Nervous about International travel next week...

My grandson is studying abroad this semester. He is studying at Bangor University in Wales. They encourage students to travel abroad in this program. He is now in Marrakech. Cheap travel costs and a chance to see a different culture. He is having a ball.
 
wmheel1287 said:
My partner turns 50 on Oct 26 and I convinced him a year ago to take significant time off for the first time in his 25 years of teaching. We are flying to Barcelona next Saturday to spend a few days there and then taking a small ship cruise for 11 nights from there to ports on the Spanish Coast, Casablanca, and Tenerife. Generally, I am super excited to travel but this one has me anxious as hell. I worry about the shutdown affecting TSA and ATC. I worry about Americans being seen as international assholes. I worry about the re-entry and somebody being an asshole for no reason. Anyone else traveled lately and had those feelings?
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You will be fine. Bon Voyage
 
CRHeel94 said:
In general, people appreciate the effort.

Waiters in Spain can be a bit curt which is a contrast with the faux friendliness put out by waitstaff in the States.
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A separate question...tipping waitstaff...expected, not expected, appreciated, offensive? I always want to be kind and generous but not offensive when traveling.
 
ColdBlueSteel said:
This comment reeks of low to no self efficacy.
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LOL, I'm pretty danged successful and have an ego that equals that of Donald Trump. Doesn't mean I want to stay in a place which has devolved into mostly unkind attempts at "owning" each other and sniping nonstop. There are places on the planet where the political leadership doesn't insist on inserting themselves daily into the lives of the populace and dividing their population against itself.
 
traveling as an american has been risky to an extent for decades. years of being the worlds big bad bully doesnt go unnoticed its worse now than ever. cross your fingers and hope luck is on your side. life is a game of luck, randomness and absurdity
 
wmheel1287 said:
A separate question...tipping waitstaff...expected, not expected, appreciated, offensive? I always want to be kind and generous but not offensive when traveling.
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In Spain, not expected, but appreciated. Definitely don't need to tack on 15-20%. I usually go with about 10%...round up your bill or leave the change in coins.
 
CRHeel94 said:
In Spain, not expected, but appreciated. Definitely don't need to tack on 15-20%. I usually go with about 10%...round up your bill or leave the change in coins.
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Do people use coins in Spain? I almost never use cash for anything anymore.
 
In my former life, I was a bank marketing exec whose main goal in life was to get people to use cards over cash (last time I went to an ATM in CR was about six months ago). So that's something I really look at when I travel.

Last couple of times I was in Spain, yes people still use cash but a lot less than previously...they've done a great job of improving card acceptance post-covid.
 
OGtruthhurts said:
traveling as an american has been risky to an extent for decades. years of being the worlds big bad bully doesnt go unnoticed its worse now than ever. cross your fingers and hope luck is on your side. life is a game of luck, randomness and absurdity
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Anybody remember the old days when., as a North Carolinian traveling abroad, you had to apologize for Jesse Helms?
 
wmheel1287 said:
Its been about a year and a half since last in Europe but when in Italy I was surprised how prevalent cash and coins were.
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London has gone completely cashless. I took out 200 pounds when I arrived 2 years ago for a business trip. I've gone two additional times since then, and I still have I think 100 GPB left in cash. Everything is tap and go.
 
wmheel1287 said:
My partner turns 50 on Oct 26 and I convinced him a year ago to take significant time off for the first time in his 25 years of teaching. We are flying to Barcelona next Saturday to spend a few days there and then taking a small ship cruise for 11 nights from there to ports on the Spanish Coast, Casablanca, and Tenerife. Generally, I am super excited to travel but this one has me anxious as hell. I worry about the shutdown affecting TSA and ATC. I worry about Americans being seen as international assholes. I worry about the re-entry and somebody being an asshole for no reason. Anyone else traveled lately and had those feelings?
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1. Congratulations on your milestone and I'm sure you will have a great time. Would sincerely like to hear your thoughts experiences when you return. Have always been interested in going to spain.
2. Wouldn't worry about being an American asshole. That part of the world is rife with Americans and people there are very experienced in interacting with Americans. I have been told that you will be treated like VIPs if you wear maga hats when exploring the various cities.
 
NYCBlueBlood said:
London has gone completely cashless. I took out 200 pounds when I arrived 2 years ago for a business trip. I've gone two additional times since then, and I still have I think 100 GPB left in cash. Everything is tap and go.
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Our granddaughter is going in two weeks to visit her brother in Wales. We’ve given her a credit card and £200. Our daughter and us are going about a week later. Are going to use a credit card and cash. I’m getting £1,000.
 
Patb78 said:
Our granddaughter is going in two weeks to visit her brother in Wales. We’ve given her a credit card and £200. Our daughter and us are going about a week later. Are going to use a credit card and cash. I’m getting £1,000.
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I was on business travel, so maybe my experience will be less relevant. But I found it VERY hard to use cash. Everybody sticks a machine in your face for you to tap a credit card. A lot of places claim they don't have cash on hand to make change. But most of my experiences are bars and restaurants.
 
NYCBlueBlood said:
I was on business travel, so maybe my experience will be less relevant. But I found it VERY hard to use cash. Everybody sticks a machine in your face for you to tap a credit card. A lot of places claim they don't have cash on hand to make change. But most of my experiences are bars and restaurants.
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Thanks for the info. With my wife and daughter we will definitely do some shopping so we might use some cash then.
 
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