I came across your profile this morning and every piece I have read so far resonated with me! It's nice to know there are other women in food/wine/hospitality that are feeling the same way about the current state of travel writing. Well, not writing, captioning. True writing takes time, research, and background knowledge of culture and customs. My observation: short-form videos created by a passerbys (travel content creators) may gain views but they lack viewership. Like an advertisement on the metro, everyone sees it, but not everyone scans the QR code to learn more.
Yes! I travel a lot and avoid that junk content. My husband and I look to Rick Steves and content created by someone who lives in an area or has spent a considerable amount of time in a place. I think it’s made my travel experiences richer and I leave a place feeling more connected and understanding of a culture. I love Matt’s books- I’m actually flipping through the Italy one it right now for an upcoming trip to Umbria. Keep up the great reads!
I don't travel any more, but when I did, I did not plan them. I rarely made hotel reservations. I never made any reservations in Mexico. I have run into the Lonely Planet phenomenon. I watched the show, but I found it very annoying when I walked a few streets of Guanajuato where I heard more English in British, South African, and Australian accents than I heard Spanish. Just get on a bus, then upon arrival, ask the taxi driver to take you to el centro, and you will find everything in el centro that you need just by walking the neighborhood. Works every time.
This is such a thoughtful and nuanced take that really resonated with me. I’m in a bit of a weird position because I started my professional career as a travel journalist and now, many years later, I’ve sort of come back to that (but not as my main job) via building a following on TikTok and Instagram. I also only make content about Spain, usually places I’ve either lived in or returned to multiple times. But on the occasion that I’m making something based on a weekend trip, I do a lot of deep research before and afterwards, including Spanish language media and sources. It’s one way of reconciling myself with occasionally optimising stuff for virality I guess 😅 but I definitely have a love-hate relationship with short form content.
Charlie Brown, you have hit the proverbial nail on the head. Everything you said resonates with me so deeply. I have watched influencer after influencer on TikTok and on Instagram, peddling reels or stories that make places either go viral, or trying to catch the viral train of a certain café, a sandwich shop, or a restaurant for in exchange for a few million "likes". Take for example All'Antico Vinaio in Florence, Italy. I watched in horror as an influencer, who shall remain nameless, talk about this sandwich place, it's lines, its assembly line operations, all while ordering three or four sandwiches, taking one bite from each one in front of the camera and rolling his eyes in ecstasy. His only message, "this place is not a sandwich shop, its a bank!" This is not travel TV. There was no mention about how this place was founded in 1991 by the Mazzanti family. The significance of the shop's name. How the Mazzanti family bought a small space in a historic wine cellar on Via dei Neri as the shop initially served paninis and wine and eventually how the business transformed it into a popular street food spot. There is no discussion on how this sandwich shop's viral moment has transformed this part of the city in Florence Italy. The lines it's created, the noise it generates, how locals feel about this place and it's impact overall in a city that's already bursting at the seams with too many tourists. I stared in disbelief at an influencer who bit into a sandwich and simply said "Oh man... this is why these emperors built these cities...its for us to eat these f***ing sandwiches." Its for this reason that I started Life In Parts. Maybe I am not creating a TikTok viral moment as viewers watch me take a bite of something. Maybe I am not pointing out the most popular dish in a place that has just jumped on the viral train. What would anyone get from that? Rather, I treat each new post as a journey and an adventure. I try to take an unapologetic exploration of food, culture, people, and travel. To look at what life is like in different places. How people live, what they eat, who they are. Sometimes the best way to tell any story is to sit down with someone and share a meal. To break bread and to talk to them. To get their perspective. To learn something about them. To write about places that might look and sound familiar, but maybe to describe them from another, and perhaps lesser-known perspective, my perspective, one story at a time. I’m not a journalist. I’m not a foreign correspondent. Instead, I’m an essayist. I’m an enthusiast. I’m a traveler. I’m a writer. I’m a storyteller. And those are the stories that I love to tell my audience, and anyone else who would like to join me on the journey.
