Archived threads in /trv/ - Travel - 312. page

I'll probably get blasted by the Real Travelers, but I have a Rimova that's lasted me for years. Pricey though.

>>1160125
For carry on I have a Jeep backpack. Very very handy. Study and plenty of pockets, laptop sleeve on the inside.

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>>1160465
http://www.aspenofhereford.com/jeep-nebraska-navy-backpack?gclid=CIWDxofKh88CFdQ_GwodFk0DOQ

>>1159893
I've been in the VIP lounges in a lot of airports, best ones probably being Tokyo (Narita), Singapore, Taipei, and San Fransisco.

I know that standard United clubs give day passes for $50 a person. I got into these clubs traveling with my dad who is United Global services and has a ton of perks through American Express.

The cost for the more high end lounges (United Global First @ SFO, for instance), is just the price of the Intl First Class ticket you bought which gets you entry.

Not really any stories to share. Good experience at most of them. Best experience was the lounge at Narita where I spent a layover after coming from the states on the way to Taipei. They had great showers and great food to hold me over for a few hours. Asian VIP lounges in general are pretty good. Only bad experiences I've had are in Bangkok (some lounges there are great - thai air for instance - others not so good) Chengdu.

If you're looking for more specific info I can share.

I've visited quite a few. I fly business (the company pays for it, I am not rich). The best would be business/first class lounges in Dubai and Doha. Overall, it's totally different experience, flights are absolutely not tiresome even when it's a 12hr+ one. You can take a shower, treat yourself to a nice dinner or get wasted, whatever. Sleeping zones included. No lines. And after that it's a smooth transition to a comfy seat with more booze and food.

>>1159893
I've been in the China Airlines VIP lounges and they are pretty great, you can snack on the stuff they have laying out or get a nice meal if you like. They have wifi and lots of places to relax. Some lounges have showers (it will vary depending on the airport). I get in because my dad is a Platinum member; his ticket gets him entry plus one for his wife. Every single time I've flown with him, he just asks the person at the ticket counter if they will allow his kid (me) to enter the VIP lounge with him and his wife and they have always given him another pass for free with a smile and "of course!"

It's nice to have access to the lounge but not something I would pay for out of pocket. I feel like if you were stuck at an airport for a couple hours then it'd be worth your money, but if you're like me and don't like being cooped up for too long then a cell is a cell no matter what nice things are inside--I'd much rather walk around the airport to kill time, especially before 10+ hour flights.

>>1159763
i always liked the way finnish sounds, and i hear it's a fun challenge to learn, but speaking from a functional stand point Finland is the only country it's relevant, and even then most people there speak english

>>1159763
You want >>>/int/, Laszlo.
Also go with Spanish, it's probably the second easiest language after English and it's extremely useful if you ever plan to travel to South and Central America. Or Spain, of course. There's also a lot of similarity with other romance languages (especially Portuguese, bit of Italian too) so you can count at least some understanding of these as a bonus.

>>1159772
Once tried Spanish for a weeks, my general problem is which one to be learned? The closest I can get is Spain itself (herself?) in the next year, and I don't see any chance of traveling to South America, unless I become a millionaire. But then again, while watching films I realized that Mexican Spanish is much easier to understand, somewhat slower and clearer.

(funny, once I knew a girl from a South American country, and when she went to Spain as a tourist, everybody talked to her in English, even though her L1 is Spanish too)

>>1159740
>>1159740
Make an effort, I guess.

Introduce yourself, ask what's going on, express an interest in joining in.

By exchange, I assume you mean an exchange student? If in doubt, ask the folks running the exchange program for tips and introductions.

>>1159740
Learn the language, and recognize that you are a foreigner. You will make people feel awkward at typical gatherings outside of being a conversation piece. You are an outsider intruding.

>>1159740
Depends on where you are going to, in particular, how many exchange students are going to that city.

I went to a smaller town in Russia - only 20 or so exchange students and thus the locals were very eager to meet. It was so easy to get to know them, hang out with them and get invited to their places.

Friends of mine went to the typical exchange cities like Barcelona, Paris, Stockholm - very hard to get out of the Erasmus group there.

hi OP Im also going to Machu Pichu too from Sep 23 to Oct 1st
I booked a 4 day tour from this website:

http://lokihostel.com/en/travel/area/machu-picchu

Besides machu pichu, it includes cusco city, rainbow mountain (vinicunca), and sacred valley.

They are a budget option for backpackers, probably one of the cheapest alternatives for peru. They include mostly everything (hostel and transportation), except from meals and entry ticket to ruins.

>>1159336
Where are you coming from OP?

Not OP but I'm glad I found a relevant thread.

For those people who did the saw Machu Picchu can you detail what it was like getting there, and then what it was like once you were there.

Any pics would be appreciated as well.

>>1159269
Yes

>>1159269
I have researched this is as well. First off the requirements. About 25K USD in a Thai bank or proof of income of about $2K USD/month for a retirement visa. I think you have to be 50 or 55.

Other ways are to marry a Thai, or buy a condo (I don't think you are permitted to buy a house), and of course employment or business investment. Do know you only legally own up to 49% of a business, so this venture is typically done with a "Thai wife " whether legally married or not. Traditional employment is an option as well, but you are retiring, right?

The benefits:
>Low cost of living so any pension goes farther.
>quality medical, which is an important consideration as you age
>regional hub
>modern conveniences
>growing/developing (in case you do decide to buy property or invest in a business)

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>>1159269
I would think carefully about how stable you think Thailand will be after the King dies.

t is a country that has been riddled with coups, but with the King at the top things generally settle down and do not get too nasty, and the government after the coup tends to be be not noticeably worse than the one before.

But the Crown Prince is significantly less respected than his father, and I could see things getting a bit hairy after the old boy becomes a Buddha. Which could be any moment, he is quite elderly.

