Are upper middle class family gatherings now just luxury travel pissing contests?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:People talk about what they've been up to and their interests. If you perceive it as bragging, that's probably your own insecurities.

+1000

Some people like to travel and spend their extra money for that. Others dont. Some can only afford to drive 3 hours for vacation, some can afford to fly to Europe and Asia. Don't be jealous of what others have. If these are family you care about, you should be happy for them living their lives well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe you just weren’t this prone to jealousy before?

Who's jealous? It's just shallow and boring conversation. Shallow and boring is fine among professional work associates but family are only together a couple of times a year and THIS is the most spirited dialogue now? It's sad.

How is discussing your big family vacation "shallow and boring"? Many people plan for years for a big trip. Even though we take a few a year, most are planned for several years, as we research where we want to go and plan the right itinerary to see our top sights.
I'm sure most would rather hear about that than the taxi service I run starting at 2:45pm until 10pm each day for our kids and their activities (which are the same each year, just the next level of whatever sport/clubs/etc). Our daily lives are fairly routine---I don't want to hear about that from most people---I'd rather hear about their trip to Japan or Austria or wherever

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe you just weren’t this prone to jealousy before?

Who's jealous? It's just shallow and boring conversation. Shallow and boring is fine among professional work associates but family are only together a couple of times a year and THIS is the most spirited dialogue now? It's sad.

How is discussing your big family vacation "shallow and boring"? Many people plan for years for a big trip. Even though we take a few a year, most are planned for several years, as we research where we want to go and plan the right itinerary to see our top sights.
I'm sure most would rather hear about that than the taxi service I run starting at 2:45pm until 10pm each day for our kids and their activities (which are the same each year, just the next level of whatever sport/clubs/etc). Our daily lives are fairly routine---I don't want to hear about that from most people---I'd rather hear about their trip to Japan or Austria or wherever

Exactly. It is not shallow or boring. I think some PPs would prefer their family members lie about what they do for fun. It's as if they want to lead meaningless, boring lives in front of a TV, with a beer can, just so they were "just like the rest of us." That's depressing, to say the least.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

“The Chernobyl thing”? That’s a very cynical and hateful way of describing visiting the site of a horrific disaster. Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat was one of the most wrenching experiences of my life.

As it happens, Chernobyl got roughly 73,000 visitors in 2019. When I went in 2008, fewer than 1,000 people went.

So while you might have gone after it became relatively more popular, when I went there was no tourist infrastructure whatsoever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

“The Chernobyl thing”? That’s a very cynical and hateful way of describing visiting the site of a horrific disaster. Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat was one of the most wrenching experiences of my life.

As it happens, Chernobyl got roughly 73,000 visitors in 2019. When I went in 2008, fewer than 1,000 people went.

So while you might have gone after it became relatively more popular, when I went there was no tourist infrastructure whatsoever.

Meh. It was heavily promoted by tourism operators in Ukraine prior to the war. Like I said, no big deal. And I was in Ukraine twice this year and once last year (for tourism, not work). Again, no big deal and not really worth mentioning. Same with Pskov, Narva in Estonia, the Saatse Boot, Belarus and so many other places in the region. All quite pedestrian and common. I’m sorry these experiences were so impactful to you that you go on and on about them nearly 20 years later, but for the rest of us, it’s just business as usual. So as much as I enjoy travel, guess I agree with the OP!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

“The Chernobyl thing”? That’s a very cynical and hateful way of describing visiting the site of a horrific disaster. Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat was one of the most wrenching experiences of my life.

As it happens, Chernobyl got roughly 73,000 visitors in 2019. When I went in 2008, fewer than 1,000 people went.

So while you might have gone after it became relatively more popular, when I went there was no tourist infrastructure whatsoever.

Meh. It was heavily promoted by tourism operators in Ukraine prior to the war. Like I said, no big deal. And I was in Ukraine twice this year and once last year (for tourism, not work). Again, no big deal and not really worth mentioning. Same with Pskov, Narva in Estonia, the Saatse Boot, Belarus and so many other places in the region. All quite pedestrian and common. I’m sorry these experiences were so impactful to you that you go on and on about them nearly 20 years later, but for the rest of us, it’s just business as usual. So as much as I enjoy travel, guess I agree with the OP!

Again: fewer than 1,000 people went in 2008. So no — it wasn’t just “business as usual.”