So much this!! I'm sick of looking up places recommended by fabbo videos on Insta then working out from real world reviews they're actually crap. Ross Clarke, who writes as The Guiri, is a foodie/drinkie(?) who takes the boots on the ground approach, mainly in Spain - he wrote the Gran Canaria & Fuertaventura chapters of the LP guide to The Canary Islands. Well worth a follow.
I know what you mean and I think I've been guilty of this on occasion. Then again, I started my blog (way back in 2006!) as a way to record the good places I ate just for myself and any friends and family who could benefit from my recommendations. Obviously things have changed a lot since then, but I still think I should be able to write what I like on my own website (after all, it's free and most bloggers make absolutely no money from their sites!). I try to do a lot of research and ask local people for their recommendations before I visit, but indeed there's only so many places you can eat in the space of a few weeks. I remember writing a guide to a fairly random destination in Florida that I'd only spent a week in, and I was worried because I only had 5 places to include. Afterwards I got a comment on social media from someone who lived there, saying it was spot on and those were exactly the places she would've picked. It helped that I was visiting my sister-in-law who lives there, so benefited from her local knowledge. Anyway, I guess I'm saying I don't really disagree with you (I've seen some terrible guides to Amsterdam over the years) but there are perhaps some exceptions!
I agree! As I say, I've got no problem with good content - ever! I think some of the lower quality or surface content I had in mind when I wrote this point comes from a point of "I must make content whether it's good or not" or "I didn't love this place but I included it anyway" (I see this a lot) or "I'll just do what's popular to move up the rankings" or "I'll go to the insta friendly places regardless of quality just because it looks nice." none of that sounds like how you describe your work. I think much of it comes down to a) good intention and b) focusing on quality.
True! And posting pics that look pretty when the food was meh is one of my pet peeves... I seem to do the opposite: post ugly photos of food that tasted amazing, and then absolutely no one engages with them 😂
(Hence why I much prefer Substack over Instagram...)
Such a thoughtful and resonant piece....has me rethinking what I pay attention to when I visit new places.
It's so hard to find the good stuff, you have to wade through a lot!
I came across your profile this morning and every piece I have read so far resonated with me! It's nice to know there are other women in food/wine/hospitality that are feeling the same way about the current state of travel writing. Well, not writing, captioning. True writing takes time, research, and background knowledge of culture and customs. My observation: short-form videos created by a passerbys (travel content creators) may gain views but they lack viewership. Like an advertisement on the metro, everyone sees it, but not everyone scans the QR code to learn more.
So pleased you like my stuff! And yes you might have a point there...
Yes! I travel a lot and avoid that junk content. My husband and I look to Rick Steves and content created by someone who lives in an area or has spent a considerable amount of time in a place. I think it’s made my travel experiences richer and I leave a place feeling more connected and understanding of a culture. I love Matt’s books- I’m actually flipping through the Italy one it right now for an upcoming trip to Umbria. Keep up the great reads!
I don't travel any more, but when I did, I did not plan them. I rarely made hotel reservations. I never made any reservations in Mexico. I have run into the Lonely Planet phenomenon. I watched the show, but I found it very annoying when I walked a few streets of Guanajuato where I heard more English in British, South African, and Australian accents than I heard Spanish. Just get on a bus, then upon arrival, ask the taxi driver to take you to el centro, and you will find everything in el centro that you need just by walking the neighborhood. Works every time.
This is such a thoughtful and nuanced take that really resonated with me. I’m in a bit of a weird position because I started my professional career as a travel journalist and now, many years later, I’ve sort of come back to that (but not as my main job) via building a following on TikTok and Instagram. I also only make content about Spain, usually places I’ve either lived in or returned to multiple times. But on the occasion that I’m making something based on a weekend trip, I do a lot of deep research before and afterwards, including Spanish language media and sources. It’s one way of reconciling myself with occasionally optimising stuff for virality I guess 😅 but I definitely have a love-hate relationship with short form content.
