Your basic premise that newer is better when it comes to aircraft is overly simplistic at best. Between the 737 MAX fiasco and the news that Boeing falsified documentation on a 787 they sold to Air Canada ten months ago, I’d be much more comfortable on an aircraft that’s been in service for a decade than some of the…

I’ve got compression shorts from Decathlon that actually have four pockets. Gels go in the side pockets, keys in the back, and phone at the front so it doesn’t bounce around. Of course, the downside is that I look like I’m groping myself any time I have to pull out the phone...

I would honestly rather take a nice, little Embraer or CRJ any chance I get than one of the larger Boeing or Airbus aircraft. They’re so much more comfortable. Also had a nice flight on a Sukhoi Superjet 100, but I wasn’t really in the mood to enjoy it, having missed a connection in Riga and leaving at 4 a.m. to get…

All I can say is Edeka and Rewe. AH doesn’t hold a candle to every single location I’ve been in for those two chains.

Keep in mind that I grew up in western Canada, so I don’t differentiate a supermarket from a “hypermarket”. That’s probably the main distinction.

Saying that Albert Heijn has almost everything is maybe being overly generous. Even the XL stores don’t hold a candle to grocery stores in most other countries.

You’re aware that the similarity to Trader Joe’s is because Aldi Nord owns that chain, right? The Aldi that’s being referenced here is Aldi Sud, which is a related but distinct financial entity.

You know, I think this is one of those cases where when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. There’s an easy way to handle the sourdough situation and every obstacle you describe: put the soup in a separate bowl. Kid ordered it, so charge the normal price and everyone’s happy. This really shouldn’t…

Because I thought the rest of your comment was reasonable? I just wanted to point out that there are a lot of ways to enjoy nature. One doesn’t have to stop and be awed by the beauty around them to enjoy it just as you are.

I’m only taking issue with one part of your comment:

I was debating doing that, but by the time I got to that part of the route, I was seriously dragging. Lifting my arms for a high five was not on the to-do list.

I’m totally appreciating spectators at the moment. I completed my first marathon on Sunday in Rotterdam; the last 4k was jam-packed with people and they absolutely would not let you stop. They yell and scream encouragement, shoulder pats, hand you water and food (or beer in the case of hashers), you name it. And bring…

I rewatched that recently. It’s actually worse than I remembered, and I didn’t remember it as being good.

What can I tell you? I have bad impulse control. Plus I live in Bike Nirvana, which doesn’t help in the slightest.

Cycling looks relatively inexpensive at the outset and then you get into it and discover it’s a total moneypit. An enjoyable one, but my god does your money disappear fast.

I completely understand. I’ve been living here for 2 years now and my Dutch is still terrible. And yeah, they’ll switch to English. Slowing down when speaking just isn’t a thing for pretty much everybody.

It generally works in the germanic areas as well. The Dutch will respond just fine to “pardon”, “het spijt me”, or “sorry” (with an odd accent). Or you can just apologize in English since 95% of them speak it fluently.

I’m a little weird, but I like the 1- and 2-star reviews because they give me a good baseline. If all the poor reviews are complaining about things that I think are ridiculous, then I can give a lot more weight to the good reviews. If the bad reviews are making valid points, then I get more wary.

What I’m saying is that the term “disturb” may mean something else in another culture. Because yes, knocking to see if you’re in does not necessarily count as a disturbance in a country like Georgia, especially if you’re out in the countryside.

The DND sign can also have a range of meanings. I’ve had some places where I’ve had the sign up and they just come in while I’m out, do a quick refresh of the bed, grab the dirty towels from the bathroom and put new ones on the bed for me. In others, it means they don’t even knock on the door.