je bosse actuellement au Caire depuis maintenant 1 mois, j'ai proposé à mon amie de venir me voir et ainsi visiter le Caire et environ
j'avais en tête qu'elle puisse apprécier l'Égypte, ses habitants surtt si je venais à rester ici plus longtemps etc...
je lui offre donc un aller - retour Paris - Caire pour 400€, un beau cadeau en somme, je reçois la facture, le billet électronique, etc.. comme quand on achète en ligne sur "go voyage"...
le voyage est prévu le 14/05 et le retour le 19/05 donc 4 jours pleins...
le 14/05, comme prévu, elle arrive, j'étais super content, ça faisait un mois que je n'avais pas vu ma chérie, ....
le lendemain, on décide d'aller confirmer le billet retour, après tout, on était plus ou moins à 72 H du retour
et là, ça se corse ::
la nana de l'agence nous dit : c'est bizarre, je ne vois votre nom dans le système informatique, aucun nom, aucune réservation, aucune preuve de paiement, rien, ...on se dit merde, c'est pas possible, elle venait d'arriver la veille....avec le même billet
cette discussion dure 30 minutes et puis l'hôtesse & manger retrouvent son nom, enfin c'est ce qu'ils affirmaient, l'hotesse nous tend un bout de papier estampillé egyptair et nous dit le bouche en coeur, "c'est bon"!!
tt content on passe 4 jours supers, je l'emmène un peu partt au caire...
le clou du spectacle :
le 19 Mai, on arrive à l'aéroport, et là rebelote, : "Madame, on ne voit pas votre nom dans notre système "ils bidouillent encore un truc et puis nous disent : "ok c'est bon", on l'autorise à passer les contrôles de sécurité pour enregistrer ses bagages et forcement là le gars lui dit : "vous n'êtes pas dans notre système informatique, vous ne pouvez pas partir avec egypt air, blabla bla bla"
elle a eu beau lui montrer toutes les preuves de son billets aller-retour, elle a eu beau lui montrer la facture, le billet électronique que l'on reçoit quand achète par "go voyage" mais rien n'y a fait
moi de mon coté, je gueulais comme un con de l'autre coté de la douane chez le manager d'egyptair, ça a bien durait 2 heures
et finalement elle a du se payer un retour pour 300 €, Egypt air n'a rien voulu savoir, ils en avaient d'ailleurs rien à foutre...
5 jours à plus de 700€, c'est géniale quoi !!!!!
que faire maintenant ?? on s'attend à une bataille juridique bien longue, à savoir qui va payer le remboursement du billet : "egyptair" ou "go voyage"
que s'est il passé d'ailleurs ... on en sait rien ??? est ce que "go voyage" a t'il payé "egyptair"?? est ce que c'est "egyptair" qui a paumé son dossier ??
comment procéder, ? la ligne téléphonique de go voyage coute 1€50 / minutes, je me demande si on va pas leur re fourguer l'équivalent d'un billet en téléphonant...et puis c'est uniquement pour les réservations...??
comment faire??, y a t' il un service des contentieux à "go voyage" ? où peut on faire les réclamations...
devons nous contacter une asso de consommateurs .... des avocats
est ce dejà arrivé à des voyageurs....???
bref tous les conseils sont les bienvenues!!!!!!
pourtant j'ai un peu peur d'etre "fucked up"
on est super décu...et triste / à bcp de trucs dans cette histoire (comportement de certain égyptiens, d'egyptair, de govoyage)
es tu sur d'avoir des billets electroniques ou juste recu un email de confirmation de commande?
car parfois il arrive que l'email ne fait pas office de confirmation aupres de la compagnie aerienne mais seulement du fait que ta commande a ete prise en compte
ca arrive souvent lorsque la commande ne soit pas en temps reelle, le site enregistre une commande, mais cette derniere doit etre par la suite confirmee par la compagnie aerienne, dans ce cas on recoit un 2e email qui confirme bien le siege sur le vol
a part ca, go voyages est un site repute et serieux, les erreurs arrivent tu sais, moi qui bosse dans le domaine, je n'ai jamais vu du 0 defaut nulle part...
tu contactes go voyages pour regler ton probleme, on est pas aux etats unis, pourquoi vouloir aller au clash directement ?
je comprends ton enervement, mais un probleme informatique a pu survenir...
