Author Elizabeth Drew one wrote “Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation.” I have a hunch she penned that observation from a rest stop in between family road trips. If you're miles away from civilization and the incivility broadcast on Bravo, take a pen and paper with you while on vacation and take note of the no-no's that seem to abound these days.
Continental breakfasts are a staple of most off-the-highway lodging. Maybe it is time to post the same 'no shoes, no shirt, no service' signs that greet diners and bar patrons. Note to shirtless guy inhaling pre-microwaved hash browns: you may have just rolled out of bed, but you needn't look like it when you're in a public space! Shoeless is fine if you're in the shower, not at the breakfast buffet.
Part of the fun of traveling is exploring new places and sampling different cultures. Memo to loud guys by the entrance to a local eatery: When patrons at nearby tables can't tell whether they are in a recommended local micro-brewery or yankee stadium as they attempt to eat and drink like the natives, it's time to stop behaving like animals.
Poking fun of the housekeeping staff, nabbing a dozen freshly baked cookies instead of one upon check-in, and splashing other guests with your cannonn balls at the hotel pool is guaranteed, as Drew wrote, to lengthen the conversations about incivility on roadways and byways of the great American summer vacation. After all, it really DOES 'Manner A lot'. Happy Trails!
