Travel Companions from Hell

I've been on a handful of trips where travel companions suddenly turn into the companion from hell. Sometimes they are foreigners on a group tour, other times it is a family member or friend who I adore but drives me nuts on a particular day.

Traveling with others is a litmus test of patience, flexibility, and ability to compromise. We all have our limits. And when someone tests those limits, the results can get ugly.

I'd like to hear from you all. Any readers with quick stories that are funny, a little scary, or at very minimum just plain "story worthy?" Let's hear 'em. I'll start it off and hope to see comments with other stories. Think of it as blog therapy.

My travel companion from hell: While traveling overseas for the very first time (to Colombia, no less) for a wedding, two us went on an day trip. The excurion was a small cruise off the coast of Cartegena. The Caribbean waters and tiny droplets of islands were intoxicating. Scenery I'd only seen on romantic travel brochures floated past me. I was trippin' on the good vibes. However, on the cruise, my friend and I met two other American tourists - the only other Americans on the entire boat (probably in the entire country at that time). We gringos sat near each other to chat since we all barely spoke Spanish. The American woman of the couple was a stereotypical, unworldly, rich American. Demanding. Loud. Snotty. English only. And she pronounced "hola" with the "h." I was embarrassed to share a flag with this woman. At one point the woman grabbed my arm and said, "Will you order me a soda?" I took her money to get the drink. When I returned I handed her bottled water as that was the only non-alcoholic drink they had and she yelled at me and - here's the kicker - pinched my arm hard with fury.

I've since had many pleasant experience meeting other Americans abroad while traveling. But this woman put new meaning with the term "bad trip." I felt sorry for her husband who looked like he couldn't say boo for fear she might strike him.

Any other travel companions from hell out there? Please avoid using real names.

Travel Humor

Gridskipper is an urban travel blog with big city attitude. Occasionally, I glance over at the blog to read their latest snarky commentary on metro areas around the world. Five recent posts cracked me up so much, I simply had to share. Enjoy.

1. The Magic Castle Hotel
2. Hijabi Barbies
3. Wired Store Soho and the Games Therein
4. Woolly Mammoth Mammothly Underwhelming
5. Pic of the Day: Master of His Field

Mancation He Said - She Said

BlogHer's Pam gave a great round-up of the blogger reaction to the term "mancation" for groups of guys who travel together (college pals, bachelor parties, or colleagues away from work and the wives who just want cigars and Scotch).

Clearly, other bloggers think the term mancation is as ridiculous as I do. However, the concept is sound. Guys do travel together, label or no label. Take a look at what other bloggers are saying about the new travel industry invention of the term mancation.

Blog Networking

I wasn't able to attend the Blog Business Summit sessions (thanks for the summary, Zillow; er, Drew) last week in Seattle, but did go for the free drinks and appetizers huddle hosted by BlogHer one of the nights. It was an intimate gathering for Seattleites who blog on BlogHer and anyone else who wanted to talk amongst themselves. For the two hours I was there, I mainly chatted with a few people, but the commentary mirrored my experience as a blogger.

The summit wrap-up from Zillow is helpful for any blogger, and here are some tidbits of wisdom I gathered whilst networking for any travel bloggers:

1. Be honest and earnest - don't pull a WalMart.
2. When you bring personality into blogging, people tend to tune in more, and engage. One of the leaders at BlogHer said she'd blogged about subjects with vast variety, but when she decided to write about some funky symptom of an illness she'd gotten before heading to a doctor, many people commented with tips, suggestions, commentary.
3. Personal experience lends itself to the best stories, making them real. I know I try to do this, since most of my life is great fodder for blog post ideas.
4. There's a lot of noise in Blogville. Rise above it by making a strong statement or being unique. Stand for something. Have convictions. Or be entertaining.
5. Continue to find other travel bloggers and swap stories and advice. This helps if you get stuck about how you should proceed with anything from technical tweaks to content quality to story generation. Or if you simply need a boost of energy to recharge. Who doesn't need that?

Now go forth, travel the world, travel the country, even discover new places and scenery in your hometown. Then ponder, be yourself, and write it out.

Musical Trips

Gadling's Neil Woodburn blogged about his 24-hour experience in Las Vegas to see The Pogues which got me thinking. Not only was I jealous of his having gone to see one of Ireland's best, modern, and eclectic bands (in my humble opinion), but there are so many other bands worthy of traveling (road trips included) to a destination to see them with a good group of friends.