Dépot de plainte auprès du greffe du Tribunal d'instance. C'est gratuit et ça devrait les faire bouger.
Avec un dossier clair ce qui n'a pas l'air d'etre le cas et complet ... sinon poubelle.. moi je n'ai aps tout compris nottament si il y avait la confirmation du billet par la Cie, cela prend differente forme dont le plus souvent si c'est par ex sous Amadeus du genre "E ticket receipt"
Bon voyage et surtout voyagez zen!
Michel France (85)
moi j'ai acheté 2 billets avec govoyages pour juin. J'ai recu plusieurs mail où il est bien indiqué en haut du mail que le mail n'est pas le e-ticket.
Mais seulement le dernier mail qui disait que c'etait le eticket. Voici le debut de mon dernier mail:
"BILLET ELECTRONIQUE :
__ CE DOCUMENT EST A PRESENTER AU COMPTOIR D'ENREGISTREMENT . DE LA COMPAGNIE A L'ALLER ET AU RETOUR .
__
"
On est d'accord
De toute façon un Eticket doit avoir une reference compagnie pas qu'une ref AGV et c'est souvent pour resa des Cies dans Amadeus, alphanumerique a 6 digits
Bon voyage et surtout voyagez zen!
Michel France (85)
à l'aller pas de problème apparemment dans l'informatique elle existait ça aurait du "bugger" dès le départ donc c'est rare un truc pareil..
par contre je ne suis pas étonnée d'égyptair" en ce moment ll ya pas mal de clients mécontents ... gros retard, problème d'enregistrement etc
avez vous été débité de votre carte bleue ? avez vous bien gardé preuve de réception paiement (avec numéro de transaction)... go voyage en général est très très fiable.... il n'ya pas de raison que vous n'arriviez pas à obtenir gain de cause si effectivement il ya eu un "plantage" pour le retour mais c'est bizarre en tous les cas.
envoyez leur un mail au service client (en général ils répondent) et dites que si vous n'arrivez pas à obtenir une réponse vous comptez entamer des poursuites... pour les 1, 50 la minute vous devriez les avoir au bout de 10 - 15 mn ça ne sera pas le prix d'un billet, appelez les en fin de journée ou aux toutes premières minutes d'ouverture. vous pouvez aussi faire un courrier en recommandé avec accusé de réception ça porte ses fruits de cette façon.
bon courage je pense que ça va être un peu long et courrier aussi à EGYPTAIR (eux par contre dur dur pour la suite)
.... et courrier aussi à EGYPTAIR (eux par contre dur dur pour la suite)
Non totalement inutile de faire perdre son temps a tout le monde passager et Cie.. pour un billet acheté par AGV la Cie qui assure le transport n'est pas tenue de repondre au client ... de l'AGV mais a l'AGV !
Bon voyage et surtout voyagez zen!
Michel France (85)
par contre l'agv en france a une obligation de resultat par rapport a son client
toute defaillance d'un prestataire tiers (compagnie aerienne, hotel, autres services excursions transferts etc) permet donc au client de se retourner vers l'AGV
enfin bon, s'il s'agit juste d'une erreur humaine du client (se pointer a l'aeroport sans confirmation de resa), c'est meme pas la peine de gueuler pour rien...
bah oui, c'est ça qui est complètement "sensationnel"
elle est venue au Caire sans souci (elle ne peut d'ailleurs pas se rendre ne egypte sans avoir un billet retour je crois)
anyway, elle avait son billet électronique, la facture...lle détail du vol qui fait l'objet d'un 1er mail d'ailleurs
et on avait bien reçu tous ces preuves par mail, je suis super formel....
