Where do you draw the line?

Mel;

I can totally see your point. Even though I am as multi-cultured as they come, so I am pretty easy when it comes to weird traditions, I can very easily relate to what you're saying.

When I was 10, I was taken to a remote village in Kazakhstan. Traditionally, they did not use tables but were eating from the floor. (Giant rugs were used to mark the "table" area.) Flies were flying all over our food, as well as sickly looking skinny cats crossing the "table" at times. As if it wasn't difficult enough for a 10-year old spoiled girl, I soon learned that traditionally, if you didn't belch as loudly as you could after the meal it meant that you didn't like the food and you're offending the host. So when all the burping sounds started (I am not talking about little hiccup sounds) I got so grossed out that I threw up right there in front of everyone. When I realized what I'd done I could only hope that vomit meant you really-really liked the food.

I forget the point I was trying to make, but anyway. I was in Asia in May/June and was shocked that some cab drivers, porters, etc. were DEMANDING their tip in an aggressive manner. As you said, their prices are pretty low by our standards, but still, it did gross me out.

edit: Oh, I just remembered my point: Those folks burping into my face didn't see that they were humiliating me big time. Reply to this

LOL poor fellow!

Those horrible experiences do somehow manage to turn into fond memories though...

For the most part I too stay in hotels. I can't decide which style of traveling I like more, adventurous or more mainstream. I think I like "roughing it" as much as I like swanky hotels and anything else in between. At the end of the day I like them all equally, for different reasons though.

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I hear you, Mel, I do :-).

Same here, I tend to turn down invitations to stay at locals' homes for the exact reasons you described. There are times tough when I feel more adventurous and go for it. (Not very often, believe me :-D)

Swanky corporate hotels aren't my favorite either but I am guilty of having stayed at Hiltons and Sheratons in many countries. They can be very nice after you've been roughing it at locals' houses, let me tell you, LOL!

The places I most like to stay at are local hotels. I love that old-world charm.

Sometimes I am in an area so remote that I don't really get to choose where I stay as there just aren't any options. Once I was in this village in the middle of nowhere in Asia where I stayed at a local home. The house didn't have bathrooms, only a toilet that was detached from the house and was basically a hole in the ground with no way to flush, was very smelly and full of flies and mosquitos. To shower, we had to go to a bath house that looked everything but hygienic to me if you get my drift. But we couldn't go every day anyway as it was too far. I love being pampered as much as the next person, but in a weird way I also find it pretty empowering that I know that I could survive on next to nothing if I had to. There is something to be said about going rural once in a while, it's definitely an experience.

Once, when I was in a remote area in Africa for a couple of months, we stayed at the 'best hotel in town'. By local measures I'm sure it was considered really grand, yet it had mice, no glass in the window, no water pressure, etc. I got malaria, which was a horrible experience. After a couple of months we got back to civilization and the first place we went to was the Sheraton. I have never been as happy to have nice food as I was then. And running water. And staff tending to me.

A similar experience I had was at the 2004 South-East Asia tsunami. As I happened to be in India at the time I decided to volunteer my time and resources for the next few months to help the survivors. There weren't many hotels left and the ones that were functioning were full (BBC, CNN, and such) so for the first few days we didn't really have anywhere to stay. When we returned to civilization, we checked into a fancy hotel for 2 weeks (they upgraded our room to a rather posh suite for free after they found out that we had volunteered at the tsunami for months) and I very much enjoyed a hot bath, clean sheets and some nice food.


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Oh, Gosh, you described those Chinese hotels so well, I could almost smell the lingering mixture of mildew and food!

Oh, yes, Hiltons and Sheratons are great for taking a break from local life.

At the end, it's all about what you're in the mood for at the moment. Luxury, mediocre or downright unbearable.

But even though I have my preferences, I am still pretty easygoing and open to adventure, and therefore I can have a good time under just about any circumstance.

I don't know if you'll agree, but I think those crisp sheets feel the best when I feel I "earned" them, after having gone rural for a while :-D Reply to this

I think another reason why the comfort of that old world hotel in China sticks in my memory so much is because of the journey to get there.
It was pouring rain when I got on a dodgy old bus. My clothes were soaking wet already. There was no room on the bus to even stand and I was the only foreigner and way too tall for the conditions on that bus. Some Chinese people managed to somehow move over a little so I could wedge myself in between 2 of them. Lucky I am not overweight! The spot where I sat had a roof leak over it. For all the 5 hours of the bus journey, icey rain dripped on the top of my head or the side of my head and rivlets constantly ran inside the collar of my jacket. :D Reply to this

Talking about luxury versus economy, did you know that you can "shampoo" your hair without water? (I had to do this at times, when I was without water...) You take talc or baby powder or whatever powder is available, sprinkle it on your head, distribute it using your fingers, leave it on for a couple of minutes then comb it out.

I know people who have had their hair braided before going to Asia so they wouldn't have to deal with it, but their scalps were itching and they just couldn't stand it and unbraided them.

I see a lot of people traveling with wet wipes. I don't find them very useful at all. I actually feel dirtier when I use them as the dirt mixes with the stickiness of the tissue.

I find that the best way to prolong the effects of a shower (if we can call dripping water a shower) is to use talc all over the body after showering, once you're completely dry.

I did learn that those small packets of butter from the restaurants can serve as body lotion if you're in a dire need and the sugar packets that come with your coffee/tea can double as an exfoliator if needed :-) Reply to this

Yes, salt can double as tooth paste if worse comes to worst. I once saw a woman pulling out a hair and flossing her teeth in a restaurant. It looked rather disgusting but I gotta give her credit for being original. Reply to this

I find that the more off the beaten track I am the more resourceful I become. When the only bath house was so far that we could only go there every other day I found the benefits of talc powder and learned to prolong the benefits of a shower.

Being dirty can be fun in its own weird way, sort of like camping. Reply to this

I haven't been part of this thread yet because I didn't realize it was here

Welcome to the thread, then . 😊

Yeah, the waterfall was the natural experience for sure. :D After the waterfall shower me and the Dutch guy I was with went back to the guesthouse. The lady who owned it built a fire outside for us. We sat there for hours in the dark beside it. We didnt have perfume, cologne and make up to wear but the scent of woodsmoke and the African flowers growing about the place made up for it. 😊 Reply to this

What job do you do Cosmic Treehouse that brings you in contact with the VIPs, dignitaries.....?

In Africa, white people automatically seem to get VIP status no matter who they are. I resisted the attempts some were making to introduce me to politicians. I did however submit to being shown around 1 hospital in a village in Kenya. :D Another place where I draw the line is insisting that I am not treated as more important than I really am in the third world. And I am guessing that many of those politicians are corrupt and not nice people so I dont want to meet them anyway.

My friend who is English but has Jamacian parents was treated in the opposite way in Africa. People presumed she was a prostitute because she was travelling around with her white boyfriend. African men kept offering to help her to rob him.

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