careful and have good exit strategies in place. It would be best to case out the regular shell gamer's while performing your metalic routine. This way you can recognize all the "shelly" gang members and glean some wisdom from their exit strategies.

And, please, please, please.... remember all of us at Fodors and post a detailed trip report of your adventures!

-Sharon

Sharon, I like the way your mind works. I can envision a wide variety of ways to get in big trouble with Hen Parties, metalic street mimes, cross-dressing and loads of chocolate.

But please spare the children - no pictures!

You know, degas, there really are some pretty wild things that you can actually do. The one that leaps to mind is La Tomatina, the annual tomato throwing festival in Bunol, Spain. More info here:
http://www.spain-info.com/Culture/tomatofight.htm

Ever since I saw a magazine spread on this many years ago I've always thought about going.

I'm sure there are some other feasible wild things to do. Fodorites?

Two more thoughts come to mind.
One, go for a romp at midnight in Bois de Bolougne in Paris.
Two, run with the bulls in Pamplona.

Frommers has a funny quote about it, if you know what I mean. To wit:

You could spend days in the Bois de Boulogne and still not see everything.

Or to quote from H. M. S. Pinafore:

Things are seldom what they seem.
Skim mild masquerades as cream.

I am not sure I want to see anything there, particularly after the sun turns red in the west.

Ah, if you do want photos you could show the children, why not go back to your childhood and enjoy the playgrounds of Paris:

You could always start a riveting Frisbee game around and through or under the legs of the Eiffel tower! Who says you should keep this sort of playful activity away from the Parisian icon? Seems like most everyone limits this activity to the lovely Trocadero?s grassland.

Another Parisian idea would be to play hide and seek with a group of adult friends in the passages. (This would be a good rainy-day activity.) Or, if you prefer team sports, you could enjoy a game of ?Red Rover? or ?Dodge Ball?. Take your pick.

I?m certain you could think of other daring child-friendly activity using Parisian venues. Paris is fab and you will not be at a loss for creatively daring pastimes.

Speaking of daring. Did you see what the super-dads of London have been up to lately? http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/eu...ritain.palace/ This group seems particularly daring, and perhaps you could join their cause or simply glean a few tips from their web site:
http://www.fathers.ca/buckingham_palace_protest.htm

- Sharon

topping

You could try organising a mass pillow-fight, as someone did in London not so long ago.

Preferably in Harrods bedding department... at sale time.

Good grief Degas, that is all I ask, that I survive any trip! b(

PatrickLondon,
my husband thought that might be where he would end his days, in Harrods, during sale days , way back in the early 70's. He got caught in a crush, against the windows :(
But he overcame his fear of Harrods when he took me there a few years later :D

I saw an orange-throwing festival in a northern Italian town on one of the Lonely Planet (or GlobeTrekker) videos. Does anyone remember which town? It looked like a sad waste of many tonnes of Sicilian blood oranges. Plus, the oranges are hard, and I think people get hurt.

Apparently the festival harkens back to a time in the 13th century when a young bride cut off the head of the lord of the manor who was trying to do what lords of the manor did in those days, and this event was followed by a revolt.

I know you're going to Umbria next Spring, so here is a real tip for someone who wants to do something certifiably Crazy. Since I'm going in September, you can report back if this is truly fun or if I can miss it (I'm crazy enough, I think).

In Gubbio, in a tiny square (don't recall the name, off hand), in the center of the square is the Fontana dei Pazzi (Fountain of the Crazies...you'll fit right in). If you run around the fountain three times splashing water from the fountain on yourself, you will be deemed to be crazy.

Of course, to be certifiably crazy you need to have three locals splash you as you run around three times. I'm sure you can coerce a few locals to do that. Tell them you're a close friend of George Bush (just a joke, no politics here), and they'll probably be happier to do it.

By doing this, you become a "certified Eugubian lunatic." Afterwards, you can pick up a "patente da matto" or certificate of madness from many of the surrounding shops.

Since some of the people on this board have called you "all wet" (not I, however), you can live up to their expecttations by doing this. Have fun, you lunatic.
((H))

It was in the news a few years ago: some country's soccer team lost to France, and the angry fans urinated at the Eternal Flame and put it out. Want to repeate the history, Degas?

Oh crap, she's back again? I thought Fodors dumped her in the trash. :(

I feel like I'm being stalked by a bland mental midget. The plodding, slow motion attacks are boring me to tears.

Wait wait!! I hear it, sort of a soft thud thud thud....eeeek~

Wait a minute, she called ME a Drag Queen! LOL, and I thought that Red Dress was becoming ~

I'd love to see those big old trout lips working feverishly as she hunts & pecks out her yawn-inspiring attacks.

Trout lips ???

ROFLMAO