I am speaking of the Fodors Board and I have gotten many tips that have made trips better. But, I think , on occasion, we all need to take a deep breath and relax. All too often in reading postings, I can simply feel the "tension". This hotel? What shoes? Which route? I have put myself through these hoops in the past and I am sure I will again in the future. However, we must keep it in perspective. Hotel A had great pillows. The waiters at Cafe B were timely. The road to Town C was bumpy. So what? Relax and enjoy. The distinctions we are talking about are on the margins. 99% of the trip is being in some place we have never been, learning from peole we haven't visited, and seeing things we need to be aware of. Don't let the "1% crap" on the margins eat up your time and your enthusiam by bogging you down in stuff that in the final analysis only shows you have too much time on your hands! READY OR NOT,HERE I COME!

Weber - very insightful comments. The road less travelled can offer many surprises. I think most people that submit queries on this board want to take some of the mystery and excitement out of their travel experiences. The amazing storehouse of knowledge held by helpful regulars and their willingness to share can take some bumps from the road - but, can we plan a perfect trip? Unlikely. I am constantly amazed at how very precise some of the information and guidance presented on the board turns out to be. Is there "abuse" by some who ask what others would call "silly or nuisance" questions. Sure - but with the right frame of mind we all get smarter. To have the opportunity to travel is a wonderful gift. Some will approach it with glee and enthusiasm because they will be experiencing something different, some with trepidation for the same reasons.

Let's be thankful we are able to travel and hope we all come back from our travels as better human beings.

Is that your first and only lecture?

Why are the tips you got here any more important then the ones other people harvested? If you really acted as you have instructed others to do, then you would not have taken the time or energy to admonish people who are interested in things you don't find important.

Still, welcome aboard. Chill out and enjoy the ride.

This is kind of the over-planning issue, restated. I agree with you that some of us (me included) sometimes get too involved in details to be able to make a decision!

On the other hand, no matter how much I plan (I'm the type that likes to look at pictures of bathrooms and rooms in hotels, though we aren't picky about what is served for breakfast or whether there's an elevator), we still have plenty of surprises, nothing is ever quite as I imagined, and almost everything is more wonderful than I hoped for.

If information that I find here on Fodor's helps me to make better decisions, then all the better. For example, maybe to take a different route that's less bumpy or more scenic. And some people spend too many hours watching TV; I spend too many hours planning trips.

"Welcome aboard"????

Weber's been here a lot longer than you have, North Shore.

And points well taken...I do sometimes wonder at people who find this board and then want to plan every second of every trip, every morsel of food that goes in their mouth, every alleyway they want to explore.

For sure, use the great insights here, but go explore and be open!

I have to agree with St. Cirq although perhaps some of those "comprehensive" trip reports that only exclude details about bathroom breaks (and a few times not even that!) can be fun.

I'll take "tension" anytime when compared to, "We just bought tickets to ________so please tell us what to do there."

Perhaps I was a little harsh.

But not everyone is cut from the same mold, and I see nothing wrong with asking questions about thing, large and small, that concern us.

A little tension is good during the planning mode. Better that then showing up in a city unprepared and wasting time.

I'll stop MY lecture now.

I love this forum, small details are fun as well as more generalized adviced. Tension? What tension...? Read , take what you want and have fun. Be thankul to the generosity and knowledge of so many wonderful fodorites.

It's the Superbowl today, and there has already been much discussion by those members of my extended family that take an interest in such things. Will the disciplined defensive strategy of the Bears beat the creative brilliance of the Colts' quarterback? Has Peyton Manning's time arrived? What do the statistics (expounded at length) foretell about the outcome of the contest? And just what did coach x <i> really </i> mean when he said....

And talk about tension. When it comes to football, it seems it's always, always about 'rushing'. Danger must surely be involved, for there seems there are people charged with the 'safety' of the proceedings....



Me, I always listen politely. I know better than to suggest that the game will just have to be played all over again next year, or that the fate of the universe does not hang in the balance.

Now, a great airfare sale? THAT would get this spectator on her feet, cheering. A waiter missed the order? The outrage! Kill the maitre d'!

Long may it run.

I'm an obsessive compulsive planner, but a laid back traveler. I like to tell people that I plan this much before the trip, so I know what I'm missing once I arrive.

To each his/her own.