les managers à egyptair ont eu le culot de me dire que si elle était là : "it was a mistake" en claire elle est venue en egypte comme ça
tout le monde la laissée passer (frontière française, egyptair à paris, la douane egyptienne, et hop au retour, : on me répond "a mistake"
en plus les gars, ils étaient vraiment super désagréables....
ben oui, elle est venue, on a voulu confirmer une 1er fois le lendemain, petit problème, mais l'agente nous donne un papier disant que "c'est bon",
mais il était pas inscrit sur le papier "confirmed" ... mais c'est après coup, qu'on a vu ça
ils sont l'art de "noyer le poisson" les gars, ils l'ont laissée aller jusqu'au comptoir d'enregistrement des bagages et là forcement
comme elle avait passer la douane elle pouvait plus revenir dans le hall...bloqué en somme...et moi j'étais de l'autre coté...en train de discuter dans l'office egyptair...
quel bordel c'était.....ça a durait plus de 3 heures...
Dépot de plainte auprès du greffe du Tribunal d'instance. C'est gratuit et ça devrait les faire bouger.
Avec un dossier clair ce qui n'a pas l'air d'etre le cas et complet ... sinon poubelle.. moi je n'ai aps tout compris nottament si il y avait la confirmation du billet par la Cie, cela prend differente forme dont le plus souvent si c'est par ex sous Amadeus du genre "E ticket receipt"
il 'est arrivé sensiblement la mm chose avec corsair.
ces cons m'ont fait raté mon vol pour l'iles maurice = repayer un vol + hotel a paris pour ne pas revenir a nice.
c'est bien de ne pas payer trop cher, mais quand tt baigne !!
Many of us have noticed that bugs have been making it difficult to navigate the forum lately.
I’ll let Kate and Ticapi explain the issue:
I went to your profile to check out the Thailand travel journal, and when I clicked on it, it brought me back here again. All week, I’ve been dealing with bugs like this—it’s really discouraging from continuing on VF.🙁
I had the same thing happen, and multiple times. For me, it was Montagnard’s latest journal that kept coming up no matter which discussion I clicked on.
BOLIVIA: THE COUNTRY ON THE BRINK (What's Really Happening)
A dramatic saga is unfolding before our eyes in the Andes. Between suffocating blockades, clashes, an international airlift, and historic political decisions, Bolivia has just experienced 48 hours of rare intensity.
Here’s the full breakdown (economic, social, and political) of the last 48 hours:
For travelers and tourists: the article also includes an important note about the upcoming publication (starting tomorrow) of the precise status of roadblocks, route by route.
I’ll post the full update here on Voyage Forum!
Don’t miss this in-depth analysis. History is being written before our eyes! https://www.petitherge.com/bolivie-paralysie-et-ultimatum
I just discovered a great show on Arte.
It's called "7 en route": seven young European journalists travel around Europe in a fully converted bus, making reports on every city they visit. It's amazing! 🙂
Yesterday, for example, they were in Rome, Italy, and the reports included things like the world's smallest restaurant—a super romantic spot for two. There was also a report on the king of paparazzi in Italy.
They have to pick topics that let us discover the little quirks of each country. And at the end of each episode, we get to see the finished report.
It's such a great show, mixing journalism, travel, and discovery—basically, a must-watch!
It airs in the evening starting at 6:50 PM (I think), and it started this past Monday, July 14th.
If you watch it, let me know—we can chat about it!
I left my heart’s country eight days ago and returned to my adopted one—or was it the other way around? Scotland-Morvan, Morvan-Scotland, I’m not quite sure anymore.
After a quarter without dragging my slippers around here, even though I’d loudly declared I had no interest left in this site, here I am again!
My imagination never stays fallow for long. Just enough time for my inner land to rest. It gets overgrown with fresh nettles, the kind you can pick without getting stung. Then, it’s time to till the fragrant earth and let the story grow.
I hesitated over where to set this story.
