The Organised/Unorganised Traveller

“A good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.”
- Lao Tzu

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Recent posts have asked the question: What Type of Traveller Are You? I have also looked at the Plugged In Traveller, and the Wired Traveller. Today I’m turning my attention to the Organised Traveller, and their opposite number – the Unorganised Traveller.

All of these – Plugged, Wired and Organised/Unorganised travellers – are part of the mix when thinking about the type of traveller you are.

The Organised Traveller happily leaves everything to their travel agent: flight bookings, travel insurance, hotel reservations, excursions, and the many other details that have to be attended to before embarking on their vacation.

The Organised Traveller likes to know that every stage of their journey has been planned in fine detail. That every waking hour is mapped out like a military exercise. Nothing is left to chance. If you are this type of traveller, guided tours are perfect for you. As are cruise ship vacations, study tours, holiday resorts, and any other type of holiday which offers a full program of activities, and saves you from having to plan or organise more than the absolute essentials.

The Unorganised Traveller on the other hand is, as you might expect, the opposite. But first, let me be clear about what I am talking about here. Being Un-organised is not the same as being Dis-organised. Chevy Chase in the National Lampoon series of Vacation… movies is a completely disorganised traveller.

The Unorganised Traveller maps out points along the way, but leaves plenty of slack in their itinerary to take advantage of last minute changes or chance encounters with locals, and fellow travellers.

Road trips, for instance, are a perfect example.

The Unorganised Traveller plans to drive from A to B; say Adelaide to Sydney (or New York to New Orleans). He might have a list of cities and attractions along the route he wants to visit, but is happy to take ‘the road less travelled’ if it looks interesting, or if he hears about some other place worth visiting. He doesn’t book his accommodation two months in advance. When he is tired of being on the road, he will pull into any reasonable looking motel and rest and recuperate there, before moving on the next day.

Since they never know what awaits them around the next bend in the road, or what panoramic vista might lie before them when they crest a mountain highway - every day holds the potential for new adventures for the Unorganised Traveller.

None of this is meant to disparage the Organised Traveller, of course. As always, it comes down to understanding the type of traveller you are, and planning your travels to reflect your preferences.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

~ My attention was drawn to an article in the Adelaide Advertiser published on February 17. It detailed the enormous costs associated with getting married in Australia in 2008. I believe the original source for the data published in the paper came from an online poll conducted by Bride to Be last year.

Here are a few Australian dollar figures for you to think about if you are contemplating taking that fateful step.

• The average cost of getting married in Australia is $50,000
• One couple reported spending more than $62,000 on their wedding!
• The average cost of wedding receptions is almost $10,500 (approx: $110.00 per head)…
• …which means the average number of guests is around a 100
• Even wedding cakes cost a small fortune these days – an average of $387.00

All of this got me thinking about the four weddings I attended last year during my stay on the Greek island of Ikaria.

The first wedding I went to had upwards of a 1000 guests!

No, that number is not a typo – it is correct, although not precise. The exact number of guest is unknown, because although the couple getting married issue invitations to family and friends in the traditional manner, the invited guests are not expected to RSVP their intentions to attend. Both families concerned just assume that everyone invited will be there, and that if they don’t, others will make up the numbers!

By the way, at one of the other weddings I attended they were expecting 1200-1300 hundred guests! The numbers fell well short of that (again around a 1000 or so), because there were two other weddings taking place on the island at the same time, and many families would have received invitations to at least two, if not all three events.

Here is a seven minute video I put together of the wedding and the party that followed. I call it a party, because essentially that’s what it is – a huge party celebrating the marriage of the bride and groom, and the ‘marriage’ of two island families. The first couple of minutes set the scene, but once the ‘reception’ starts, the party really begins.



One could write a book about island weddings, but I have to keep this as short as practicable, so let me highlight some of the logistics of the wedding you see in the film.

The church where the marriage took place was tiny, as are most island churches. Since it was barely big enough to hold the families of the bride and groom, most people who attended the wedding itself, hung around outside chatting, and waited for the ceremony to end.

The assembled throng then walked several hundred yards to the village centre where the reception was taking place. Seated on benches, ranged along trestle tables, the wedding guests waited to be served the tradition wedding meal – a dish of rice and goat meat. There were salads and lots of mezes (Greek finger food), and plenty of red wine sourced from the island itself or from local islands.

I know what you’re thinking: How on earth do you feed a thousand people?

Well, apart from the paid ‘professionals’ working on the day, the musicians; the Wedding Rice cooks; and the photographers, virtually all other work is carried out on a voluntary basis by extended family, friends, and acquaintances of the bride and groom.

The video shows some of these people serving guests. The huge two person serving tray you see (at around the six minute mark), holds upwards of 30 plates of food, and helps distribute meals quickly and efficiently.

Since the wedding will go right through to the early morning hours (and in many cases through until late morning), the volunteers serving the meals don’t have to worry about missing out on all the fun. Once everyone has been fed, a process that might take a several hours, they still have 10-12 hours of partying ahead of them.

There are no dull speeches; no embarrassing roasting of the bride and groom; no official toasting, even. Just lots of food, wine, music, and good fellowship. Oh, and hours of constant dancing.

You will also notice that children are everywhere. Asking parents to leave their children at home would be as unthinkable as having a wedding without dancing. Greek island weddings are huge community events which involve pretty much everyone - and that includes children.

At some point convenient to the newly weds, they will each take a glass of wine and circulate among the guests clinking glasses with as many of them as they can; all the while accepting the good wishes the guests bestow upon them for a long and happy marriage (you catch a glimpse of that at the two minute mark in the film).

