[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

In this era I'd imagine a large % of people taking contiki tours are mainly doing it to get selfies from as wide a range of places as possible to post them for the 'clout'. (Even moreso than from before social media....)

[amphibian]

I spent a week plus in Florence/Tuscany in July 2019. It was amazing and I'd do it again happily. It's easy to get around and explore.

[Maark Abbott]

amphibian, on 21 February 2024 - 04:31 AM, said:

I spent a week plus in Florence/Tuscany in July 2019. It was amazing and I'd do it again happily. It's easy to get around and explore.

I can't see the name Tuscany without thinking of a 20m long song...

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

What is there in Tuscany that you can't (essentially) find in the United States? Many US restaurants now serve very good authentic Tuscan food; while it may be significantly cheaper in Tuscany, the price difference isn't anywhere near large enough to cover the increased cost of traveling from the US to Tuscany. The weather's nice, but it's also nice in California.

Unless you're traveling to 'find your selfies'.... Even then, you could just photoshop yourself in to a convincing and original-seeming scene using AI. If you want to have a convincing story to go with it, have AI draft that for you too, and double-check it for hallucinations. Then an AI-generated AI chat-based role-playing game could quiz you on the details; perhaps in virtual reality via various realistic avatars. For example, a beautiful woman (by what your standards are), scoring you on how 'impressive' your tales of your travels are (perhaps via 'clout points' floating in space; or perhaps via body language or subtle verbal cues which, as part of the game, you'd have to recognize, with numbers floating in virtual space to indicate whether your score has gone up or down).

If you want to see the art, see the sites---there's the internet and virtual reality.

OTOH if you want to chat with random people in Tuscany---again, there's the internet. IDK if there's something like the equivalent of Chatroulette for Tuscany.... But if you want to chat with random people face to face (outdoors of course to minimize the chance of spreading covid and other diseases)---then traveling to Tuscany might be better than going outside in the United States.

[Abyss]

Azath Vitr (D, on 21 February 2024 - 03:20 PM, said:

What is there in Tuscany that you can't (essentially) find in the United States? Many US restaurants now serve very good authentic Tuscan food; while it may be significantly cheaper in Tuscany, the price difference isn't anywhere near large enough to cover the increased cost of traveling from the US to Tuscany. The weather's nice, but it's also nice in California.

Unless you're traveling to 'find your selfies'.... Even then, you could just photoshop yourself in to a convincing and original-seeming scene using AI. If you want to have a convincing story to go with it, have AI draft that for you too, and double-check it for hallucinations. Then an AI-generated AI chat-based role-playing game could quiz you on the details; perhaps in virtual reality via various realistic avatars. For example, a beautiful woman (by what your standards are), scoring you on how 'impressive' your tales of your travels are (perhaps via 'clout points' floating in space; or perhaps via body language or subtle verbal cues which, as part of the game, you'd have to recognize, with numbers floating in virtual space to indicate whether your score has gone up or down).

If you want to see the art, see the sites---there's the internet and virtual reality.

OTOH if you want to chat with random people in Tuscany---again, there's the internet. IDK if there's something like the equivalent of Chatroulette for Tuscany.... But if you want to chat with random people face to face (outdoors of course to minimize the chance of spreading covid and other diseases)---then traveling to Tuscany might be better than going outside in the United States.

You forgot the entire page of smilie jk /s icons this post required.

[Tiste Simeon]

Why get out there and experience life when you can sit and stare at a screen?!

[Tsundoku]

Tiste Simeon, on 21 February 2024 - 04:44 PM, said:

Why get out there and experience life when you can sit and stare at a screen?!

Hey there anyone-born-after-1996 ...

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Tiste Simeon, on 21 February 2024 - 04:44 PM, said:

Why get out there and experience life when you can sit and stare at a screen?!

Seeing sculpture, architecture, or some paintings (particularly those that are very large, have a significant 3D element, or are situated in interesting ways) in person can be very different from seeing it on a screen. The 3D aspect, sense of scale, and luminosity of the artwork will get lost or distorted; and many screens display colors differently, so trying to make sure your color display is sufficiently accurate can be difficult.

So if the goal is to experience visual art, you're better off using a high-end VR headset like the Vision Pro. Especially for popular tourist destinations. Instead of being stuck in a massive crowd of people taking flash photographs you get to fly around with an unobstructed view of the art (fly all around the sculpture), zoom in or out as much as you want, look at it in different lighting conditions, adjust the luminosity to your taste, and have as many expert annotations superimposed over the image (directing your attention to key details and providing context---which of course can also be done in a voice of your choosing) as you like.

