North America Warnings

I read a disturbing report on another board.
http://www.texaskayakfisherman.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=82274
It says the Baja beaches aren't safe.

DO NOT STOP IN WATSON LAKE, YT!

My friend and I drove from Houston, Texas, to Anchorage, Alaska, in June, and had the misfortune of spending a night in Watson Lake. We got to Fort Nelson and got online. There is a website, www.watsonlakehotels.com, that lists these three beautiful hotels in Watson Lake. It lies. There are two or three hotels in Watson Lake, but they're all owned by the same people. We called the number listed for the Watson Lake Hotel, reserved a room, gave a credit card number, and left Fort Nelson. We finally pull into Watson Lake around 7pm, and drive to find the hotel. Watson Lake is only a street long, so we found it easily enough.

It's closed. And I mean, boarded windows and doors, deserted parking lot, graffiti on the walls, closed.

So who did I give my credit card number to? I still have no idea. So we drive to one of the other hotels and ask if they can explain what happened. They say that the call was transferred to that hotel, The Belvedere. So I tell them we made a reservation. They don't have it. Again, who did I give my credit card number to if they don't have my reservation? He has no idea. So he gives me a key, says this is his last room, and directs us to the room. Three blocks down behind a closed gas station and an abandoned propane tank. Ok. We get back in the car, drive down the street, turn behind the propane tank, and pull into the parking lot. The room is occupied. The door is open, and there's a guy sitting at the desk with his stuff all over the bed. We drive back to the Belvedere, and I tell him it's occupied and give him back the key. He pulls another key out from a different place, throws it on the counter and directs us upstairs. It's the honeymoon suite. Only the door into the room has only the handle lock (the other one has been ripped off) and the door to the conjoining room doesn't lock at all. We pushed several chairs up against it, and proceeded to sleep with one eye open. We left very early the next morning.

I do NOT recommend anyone staying in Watson Lake. Drive through, go see the Sign Post Forest (which is actually pretty cool) in daylight, and then leave. Don't stay. It's scary, expensive, and not good. Whitehorse is only about 7 hours past it. You can make it. I promise.

For pictures and more details, you can check out my blog.

Originally posted by JamesL:

quote:

Faculty see the United States as a greater threat to world stability than Russia by a ratio of 7-to-1. Nearly half of humanities faculty, 46%, see the United States as a threat to international stability, as do 34% of social science faculty. Faculty attitudes toward America look very similar to the attitudes of Europeans. A recent poll for the Financial Times reported that 36% of Europeans identify the United States as the greatest threat to international stability.

What faculty? Just curious who they were polling.

Baja Beaches not safe? What a joke. You would probably be safer in Baja on the beach than a beach in Los Angeles or San Diego anytime! Have you even been to Baja? More Americans have traveled to Baja and mainland Mexico than almost anywhere else this year. http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/story.asp?S=11306664 I assure you Baja IS safe and I have been there many times to prove it.

Just a heads up, it is now illegal to talk on your phone while you're driving in most states. Some states enforce no texting laws as well.

And a silly little thing in SF, be sure and "curb" your tires when you're parked on a hill. This means you turn them into the turn so your car won't roll backwards. You will get ticketed if you don't (I learned this lesson learned the hard way).

wanderinggurl wrote:Some states enforce no texting laws as well.

Man, I'd hope so. Texting while driving is ridiculous.

This thread has great potential. Thanks for the shares.

It's been my experience in PARIS, where people say the french are non /english speaking, that by speaking my perfectly atrocious french for about 10 seconds, those that speak English appreciate that I try, and respond in English, if only to save their ears. This should work in Quebec and Montreal as well.

I've found that a simple "Bonjour Hello" works with most people in Montreal. It signals that I respect them by starting with french, but that I'm hopeless so I'm switching to English. Only once in Montreal did I encounter a really rude guy (bus driver) who was mean to me when I asked him questions in fractured french.

KathrynD wrote:I've found that a simple "Bonjour Hello" works with most people in Montreal. It signals that I respect them by starting with french, but that I'm hopeless so I'm switching to English. Only once in Montreal did I encounter a really rude guy (bus driver) who was mean to me when I asked him questions in fractured french.

Sounds like some Guys i met in Berlin last summer. Real rude when i asked them in english. Then, a friend of me told me that i only have to shout back and everything will be fine! First i thought that he was just kidding me... but... some days later, a pair of beers made my tongue eeeeeaaasy, and i articulated my thougts a little bit louder than usual in front of a bus driver after he was mean to me... AND PLING! when i finished, the guy really helped me to find my visa back ! Sometimes poeple are... weird.

greetz
Sedan

Some tourist tips:

If you are a tourist, you should be always on the alert especially with your things. When you ride a cab, bring a map with you. Know where you are going and don't be instantly fooled by the cab drivers. You shouldn't act like you don't know the place. Or else, the cab driver can go and pass random places and won't bring you to your destination on time.

Don't talk to strangers - what our parents tell us when we were younger. This principle applies until now. You can be friendly but make sure that you are aware and not trust right away. If you have seen the movie Taken, you will have a deeper understanding of what I'm talking about. There are many syndicates that target tourists. Thus, you should not act naive and innocent.

when ordering a cheesesteak in philly-- a real cheesesteak-- make sure you know what you want before you get to the register. philly's got attitude and has no patience for outsiders who don't know if they want wiz or provolone on their cheese steak.. my suggestion.. order a wiz with. you'll do alright...

This thread is very informative. Thanks for the warnings, I'd definitely be vigilant and all.