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Would you mind elaborating on some of your Madrid tips? I have been advocating a Madrid trip, but my wifeās first experience in Spain was a fantastic Barcelona trip and they turned her against Madrid for life, lol.
You should post this in the watch thread (aka Kinetic Wrist Sculptures). There are a couple of regs there who know the watch game pretty well.
As one would expect, the watch stores in Switzerland were spectacular. In Geneva in a couple block radius thereās a store for literally every luxury brand. Not necessarily suggesting you go to Geneva to buy a watch, but it would be awesome!
Itās been a while, but I donāt think you can compare Madrid and Barcelona. One is a top tier city and the other is magic.
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I donāt really have any special tips as I was only there a week. I think itās just one of those cities that either you like it a lot or you donāt.
For me, just walking the Gran VĆa and all the pedestrian friendly streets was a blast. It has 3 world class museums (Prado, Reina Sofia, Thyssen-Bornemisza) which can also be seen free if you visit during a certain hour.
Iād try to work in a few day trips. There are 3 UNESCO sites within an hour (AlcalĆ” de Henares, Escorial, Aranjuez), as well as a dozen or so cool little cities pretty close by train or driving (Toledo, Segovia, Ćvila, Salamanca).
Finally, a lot of the secondary neighbourhoods are really cool for a stroll and worth checking out (MalasaƱa, La Latina, LavapiƩs)
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thanks, done
Iām also on the Madrid > Barca team.
Like you, I think that Iām just a big city guy. Thatās whatās puts Madrid ahead for me. Itās just bigger with more stuff to do and experience. After about half a day there, I was like āI could totally live hereā .
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Off to Belgrade next week. Looking forward to my break!
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Man the shame I feel as an American watching asshole Americans abroad. So incredibly painful.
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Depends where you are and who youāre around.
If youāre among tourists in a country very different the west, it can be rough. The expat community is more open-minded though. I mean they chose to leave America for a reason.
Meeting American tourists can be a weird experience because they assume that I am like them because weāre from the same country. But that breaks down fast when I tell them that I havenāt lived in America full-time in the last 10 years. Americans living abroad is a different story though.
When travelling myself, Iām always aware that I am representing America regardless of where I actually live. So I always make an effort to not be an asshole wherever I go.
I truly donāt get why these people bother traveling to a different country. Hey moron, if you want an Applebees experience, stay in bumblefuck USA.
Iām sure it gives them dumb MAGA endorphins to go to another country and complain about how itās not as good as 'Merica.
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God bless America, and no place else!
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To brag to their friends about it.
Honestly, most American tourists Iāve run into are pretty good people. I guess if your tourist experience involves being in hotels and part of package tours, youāre probably dealing with people in a different income class than me.
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Btw thereās a great FB group called Every Passport Stamp that has detailed TRs of people going to pretty much every country on earth. It seems to be a country collector group. But not the super hardcore ones that have points and keep score. Iām amazed itās not overrun by idiots yet.
Anyone have you beat in the vehicle category?
They mostly fly. But plenty of people in the overlanding groups have me beat.
I have to admit, when I was near Bolivia in Puno, Peru, I thought about hopping over the border, mostly to say I had been to Bolivia, but also because Lake Titicaca is supposed to be better from that side. Anyway, Bolivia was charging Americans like $120 or something for visas, so I said F that. Not worth it for a half day there.
In general though, Iād say that Iād much rather spend a month in a cool place, rather than try to bang out like 7 countries in a month just to check them off the list.
Iāve been traveling a ton since 2011, but only have been to 27 countries, which isnāt super impressive, but of those, Iāve spent over a year in 6 of them (if you include my native USA), and spent 1-3 months in another 5 of them. So I feel like I know those places pretty well. I donāt think Iād trade that experience for someone who had been to 80 countries, but spent less than 1 week in all of them.
Anyway, I hope to get to 80 one day, even with my slower rhythm. If we go through with our 5-year Bangkok plan, then weāll be knocking out a ton of Asian countries over that time.