So where are they and what are they doing? (page 6 of 33)

Hi everyone! Good to see you all again. I’ll say fewer silly things since we’re accused of conspiracy theories for no reason.

Hi Anne-Claire;

Because things are really off track here...

Yeah, as you said, things are really off track. We’d actually love for this forum to come back to life, but some people’s comments here are doing everything they can to make us leave! The old demons are back! 😕

I noticed you’re heading back to China next autumn—a fascinating country, you say. So I wish you a wonderful trip! 🙂

Thanks so much, Michel! 🙂 That’s really kind of you.

We’re heading back to China this autumn for 4 weeks. We’ve got parts of Gansu and Yunnan planned. I can’t wait to see the country again—it must have changed a lot since our last visit, and some accounts aren’t exactly encouraging... 😉 (https://voyageforum.com/forum/non-je-ne-retournerai-pas-en-chine-d9140862/)

On VF, some destinations are definitely more popular than others, and the discussions are livelier, so we’ve got to keep hoping, right?

Hi Joël...

It took me a while to contribute to this discussion. But now, with a bit of time difference and the scent of the sea, I’ve decided to jump in. I had contributed 100 € to keep VF going, and I never regretted it. Back then, standing up for my views—which history has largely vindicated—earned me a flood of insults from people paralyzed by fear and closed off to any free thinking.

I don’t feel like talking to them anymore.

I have a finely tuned curiosity account on the forum that some have built up, enough to reinforce my reservations in the face of such a self-proclaimed thought police.

Besides, AI is changing the game. Having experience and expertise is still valuable, but many people now find answers without needing to ask here.

More than ever, then, I travel—and I’ve never stopped—to answer your question from another angle.

A photo clue for the trip. Even if there are other clues in other discussions.

Michel

Hi Michel,

You’re back on tiptoes. Forgotten are the many squabbles. I admit, I often found them fun. Your clues are so easy. Do you like the landscapes of the Faroe Islands? I wonder if these islands are very different from the Shetland Islands. Safe travels, then.

Hello Joël...

I have a well-calibrated curiosity account on the forum that some have built up, enough to reinforce my reservations about such a self-proclaimed thought police.

Thank you for the comprehensive response—it really adds to the discussion.

The "well-calibrated" forum has managed to attract many motivated travelers, as well as competent moderators and specialists. Like in other small forums, you find people who want to avoid controversy and confrontation, even if it means things get a little too smooth. Naturally, you also find all those "good people who don’t like others taking a different path"—a bit timid, easily swayed by the mainstream narrative?

Won’t any of them want to speak up here?

As this thread grows, I’m really appreciating the arguments being shared, the effort everyone puts into participating, and how respectful everyone is being. I’d love for this to continue.

As for A.I., we’re among the last generations not yet turned into machines—but that’s a whole other debate.

There must have been some unfortunate deaths too, since some were aged between 60 and 80 back in 2020

Wow! That’s really old! I dodged a bullet there, didn’t I? 😎

It’s always the best ones who go first—that’s why we’re still here! 😛

In my questions, the death option was off-topic since I was thinking of those who were still active in terms of travel.

I only know of one death, a participant from the Thailand forum. A simple man who chose expatriation a long time ago, and whose modest pension would barely have allowed him to survive—even in our chilly latitudes. He unfortunately couldn’t afford effective local health insurance, the kind that costs between 300 and 500 € per month depending on age and health. Dying from appendicitis at 72 is truly tragic. That’s why it’s important to remind would-be expats to carefully weigh the pros and cons and budget properly.

The other forum really didn’t want, at the start, to relive the last few months before VF’s coma.

So the ultra-controversial topic from back then wasn’t supposed to resurface. It’d actually be best if it disappeared forever because, apart from tearing each other apart among VF members, nothing good will come of it.

For the rest, I think a non-commercial forum, especially if it stays low-key, often reflects the personality of its administrator.

If money isn’t involved, you’re less likely to make an effort to accept others. If the starting group shares the same ideas, those are the ones that’ll thrive later on.

Won’t any of them want to speak up here?

You’ve already had plenty of responses from people registered on both forums...

I get the feeling you had lunch at the same restaurant as me...

Hi Jojo

I only know of one death, that of a Thailand forum participant.

Who is it? I wasn’t very active on the Thailand forum, but I remember crossing paths with Obeoandpai on other sections, as well as another guy whose username I can’t recall—he lived in Bangkok and might’ve had a guesthouse, not sure... There was also Barbot, who lived near me. I met him once; he was really nice. Haven’t heard from him since 😕 And then Therat, who hasn’t logged in since 2022.

Dying from appendicitis at 72 is really unfortunate. That’s why it’s important to remind those considering expatriation to carefully weigh the pros and cons and budget properly.

