Reader Comments on HoboTraveler.com, Page 343

Andy;

Thanks for making the Michigan winter a little more bearable. I'm so glad I'm not in the Carib, what torture!

By the way, what would be your top choices for low cost beach bum living?

When I saw this on my RSS, I was wondering what advertisements Google would come up with!

any hotels you can rerccommend in palawan?

Reading the blog about anguilla country club forced me to write about indian tourism. If you want to vist india at its best you have to come to rajasthan and select from any tour package by http://www.rajasthandiary.com

We have got a variety of tour arrangements and you can even take lunch with rajasthan traditional family which would be a great experiement for you.

Very interesting :)

This pants thing was to help travelers not have to change their pants. On the other hand, all cultures need to be polite, including the OBNOXIIOUS AND EXTREMELY RUDE USA Customs.

I tried to take a photos of the immigration guy in the USA, he got very angry. I was going to put his photo on the internet... Did not work.

I am learning.
I am a single guy walking around, I have long hair, going to be in a ponytail soon. What I have learned is because I am maybe not the normal stereotype Couples or Package Tour stay in the resort person the Dread types come up and want to sell me drugs, women, etc. I do not need the what-ever-you-call this talk, and I do not need anyone ordering me to do anything. I am 50 year old man, do not like Bob Marley, do not do drugs, do not drink, do not want to have people offer me drugs.

I agree with the pants thing, there is nothing wrong with this law. I do feel there is an intimidation going on, I am living OUTSIDE THE RESORTS - I am the one that is really trying to understand the culture, there is a reason they hide in the resorts and you should ask why. Not me, I can like or dislike anything, I travel for fun only, it is not a spiritual movement, save the world, kiss anyone reason. I like to travel and meet fun cultures. Anguilla where I am now is great.

I'm sorry you didn;t seem to enjoy Mui Ne. If you ever get a chance to go back through, be sure to check out the White Sand Dunes--they are like something out of the Sahara, Takou Mountain Pagoda (with gondola), Khe Ga Island and Lighthouse, the ancient Cham towers, or the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Phan Thiet (where he worked as a teacher before becoming a revolutionary). I promise there is more to Mui Ne than the beach! There's a good site for info at www.muinebeach.net . Cheers!

But can you not accept a culture for what it is and that it is different to yours.

I rather honesty than politeness. Why say sorry when you are not (do you think the officer was in any way sorry). Why say please when you are not. I'm more likely to be offended by non-genuineness and lies.

Sawadee-kah is Thai culture. I've been there. It's nice. But that is their culture. What if it is not Caribbean culture, then just acccept it.

What's the point of travelling if all you do is compare one place to another and expect all cultures to be the same . . . to suit you.

I've been to many places where saying please wasn't the norm (scandinavia for one). I just got on with it. Noted the uniqueness and accepted it.

Give the people a break man! I'm glad you survived despite having to adapt ever so slightly.

Would you even be saying these things about a developed country? Or is it only the developing workd that you expect to sway to your needs and fancies.
Smiling faces saying, "Yes massa!" or "No sir!"

That's nice but I prefer genuine people!

Hello
All countries need to be polite, there is no doubt the custom officers at any USA port, and especailly the New York ( I call it the armpit of the country ) are rude, difficult and I even hope they speak English.

My goal is to have people stop giving peolple orders. Say, Hello, Excuse me, the Caribbean Culture give orders. Manners need upgraded in the Carribean as does most of the planet. Tourism is about a Hello, I always laugh in the Philippines, the local call me SIR so many times I cannot stop laughing. In Thailand they will say - Sawasdee Ka - many times.

Everyone is afraids to comment because they know the Caribbean is black, this has nothing to do with color, it does I hope have to do with the freedom or adults, older, I am 50 to encourage, and TRAVEL WRTERS to speak without fear of reprisal the truth, and to encourage the best in people. I am trying to leave the Tourist Bubble, however I am one of the few, I do want to know the people and the culture, IF I could get them to talk to me, it would be better.

Many people will talk to me one on one, however when a group comes, it is like a Mullah walking into the crowd. I become the infedel and everyone leave.

Note, many calling me names comments are not shown, however whatever the commment, if pleasant, good and not just trying to fight will be published. A good example of someone trying to set me straight and disagreeing. Thanks

Hmm, the returning volunteer has ZERO profiles view when I, Andy the HoboTraveler.com approved the comment.

Looks like a person that is trying to promote BrucePeru.com. I am trying to learn away to keep the self promotion off the site, I do not have anyway of knowing if this is a anonymoous person or a person trying to sway the view back. We are working on a way to ID the posters and figure out where they originate better.

Especilly important for Hotel Reviews as Hotels wiil try to write their own reviews.

You know - There have been more than one thousand volunteers at Bruce Peru so far. The overwhelming majority went home knowing they had contributed to a work which truly helps very poor children to get educated. Onls a small handfull - who either tried to take over the projects they were workiing on, or else got booted out due to drugs or alcohol. You who stalk us now.

Doing this work is great fun. Putting up with stalkers is just part of the price of getting to do something really good.

