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Wish other tourists knew that filling the overhead bin on an airplane with your roll around suitcase, backpack, computer case, coat, shopping bag, purse, ... is rude.
I've watched passengers get on planes loaded down like sherpas.
They fill the overhead bin, leaving no room for other passengers' belongings.
Why don't the airlines put a stop to this?
And this is why people crowd around the gates. Not because they are necessarily pushy or impatient, but to make sure they get overhead bin space.
I have travelled for almost 30 years out of a single, soft sided bag that, push come to shove, can be stored under the seat in front of me, but at over 6 feet tall, I'd prefer to have the foot room. But if I can't, I live with it.
A peeve of mine regarding overhead bin space is people that seem to think their ticket price not only includes overhead bin space, but the space directly over their seat. I was on a flight where a gentleman (and I use the owrd loosely, was traveling with his two older teen children. They were the last people to board and when they arrived in their row, the bins above were already full. The stink this guy raised. The attendant came over and said that she could find space for their three large rollerboard suitcases in the very back of the plane. Unacceptable! He paid for row x and he wanted his bags (all three of them, really?) above row x. But finally he relented.
Also, there was only room for two of them so one of the bags had to be checked and would be on the jetway when we arrived at our destination. He let out a tirade of abuse on this very professional, calm, and collected flight attendant. she had none of it. As she rolled the bag towards the front of the plane, this "gentleman flipped her the middle finger behind her back, which was witnesses by another flight attendant.
THis act plus his abusive language ultimately got him, and his children kicked off the flight. We ended up taking off an hour late, not to mention having to witness a middle aged man's petulant and offensive behavior.
But here is the kicker. Most of the other passengers took the entitled jerk's side.
As a pedestrian, step off to the side if you want to stop walking. When exiting a store and entering the flow of pedestrian traffic, don’t stop and confer with your companions....walk with the flow. Its amazing how clueless people can be when walking in a heavy pedestrian traffic area! And, if you are walking with a few companions, its unfair to slowly walk 3-4 people abreast making it very difficult for faster walkers to overtake your group.
If you are requested not to go into a Church, becasue of a funeral, don't barge in anyhow, to get photos. I was on a tour in Sicily, & the tour was supposed to take us inside a Cathedral, but when we met the tour guide, she asked us to wait until after the funeral service was over, to me, that was obvious, & easy to show some respect, so we went off & had a coffee & a walk around. I couldn't belive, almost the entire bus load of people went into the Church, to take photos. It was rude & embarrassing to me.
In developing countries tourists, particularly Americans, tend to tip too much. These countries work on the backsheesh culture where a small tip is appropriate but, fellow tourist, be aware that means a small sum, coins, not a crisp American fiver that may be equivalent to the average weekly pay for there fellow countrymen.
The problem being that you upset the financial balance, you have some very smart people in these countries that find they can make more money being a baggage handler to western tourists than a doctor, teacher, scientist, or some other field that helps there country.
This reminds me of a "blunder" we made while in Russia. We were not familiar with the money, customs, etc. We ordered up room service, then tipped the server what we thought was a fair amount. Well, it turned out we tipped him $60 worth of rubles, not the $1 or so we thought we had given. He appeared shocked, and protested no, not so much. We didn't speak a word or Russian, and he didn't speak any English. He really appeared reluctant to take the money, finally he did. When we found out our mistake later we felt a bit foolish! However, at that time -- 1998 -- Russia's economy was in a state of collapse and many people were working for nothing just to keep their jobs for better times. That amount -- $60 -- was the monthly salary of many professionals, including teachers, doctors, etc.
Well, perhaps that money was put to good use. Our lives didn't suffer for the lack of it. Just next time we visit a foreign country we will take the time to learn more about the currency, etc
Do not spend a week driving New England in the fall. Once you've seen 1000 trees showing the fall colors you become jaded and it has little impact. You can see 1000 trees in a good day.
Skip mega art collections. Similar to seeing the fall foliage, taking in the thousands of artistic jewels at the louvre or the Vatican can not be done by most of us. Its sensory overload, we need more diversity.
Something I was dealing with today: when at a buffet line, go in order so that the line moves smoothly. I had a bunch of tourists jumping all over the place today, which was extremely frustrating. I get that some things may not be second nature (and may just be new to some) to some, but I don't think its that hard to follow along with what everyone else is doing. Its all about having some situational awareness
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However, at that time -- 1998 -- Russia's economy was in a state of collapse and many people were working for nothing just to keep their jobs for better times. That amount -- $60 -- was the monthly salary of many professionals, including teachers, doctors, etc. 