Maybe the Highlands, maybe the Hebrides, maybe the Orkney Islands, maybe the Shetland Islands. All of Scotland is myth—easy to embroider.
But in the end, no. I’d almost be too afraid to bare my soul.
The story will take place at home. Simple, practical.
1)
This morning, I was up well before dawn, feeling a bit grumpy, but nothing a bowl of coffee won’t fix. I love my bowl, and no one dares take it. It’s porcelain, edged with intertwined blue flowers. On the bottom, it says "Revol." The factory has existed long before the Revolution. It was my great-grandmother’s bowl. She drank roasted barley from it during the war, then her Leroux chicory.
Last year, a little guy dropped it. My bowl broke into three pieces. A black anger vibrated deep inside me. The little boy was so upset, on the verge of tears. How could I scold him!
I picked up the three pieces and took Little Boy in my arms. His hair smelled of the light, sweet sweat of toddlers. A gentle hug that healed—his budding sorrow and my anger—everything vanished, and time carried on.
Today, my bowl is even prettier. Man fixed it using the traditional kintsugi technique, except he didn’t use gold powder or lacquer but superglue, and he delicately painted the cracks with woad blue. And my bowl is even more beautiful now.
I’m lingering, I can tell—it’s just that a story wraps itself in life, and life can’t be told in the snap of a finger. Life is long. Like in architecture, you start with a rough sketch, called a "sous-cul" (the initial pencil drawing), then you make a tracing, which is the work itself, the one you later carefully roll up in a wooden tube.
Life is like that: you erase, you start over, you use the nub of the pencil until it’s tiny, but you keep going—dreaming, loving.
"Living is a full-time occupation, a unique adventure. Always a surprise and a wonder, which sometimes turns into astonishment. And, from time to time, happiness."*
Alright, enough digressing—this introduction is definitely too long.
Tomorrow, I’ll get to the heart of the matter.
(I hate that expression; it feels like I’m cutting into someone’s skin.)
I’m Yann, a 28-year-old TikToker who loves traveling!
Since I’ve been to several destinations, I’d love to get a flag from each one as a sort of trophy. But from what I’ve seen online, a lot of sites sell them with what looks like really poor quality...
So I’m reaching out to you all to share a site you usually use—help me start my collection! :)
hi there
I’d love to get some opinions—I’ve never used Airbnb before.
They’re offering a key handover via lockbox.
Any tips or advice?
Is it reliable?
Best,
Hi there, I’m Laura, and I’m looking for a few people to answer some questions so I can understand your travel wishes and challenges. It won’t take long—I can chat here, by email, or by phone. Don’t worry, I’m not selling anything! 😊
On this forum, we talk a lot about trekking in the Himalayas, but I’d love to share another side of Nepal: its spiritual, cultural, and religious atmosphere, especially in Kathmandu.
Nepal, much like Tibet and Bhutan, is deeply connected to the Himalayas—the ultimate sacred mountain range. This small country exudes a calming vibe, shaped by a strong spiritual dimension. What I loved most was the unique sensory experience you get there. Walking around temples and tantric monasteries, a distinct scent fills the air—aromatic plants used for ritual fumigation. Locals mainly burn Himalayan juniper, cedar, sandalwood, and other local essences. This fragrant smoke is a way to purify the space and reach the deities, and you’re constantly enveloped in these aromas.
Another striking aspect is the sound. As soon as you step outside, you hear bells ringing in front of temples. People ring them three times before praying to announce their presence to the deities. Nepal is also the birthplace of singing bowls and sound meditation practices. In Kathmandu, you can easily find meditation sessions or "sound baths."
The spiritual dimension is everywhere: a Hindu sadhu practicing asceticism, a lama in deep red robes with his mala, turning a prayer wheel while murmuring "Om mani padme hum." Newar Buddhism, Tantrism, and Hinduism coexist harmoniously in daily life.