I can’t tell you what the typical budget for a Greek island wedding might be, but I’m sure it is a fraction of the cost of Australian weddings. Since they are held in the open air, there are no hall hire fees, no waiters to pay, no extravagantly decorated tables and chairs, no stretch limos, and no wedding planner.

The main meal, as I said, consists of rice and meat (cooked in huge cauldrons). It probably required no more than 80-100 kilograms of rice to feed everyone present, and a good quantity of meat. Rice is cheap, and while the meat is less so, you can be sure that every guest was fed for far less than the average Australian price of $110 per person.

The contrast between a typical Australian wedding and a Greek island wedding could not be more pronounced. I haven’t attended weddings in other parts of Greece or on other islands, so I don’t know how they compare with those that take place on Ikaria, but Ikarian weddings are monumental events that are a wonder to behold, and a joy to be part of.

Greenpoint, YMCA Review Part 2

~ This is the second of a two part extended review of the Greenpoint, YMCA in Brooklyn, New York. Click here to read the first part...

The original, shorter version of this review first appeared on the Trip Adviser website in April, 2008. At the time I was staying at another New York City 'Y', the North Brooklyn/Twelve Towns YMCA. Since I mentioned the Greenpoint 'Y' in a previous post, Cheap Accommodation in New York City, I thought I would include an expanded review here.

I moved into the Greenpoint 'Y' on Monday, March 17, 2008, and stayed for a full 28 days before moving out for two nights to the North Brooklyn/12 Towns YMCA in the neighbourhood of Cypress Hills. I then returned for a week, before moving back to North Brooklyn.

Having spent five weeks at the Greenpoint branch of the YMCA during March and April, 2008, I feel reasonably qualified to offer a review of the facilities, the staff, the location, and the surrounding area.

Now on to part two of my review.

Staffing
While I was there, the reception staff at the Greenpoint 'Y' were mostly young, bored, and showed little interest in who was visiting, from where, or for how long. Most of them were just going through the motions, and getting even a “Good morning,” or “Hi, how are you,” from them was a major achievement. If you have a Polish or Hispanic background, you may have a different experience to me, but from my perspective, the reception staff really let the Greenpoint YMCA down. Even after staying at Greenpoint a total of five weeks, the staff could never remember my room number or my name.

And no, I don’t expect Five Star treatment at a Two Star facility, but it would have been nice to have my presence acknowledged occasionally.

Note: I specifically mention the reception staff of the Greenpoint YMCA because 80 percent of my interactions with staff members was with them. I can offer not opinion of other staff except to say that all my interactions with cleaners and maintenance personal were brief, cordial, and incident free.

Location, Location, Location
Even though you have to change subway trains at least once to get to Manhattan, the Greenpoint 'Y' is perfectly located for quick and easy access to the heart of New York City.

The 'Y' is on Meserole Ave, approximately half way between two ‘G’ train subway stations, both of which are within easy walking distance of the 'Y'. One is at the corner of Manhattan Ave and Nassau Ave, and the other at the corner of Manhattan Ave and Greenpoint Ave (refer to map).

By the way, the Manhattan 3 Decker Restaurant is just a block away (on the way to the Manhattan/Nassau Avenue station), at the corner of Manhattan and Norman Avenues.

Staying Connected
Apparently there is some sort of internet facility at the Greenpoint 'Y', but I didn’t make use of it, so I can’t tell you anything about it. However, if you need access to the internet (and in a wired world, who doesn’t?), I found the perfect solution.

A block and a half away from the 'Y', at the intersection of Norman Ave and Leonard Street (remember: the 3 Decker Restaurant is on the corner of Manhattan and Norman Avenues), you will find a local branch of the Brooklyn Library (location ‘C’ on the map). If you have a wireless enabled laptop, you can use the library’s internet connection for free. That’s right – Free. My understanding is that all public libraries (in New York at least), provide this service.

If you are not travelling with your own WiFi laptop, you can still use the computers at the library but will need to pay a small fee. Unfortunately, from what I could see there was a big demand for these computers, and users were only able to stay on line for 30 minutes at a time. Barely enough, in my opinion, to read and reply to emails. But at least it was cheap, and easy to get to.

Of course, if you travel with a laptop and have the right kind of provider, you can connect almost anywhere in the US, and it is getting easier by the day to do so.

The Neighbourhood
The highest concentration of Polish migrants in the whole of the United States is living in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. This is a fact – not a criticism. There are numerous Polish owned restaurants, bars, cafés, and shops and business of all descriptions in the area surrounding the YMCA. In fact every type of business is represented in the neighbourhood with the exception of cinemas.

I enjoyed exploring the neighbourhood, and learning about my surroundings, and if you have the time, I would encourage you to do the same. Manhattan does not have a monopoly on the action in New York City. There is plenty going on in Brooklyn as well.

US Postal Service
If you head one block down Meserole Avenue towards the East River, you will find a local branch of the US Postal Service on the corner of Meserole Ave and Guernsey Street (location ‘B’ on the map). If you need to send letters or packages home, this is the most convenient place to do it from.

Safety and Security
And finally… It doesn’t hurt that the 94th Police Precinct building is directly opposite the YMCA. The latest I returned to Greenpoint from Manhattan was around 2am. I never felt unsafe or under threat around the Greenpoint 'Y'. In addition, I never felt unsafe in the YMCA itself, or worried about having my room broken into or having things stolen.

Like any big city in the world (or small city for that matter), it pays to keep your wits about you and to not take any unnecessary risks. If you can do that and manage to stay out of trouble, there is no reason why your stay in New York can’t be one of the most exciting travel experiences of your life.

I have no hesitation saying it was just that for me, and I would happily stay at the Greenpoint, YMCA again if I got the opportunity.