Tuesday, 26 May 2009

• Stranger Danger or Foreign Friends? Do You Make Friends While Traveling?

  
  

  On a trip to Paris, I unwittingly ended up stranded and alone for a night. I had missed my flight home (my friends had already departed, the bastards) and had to spend one lonely night in a hotel near the airport in the City of Lights before my new flight departed the next day. I checked into my room and contemplated how I would spend my independent evening. Armed with a copy of an abused fashion magazine, dogeared and tattered, so as not to look like a loser sitting alone (somehow sitting alone while reading seems important and aloof) I headed to the hotel restaurant for some food and perhaps a brew or two. Leafing through the magazine and sipping my drink, I sighed audibly at my boredom. Behind me, I heard laughter and more importantly English, so I turned from my bar stool and saw a cute young couple waving me over to their table.

  "What are you doing? Trying to score some frequent flier miles?" the female couple counterpart quipped. I shrugged. I had been sitting at the bar with three old pilots, toasting scotch and talking about their 401k's. I sat with the couple, and introduced myself. We drank, ate dinner, laughed and chatted. I regaled them with my horror story of my missed flight and abandoned state, while they filled me in on the next stop on their trip. We flirted our way into a few rounds of drinks from the old pilots. At the end of the night, we exchanged emails and to this day, have kept in touch. My lonely night turned into a fun evening with new friends, and a story I never tire of telling.

  It's pretty easy, I have found, to make friends while traveling, especially if you are in a tourist spot, like a hotel, resort, or bar/restaurant. People are usually happy because they are on vacation. No worries, no stress. We travelers like to share where we're from, what we've seen, and recommend where you should go. If you have an experience with a new person in a new place, it is almost guaranteed that you will remember them. These new relationships are perhaps better than any souvenir as they keep giving back and you can reminisce about your trip together. So try it! Next time you're on vacation, or even just in a new place in your own town, say hello! Ask what's good to eat, or what they are drinking. You might be pleasantly surprised to find how amiable strangers can be! I was surprised to find that even in my own city (and it's a big city with a notorious reputation for rudeness), people can actually be friendly, and will generally want to share their experiences! I have met new friends in the city by just talking about trips we've been on.

  Do you talk to strangers? Do you like to make new friends on vacations? Have you kept in touch with the people you have met along your journeys? Are their any precautions you should take before talking to strangers?

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