For those who love exploring a destination through its culture and spirituality, Nepal is an unforgettable place. What was your spiritual experience in Nepal like?
Hi,
I’m landing in Quebec and then heading to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. I’d like to rent a pick-up. My question is: does this vehicle come with a cover and is it secure enough to store luggage in? I’ve heard two conflicting opinions. Thanks
I just installed the Maps.Me app on my phone. I only recently found out about this app. I’m traveling in 2 weeks and a few days, and I’m a bit stuck on how to use it.
I’m from the Montreal (Quebec) area, and I’d love to know if there’s a kind soul out there who could help me get started and use the app at least minimally.
If there are private lessons available, I’d be interested in those too.
Like many others, I’m overjoyed to hear that VoyageForum is reopening! I’ve been waiting hopefully for this, and it’s wonderful that it’s finally happening!
I just couldn’t bring myself to actively participate in other French-language travel forums—their format and way of doing things never appealed to me as much. I really hope that VF’s structure, categories, and interface won’t change too much despite the handover, because I’m very attached to them. Through thick and thin, the site has held strong—it’s amazing!
In a previous message, François mentioned that there were positions to fill ahead of the reopening, including moderators...
I’ve been eagerly waiting for this and hoping to send in my CV.
Now, after reading the latest message, it seems like the team is already fully formed. But are there still a few spots left to fill?
I’ve been a VF member for 20 years (since 2004). I’d love to contribute to this wonderful adventure as a moderator if VF would trust me with the role. If the team is open to reviewing it, I’m ready to send my CV. Could you let me know the next steps?
I’m planning a 3-week trip to Japan in May with Voyage Privé. The package includes a 5 GB eSIM, but my phone isn’t new enough to support it. VP told me I could buy a SIM card when I arrive at the airport.
Sure enough, I’ve seen online that this is possible with different providers.
I only need it for checking routes, looking up addresses, train schedules, etc.—basically using Google Maps, TripAdvisor, and similar apps. No heavy downloads or major internet use. All hotels should provide free Wi-Fi for that, right?
Has anyone got any tips for me on this? What have you tried, and how much did it cost?
Thanks for your help!
I’d like to know if you can buy reef-safe sunscreen sprays at 7-Eleven. If so, how much do they cost? We’re traveling with backpacks, so we’ll either buy 100ml here or in Thailand.
I wanted to share a really unpleasant experience from our last trip booked with Promoséjours and organized by FTI.
We booked an 8-day/7-night stay in Egypt, from June 8 to 15.
The flight initially scheduled was changed a week before departure to take off at 10 PM from Paris CDG.
In the end, it took off with a 1-hour delay and included an unmentioned stopover in Marsa Alam.
We landed in Hurghada at 4 AM and arrived at the hotel at 6 AM.
So, we spent our first night on the plane.
For the return trip, surprise—the flight was moved up. We left the hotel at 10:30 PM on Friday the 14th to take off at 2 AM and land at 7 AM at Paris CDG.
So, we spent our last night on the plane too.
After sending a complaint letter to Promoséjours / FTI, they replied that the first and last days can be dedicated to transport (which I already knew) and that no matter how many nights you book, you’re not guaranteed to spend them in the hotel—it could just as well be on the plane.
I’m really questioning this.
Isn’t there a law that protects customers in cases like this?
Because when I do the math, the first and part of the second day were spent on transport, same for the second-to-last and last day. And I paid for 7 nights for a stay that only lasted 5.
Anyway, I just want to say thanks to them—thanks to their two sleepless nights in transit, I’m coming back even more exhausted from a trip that was supposed to be restful!
I also want to warn anyone booking through this agency about visas for Egypt.
At booking, they told me the visa was included in the price, then they sent me an email saying I’d have to pay for it on-site at 25 €.
Once there, we were directed to a special line for FTI customers, and guess what? They charged us 30 €!
Basically, they’re great at making sure you *enjoy* your vacation—mostly by enjoying your wallet!
If anyone has dealt with this kind of situation and won their case, I’m all ears.
