Originally Posted by
Harutz
I don't understand where people get the idea that you can't have any variety, nutrition or even fruit cheaply.
I love fresh fruit, can enjoy wonderful variety of dishes with simple ingredients, and NEVER resort to fast food or junk food in any circumstances.
And I don't understand the black and white thinking that says one either eats healthy or one eats junk food and at fast food restaurants. Most people fall somewhere in between.
And it never feels like any kind of hardship...
Is it just the prevailing mindset of the credit card tourist to think that staying in hotels and eating at expensive restaurants gets them closer to the reality of the culture and environment of the place they're cycling in?
Oh, please. That's just nonsense. If you camp on tour, you'll meet different people in the campground areas than the people you would meet in hotels and restaurants. Neither of them are more or less valid experiences of the culture. In both places you'll meet fellow travelers. Moreover, a credit card tourist can safely secure the bike in the hotel, get cleaned up, and then go out as a "normal" person among the population. I'm NOT saying this is a superior way to travel, only that it means there are tradeoffs to all these choices and this is one for the credit card tourer.
I'm not trying to insult anybody. I guess people who have always had money can't imagine how to live without it, and people who have always lived without it can't see any need for it.
Well, you are being insulting. You don't have to be rich to be a credit card tourer, and even if someone is rich and decides to do a credit card tour, so what? The only difference is that they have more money than others, and you are trying to say that their use of money is inhibiting their experiences because they aren't doing it the "right" way. Also, it's a very poor generalization that people who have the means to stay in hotels have never had it rough financially. Geez.