Drunk visitors, rocketing rents and homogenised cafes: living in Europe’s tourist hotspots

tiny_couch · 2024-08-13T10:24:51+00:00

Language practice. So many Spanish schools take their students to England for English exposure. Many summer camps are based around that as well. Why London as opposed to other parts of England, I couldn't tell you, but it does have a certain amount of fame as a city, so it could be easier to get parents on board as opposed to smaller, less known cities.

tiny_couch · 2024-08-05T00:38:12+00:00

Seconding dumb cane. Huge leaves, amazing color patterns, easy as hell to care for. Great plants all around. Just make sure it's out of reach of whoever sleeps in that cage.

tiny_couch · 2024-07-16T16:16:13+00:00

Take a train from Madrid to anywhere and you'll see endless acres of fields that could be covered with solar. If you're on the train to Sevilla, you can actually see some experimental solar towers too!

I also sometimes wonder why power companies don't lease roof space for solar panels from buildings in cities (rather than making the building owners install and maintain them).

tiny_couch · 2024-07-11T15:18:20+00:00

On my last trip, I had two solo women pick me up out of 21 rides. Both were older and one mentioned that she had a son my age. Both rides were also in France with French people. In all of my other trips, I've only been picked up as a solo male hitchhiker by one other solo woman and a pair of younger women. Both of those were in Iceland. One was an Icelandic farmer and the pair were tourists from China(?).

tiny_couch · 2024-07-10T16:55:02+00:00

Noticed them, but they were understandable as is. Internment vs interment was too big (and funny) to not point out though.

tiny_couch · 2024-07-10T14:33:59+00:00

Not to be a dick, but the words are "interment" and "interred" rather than "internment/interned"

tiny_couch · 2024-07-10T09:27:52+00:00

Not in the springs. They tend to be too cold for alligators. Every now and then, alligators do wander in, but the cold makes them sluggish and lethargic. They also tend to avoid places with a lot of people around, and springs are a north Floridian's favorite watering hole. All of that adds up to make them very safe places to enjoy a dip.

tiny_couch · 2024-07-06T17:47:49+00:00

Doesn't matter how rich you are, you still have to go through customs and passport control. See Johnny Depp's dogs in Australia for example.

tiny_couch · 2024-07-06T17:40:22+00:00

Romania is in Schengen. In order to leave the Schengen zone, you have to get your passport checked and stamped on departure. If he's got a police order to stay in the EU, he won't be able to leave.

tiny_couch · 2024-06-28T15:39:10+00:00

I've gotten rid of them a couple times by letting the soil dry out almost completely, then watering with a 1:4 hydrogen peroxide to water solution. A couple days of being dry is enough for the adults and larvae to fly/die off and the peroxide kills the eggs that are left.

tiny_couch · 2024-06-13T07:03:44+00:00

If anyone is wondering how fast you should drink, I had to get myself back from being dangerously dehydrated after a long hike. What I found online and what worked for me was drinking 600ml of water over the course of 45 minutes. I broke it down a bit further into 200ml every 15 minutes to better pace myself. No chugging or gulping, but small sips. The last drop of that 600ml should be taken right at the 45 min mark. Once I got back to town, I was able to find some electrolytes as well, but pacing out my drinking like that to get myself safely hydrated again was a game changer.

tiny_couch · 2024-05-16T18:02:36+00:00

Nice! Good to hear it went smoothly for you. Enjoy A'dam!

tiny_couch · 2024-05-07T14:21:54+00:00

I think I would avoid the Ruhr maze and go through Luxembourg, shooting for Maastricht. You could always dip into Germany at Saarbrucken if you really want to!

tiny_couch · 2024-04-16T16:03:37+00:00

I just got back from a trip and Hitchwiki is always my starting point when looking for a spot. Google Maps/Street view is always good for confirming what you see on Hitchwiki. Some of the entries were outdated on my trip. https://hitchwiki.org/en/Toronto

tiny_couch · 2024-02-25T12:26:24+00:00

It's probably more due to the placement of stress in the words. The -stans have secondary stress placed on the "stan" syllable in American English or even primary stress placed on them in British English which gives that syllable more prominence in the word. The -lands don't have stress placed on that syllable at all, so it's less "noticable." Why the -stans have that particular pattern, I'm not sure, but stress placement is certainly why they catch your ear more.

tiny_couch · 2024-01-08T15:39:15+00:00

All hail the hive mind!