I also didn’t visit with a tour operator. I went with Ukrainian friends.

But I maintain that your reaction to Chernobyl is disgusting. My visit there was impactful because it was a site of human suffering and I have empathy — something you clearly lack.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

“The Chernobyl thing”? That’s a very cynical and hateful way of describing visiting the site of a horrific disaster. Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat was one of the most wrenching experiences of my life.

As it happens, Chernobyl got roughly 73,000 visitors in 2019. When I went in 2008, fewer than 1,000 people went.

So while you might have gone after it became relatively more popular, when I went there was no tourist infrastructure whatsoever.

Meh. It was heavily promoted by tourism operators in Ukraine prior to the war. Like I said, no big deal. And I was in Ukraine twice this year and once last year (for tourism, not work). Again, no big deal and not really worth mentioning. Same with Pskov, Narva in Estonia, the Saatse Boot, Belarus and so many other places in the region. All quite pedestrian and common. I’m sorry these experiences were so impactful to you that you go on and on about them nearly 20 years later, but for the rest of us, it’s just business as usual. So as much as I enjoy travel, guess I agree with the OP!

Again: fewer than 1,000 people went in 2008. So no — it wasn’t just “business as usual.”

I also didn’t visit with a tour operator. I went with Ukrainian friends.

But I maintain that your reaction to Chernobyl is disgusting. My visit there was impactful because it was a site of human suffering and I have empathy — something you clearly lack.

Yawn. There are much greater human tragedies around the world honestly. I have been to almost every country on Earth and it doesn’t even rank in my top 200 experiences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

“The Chernobyl thing”? That’s a very cynical and hateful way of describing visiting the site of a horrific disaster. Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat was one of the most wrenching experiences of my life.

As it happens, Chernobyl got roughly 73,000 visitors in 2019. When I went in 2008, fewer than 1,000 people went.

So while you might have gone after it became relatively more popular, when I went there was no tourist infrastructure whatsoever.

Meh. It was heavily promoted by tourism operators in Ukraine prior to the war. Like I said, no big deal. And I was in Ukraine twice this year and once last year (for tourism, not work). Again, no big deal and not really worth mentioning. Same with Pskov, Narva in Estonia, the Saatse Boot, Belarus and so many other places in the region. All quite pedestrian and common. I’m sorry these experiences were so impactful to you that you go on and on about them nearly 20 years later, but for the rest of us, it’s just business as usual. So as much as I enjoy travel, guess I agree with the OP!

Again: fewer than 1,000 people went in 2008. So no — it wasn’t just “business as usual.”

I also didn’t visit with a tour operator. I went with Ukrainian friends.

But I maintain that your reaction to Chernobyl is disgusting. My visit there was impactful because it was a site of human suffering and I have empathy — something you clearly lack.

Yawn. There are much greater human tragedies around the world honestly. I have been to almost every country on Earth and it doesn’t even rank in my top 200 experiences.

You’re either a troll or simply a horrible human being.

[Anonymous]

I think people are misinterpreting OP's complaint. I don't see OP saying that any discussion of travel should be avoided, but specifically that "pissing contests" over travel are annoying and unpleasant. To me this is a distinct thing. I love hearing about others' travels or whatever they've been up to that they are excited about (could be a recent trip to Japan or some new plantings in their garden or a new hobby or whatever). But I don't enjoy when family member or friends engage in pissing contests over anything but especially something like travel where this can easily devolve into who traveled the most or the furthest or went to the most impressive/rare place.

My family doesn't do this with travel but recently got into this pattern with charitable activity. Now I of course am very supportive of all their charitable activity! But some recent family gatherings have become weirdly competitive with people talking about their charitable activity in a competitive way and explicitly trying to top one another and impress one another with how much they are giving or volunteering. It's really weird!

My response to conversations like this is to not participate and look for ways to change the subject or exit the convo. It's the competitive vibe and one-upsmanship that is the problem, not the actual subject of conversation which is essentially neutral.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe you just weren’t this prone to jealousy before?

Who's jealous? It's just shallow and boring conversation. Shallow and boring is fine among professional work associates but family are only together a couple of times a year and THIS is the most spirited dialogue now? It's sad.

