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[Valka D'Ur]

do understand that you should enter copenhagen with the expectation of not making much friends or conversations with strangers. danes are reportedly really cold and stoic when you don't know them, so she shouldn't expect chatting someone up in the bus. just also understand that it's not that we're unfriendly. if she asks for directions for example, the scandinavian robot will usually light up completely and be fully ready to help out. it can be a bit whiplashy. i'm trying to relay what i've been told of us, of course, the experience of everyone being indifferent and doing their own thing is a common one among tourists. to me nothing of our behavior is strange. if she manages to make a friend, we're however usually serious about it. just don't expect to, heh.

I heard about this in a Wolter's World video on YT. He said that everyone there is just minding their own concerns and don't engage in small talk with strangers because they genuinely don't care. But when the stranger speaks up and asks a question (ie. directions), then they'll converse with them. I get that, because in person I'm not much for small talk either, unless the other person is familiar or it's just a quick "hi" or "nice day" in passing.

I'm reminded of a thread I read a couple of days ago on a cruise page on FB - it really floored me. A group of cruisers had gone to Alaska and on the return leg of the trip, the ship docked in Victoria, BC. So the people who made the video wandered around, buying souvenirs, and then met up with some friends from the ship and they decided to go to Chinatown to eat.

What they hadn't realized is that the restaurants there all closed around 9-10 pm and their ship was leaving at 11 pm. Instead of doing the sensible thing and googling for available restaurants in the area and their closing times, they just wandered up and down the street until they found one still open.

So... about 10 people, including 3 kids, all march into a Chinese restaurant 30 MINUTES BEFORE CLOSING, sit down, and are promptly offended when the staff isn't instantly falling all over themselves to make friendly small talk and let them leisurely peruse the menu.

Hello - a large group, half an hour before closing? They want a sit-down meal instead of takeout, when they knew from the sign on the door that the place would be closing in 30 minutes? And these American cruisers can't understand why the staff would be less than enthusiastic about that? They want to close on time, not stay to wait on people with no sense of time or courtesy! The kids in the video had godawful table manners, and the husband half of the couple who posted the video tried to claim that "tipping isn't part of my culture."

Um... you're American. Yes, tipping in restaurants is part of your culture, and withholding it because the staff didn't engage in small talk because a large group came in so close to closing time is a pretty crappy reason not to leave one.

About the only thing in their video I do agree with is the insane price of maple syrup. But authentic maple syrup is always outrageously priced in tourist areas, and it's more expensive in Western Canada in general. I think I can count the number of times I've had it on one finger.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Sounds like an amazing, have a blast! coincidentally one of my best friends and his wife are travelling to Rome and Florence next week. Not that you'll run into them or anything.

It was an excellent 3 week trip. I was in Rome when the Pope died. Art and architecture overload. It was a very different kind of travel experience.

 

[warpus]

*clicks on original post*

*checks date*

*inserts "I should check post dates more often" cat meme*

I should have remembered that you went there, I think I even saw pictures. Definitely want to head there at some point mainly for the food and architecture

 

[Falein]

It was an excellent 3 week trip. I was in Rome when the Pope died. Art and architecture overload. It was a very different kind of travel experience.

Wow, being in Rome when the Pope passed must’ve been surreal, can’t imagine the atmosphere during that time. I’ve heard the city really shifts during major events like that. I’ll actually be heading to Rome later this year through https://gowithguide.com/Italy/rome/guides hoping to get a deeper look at the art and history side of things. Did you find that any sites were harder to access during your visit, or was it more of a general shift in the mood around places like Vatican City?

 

[Birdjaguar]

Hello and welcome of Off Topic. It was Easter and Rome was pretty crowded for Holy week anyway. The Pope dying just added more people and security precautions. Some local businesses closed. I'll start a new thread about being a tourist in Italy and the challenges.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Oct. 5, 2021. The distance is now outdated, but I found the route unusual.

Qantas performed its longest-ever commercial passenger flight this week, repatriating Australian citizens from South America on behalf of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The flight departed Buenos Aires, Argentina bound for Darwin, the location of one of Australia’s supervised quarantine facilities. The 787-9 carried 107 passengers, 4 pilots, and 17 cabin crew and other staff, including engineers and ground staff. En route the flight passed over Antarctica, reaching just north of 75 degrees southern latitude.

The actual flight path, in red, shows the flight’s path hewing closely to the Antarctic coast to avoid the small area outside the ETOPS allowable area. Over the Southern Ocean between Antarctica and Australia the flight made use of favorable winds and avoided adverse weather, adding distance, but reducing time in flight. The Great circle distance between Buenos Aires and Darwin is 14,683 km, while the actual distance flown was 15,037 km. As the flight progressed, the 787 also increased its cruising altitude to maintain maximum efficiency. Beginning with a maximum fuel load of 126,000 liters, QF14 climbed to an initial cruising altitude of 34,000 feet and then step climbed to 40,000 feet as it burned fuel and reduced weight.

https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/flight-tracking-news/special-event/qantas-performs-longest-ever-commercial-flight/