Concrete changes in how you travel during the crisis (page 2 of 9)

Flights to Poland suspended just as I wanted to go back

I’m so sorry for you. I hope you hadn’t booked anything yet. For me, it’s different: it’s not that I can’t stop traveling, it’s that I can’t even start... 😛

Well, luckily I was in Gdańsk in early September—I wanted to go back to Poland, but we’ll see how it goes.

Are you stuck?

Hi Caro, 🙂

Well, this year, I, who love going to Asia, have to wait... and I expect to keep waiting until next autumn (for India).

So, since I prefer to see the glass half full, I’ve been getting around and exploring my little country. I also spent a couple of weeks in Paris, where there’s always something new to discover; then I headed to Burgundy the following month (in Saône-et-Loire). I might be going back to Paris soon.

I’m keeping an eye on southern Portugal for November, but if I do go, I’ll only book a few days in advance.

I still have a flight awaiting a refund (for Lithuania, since the end of April). The airline promised to refund everyone by the end of October, but I don’t really believe it, given they’re on the verge of bankruptcy 😕

I hope you’ll be able to travel soon. Until borders reopen, you can still explore France and head to neighboring countries at the right time. And by deciding last-minute, you can go somewhere that’s turning green 😉

Happy future travels !

A little "break"—no big deal! Just stay zen.

That’s exactly how I see it too. Now that I’m officially in the "high-risk" category, it’s safer for me to take a little break from traveling rather than keep going. A short pause won’t kill me.

Plus, it’ll let me save some cash for a few nice trips when things calm down. When exactly? No idea yet....

Good evening,

A little "break", no big deal! You just have to stay zen.

That’s exactly how I see it myself. Now that I’m classified as a high-risk person (VDM), it’s less risky for me to take a little "break" from traveling. A short pause from trips won’t kill me. Plus, it’ll let me save some "cash" for one or two nice trips when things calm down. When exactly? I don’t know yet....

What are VDM? 🤪 As for the rest, the idea of savings being there when travel becomes possible again—don’t kid yourself: financial black holes and abyssal losses will need to be filled, and that money (and even more) will vanish before it can be spent on new trips. Everyone will come out of this worse off, with rare exceptions—certainly not middle-class employees.

Michel

Everyone will come out of this worse off financially,

All those (and I imagine there are many) who travel to escape (as soon as I have 3 days off, I’m out of here) will end up richer on the inside.

All those (and I imagine there are many) who travel to escape (as soon as I have 3 days off, I'm out of here) will become richer inside.

Even for those people, there’s no reason to think they’ll become richer—even internally. Just more miserable.

Michel

Good evening,

A little "break", no big deal! You just have to stay zen.

That’s exactly how I see it myself. Now that I’m classified as a high-risk person, it’s less risky for me to take a little "break" rather than travel. A short pause from traveling won’t kill me. Plus, it’ll let me save some "cash" that I can use for a nice trip when things are calmer. When exactly? I don’t know yet....

What are VDM? 🤪 As for the idea of savings being there when travel becomes possible again, don’t kid yourself: financial black holes and abyssal losses will need to be filled, and that money—and even more—will disappear before it can be spent on new trips. Everyone will come out of this poorer, with rare exceptions, and those certainly won’t be middle-class employees.

Michel

It really depends on the situation.

With the lockdown and then the travel break, I was able to save up and treat myself to a great trip to Venice. And since I’m going out less in my daily life now, that means more money to spend elsewhere. For now, of course, but I’m taking it day by day because life can be short, and you can’t take your savings to the grave.

That’s why I don’t want to put off traveling to some hypothetical later.

All those (and I imagine there are many) who travel to escape (as soon as I have 3 days off, I'm out of here) will become richer inside.

Even for those people, there’s no reason to think they become richer—even internally. Only more miserable.

Michel

😉

That’s exactly what happens to me when I can’t travel.

EDIT: I just saw that traveling to Italy is going to be complicated again.

Honestly, I don’t feel any richer inside—in fact, quite the opposite. It’s travel that makes me feel alive.

Daily life with everyone masked in paranoia clearly isn’t enough to make up for it.

We wonder how billions of people managed before low-cost airlines to get an idea of what happiness was like.

We wonder how billions of people managed before low-cost airlines to get an idea of what happiness was.

They were much freer in every aspect of life, by the way.

Michel

We wonder how billions of people managed before low-cost airlines to get an idea of what happiness was.

They were much freer in all aspects of life, by the way.

Michel

The 20 or 30 billion people who came before us "much freer in all aspects of life" than we are... really?

What are VDMs? 🤪

You don’t know this acronym? :) Well! It’s quite simple: I’m 63 years old and recently retired, which means I’ve now joined the category some people love to call VDMs—that is, Old People Messing! :) 😉

If you look it up on Google, no, VDM stands for Vie De Merde (Shitty Life).

Maybe so, but I can confirm I’ve heard the phrase "Vieux de Merde" and the acronym "VDM" used in the same way many times (with the barely hidden implication that all old people are useless to society)! And when you hear some despicable people say that coronavirus isn’t that serious because it mostly killed VDMs, it’s definitely "Vieux De Merde" they’re talking about!

Actually, quite a few acronyms can have multiple meanings. Small example: As a Belgian citizen, you’re surely familiar with our late SABENA. But do you know the humorous meaning behind that acronym? Such A Bloody Experience Never Again! 🙂

We wonder how billions of people managed before low-cost airlines to get an idea of what happiness was.

They had faith.

They were religious.

Happiness through religion? Are you serious, or is this a joke?

Thanks Etienne,

I didn’t know about the VDMs I’m part of—those who could kick the bucket a few years early because of corona just by being VDMs. Some vile people have pushed this idea on VF, and it’s just a little creepy—step aside so I can take my place. We’re living in an amazing time.

An old lady who owns her age, who loves the term "old" and still goes on great hikes at 72, and who also loves younger generations.

Hannah. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zwVtoU0wQc

It's silly to look down on older people—given how fast life goes by, we're really just looking down on our future selves (especially since we only truly become ourselves as we age).🙂

What do you think of Leila's song? I love it. These young people are raising the bar.