Your first "DO"?
 

I am quite new to this board, but have been reading A LOT. Some days ago I got a pm from somebody who is going to arrange a Prague-do and it sounded interesting but kind of scary too.

Please tell me about your first "DO". Did you go alone, did you know anybody else who was going, did you feel like "billy-no-mates" because everybody else knew somebody else, what "triggered" you to meet up... etc... Are there mostly men on the "do's"? Any women met up by their own?

Thanks! :-D

(PS. Maybe a stupid question, but what does "do" mean?)

Xxx.

My first "DO" was the LJU (Ljubljiana, Slovenia) DO. I went alone. I knew none of the attendees personally. I did know one by name in advance, with whom I exchanged a few PMs regarding a Coupon Connection exchange about a year earlier.

I had planned to be in Croatia around that time and since I would have to fly into LJU to get there anyway, I thought it would be a good way to meet other FTers and see a city with a group of individuals with which I had at least something in common--FT. FTers are a most welcoming group of people, I never felt like "billy-no-mates."

That DO was almost evenly split between women and men; there were married couples, married people without their spouses, and single travellers, both male and female.

We explored the city together over 2 days and shared our evening meals at a pre-selected restaurant. There were impromptu parties in hotel rooms after dinner, which were open to all, but no one was required to attend. As a woman, I found it especially nice to be able to wander a foreign city at night with other FTers, as that is something I would never do while travelling solo.

It was also the DO where I was dubbed "Pat with a bunch of numbers" since there was another Pat attending and it made it easier to distinguish us.

As for the term "DO," it is a slang expression for an event or something "to do."

pretty much what my esteemed colleague with all those numbers ;) said ^. my first do was this and it was great and i was made to feel right at home. my advice is go & expect nothing/go not knowing what to expect and be very pleasantly surprised (and if you're not careful, you could become engaged ;))

It was me !
 

Hi no-backpacker,
Hi folks,

This "somebody" who was writing no-backpacker an email several days ago was me. I'm kind of surprised and also disappointed that my email was considered as "scary".

After exchanging several PM's with another FTer, the idea of a PragueDO came up. So I went through a lot of posts regarding "Prague" and also was looking for EU based FTers who might be interested in attending such a DO. I wrote them a short and polite PM with the few basic information I had at this time, as several others certainly may confirm.

I received an overwhelming responds within a couple of days and I'm more than happy to give something back to everybody who will attend. FT has been such a great source of information and help throughout the years I was just lurking. Without all of you, I never would have been able to experience many of my fantastic trips I did in the past.

@no-backpacker, sorry if my PM was misleading.

To anybody else, I hope you'll have a look at my PragueDO thread and hopefully also join in.

1st was CO DO II in Houston Jan., 2006, hosted by Continental.

2nd was ELP I in EL Paso Feb., 2006.

3rd was the same Ljubljana DO attended by Pat with a bunch of numbers in Sept. 2006.

Cities where we've attended DOs and/or met up w/ other FlyerTalkers that we originally met at DOs:
The Prague DO is appealing except that we were there recently. If you're interested in Prague & the timing is right, don't hesitate!

Servus!
 

Oh no, I am sorry some of us misunderstood (could be my not so perfect English). It was not at all scary to get the PM from you, it was very appreciated, it was more the thought of meeting up with lots of "strangers" that was scary! :) However meeting up with people from message-boards is not new for me, but then it has been within my profession, so I knew a lot of them beforehand. AND there are mostly women in my profession.

Thanks for sharing your first do's! Anybody have any funny stories? :)

My family is waiting for me. They think I am addicted to FlyerTalk... :-D

Xxx.

Around here it's perfectly normal to fly off to a strange city (often on another continent) and meet up with strangers that you know only by their internet nicknames! :D

I'd be much more cautious with one-on-one encounters with people who aren't already known to you, but events such as the Prague DO should not be a concern.

My first and second DO where the Seattle ones! I attended with my daughter and we were very fortunate to meet so many wonderful people! I encourage you to attend. You will have a great time with great people!

Mine was a late lunch/early dinner in Boston a few years ago - ozstamps was passing through on a layover (on an ANC-DEN-BOS-SFO-SYD itinerary only requiring one SWU), so I came down for lunch - it was a group of maybe 8 of us at a Legal's in Southie.

Since then, I've been to DOs in Atlanta (a couple there), Houston, Anchorage, Minneapolis, Las Vegas (and probably more), as well as quite a few get-togethers with 1-2 other FTers for a dinner or drinks somewhere.

And in some cases, stay at their home. ^


Agreed.

The first time I met a few Flyertalkers was at the CO Presidents Club at EWR. In those days, you could just walk right through the airport to the lounge. Interesting group... discussing miles and points. ^

A few weeks later, I met several FT'ers for dinner in NYC. Hmm. More good talk about miles and points. I listened and learned.

Several months later, at the now legendary CatmanDo3 in NYC, I volunteered to help out. That's where the Brooklyn Reality Tour (now known as BRT 1 ;) ) was born. Both events were my first major events. That was almost 10 years ago.

no-backpacker, whether it's a small gathering, or a major DO, you'll somehow find a few (a lot) of people that you can relate to. ^ After 10 years on Flyertalk, I've managed to make a few friends. :o ;)

dh

I've not been to any of the big ones, but have put together a couple dinners here & been to Atl for a great bbq lunch do. Numbers wise they've been small. But at each I've meet folks for the first time. I can honestly say no one I've meet has been a stranger. Just like I knew them all along. Flyertalkers are the greatest folks on earth^. Working at the airport I get occasional "heads up" from folks passing through. If possible I try to meet them & maybe have coffee or a meal time permitting.

Most of the time I do not talk to people I don't but with Flyertakers I already know you so most likely will talk you to death:D

Gosh... my first DO was meet up with MSP people for drinks and dinner. Talk about the good and bad things at NW before the merger and travel stuff. :)

This one was my first:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/commu...o-fun-hnl.html
And here's the most recent:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/commu...-2-2010-a.html

During the 2.5 years in between, I've been to 7 or 8 major ones, and a handful of smaller ones. I now have several good friends made via FT, people I'll do stuff with even outside the miles/points manifold (including attend a Greek tragedy in one case :)).

In my experience FTers run the gamut of ages, experiences, and interests. The most consistent theme is that they're good people, and very welcoming. Speaking as someone who flew off to Hawaii not having met any of the other attendees in person and had a great time, I also encourage you to attend a Do. :D

It looks like our first Do was http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/commu...h-11-25-a.html (2005), though my first FT event was an MR seminar a few weeks earlier.

Most of the Dos we've attanded have been in the Bay Area. The only Do we've specifically traveled to was the 2010 SIN Do.

Virtually all my DO's have been in the Bay area as well, but my first one involved only three FTers (including me) and was in London.