Anonymous wrote:Lisbon has a weird vibe to me. I’ve been there multiple times over many years and it just doesn’t have the warm, relaxed, and friendly feeling I get in so many other southern European places

OMG. First time in Lisbon this summer, and the people were the most friendly and warmest of the dozen or so European countries I've been to over the past 35 years.

That said, we were only there for three days, so perhaps we just got lucky and encountered the right people on our short visit. Just get the right Uber drivers, restaurant servers, and Airbnb hosts, and it makes all the difference. Small sample size of course.

Still, I'm not sure if I'd call it overrated or underrated. Who is doing the rating we're basing our responses to? Is there a common ranked list that we're all reacting to? That's why this thread is silly.

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Anonymous wrote:I would invite everyone to consider the possibility that if you find somewhere overrated, it is because you are doing it wrong. Eg going in peak season, going to see shat all the tourists are seeing rather than quieter bug still interesting places etc.

People who blithely dismiss cities like Rome, which contain some of the greatest treasures of art, architecture, and history that the world has ever produced, as “overrated”…

Exactly we loved visiting Rome and Venice in the fall. Loved seeing the forum lit up at night and visiting small neighborhood bars. And walking down empty alleyways in Venice. Plus best pizza in Naples.

Yes! I loved Venice in the fall. It was so empty, and the whole "city without cars" / canals just felt magical. I wish we'd spent more time there. I could have just walked for hours.

I've been to 9 different countries, and found something to love in all of them.

A whole 9 countries? Wow!!

What a jerk!

Why? Most Americans have been to at least 30 or more, so it was kind of a weird thing for PP to say.

Don’t most Americans not even have a passport?

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Anonymous wrote:I would invite everyone to consider the possibility that if you find somewhere overrated, it is because you are doing it wrong. Eg going in peak season, going to see shat all the tourists are seeing rather than quieter bug still interesting places etc.

People who blithely dismiss cities like Rome, which contain some of the greatest treasures of art, architecture, and history that the world has ever produced, as “overrated”…

Exactly we loved visiting Rome and Venice in the fall. Loved seeing the forum lit up at night and visiting small neighborhood bars. And walking down empty alleyways in Venice. Plus best pizza in Naples.

Yes! I loved Venice in the fall. It was so empty, and the whole "city without cars" / canals just felt magical. I wish we'd spent more time there. I could have just walked for hours.

I've been to 9 different countries, and found something to love in all of them.

A whole 9 countries? Wow!!

What a jerk!

Why? Most Americans have been to at least 30 or more, so it was kind of a weird thing for PP to say.

Most Americans, or most DC area nerds?

PP is deliberately provoking. Just ignore.

Lisbon has a weird vibe to me. I’ve been there multiple times over many years and it just doesn’t have the warm, relaxed, and friendly feeling I get in so many other southern European places

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Anonymous wrote:I would invite everyone to consider the possibility that if you find somewhere overrated, it is because you are doing it wrong. Eg going in peak season, going to see shat all the tourists are seeing rather than quieter bug still interesting places etc.

People who blithely dismiss cities like Rome, which contain some of the greatest treasures of art, architecture, and history that the world has ever produced, as “overrated”…

Exactly we loved visiting Rome and Venice in the fall. Loved seeing the forum lit up at night and visiting small neighborhood bars. And walking down empty alleyways in Venice. Plus best pizza in Naples.

Yes! I loved Venice in the fall. It was so empty, and the whole "city without cars" / canals just felt magical. I wish we'd spent more time there. I could have just walked for hours.

I've been to 9 different countries, and found something to love in all of them.

A whole 9 countries? Wow!!

What a jerk!

Why? Most Americans have been to at least 30 or more, so it was kind of a weird thing for PP to say.

Most Americans, or most DC area nerds?

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Anonymous wrote:You couldn’t pay me to go back to Mexico. Shudder.

Agree. Mostly dangerous.
Many of my long time resident San Diego friends who have fond memories of going across border say they absolutely won't now.

I go back to Isla Holbox every year and love it. Never worried. Going to Oaxaca in december.

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Anonymous wrote:All this Rome bashing. We were just there and absolutely loved it.

+1

Same. We spent an entire week there at the end of June. There were still things and places we didn’t get to. Even with the heat and crowds, it’s magnificent.

I also need to give credit to DCUM for the recommendation for Context Tours. We did 3 tours with them and they were worth every penny.

Love the ancient Rome and Italian landscapes. But the people, especially southern parts, not so much.

So true! Rome beyond the main attractions was a serious dud.

Anonymous wrote:Most of the posters on this thread are ridiculous. If you can tolerate living in the United States - with its poverty, crime, obesity, vulgarity, and ridiculous politics - you surely ought to be able to find something good when visiting international destinations.