To be fair, Italy is known for having micro-localized cuisine that may vary substantially even between neighboring villages. So while there are in fact many excellent and authentic Tuscan restaurants in the United States these days (IDK about Canada)---including in places with very nice weather---some of these micro-local cuisines may remain difficult or impossible to find. But you're also not likely to find them if all you're doing is spending a day in Florence.

Augmented reality will actually enhance our ability to experience the world as we move through it. Allow us to observe aspects of empirical reality to which the naked human eye is (so far still) blind. Catch and analyse microexpressions and other body language patterns (including estimates of breathing rates). Perhaps even detect another person's pulse at a distance. (And of course show you exactly where to thrust... though it might be better to let the AI coordinate all that.)

Tsundoku, on 22 February 2024 - 11:42 AM, said:

Hey there anyone-born-after-1996 ...

Seems like most older people I see are fixated on their smartphones too. (It's a bit of an odd experience: in my youth I'd generally be the only one reading and writing while, for example, waiting for public transit---as well as observing the environment, letting my awareness expand as much as possible. Now I'm frequently the only one not constantly scrolling/clicking, as I practice mindful awareness (... in between reading math texts, or writing down ideas).) But don't worry; before too long, instead seeing everyone around you looking down at their phones instead of 'experiencing life' (because they'd rather be experiencing Heaven, as zombies stitched together by the vampiric fangs of SM), you'll be able to see people's eyes looking out at the wider world (... wider than what naked human eyes can see):




... and it will be even better once people start customizing their eyes (to be red, eyes of Sauron, eyes like virtual whirlpools...).

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 22 February 2024 - 09:20 PM

[Abyss]

You're missing the part where people want to sex w other people.



... i know what you're thinking of posting... don't go there.... just don't....

[worry]

Please please please post an AI-generated image of the Mona Lisa having sex with Michelangelo's David under the Tuscan sun.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Abyss, on 22 February 2024 - 10:43 PM, said:

You're missing the part where people want to sex w other people.

Yes, people are more likely to be open to quick hook-ups if you and or they are only going to be there briefly for vacation, but I don't see much advantage to going to Tuscany in particular for that (or Italy for that matter---though Italian men do tend to be very grabby, so maybe if you're looking for women who are okay with that sort of thing). So maybe a contiki tour of Sweden? Unless you're looking for people who are really into David... and you look like David....

Augmented reality for sex will be the new (and more ethical) 'come back to my place / the bar bathroom I've got really good drugs an extra Vision Pro' (actually a lot of people will probably still be doing the drugs too---but augmented reality will make the bathroom more pleasant... and expansive---sex in space, perched above the ocean, in Tuscany, on top of the leaning Tower of Pisa, etc.)....

[Mentalist]

Ionno, Tuscany's pretty neat. We were in Florence for about a week and did a couple of bus tours out of Florence (San Giminiano and Volterra & Cartona and Assisi). It was pretty great. Going up to the hills in the villages to see the countryside, being up on the cathedral dome, buying genuine leather jackets a few blocks from the main square.

I don't really trust tech to capture the things I may want to see. The cool thing about Europe aren't the main attractions, but the side streets and alleys, and the vibe of old history you just don't get in North America. I don't think a helmet can really convey that,

[amphibian]

Yah, there's no tech on the planet that can approximate sitting on the side of an Italian mountain seeing the lights of Florence in the distance, eating the best pasta in the world, drinking very good wine, and being with your people and new people as others do the same around you.

It's a communal experience that tech cannot and will never truly approximate because one has to be there to get why it's so good.

The best part is that this isn't exclusive to Italy, pasta, or wine. This experience can be parallel to those found in many places across this world. We are not the immortal Andii, yet we can traverse the distances and find these experiences to brighten our lives.

[Cyphon]

Also we're rapidly approaching the point that you can't trust anything you see on the Internet, or even past that point, so why would you trust a simulation of the reality?

[worry]

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

amphibian, on 23 February 2024 - 05:57 AM, said:

Yah, there's no tech on the planet that can approximate sitting on the side of an Italian mountain seeing the lights of Florence in the distance, eating the best pasta in the world, drinking very good wine, and being with your people and new people as others do the same around you.