How is discussing your big family vacation "shallow and boring"? Many people plan for years for a big trip. Even though we take a few a year, most are planned for several years, as we research where we want to go and plan the right itinerary to see our top sights.
I'm sure most would rather hear about that than the taxi service I run starting at 2:45pm until 10pm each day for our kids and their activities (which are the same each year, just the next level of whatever sport/clubs/etc). Our daily lives are fairly routine---I don't want to hear about that from most people---I'd rather hear about their trip to Japan or Austria or wherever

Exactly. It is not shallow or boring. I think some PPs would prefer their family members lie about what they do for fun. It's as if they want to lead meaningless, boring lives in front of a TV, with a beer can, just so they were "just like the rest of us." That's depressing, to say the least.

In everyday conversation, there are topics that may interest you more than others. I would rather hear about your upcoming travel plans than listen to the person about abortion or tariffs. It is not because I do not care about these topics either but I may not agree but don’t want to get into a debate about politics or Gaza where someone may actually get really upset.

Travel is probably the safest topic of conversation for any UMC adult. People talk about work, trips, books, current events, kids, etc As someone posted above, some topic is bound to sound braggy to someone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok so explain to us. In what context, if ever, are we allowed to mention travel such that it won’t be considered bragging?

If someone directly asks you, “so did you travel this summer?” you can respond with where you went. If they ask follow up questions, you may answer.

It’s that simple. If no one asks, don’t bring it up and definitely do not post on social media.

One could say this about almost any topic of conversation. So don’t talk about your kids, your job, your house, etc. Perhaps you could discuss the weather?

Yes, generally speaking you don't walk up to someone and start randomly bragging about something they didn't ask about it. That's how polite conversation works.

Who the hell does that?

I seriously think the people who claim these sort of obnoxious travel conversation happens have never been part of any of those conversations and are instead just making things up because they’re bitter they never go anywhere.

Good grief, everyone isn't jealous of your cliche-filled travel escapades. I know a few very rich who find traveling annoying and overrated, especially international travel. Their primary home is a mansion, they might have a second vacation home on a Delaware or Florida beach and that's pretty much the only place they go. They're not too poor to travel and they're not narrow-minded rubes. They're just rich and confident and don't need to try to buy a personality with airline miles and passport stamps.

Yep, my trip to Pskov and Chernobyl were so cliche. I mean, everyone goes there … so overrun with tourists.

Honestly plenty of people did the Chernobyl thing. I was in Ukraine twice this year. No big deal really.

“The Chernobyl thing”? That’s a very cynical and hateful way of describing visiting the site of a horrific disaster. Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat was one of the most wrenching experiences of my life.

As it happens, Chernobyl got roughly 73,000 visitors in 2019. When I went in 2008, fewer than 1,000 people went.

So while you might have gone after it became relatively more popular, when I went there was no tourist infrastructure whatsoever.

Meh. It was heavily promoted by tourism operators in Ukraine prior to the war. Like I said, no big deal. And I was in Ukraine twice this year and once last year (for tourism, not work). Again, no big deal and not really worth mentioning. Same with Pskov, Narva in Estonia, the Saatse Boot, Belarus and so many other places in the region. All quite pedestrian and common. I’m sorry these experiences were so impactful to you that you go on and on about them nearly 20 years later, but for the rest of us, it’s just business as usual. So as much as I enjoy travel, guess I agree with the OP!

Again: fewer than 1,000 people went in 2008. So no — it wasn’t just “business as usual.”

I also didn’t visit with a tour operator. I went with Ukrainian friends.

But I maintain that your reaction to Chernobyl is disgusting. My visit there was impactful because it was a site of human suffering and I have empathy — something you clearly lack.

Yawn. There are much greater human tragedies around the world honestly. I have been to almost every country on Earth and it doesn’t even rank in my top 200 experiences.

You’re either a troll or simply a horrible human being.

Oh please. The Ukrainians literally made it a tourist attraction. Plus there’s a museum about it (really dated by the way) in Kyiv where they sell expensive souvenirs. Literally tens of millions died in WWII. Those are the truly impactful sites. Save your tears. You have just gotten mileage out of your boring Chernobyl tale for decades. You are exactly the kind of person OP is referencing and she’s right! The truly well traveled don’t talk about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think people are misinterpreting OP's complaint. I don't see OP saying that any discussion of travel should be avoided, but specifically that "pissing contests" over travel are annoying and unpleasant. To me this is a distinct thing. I love hearing about others' travels or whatever they've been up to that they are excited about (could be a recent trip to Japan or some new plantings in their garden or a new hobby or whatever). But I don't enjoy when family member or friends engage in pissing contests over anything but especially something like travel where this can easily devolve into who traveled the most or the furthest or went to the most impressive/rare place.

