"Enjoying the World One Trip At a Time" TooTallFinn24's Profile

Hello! My name is Steven and it's a joy to write a narrative for Virtual Tourist.

Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area I can remember some fifty plus years ago hearing the Billy Grammer song, "Gotta Travel On," playing on my dads phonograph. Every time I heard that song I knew I had to get up and go some place. Nowhere in particular just see somewhere I haven't been to before.

I have lived in several towns on the Peninsula; Brisbane, South San Francisco, San Bruno and most of my early life in San Carlos. In San Bruno, I lived under one mile from the SF Airport and still to this day no just about every in and out of that airport. An access page will soon be in the works! Also time in Madison, Wisconsin and New York City working at the World Trade Center on Wall Street. i currently live in a gorgeous old Tudor/French Normandy home in Sacramento.

As you can guess by my name "Too Tall Finn," I am Finnish heritage. At one time I was taller but as gravity as pushed down that height has dropped by at least an inch. My father was a hardworking carpenter and among many things he built and loved saunas. I can remember sitting around the sauna in my back yard hearing my aunts and uncles talk about all the exciting places they have traveled to. My mind would drift off into a sea of dreams of the places exotic to mundane that I would sometime visit.

Travel doesn't have to be to a far off place or somewhere that everyone believes you must see before you die. Some of the greatest travel experiences I have encountered are in Central Valley of California. Take a look at my "West Sacramento," page and there will soon be more to follow. To travel sometimes is to take a risk and to meet new people who may not always be open to a "hello, my name is.... "

What I've Done

Not wanting to break my back and die young like my father did I decided at an early age that I had to go to college and study hard. After a grinding six years plus of college and three degrees I worked as an urban planner at the regional, state, county and city level. In between I worked for Dean Witter and had the opportunity to work at the World Trade Center in New York City for just a short time. My last job was as the Planning Director of a City in Northern California. I have two great sons that live away from home.

Where I Have Been?

I have traveled now to twenty one countries and been to all but two of the fifty states in the U.S. and most provinces in Canada. I continue to be amazed at the diversity of sights and the strength of the people in the United States. There hasn't been a trip in years that I didn't come back from feeling fulfilled and enriched by the experiences. I only wish I had managed to take more pictures! Then when I did take them to manage them better!

Oh yes, the web page picture is of me and two of my former associates at the City where I worked for many years taken at a retirement party.

Fortunate

I feel fortunate to be among a select group of individuals to have the time and money to travel. With so many people having difficulty making ends meet or even surviving I sometimes feel guilty traveling. However I have tried through selective contributions to help unburden this guilt I sometimes feel. Does anyone else have those feelings as well?

Good Manners

At any early age I learned, "good manners cost nothing." I will always reply to any e-mail or post, at least once, regardless of who you are and whether we agree on something. The way I see it if you reached out and sent me a note I will do my best to respond.

Where Am I Going and Going Via Biking

The next few months will take me to the Southwest U.S; Spain, Andorra, Portugal and Monaco. I am not a "cruise traveler," I want to see things on my own terms walking or riding while I still can. I have been trying to get a job in Geneva, Switzerland with one of the United Nations agencies there. However with some minor complications the plan has been on hold for a while. I look for places that I can bike around in and feel safe from traffic.

Small Beach Town in Ecuador

Technological innovations over the past ten years have exponentially increased the number of options available to me as a traveler. Ten years ago I would bring along a AAA guide book, a few fold out maps, and a second guide book (e.g Rick Steeves, Lonely Planet). Now days I use my I phone domestically and soon internationally as my principal travel guide.

I can navigate unfamiliar areas with the GPS (Mobile Navigator, better than a portable GPS unit) , keeping all my travel confirmations in one place (trip-it) use an application that will me around town or even on trails (Every Trail), where folks think is the best place to eat and sleep (trip advisor ), and even help me with translating from english to another language (google translate).

I now am able to significantly cut down on my travel clutter. I urge all of you are into smart phones to give these and many other applications such as the subway station locator a try. I have had great luck with them.

How I See The Travel Industry Changing in Years To Come

As an urban planner and economist I was taught in graduate school to gather data and help interpret what future trends are likely to be. I believe we live at still the infancy of potential great change in how we access travel information. Certainly the iphone applications I talked about above make traveling a lot easier but I do not believe that is an end to itself.

How people make decisions based on where they go is now based much more than ever based on tips they get from their friends from social networking. Obviously Virtual Tourist and Trip Advisor are examples of that. The green movement I believe will force hotels and restaurants to disclose in much more detail the practices they observe and travelers will use that information in purchase decisions. Travel information that can be available through smart phone use is almost endless in what can be provided anything from how to navigating the most difficult of subway routes to being able to determine where and at what price to buy a certain french gift in Nice and you don't speak good French.

There is an excellent article by Barbara Messing of Trip Advisor talking about the trends in the travel industry and how it is becoming more social. I encourage you to read it or ask me how to get it.

Personally I want to help use Virtual Tourist as a way of helping me and others make this intimate kind of travel experience we share even more rewarding for its members by using technology agressively but respectfully.

Buffalo Roaming in Custer State Park, South Dakota

I am learning quickly that is better to do a great job with good tips on a few pages than to try and do a fair job on many.

I just returned from a three plus week trip to SPAIN, GIBRALTAR and PORTUGAL (May 2012) I had an amazing time and have many experiences to share. It will no doubt take weeks to transfer these memories and photos to the VT site but I will try to be diligent. Many thanks to VT member REDANG (Santi) who provided valuable information for the trip. Hopefully I will get to meet him next time!

Besides Spain my other most recent travel page is on CARLSBAD CAVERNS NATIONAL PARK, NEW MEXICO. Amazing sites underground.

My third most recent page is on GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK. The park has a lot to offer including some great scenery and nice hiking trails. Very few tourists and helpful park rangers.

Hundreds of Nights in Hotels

As you will see from my travel forum answers I have spent over 1,500 nights in hotels over the last twenty years. Yes I counted them after a while! Those were primarily spent in 48 of the 50 states in the United States either on business or pleasure.

I just wish I had taken pictures of some of them before joining VT in June of 2011.

Well to all you tin men, lions and princesses I hope you take a look at these pages, which are still a work in progress, and give me your thoughts! I am still a rookie and learning the ropes here. Thanks.