It's a communal experience that tech cannot and will never truly approximate because one has to be there to get why it's so good.

The best part is that this isn't exclusive to Italy, pasta, or wine. This experience can be parallel to those found in many places across this world. We are not the immortal Andii, yet we can traverse the distances and find these experiences to brighten our lives.

That's the beauty of augmented reality: you could be doing that anywhere where the weather is great and the pasta is world class, with better than perfectly clear views of the actual food and wine (with the colors enhanced if you like), while simultaneously seeing any environment you or your party or the event organizers desire---you could be eating in a great outdoor restaurant in California with the augmented reality goggles making it look like you're on a mountain in Tuscany, seeing whatever you want off in the distance---ancient villages, hyperrealistic dragons, any fantasy universe you like... and you can all wear the same goggles and be transported to the same setting. In the long run it will save you money and help save the environment from plane exhaust, which of course is a major contributor to climate change.

In the longer run demand for material goods will decrease and we may finally approach a more sustainable earthly society (as AI slowly takes to the stars...).

Granted, there is the communal frame of 'we traveled all the way to this actual place, our time here is scarce, so we'd best make the most of it while we can, because we can't just go here anytime we want to'. But event organizers can easily create plausible artificial scarcity while minimizing the need for plane trips (or organizing augmented reality events where people all over the world see each other as if in the same environment---simply managing the scheduling and getting everyone to agree on a shared environment creates a plausible form of scarcity, and the events could be done rarely or each given unique characteristics, etc.).

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 23 February 2024 - 02:01 PM

[Tiste Simeon]

Dude, just stop. You're wrong.

[Abyss]

worry, on 22 February 2024 - 10:49 PM, said:

Please please please post an AI-generated image of the Mona Lisa having sex with Michelangelo's David under the Tuscan sun.

Retro-noir or neo-Davinci?

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Tiste Simeon, on 23 February 2024 - 02:40 PM, said:

Dude, just stop. You're wrong.

Well now you've convinced me.

You forgot to add: 'New technology bad! My old way better! (The "moral" of so many science fiction stories: "Burn the witches with their challenging ideas we dare not fully consider!") Let's finish destroying the planet so we can enjoy hell on Earth!'

In the not too distant future, as the wildfires spread and intensify, sea levels rise, pleasant outdoor areas become scarcer, and an increased rate of intense storms and natural disasters renders travel more precarious, climate-controlled chambers with simulated weather (we already know how to easily simulate sunlight (SAD lamps), wind (ideal breezes), etc.) will probably become popular augmented reality meeting places.

But Cause obviously likes to travel; perhaps the recognition that it may become much more difficult (even before age makes it so) may make the experience dearer. Still, my recommendation would be to consider what you're actually traveling for, and whether it wouldn't be better to make less expensive travel plans and use the money you've saved to buy a Vision Pro. That's my personal recommendation. He almost certainly won't take it---now, but in a few years time... we'll see.

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 23 February 2024 - 03:42 PM

[Mentalist]

Azath Vitr (D, on 23 February 2024 - 03:42 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 23 February 2024 - 02:40 PM, said:

Dude, just stop. You're wrong.

Well now you've convinced me.

You forgot to add: 'New technology bad! My old way better! (The "moral" of so many science fiction stories: "Burn the witches with their challenging ideas we dare not fully consider!") Let's finish destroying the planet so we can enjoy hell on Earth!'

In the not too distant future, as the wildfires spread and intensify, sea levels rise, pleasant outdoor areas become scarcer, and an increased rate of intense storms and natural disasters renders travel more precarious, climate-controlled chambers with simulated weather (we already know how to easily simulate sunlight (SAD lamps), wind (ideal breezes), etc.) will probably become popular augmented reality meeting places.

But Cause obviously likes to travel; perhaps the recognition that it may become much more difficult (even before age makes it so) may make the experience dearer. Still, my recommendation would be to consider what you're actually traveling for, and whether it wouldn't be better to make less expensive travel plans and use the money you've saved to buy a Vision Pro. That's my personal recommendation. He almost certainly won't take it---now, but in a few years time... we'll see.

I wouldn't worry too much. In the next 20-30 years once the next cycle of global war, pestilence and famine starts, the planet will shed several billion humans, and then the ecological footprint will become manageable again for the next century or so. And during the at time we'll figure out how to dump our excessive waste into space anyway.