A few weeks ago, I got an email from the people putting on the Travel and Adventure Show inviting me to attend this year's show for free. Because the price was right, I decided to attend, figuring that information gathered could prove useful for planning future ADVENTURING opportunities, also figuring that this would be a great opportunity to gaze into the future of the Travel and Adventure marriage.
I send my condolences to all of those poor saps that spent the $15 on the ticket and the $13 to park, because that show was a dud. There was no excitement in any of the booths. It might as well have been an insurance and actuarial convention. It was as if the entire show was sponsored by Nyquil or Ambien. I would have thought that the guy handing out 'Visit South Africa' sales literature would have been more amped than the lady from the 'Southeastern Wisconsin Board of Tourism', but that was not the case.
I was hoping to get information to help plan future trips to Europe and China, but anything good was few and far between. I should have expected it because the purpose of a show like this is to make money and generate sales, and not to present honest and or useful information. The only information I found relating to China was trips arranged by Trafalgar, with costs that accosted the soul.
Through this misinformation gathering, I learned what I always had known.
1. Plan your own trip
2. Beware of phonies
No one that is under 65 should ever leave the planning of their trips or adventures to 'experts'.
1. Planning a trip is half of the fun
2. When you get there you will know what to expect
3. When you get home, you will be able to tell someone where you have been and what you experienced.
4. It will save you a shitload of cash(Euros, Lbs, rupees, yen, dollas, shillings, dabloons, skrilla)
Now a word about shyster travel companies. As far as I know, I have never been taken advantage of by a travel company. Women, yes. Travel shysters, no.
1. Travel shysters are a bunch of phonies that only want your money. You will float down the Yangtze river in a semi-water tight tour bus, and probably won't see anything remotely cool. And they will rape you(r wallet) Plan your own trip.
Chicago Travel and Adventure Show
Highlights:
1.There was a camel there. I took a picture of his toe, and put it on my Facebook page. Don't you hate it when a Camel tracks dirt onto your carpet?
2. If anyone knows famed travel writer and personality, Rick Steves, they know that he may or may not be gay. He is ambiguous. Not that there is anything wrong with that, he just has some unique mannerisms. Anyway, his brochure that he was handing out promoting h
is tour company had the title 'Rick Steves: Europe through the back door'. That is some seriously funny stuff that made me cry with delight. You would think that someone would have caught that before he had one million copies made.
Lowlights
1. Being there.
Feast your eyes below with Rick Steves' back door review, and the camel-toe.