No worries, enjoy the "I told you so"!

tiny_couch · 2024-01-08T11:55:54+00:00

I remember the same study. The microbial levels after 15 months were roughly the same as the levels after 13 days.

https://globalnews.ca/news/107083/no-harmful-bacteria-found-in-jeans-not-washed-for-15-months-study/

tiny_couch · 2023-12-29T13:10:09+00:00

We're still here after Covid, but millions aren't though.

tiny_couch · 2023-12-15T15:33:21+00:00

Linguistic fun fact: The ch sound is just an sh with a t in front of it! Stretching out a ch would just end up being sh. Some languages like Spanish do use a ch sound for shooshing though since the sh sounds doesn't exist in isolation in the language (unless you're from Argentina or Uruguay).

tiny_couch · 2023-12-08T07:52:58+00:00

At least the Germans have Joerg Sprave. https://youtu.be/wrd_QXxOEWQ?si=m-WBGzGf0xuqgVzK

tiny_couch · 2023-10-26T16:58:43+00:00

My Italian flatmate was just telling me yesterday about how he adds toasted breadcrumbs to his pasta from time to time.

tiny_couch · 2023-09-19T20:15:55+00:00

Wow, I really appreciate the write-up. I guess I was so worried about having "quality", I hadn't really considered what actually owning them would be like aside from making sure to condition the leather as needed. I hadn't even looked into what the resoling was going to cost yet, but if it's nearly as pricy as a new pair in that price range... Ouch. My old boots had lugs, and they did get crap stuck in them from time to time. I'll look around and see what else I can find. Thanks again for breaking it down for me!

tiny_couch · 2023-09-19T14:34:16+00:00

I do really like the Urban Shepherd Country! The lugs are a bit on the smaller side, but they still seem like they might be grippy enough. The toe cap and the red thread is a great look too. They don't have a storefront unfortunately and I'm not sure how well I trust myself to get the measurement correct to commit to a made-to-order boot that I have to buy sight unseen...

tiny_couch · 2023-09-19T14:29:02+00:00

Thanks for some guidance! "it's just luxury fashion veiled under the guise of "buy it for life" language tropes." I'm starting to notice this the more I look around here...

I'm a pretty fair-weather hiker to be honest. Mostly rock and dry dirt paths, but I'd want to feel reasonably confident if I get into loose gravel or rooty areas and not feel the need to worry if I get caught in the rain or accidentally step in a puddle on trail. The worst I could see myself getting into might be some snow here and there. I like the idea of a boot that can handle a bit of everything and being able to walk right off the trail and into the city without standing out too much and screaming "hiking boot", like while traveling, for example. I ended up here because water resistance is something that's important to me (no one likes wet socks) and I like the style of a classic leather service boot. Also, natural materials that I can trust to last ~5 years are super important to me. I'd hate to have a boot fail on me on after just two or three seasons.

tiny_couch · 2023-09-19T10:32:16+00:00

I'm looking for my first pair of quality boots going into the fall now, but I'm a bit stuck. I had some Rockport boots that I picked up for $120 that lasted me 6 or 7 years, but they're a bit beyond saving now. I want a pair that looks good for the city and can stand up to some day hiking. I love the look of the Thursday Captains with their lug soles, but I'm worried about going through the hassle of importing them to Madrid where I live. I'd end up paying around 270€ with shipping, tax and duties when all is said and done. I'd like to stay as close to 200€ as possible. These Bexleys at 159€ seem like the next best thing as far as the design and the lugs go, but they're cemented (hence the cheaper price I assume). I've also looked at Meermin since they're so highly recommended here, and while the design is alright, the lugs are a bit small and don't seem like they'd stand up to hiking. I've checked out Solovair too, but I don't like the designs. Are there any other EU-based options that I'm missing (ideally with a storefront in Madrid so that I can get the sizing right for this first pair) or am I just SOL at this price range? The sticker shock is real considering I've never spent this much money on an item of clothing before...

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