If you only knew how much fun we're having, you might be tempted to put down your poison pens and take up a project of your own for the good of these children. It is true you will get rich - though not in the way you are thinking.

Please consider that people who really like children spend their time and creativity and resources helping them...
www.bruceperu.org/annual2004.html

Tell me how much politeness and excuse me sirs I would get as a black Caribbean person at JFK or any US airport.

If you have broken a law, the authorities don't have to be polite in telling you so.

And just because these are developing countries, they don't have to bow and scrape to you.

Those days are done!

bumpy ride

is bumpy

I pay a lot, I live worst.
Go figure...

The Caribbean is not worthless, however every person and everyone has a perfect place. This is not my perfect place, that is me. This is for sure paradise for man.

I travel for fun, I travel to all countries. Each person needs to be responsible and choose their paradise carefully.

Hi Andy, I see you're now in the Caribbean - have you been to Cuba? I'm wondering if you would know of anyone there or any way I can find out about volunteering there, preferably in an orphanage.
Any tips you have would be appreciated! Happy travels! Kind regards, Emily

Andy, you are killing me. If you want to get treated like #@$%, just drive up north to that major city to the NE of your hometown.

I think it is pretty clear that no backpackers go to the Carib because it is expensive and the people think its OK to act like axeholes.

Please go to Brasil or Peru, somewhere where the people are real and don't hate you for being an outsider.

Thank you for letting me know that the Carib is worthless, I will never go there.

Hello Andy from Marcus at Barbados Free Press

Welcome to Barbados!

We wondered if we would see you as (I think) your original plan did not include a visit to our island.

I saw some hits coming in from your website so I knew something had happened.

We have followed your adventures for a few years now and more than a few us harbour a secret desire to do as you do. But that takes a particular type of courage, and probably, having very little as you did when you began your journey.

Write if you can find the time.

Marcus, Robert, Shona

Barbados Free Press


http://barbadosfreepress.wordpress.com/

The Katmandu Peace was 6 US per night when I was in Nepal. The prices change by season.

You can go without a guidebook in the cheap countries. In Europe they pay for themselve the first week.

I'm in nepal at the moment, and I decided not to buy a guidebook. I was fed up with carrying the India one around because it's too big and not very helpful.

So i booked 1 night in Kathmandu via HostelWorld and them went out looking for somewhere cheaper the next day (they charge commission for the online booking of course).

The people running the first hostel were Belgians and gave me a discount for subsequent 2 nights, but they were then fully booked. But they chatted to me about the city, told me some places to go see etc. much more helpful than guidebooks.

And I bought a city map for about a dollar US because the streets aren't named.

I have to say i find travelling on my own difficult. I have a lot of respect for what you do! there aren't many tourists or travellers in Nepal at the moment because of the crap politics, so it's hard to meet people.

I don't think I could cope with India on my own... I was with a friend in India, and it was hard to move for being surrounded by scammers and beggers. Not very pleasant, especially when they won't leave you alone.

Hello
I am glad you are disturbed, it made you do the correction...

This is not a guidebook, it is my online journal.

It is hard enough to collect anything.

Hmmm I am ready for somewhere...

Where in Africa?
What is the name of city?
What is the name of the beach?
Andy in Bequia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Andy, Andy, Andy...

I can just commissirate on your search to find the perfect lost bikini beach...

Once again - come visit us here is South Africa, and I'll show you something amazing...

An Open Letter to Teva

Enjoy! :)

Hi Andy,
For the best girls go to "Hatsuk" beach in the north of tel aviv. The views are great :)

You can also Try Ben Yehuda Street, It has a lot of short term apts for rent, out of season you could find cheap places to share, another idea is to search in craigs list tel aviv

Actually "Middle East" means east of Jerusalem, it is a Christian name. Greenwich, like the rest of England, is West of Jeruusalem, hence a Western country. There was also a Near East and a Far East, although now Middle East covers the places previously known as Near East too.

I'm very disturbed by this! But first of all I have to tell you that Huaquillas is part of Peru and not Ecuador. 2nd: Mancora is not a beach in Ecuador either, but in PERU. 3rd: Ecuador's currency is not The SOL!!! Please before writing things up do your proper investigation of where the cities are located. Thank You!

I's Carnival time in Rio, isn't it?
Wild, but maybe expensive this time of year.

The Rolling Stones just gave a free concert in Rio at Copacabana beach. Over a million attended but most couldn't see, it was so big. The crowd left 200 metric tonnes of trash and cleanup continues. There were several murders (knifings) and quite a few robberies reported at the event. Late at night and the crowd drew opportunistic "ladrones de calle" (street thieves) as you'd expect. Big write up in the international press yesterday. Mick Jagger has a Brazilian child and ad lib'ed to the crowd in Portuguese between songs to loud approval. Mick referred to the popular pro-labor Brazilian President "Lula", who he praised. Coincidentally (but of a small matter)I'm reading a book now about daily life in Brazil that chronicles Lula's life and rise to prominence, called "A Death in Brazil", by Peter Robb, a 1950's Gold Medal Olympic Swimmer and expatriate.