This is my quick hit list:

1. Grateful Dead (oh wait, not an option anymore)
2. Bob Dylan
3. Pearl Jam
4. Rusted Root
5. Sheryl Crow
6. Simon & Garfunkel revival concert
7. The Shins
8. Belle & Sebastian
9. Pink Martini
10. Kelly Joe Phelps

What bands or musicians would inspire you to travel with friends for a concert?

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Disney on a Diet

Families with health on the mind can now expect an increase in health food options at the Walt Disney World theme parks. Both the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disneyland in California will be affected by the CEO's decision to create new food health guidelines.

Disney is framing their decision as a way to offer kids and parents healthy foods, with an understanding that kids associate theme parks with fun, so it'll be a prime opportunity to encourage healthy eating habits. This isn't just good news for kids. It's also good for any group traveling together to know they can get apple sauce or carrots instead of fries on the side. The healthy food changes will unfold over the next few years. With America's obesity high, this is good news.

My speculation on what's next for Disney: Putting park visitors on treadmills or giving them weights to lift while waiting in ride lines. How about yoga with Winnie the Pooh? Or stretching with Goofy? Healthy food is just the beginning, in my opinion. With Disney's budget and influence, think of the impact they could make on healthy habits of Americans.

Source: TravelMole

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Flight Cancellation Woes

The New York Times recently published an article on the increase in flight cancellations and the impact on travelers. It's a great read, not because the topic is pleasant, but because it gives insight and helps you realize you are not alone. It also makes me wonder why air. You should definitely read the whole article, but the upshot is:

• Always, always check at least a day before your flight departure to see if your flight has been cancelled.
• It sounds like airlines occasionally cancel flights if there aren't enough people on the flight, although I doubt any airline would admit to such a tactic. Imagine - letting passengers happily sprawl out on flights and gain a little elbow room. They may even gain a few repeat passengers.
• Airlines have a high-tech rebooking reservation system that takes into account things like how frequently you fly with their airline, how much you paid for your ticket, etc. so your chances of getting swiftly and efficiently given a good seat are not necessarily even steven.
• Be persistent if not flexible. Occasionally, open seats on other flights "magically" appear if you're persistent enough, after your flight has been canceled.
• Flight cancellations are sporadic and unpredictable still. May the force be with you.

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Group Hugs

Nothing beats a good hug. From your grandmother/father, mom/dad, your husband/wife, your sister, brother, best friend, child. And when groups get together for club or team events, family reunions, getaway vacations, or weddings, a few things become inevitable. You'll eat too much. Laugh a lot. Take a group photo. And hug.

If you're lucky, you'll find yourself embraced in a group hug, armed locked, joy and silliness sprouting up all around you. Family, friend, or other bonds bring you close together. Hugs are greetings and goodbyes: physical symbols of those bonds between us. They remind us that, despite our temporal existence, we're all in this together. Hugs are good.

I was browsing around Technorati today and saw this free hug campaign video on YouTube. It's worth viewing... the whole video is quite funny, and poignant. In an urban area, a man with a sign saying "free hugs" looks like a freak, but by his simple and persistent act of love, winds up drawing crowds and a growing number of hugs from others, including group hugs. Sound ridiculous? See for yourself. Then turn around and hug the person to your left. You're sure to extract a smile, from both of you. :-)

Free Airport WiFi

Last week, I discovered a comprehensive guide to all U.S. airport wireless connections. Helpful as it is, most aren't free and there's something to be said for freebies. So I dug a little further to find a list of all airports worldwide that offer free wireless access, including the 5 previously listed in last week's post (Vegas, Philly, etc.). Turns out there are 160 airports with free wireless.

For those traveling internationally, this is a helpful money-saving way to stay connected. Personally, I prefer to disconnect at airports and read, grab a snack, or walk to stretch the legs a little before boarding my flight. But if you must connect, airports are doing their best to keep you wired. Happy surfing.

3 Quick Money-Saving Tips

FlyAwayCafe, featured several times in Group Trip Advisor's carnival of travel, has issued three rudimentary yet important tips for saving money while traveling. If you travel with your family and/or on a budget, tune in. If you're a frequent traveler, the savings may seem small now, but will add up over time.

1. Share your frequent flyer miles with travel companions (great idea for group travel especially).
2. Make one meal a day a picnic day (nice way to force yourself to splurge less often and spend money when you really need to).
3. Consider alternate airports (enough said, this is a must for travel these days).

Any other money-saving tips from the more savvy travelers out there?