You can also die from a brown recluse spider bite... Otherwise, to answer the question about why some members are less active on the forum, I have a possible explanation: statistically, one in two seniors in France is job-seeking. So if you’re unemployed, well, you don’t travel anymore.

Obeoandpai updated his blog not long ago, and I'm really surprised I can't find it here. Philippe (Therat), I know for a fact that he's doing well.

So, I think we hadn't mentioned those who simply wanted to move on or no longer felt like participating, out of weariness.

I get the feeling you had lunch at the same restaurant as me...

That’s funny, it’s a word I never use. I don’t have lunch, I eat 🙂. Le Bitin, I think. Scandinavian sandwiches upstairs, ramen downstairs.

As for the rest, I replied to you privately yesterday: when people have insulted you, looked down on you, and still don’t even acknowledge after the fact that history proved them wrong, you’re not exactly inclined to hang out with them, even in a neutral place.

Let’s add that an important aspect of the forum remains the "travel journal" section, and that’s something I don’t do, I don’t read, and it’s never interested me. Unlike you, which is why you’ve never seen me on the classic MyAtlas version—I fall asleep in front of travel photo novels.

Michel

Hello,

Let’s also note that an important aspect of the forum remains the "travel journals" section, and that’s something I don’t do, I don’t read them, and I’ve never been interested in them.

That’s funny, because after our little chat last November, I would’ve thought the opposite... 😉

https://voyageforum.com/forum/qu-est-ce-qu-carnet-voyage-d10629286-2/

It's funny, because I would've thought the opposite after our little chat last November... 😉 https://voyageforum.com/forum/qu-est-ce-qu-carnet-voyage-d10629286-2/

I knew My Atlas existed and what it was about, but I never looked into it—I was never a member. Oh, did I give the impression that a travel journal could be about a flight? That’s what’s throwing you off? No, just a rhetorical question—no intention behind it.

Michel

Well, yes, all controversial topics have to disappear from the forum. VF is going to turn into a self-righteous forum in the end... The TourduMondiste site, which did a great job during Covid, also removed the "conspiracy theorist" members, including me. If the topic that must disappear for good is vaccines, it’s a poor analysis of the profound changes it brought about worldwide... especially since conspiracy theorists were warning about it. Anyway... VF won’t be able to go back to how it was before, no matter what...

Hello,

Could you elaborate or give examples of what you consider "pretentious"?

I don’t have specific examples to give—there are plenty of them. That travel journal summarizing the trip day by day, listing prices down to the cent, meals, last-minute changes, the time they went pee or poo, whether they had a stomachache, if they slept well... all of it, with or without photos of the meal from every angle. Do you want me to go on?

Seeing Cupda pop up in my monologue below makes me want to answer your question, Jojoone. On VF, we used to run into some amazing and passionate people—I’m thinking of Choucarde, who talked so well about Brittany; Yanguizzi, who disappeared along with Le Piaf and Declericy; Naps, the slightly crazy globetrotter whose body (and heart, I believe) kept going even when injured. I’m thinking of Thuan and Philobate, the two dyslexic forum members who enriched the Thailand section. I remember Christian06, who’d write to me with his position (latitude, longitude, etc.), telling me he was on his sailboat—and I believed him. He was on a video game. How naive I was—I still laugh about it. Who remembers Taamaden, Herbert, a German who spoke perfect French and loved literature, or Pataugas, who wrote a novel set in Australia where she’d lived herself, and Glatch, Agathe—feisty, sarcastic, and so funny. Anyway, I could name so many others who’ve just come flooding back to me. Maybe all these people are now craving different moments in life, not just travel. Less frantic, less hungry for unknown lands—maybe, with age, they want tranquility, calm, and no longer feel the need to stack trips like so many bright postcards.

My priorities have changed too. I don’t want to keep switching campsites, hotels, or places to sleep every two days anymore. I want time to pass peacefully. The desire to get to know the culture and the people I meet better—and maybe to tell myself that *my life’s novel is over; its real story is just beginning.*

Anyway, I could name so many others that have just come back to mind.

Like tchaolin, jeddhai paladin roulemonde seahawk, mohikan, etc. It could be fun :sly: And with Williama, the discussions were really lively. It’s gotten too dull. He should come back!

I see why I wasn’t understanding you—it’s your use of the word "pompeux" that doesn’t match its meaning.

Your critique reminds me of the travel journals of one participant who tracked his expenses with truly scientific precision, down to the cent. Okay, he *is* an engineer, after all. It became really funny to me, but ultimately, his merit was offering journals about off-the-beaten-path destinations with explanations that provided a ton of precise and useful details. What annoys some people, others find practical and helpful.

Try writing a travel journal someday. Choosing the right words, the style, avoiding repetition, not saying too much or too little... after quite some time—and I’m not even talking about picking the photos—will you be satisfied with yourself? And will others be satisfied?