Adam1222

When Ben says he "hasn't heard much" about places, I take it to mean he hasn't heard much about them as aspirational luxury travel destinations from blogs, or SPGs PR department.

Hence Tiffany's posts about Mexico City as if it were a strange, rare, mindboggling destination.

I think we've well established that Ben's travels arent based on curiosity of world history and cultures.

GUWonder

Traveling for world history and cultures isn't exactly the foremost reason people travel. And if interested in world history and cultures, travel isn't even required and may even be an impediment when books are so much better at facilitating education than playing tourist on vacation with the pretense of being on a world history and cultural exploration journey.

That someone isn't as much into going to museums and galleries and cultural festivals as someone else? No big deal, as it's different strokes for different folks. His is a blog about using points and miles for the kind of travel he wants to cover.

While some may consider a relative disinterest or ignorance about some international and historical items to be a sign of poor education or shallowness, does it really matter when people can fill in their own gaps for themselves -- if interested -- or just study/read something else?

iadisgreat

As long as Ford posts something that business expense write off counts.

kokonutz

While I agree with your 'different travel strokes for different travel folks' notion, I AM a history and culture traveler, and no book nor museum could ever compare to the sense and emotion I got walking around the camps at Auschwitz, particularly Birkenau, last week. I think I will appreciate/be haunted by that experience the rest of my life.

I've had similar experiences walking around, as a child of the cold war, Red Square. And tracing the path of the Berlin Wall. And taking a boat on the Mekong delta.

And read all you want about it, but you cannot smell the market in Accra in a book. Or feel the hustle and bustle of Mumbai.

Sometimes you have to be there to appreciate to truly appreciate history and cultures.

All of which is, of course, totally off-topic for a thread about OMaaT!

oliver2002

If there is a Hyatt or SPG property nearby.

FallenPlat

Totally off-topic indeed.

My top "had to be there" experience? Getting trapped in the middle of a full-on anti-fascist riot in Franco's Spain. Running up against the food shortages in Communist Eastern Europe back when the Iron Curtain was still up was kind of mind-blowing as well.

I'd like to forget all of that absolutely and completely -- every last bit of it -- but so far that hasn't happened.

JetAway

I'm constantly amazed at how little a writer of a major travel(ing) blog can know about the politics, culture and history of the places he visits (often multiple times). Yes, I know his blog is a specialty blog and that he was a Business/Finance major in college. But even Ford seems to come across as more "worldly" and better educated by comparison.

Craig6z

While post-Franco (circa July 1979), similar thing happened to me in Barcelona. In a ten minute period I went from casually strolling on the Ramblas to ducking into a restaurant that was shuttering to hide on a side street, trying to avoid Molotov Cocktails. Fun times!

skunker

Funny. I was there last year and the same thing happened to me, but no cocktails were thrown--Molotov or otherwise.

Adam1222

Today in sheltered strange statements based on what must be a biased sample:
"I know just about everywhere in the world is better than the US when it comes to train travel"

Bierjunge

It never ceases to amaze me how he thinks that he can judge an airline's investment decisions.
Taking many flights doesn't make you an expert of the airline industry...

http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.c...na-investment/

kokonutz

Yeeeeeaaahhhh.

I DID learn a lot from the comments, though!

Bierjunge

The first comment is good:
"What’s your finance background to make such judgements? An editor would correct this to “an investment I don’t understand." "

He lacks the proper education to make such conclusions.

Mountain Trader

I learn more about the places Schlappig visits by reading Trip Advisor for 5-10 minutes than I do from his trip reports. I read his St. Peterburg posts since I was there a few years ago, but all he had was 'Wow', 'Gee' and people don't smile. Mariinsky? Hermitage? Churches converted after 1917? Anything? Not here.

All the details on hotels ("I turned left upon exiting the elevstor") are available elsewhere with more breadth. His details on plane configuration are useful if I am planning a trip with that airline using that equipment, but that's once or twice a year.

Truth is his footprint far exeeds his talent or readability, and I expect that will continue in slow decline into the future unless he figures out a new schtick and makes it work.

Astrophsx

Mostly true, but this is in no way any different that Brian Kelly. There is a need to post multiple times a day. So you either try to write outside your zone or you finish your articles with... I only got to see a few places in XXXX city, do you have any suggestions on what I should have seen? Comment below...

You can't blame Ben for trying. Though I do find it a bit funny any time Ford has an article the title always includes his name. Is that his version of don't say I didn't warn you?