I have a friend, he said it was the best club he'd ever been to.

If you are a fan of techno music, it is worth it. If not, then it is not worth it.

I don't think the cover charge is more than 10 or 15 euros.

>>1159175
17 euros I believe, bad chances if you don't speak German. They pick people randomly, because they can, there is no rhyme or reason to it, knowing people helps obviously. Giant demand, little offer (it is a giant factory rebuild to a multi level party place, but there is a finite number which can fit it)
Get ready to see the hottest chicks get rejected and a dude with crutches getting inside and be ready to laugh at people ,who never got rejected before, start to weep like babies.
Tresor is pretty cool as well or kitkat

>>1159175
Claire danes has been in it and they want to keep their exclusive feel that even you from wherever you are are feeling

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buy a bunch of weed and smoke it.

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>>1157913

>>1158786
I don't smoke

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>>1158572
Sorry, wrong map

That Stavanger to Stockholm leg is gonna be really exhausting. Consider flying to Bergen instead and stopping in Oslo on the way from Stavanger to Stockholm.

Or even going to Trondheim instead of Stavanger, because the nature between Bergen and Trondheim is more interesting than between Bergen and Stavanger. Between the latter you've basically got "Prekestolen" and that's it.

>>1158611
Another option would be Oslo to Bergen to Trondheim to Stockholm. If you do that you get the chance to visit northern Sweden as well.

If you wanna see what's between Bergen and Trondheim, look up "Geirangerfjord", "Næroyfjord", "Flåm"/"Sognefjord", etc. See the following Wikivoyage articles:

https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Sogn_og_Fjordane
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/M%C3%B8re_og_Romsdal

Neuschwanstein

Austria

>>1158198
Eltz castle has more of a medieval hidden castle vibe to it, but generally black forest area has towns looking similar to pic.

Belgium based here

Not answering your question but if you dont like tourist traps I'd say go to Gent instead. Very alternative nightlife and special kinds of bars, music clubs like Vooruit and cafe video. Lots of water as well. For friendly ppl dont go to antwerp (arrogance). Brussels is our capital so more 'colourful' in terms of people and Also loaads of things to do music-wise. Bruges is very nice architectural-wise but yes, bit tourist trap but deff worth it.

Oh and basically gent is a leftie city so I think socially the best choice if you want to meet new people. Lots of vegan food options and a bit of a hippy-ish atmosphere but in a good Way (I dont like hippies). If you need more about Gent let me know, just moving in there

brusells is fucking beautiful, ghent seems fun but i was only there for a few hours

Or even just some unique/cool spots in Belgrade would be much appreciated :)

>>1157288
Belgrade is the party capital of Europe, from what I read, hear and see all over the media. I doubt it will be boring.

>>1157288
Just go to Bohinj and forget about Serbia altogether mane

>>1157188
First, what are your values. Hard to say where you'd like not knowing what kind of culture you are looking for. 2nd, what is your age? And last, but not least, whatare your education/qualifications?

>>1157188
This question comes up a lot, and the answers usually go like this.
You might think that you'll be able to escape, but most people with the luxury to choose live in a perfectly good country to begin with and are just spoiled for choice or desperate to solve their problems by leaving them behind instead of dealing with them. They consider the grass greener on the other side and don't see the bad parts of other countries or the good parts of their own because they've just plain gotten spoiled.
A lot of them want to "change as a person" or escape their lives as they've been until now, which rarely works because changing cultures rarely gives much room for personal development and people usually bring their old problems to their new homes because they're personal rather than circumstantial.
Are you going to be shot, imprisoned, fined out of your fortune, comprehensively socially shamed, forcibly relocated, fired or otherwise severely victimized simply as a result of staying in America?
If no, chances are that you're just in a life crisis that you're looking for an easy solution to. Uprooting your whole life to move somewhere else is usually going to cause you many more problems than it solves, and taking your wife along turns it from an ill-advised choice to a potentially irresponsible one.
If you honestly, deeply and sincerely from the bottom of your heart think that you're going to be rounded up and shot by the FEMA, die in a suicide bombing or otherwise have your life ended or ruined by staying in the US, I can't stop you from leaving - but remember that you live in an affluent country and are used to the amenities there. Other countries have different cultures and living circumstances that might mesh badly with you and your wife, and unless the CIA is literally tapping the side of your head suggestively with a rifle barrel, I would strongly advise that you stay at home and deal with your problems instead of running from them like some college kid.

>>1157201
Not OP, but being a military kid, and having a pretty nomadic adulthood in the military myself, and have plans on relocating abroad when I go out. He'll, even while I'm in I plan on returning overseas for my next duty station

>>1157154
A big part of Thailand's tourism is in fact medical tourism. The cheap quality medical is also why it's a popular retirement destination. If you doubt the quality of their work, check out the ladyboys.

>>1157168
>If you doubt the quality of their work, check out the ladyboys
Just, you know, for research purposes...

>>1157154
No real idea about cosmetic procedures, other than seconding the above assertion that sex reassignment surgeons in Thailand are probably the world's best. But as someone who had major emergency surgery in an upcountry hospital, I'd say you can be confident about the quality of care. My procedure included surgery, a boatload of IV and other antibiotics, and ten days' stay in the hospital, and cost a total of $2000. This was more than a decade ago now, and it wasn't in Bangkok, which will be more expensive, but I'd be surprised if you paid more than 1/3 what you would in the West.

>>1156302
For starters, stop labeling other people as normies and grow up. People must really hate you.

>>1156304
how do you talk about travel and not sound pretentious?

>>1156305
by not being pretentious about it
>if something was amazing don't be blaze about it
>don't name drop countries into stories unless it makes the story funnier
>don't call every little one week vacation 'travelling'