Hi there!
I’m heading to Thailand for two months.
So I thought I’d get a Thai SIM card to use Google Maps for getting around cities, mostly.
Here’s my question: will this SIM affect my apps? Or will they work the same as with my Orange SIM?
Is there any setup I need to do, or can I just pop in the Thai SIM?
I’d also like to switch back to my Orange SIM now and then while I’m in Thailand—on the same phone. Will I need to reset the phone, or will it reconnect without any issues?
Thanks in advance for your tips!
Best,
Huiclos
Hi, I’d like to know where we can buy beer or wine in Chefchaouen and around Merzouga. We’ll be doing a circuit and staying at the Parador Hotel in Chefchaouen and in a bivouac in Merzouga.
Thanks for any info you can share!
Hello everyone,
I’m reaching out to all travelers and globe-trotters on this forum. I’m a teacher in Creuse working in a ULIS program (which welcomes children aged 6 to 12 with disabilities into a mainstream school). This year, I’m launching a school journal project that will involve the kids in many different topics. A big part of this journal will focus on opening up to the world, embracing differences, travel, global cultures, and more.
I’m putting out a call to invite as many of you as possible to send us a postcard (from France or anywhere in the world)! The goal is to help us "travel" and discover new places, countries, and horizons in a way that’s much more fun and exciting than a geography textbook. One section of our journal could be called "We received a letter from ," where we’d research the location and share what we learn with our readers—a really enriching activity for the classroom.
The project starts in September 2025 but doesn’t have a strict end date, since this journal and world-discovery initiative will span several school years (the kids stay in the ULIS program for multiple years). Postcards can be sent anytime—throughout the year, across seasons, even during holidays! The kids will find them when they return.
I hope this idea appeals to as many of you as possible, and that you’ll spread the word to your fellow travelers. Help us dream and explore!
For those who’d like to write to us in a language other than French, no problem—quite the opposite!
Thank you in advance for your participation! Below is our address. If you’d like us to write back, feel free to leave your address on a corner of the postcard! 😊
ULIS program students
Bonnat Elementary School
12 rue Georges Sand
23220 BONNAT
Thank you, and I hope to hear from you soon! 😊
Julien
🙂
Hi there! I have to leave Ivato/Antananarivo on December 16th. I have a lot of ariary that I’d like to exchange for euros since I might not be coming back to Madagascar (after this 21st trip). I think the exchange office at Ivato also buys ariary back. If any of you have seen the rate for this buyback in advance, thanks a million!
Hi everyone,
I’m looking for a website that would let me plot my travel route in advance so I can print it out. The idea is to create a map with a little “me” on a bike that my parents can move along as I progress, since I’m planning to cycle all the way to Nepal.
If any of you have done something similar or know of a good tool, I’d love to hear your tips!
Thanks in advance! 😊
I'm looking to buy an ultra-lightweight 50/55L travel backpack with a suitcase or front opening.
Does anyone have any brand and/or model recommendations?
Thanks,
Emma
Hello. We’re a retired couple heading to Sri Lanka from January to March. After the November floods, I’d like to know if we can offer hands-on help to the locals, maybe pack some clothes or other items people might need in our luggage, and who we could give them to. Thanks for any info from those on the ground.
Be careful when sailing between Somalia and northern Madagascar.
It appears to be Somali pirates who have widened their search in the Mozambique Channel, far from their usual attack zone, since, to my knowledge, there are no Malagasy pirates.
Not sure if this is the right section, but just wanted to warn future travelers...
Where’s Cape Vidal?
It’s in iSimangaliso, an independent park in KZN Wildlife, stunning and just a stone’s throw from St Lucia (KwaZulu-Natal, Maputaland).
It’s the beach spot at the end of the Eastern Shores road. You can swim, fish... but watch out for waves, currents, and sharks...
There’s a really nice game drive where you can get out of your car at certain points, especially at Cape Vidal.
That’s where the camp with bungalows and campsites is.