Thanks for the comment Amy, it's really thought provoking
Charlie Brown, you have hit the proverbial nail on the head. Everything you said resonates with me so deeply. I have watched influencer after influencer on TikTok and on Instagram, peddling reels or stories that make places either go viral, or trying to catch the viral train of a certain café, a sandwich shop, or a restaurant for in exchange for a few million "likes". Take for example All'Antico Vinaio in Florence, Italy. I watched in horror as an influencer, who shall remain nameless, talk about this sandwich place, it's lines, its assembly line operations, all while ordering three or four sandwiches, taking one bite from each one in front of the camera and rolling his eyes in ecstasy. His only message, "this place is not a sandwich shop, its a bank!" This is not travel TV. There was no mention about how this place was founded in 1991 by the Mazzanti family. The significance of the shop's name. How the Mazzanti family bought a small space in a historic wine cellar on Via dei Neri as the shop initially served paninis and wine and eventually how the business transformed it into a popular street food spot. There is no discussion on how this sandwich shop's viral moment has transformed this part of the city in Florence Italy. The lines it's created, the noise it generates, how locals feel about this place and it's impact overall in a city that's already bursting at the seams with too many tourists. I stared in disbelief at an influencer who bit into a sandwich and simply said "Oh man... this is why these emperors built these cities...its for us to eat these f***ing sandwiches." Its for this reason that I started Life In Parts. Maybe I am not creating a TikTok viral moment as viewers watch me take a bite of something. Maybe I am not pointing out the most popular dish in a place that has just jumped on the viral train. What would anyone get from that? Rather, I treat each new post as a journey and an adventure. I try to take an unapologetic exploration of food, culture, people, and travel. To look at what life is like in different places. How people live, what they eat, who they are. Sometimes the best way to tell any story is to sit down with someone and share a meal. To break bread and to talk to them. To get their perspective. To learn something about them. To write about places that might look and sound familiar, but maybe to describe them from another, and perhaps lesser-known perspective, my perspective, one story at a time. I’m not a journalist. I’m not a foreign correspondent. Instead, I’m an essayist. I’m an enthusiast. I’m a traveler. I’m a writer. I’m a storyteller. And those are the stories that I love to tell my audience, and anyone else who would like to join me on the journey.
So much this!! I'm sick of looking up places recommended by fabbo videos on Insta then working out from real world reviews they're actually crap. Ross Clarke, who writes as The Guiri, is a foodie/drinkie(?) who takes the boots on the ground approach, mainly in Spain - he wrote the Gran Canaria & Fuertaventura chapters of the LP guide to The Canary Islands. Well worth a follow.
I'll check him out , thanks for the recco!
Great piece, Charlie
Cheers Jason
Love this piece!
Thanks so much MaryAnna
I know what you mean and I think I've been guilty of this on occasion. Then again, I started my blog (way back in 2006!) as a way to record the good places I ate just for myself and any friends and family who could benefit from my recommendations. Obviously things have changed a lot since then, but I still think I should be able to write what I like on my own website (after all, it's free and most bloggers make absolutely no money from their sites!). I try to do a lot of research and ask local people for their recommendations before I visit, but indeed there's only so many places you can eat in the space of a few weeks. I remember writing a guide to a fairly random destination in Florida that I'd only spent a week in, and I was worried because I only had 5 places to include. Afterwards I got a comment on social media from someone who lived there, saying it was spot on and those were exactly the places she would've picked. It helped that I was visiting my sister-in-law who lives there, so benefited from her local knowledge. Anyway, I guess I'm saying I don't really disagree with you (I've seen some terrible guides to Amsterdam over the years) but there are perhaps some exceptions!
I agree! As I say, I've got no problem with good content - ever! I think some of the lower quality or surface content I had in mind when I wrote this point comes from a point of "I must make content whether it's good or not" or "I didn't love this place but I included it anyway" (I see this a lot) or "I'll just do what's popular to move up the rankings" or "I'll go to the insta friendly places regardless of quality just because it looks nice." none of that sounds like how you describe your work. I think much of it comes down to a) good intention and b) focusing on quality.
True! And posting pics that look pretty when the food was meh is one of my pet peeves... I seem to do the opposite: post ugly photos of food that tasted amazing, and then absolutely no one engages with them 😂
(Hence why I much prefer Substack over Instagram...)
I do this too!