My family doesn't do this with travel but recently got into this pattern with charitable activity. Now I of course am very supportive of all their charitable activity! But some recent family gatherings have become weirdly competitive with people talking about their charitable activity in a competitive way and explicitly trying to top one another and impress one another with how much they are giving or volunteering. It's really weird!

My response to conversations like this is to not participate and look for ways to change the subject or exit the convo. It's the competitive vibe and one-upsmanship that is the problem, not the actual subject of conversation which is essentially neutral.

I’m a travel enthusiast. I don’t think it is a pissing contest when people share travel plans or stories. Maybe it sounds like this to a third party who isn’t engaging. I’m very passionate about travel and get excited talking about it.

We recently went to a Taylor swift concert. My daughter loves Taylor swift. I remember telling my daughter not to brag. She was so excited before and after the concert. She doesn’t know or care how much tickets cost. Her friends may have been also excited to go to Disney or their grandparents house in Michigan to spend with their cousins.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people are misinterpreting OP's complaint. I don't see OP saying that any discussion of travel should be avoided, but specifically that "pissing contests" over travel are annoying and unpleasant. To me this is a distinct thing. I love hearing about others' travels or whatever they've been up to that they are excited about (could be a recent trip to Japan or some new plantings in their garden or a new hobby or whatever). But I don't enjoy when family member or friends engage in pissing contests over anything but especially something like travel where this can easily devolve into who traveled the most or the furthest or went to the most impressive/rare place.

My family doesn't do this with travel but recently got into this pattern with charitable activity. Now I of course am very supportive of all their charitable activity! But some recent family gatherings have become weirdly competitive with people talking about their charitable activity in a competitive way and explicitly trying to top one another and impress one another with how much they are giving or volunteering. It's really weird!

My response to conversations like this is to not participate and look for ways to change the subject or exit the convo. It's the competitive vibe and one-upsmanship that is the problem, not the actual subject of conversation which is essentially neutral.

I’m a travel enthusiast. I don’t think it is a pissing contest when people share travel plans or stories. Maybe it sounds like this to a third party who isn’t engaging. I’m very passionate about travel and get excited talking about it.

We recently went to a Taylor swift concert. My daughter loves Taylor swift. I remember telling my daughter not to brag. She was so excited before and after the concert. She doesn’t know or care how much tickets cost. Her friends may have been also excited to go to Disney or their grandparents house in Michigan to spend with their cousins.

I’m confused. Why would someone brag about attending a Taylor Swift concert?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people are misinterpreting OP's complaint. I don't see OP saying that any discussion of travel should be avoided, but specifically that "pissing contests" over travel are annoying and unpleasant. To me this is a distinct thing. I love hearing about others' travels or whatever they've been up to that they are excited about (could be a recent trip to Japan or some new plantings in their garden or a new hobby or whatever). But I don't enjoy when family member or friends engage in pissing contests over anything but especially something like travel where this can easily devolve into who traveled the most or the furthest or went to the most impressive/rare place.

My family doesn't do this with travel but recently got into this pattern with charitable activity. Now I of course am very supportive of all their charitable activity! But some recent family gatherings have become weirdly competitive with people talking about their charitable activity in a competitive way and explicitly trying to top one another and impress one another with how much they are giving or volunteering. It's really weird!

My response to conversations like this is to not participate and look for ways to change the subject or exit the convo. It's the competitive vibe and one-upsmanship that is the problem, not the actual subject of conversation which is essentially neutral.

I’m a travel enthusiast. I don’t think it is a pissing contest when people share travel plans or stories. Maybe it sounds like this to a third party who isn’t engaging. I’m very passionate about travel and get excited talking about it.

We recently went to a Taylor swift concert. My daughter loves Taylor swift. I remember telling my daughter not to brag. She was so excited before and after the concert. She doesn’t know or care how much tickets cost. Her friends may have been also excited to go to Disney or their grandparents house in Michigan to spend with their cousins.

I’m confused. Why would someone brag about attending a Taylor Swift concert?

All of her friends like Taylor swift. Not everyone can drop 10k for a concert.