The vervets and samango monkeys (endemic to the area, and the males are pretty big) can be a bit of a nuisance if you’re trying to braai...
They’re super persistent and not shy at all—don’t let them intimidate you, and stay alert because their speed at snatching food is impressive.
Anyway...
I’m reporting two recent attacks by these hyenas... who were *not* in a playful mood...
The first one happened at night—a hyena tried to bite a camper’s nose off in their tent... and succeeded.
The other night, a camper returning to their tent in the early hours was violently attacked by two hyenas... and they had a close call!
So, if you’re camping there, be careful...
Measures are being taken, but for now, it’s a bit risky.
A white rental Toyota Land Cruiser 4x4 carrying foreign tourists was attacked at the entrance of Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park in the village of Bekopaka, western Madagascar, yesterday. So far, there’s been no response from the central government to curb these repeated armed attacks—usually between Malagasy people, but this time targeting foreign tourists.
After an engine failure in mid-2016 on a long-haul flight from BRISBANE to LYON, I developed a persistent aviophobia that I’m struggling to shake off. It’s becoming more and more of a hindrance.
Up until now, I’ve been using an avoidance strategy (for example, avoiding destinations that would require any other mode of transport than a car or train), but lately, it’s become really limiting.
I’m looking for a therapist—either in-person or via video call—who could help me get past this hurdle.
First and foremost, I hope this topic won’t just focus on my region—the South of France—and that those of you who enjoy exchanging ideas will share what makes your own regions special.
Personally, I’ve often wanted to push back when people call us vulgar (though I’ll admit I sometimes play it up). At heart, we pure-blooded Southerners just have our own way of expressing ourselves, which differs from other regions. We also get heated in conversations pretty easily (some researchers say it’s the influence of the sun and climate in general).
What some perceive as vulgar, we don’t see that way at all.
Do you want a uniform world with no differences? If so, how do you handle traveling to places with cultures completely different from your own?
In the travel community, the word "authenticity" comes up a lot, and it often takes priority in people’s searches.
In my specific case, speaking a purely regional language without having gone to school for it doesn’t help with understanding on this forum. That’s what creates what you call controversies—and what I call passionate exchanges.
It left me speechless and ended the conversation because, for him, that’s just how he sees things, and he refuses to debate it, sticking to his position. I’ll quote him, hoping he won’t hold it against me:
"For me, things like bullfighting, boxing, football, and MMA are just tangible proof that human evolution is still at a primitive stage."
For him, our Latin-origin bullfights are barbaric customs. For us *taurins*, we need to see men face wild beasts (bulls and *toros*) at the risk of their lives every day. Does that make us barbarians?
We’ve always had this need to confront death—it’s in our genes.
Take the example he gave about football: fans of the sport would be considered mentally underdeveloped. But what about a kid who’s passionate about the game and has that drive to be a winner, just like a boxer or athletes in other violent sports?
As a traveler myself, passionate about old stones and beautiful historic buildings, I’ve visited Rome but couldn’t fully appreciate it. Religion is everywhere, and I felt like I had a lead weight on my head realizing that millions of people worldwide have believed in a god for millennia.
I’ve also judged believers for basing their faith on archaic texts that don’t prove a god (or gods) ever existed—I still think that, but I’m open to being proven wrong so I can say, "You’ve convinced me I was mistaken."
- If everyone clings to their own ideas and positions, no discussion is possible, and that’s a shame.
I’ll take away two things from my forum interactions: some accuse me of being omnipresent when I just love exchanging ideas. My way of speaking is misunderstood (regional differences), even if I’ll admit I sometimes turn up the heat—or rather, the *aïoli* —which for me is just lively debates 🔥 (a regional specialty).
And my "mocking" side, which I really need to work on.
This topic isn’t just about me—I hope other forum members will share their own regional "specialties" . For example, in Alsace, some older folks switch to their local language when they don’t want outsiders to understand, and I still don’t know if it’s German or something else.