... but that's the thread topic? What did you NOT like (overrated). Maybe you are in the wrong thread.

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Anonymous wrote:I would invite everyone to consider the possibility that if you find somewhere overrated, it is because you are doing it wrong. Eg going in peak season, going to see shat all the tourists are seeing rather than quieter bug still interesting places etc.

People who blithely dismiss cities like Rome, which contain some of the greatest treasures of art, architecture, and history that the world has ever produced, as “overrated”…

Exactly we loved visiting Rome and Venice in the fall. Loved seeing the forum lit up at night and visiting small neighborhood bars. And walking down empty alleyways in Venice. Plus best pizza in Naples.

Yes! I loved Venice in the fall. It was so empty, and the whole "city without cars" / canals just felt magical. I wish we'd spent more time there. I could have just walked for hours.

I've been to 9 different countries, and found something to love in all of them.

A whole 9 countries? Wow!!

What a jerk!

Why? Most Americans have been to at least 30 or more, so it was kind of a weird thing for PP to say.

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would invite everyone to consider the possibility that if you find somewhere overrated, it is because you are doing it wrong. Eg going in peak season, going to see shat all the tourists are seeing rather than quieter bug still interesting places etc.

People who blithely dismiss cities like Rome, which contain some of the greatest treasures of art, architecture, and history that the world has ever produced, as “overrated”…

Exactly we loved visiting Rome and Venice in the fall. Loved seeing the forum lit up at night and visiting small neighborhood bars. And walking down empty alleyways in Venice. Plus best pizza in Naples.

Yes! I loved Venice in the fall. It was so empty, and the whole "city without cars" / canals just felt magical. I wish we'd spent more time there. I could have just walked for hours.

I've been to 9 different countries, and found something to love in all of them.

A whole 9 countries? Wow!!

What a jerk!

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Anonymous wrote:All this Rome bashing. We were just there and absolutely loved it.

+1

Same. We spent an entire week there at the end of June. There were still things and places we didn’t get to. Even with the heat and crowds, it’s magnificent.

I also need to give credit to DCUM for the recommendation for Context Tours. We did 3 tours with them and they were worth every penny.

Love the ancient Rome and Italian landscapes. But the people, especially southern parts, not so much.

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Anonymous wrote:Tokyo
Seychelles
Mexico City
Phuket
Nepal
Prague
Martha’s Vineyard
Jackson Hole
Dubrovnik
Marrakech
Antarctica
Easter Island

I have the feeling this poster is likely insufferable in real life.

Tokyo is one of the most amazing places in the world. It's a lot, but I'd go back in a heartbeat. There's something for everyone.

This is what happens to people who are wealthy and either grow up traveling extensively or travel very extensively relatively early in life (20s/30s). I have a number of friends from both college and grad school who are like this and I think it's the result of having never been limited in terms of travel. I also think they got incredibly used to traveling with a lot of money and therefore missed out on the experience of traveling on a tight budget in your 20s, which I think teaches you how to appreciate simple pleasures in traveling, especially abroad. I still have such fond memories of eating picnics of bread, cheese, and wine in the parks in Paris when I was a broke backpacker at 22, or becoming fast friends with Australians (always the Australians) I met at a run down hostel in Greece. I also had to learn to how to find the cheap but amazing places for food and entertainment.

A person who could say that every one of those places is overrated is someone who has lost the capacity to travel well and, honestly, I feel sorry for them. I don't know how you get that back. It's like someone who destroyed their taste buds and now everything tastes bland. It's a shame.

Wikipedia Monarchy List (with the disclaimer that this is Wikipedia...check the source)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_current_monarchies#Current_monarchies

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Anonymous wrote:I would invite everyone to consider the possibility that if you find somewhere overrated, it is because you are doing it wrong. Eg going in peak season, going to see shat all the tourists are seeing rather than quieter bug still interesting places etc.

People who blithely dismiss cities like Rome, which contain some of the greatest treasures of art, architecture, and history that the world has ever produced, as “overrated”…

Exactly we loved visiting Rome and Venice in the fall. Loved seeing the forum lit up at night and visiting small neighborhood bars. And walking down empty alleyways in Venice. Plus best pizza in Naples.

Yes! I loved Venice in the fall. It was so empty, and the whole "city without cars" / canals just felt magical. I wish we'd spent more time there. I could have just walked for hours.

I've been to 9 different countries, and found something to love in all of them.

A whole 9 countries? Wow!!

Wow, you suck!!

The only place that I've *ever* been that I had thought would be a cool place to wander around and was really disappointed in was Berkeley CA.