Go Pro Be Gone
Thought for the day “Too many people miss the silver lining because they’re expecting gold.”
“The world of reality has its limits; the world of imagination is boundless.”
Go Pro make some good action cameras. But so do a lot of other companies (such as Garmin, which I own). My recent experience of GoPro Customer ‘service’ has made me determined that I will never buy a Go Pro product. Indeed, GoPro and Customer ‘service’ should not be used in the same sentence, as if you have tried to resolve anything with them online then you will know that ‘service’ is probably the opposite of what you will receive. Can you imagine an international company that REFUSES to accept emails? This is the 21st century, yet Go Pro will nicely send you an email telling you that they do not accept emails. How stupid is that? And if you dare to try their online chat (only available during certain hours), apart from the unhelpful ‘assistants’ (and that is the wrong word for them) then you may find that the conversation conveniently (for Go Pro) gets cut off. So they refuse to accept emails and their online chat will leave you searching for some (unprintable) words.
So the end result of all this frustration and failed emails…..I will not be buying anymore Go Pro cameras. Plenty of good alternatives out there (such as InstaOne and Garmin). If Go Pro will not accept emails then they will not be seeing any of my money. Bad customer service drives customers away, and it has done. Go Pro be gone.
Two photos from Stavanger in Western Norway for the pictures today. The first photo is of the Old Town which is next to the harbour. Normally these streets would be full of tourists and visitors from cruise ships, but because of coronavirus, are mercifully quiet at the moment. Add to that Spring sunshine and it is easy to get some great photos.
and staying in Stavanger for another photo, interesting shapes and colours on the waterfront. Both photos taken with the Fuji X-T30 camera and 18-55mm kit lens.
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE
jeritilley@hotmail.com
RESPECT, CONSIDERATION & FAIRNESS
Joys of travelling
Thought for the day…”Reach for the stars, even if you have to stand on a cactus”
It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go.”
The joys of travelling….exciting new places and destinations. But it is not always fun. One of my pet hates (one of many) is that hotels often do not have a list of TV channels. Given that some hotels can have upwards of 100 channels, why can they not put a list in the room to save endless channel surfing trying to find the 5 or 6 interesting channels?? A simple card or print out listing the channels would be so good. And linked to this pet hate are hotel TVs that as soon as start them are at maximum volume, hardly ideal for a hotel when guests are trying to sleep.
Next pet hate……Many hotels are no longer giving the small bottles of shampoo and conditioner or individual soap, preferring to have dispensers on the walls instead. All very well IF the hotel refills them but so often just when you are in the shower you discover that the dispensers are empty.
And staying with hotels and pet hates…..the annoying habit that more and more hotels are only putting in one rubbish bin/trash can in the whole room and bathroom. Saves them a little money, but is hardly good for the guest experience.
Another hate….modern hotels whose managers have decided that THEY know the temperature that guests want the rooms to be at, and have removed individual temperature controls in the rooms….I am seeing this more and more and it is also not good for the guest experience.
Topping the list of pet hates for hotels…..any hotel that has slow internet or has a poor internet signal in the room deserves to go out of business….no excuse for this in the 21st century. Excuses such as “it is the number of guests in the hotel” or “it is the rainy weather” just get me irritated. It is not rocket science to get fast, reliable internet in a hotel, but it seems to be a major problem for some hotels.
The list goes on….to be continued………
Today’s photo is of the lakefront in Pembroke, South Island, New Zealand, on a perfect Summer’s evening. One man and his dog admire the view….
and another photo from the archives…..driving hazards on the roads of Scandinavia….these are a much bigger problem at night when they tend to freeze in the car headlights. A male elk can be over 300 kg, so can cause a lot of damage to a car.
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE
jeritilley@hotmail.com
RESPECT, CONSIDERATION & FAIRNESS
I got scammed – Twice !
Thought for the day…”If you count all your assets you always show a profit.”
“We may pass violets looking for roses. We may pass contentment looking for victory.”
Now I am old enough to know better, but sometimes I get caught. What makes it even worse is that I got caught twice because of a lack of research on the internet. The warning signs were there IF I had looked before I bought….
I often used websites that compare prices to find the cheapest price. I am learning more and more that cheapest is not always best. I used a couple of websites (kayak.de and also skyscanner.com to find some good deals on air tickets. These websites present you with a list of online travel agents (OTAs) who deal with the actual selling of the air tickets (kayak and Skyscanner just list the agents and do not sell tickets themselves). If you look online at sites such as Tripadvisor you will find pages and pages of reports of people who have had problems with the online travel agents. I also fell into the trap, and got caught twice, which makes me feel even more foolish. Lost a lot of money through these OTAs and now that I have had my fingers burned twice, and avoiding them like the plague. If you have time, then have a look at Tripadvisor and see what people are writing about the OTAs.
The message is very clear…..book direct, whether it is for hotels or for flights. Although the prices may look cheaper at first, the OTAs will find a way to make their money from you. And as a lot of people have found, it is very easy to get scammed by the online travel agents, with the final price often being different to the first advertised price. So now that I have lost money twice by trying to book via an OTA, now I am just booking direct for both flights and hotels. Save yourself the problems !!
Clear skies and clean air for this photo from the Swiss town of Grindewald.
and another photo from the archives.
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
jeritilley@hotmail.com
RESPECT, CONSIDERATION & FAIRNESS
Oslo airport – a disgrace for Norway and for Scandinavia.
Thought for the day…” You may delay, but time will not” (Benjamin Franklin)
“We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear.” (Martin Luther King).
Because of work, I have to travel a lot, and recently had the misfortune (and misfortune is the word) to travel through Oslo airport (code OSL) again. It is an absolute disgrace for Norway and for Scandinavia. Not only is it far too small for the numbers of passengers now using it, but the facilities there are hopeless. The management there have seen fit to remove most of the chairs, which means that many waiting passengers must sit on the floor (and remember that this is in Norway, which is supposed to be a civilised country). They have found space to display dumb sculptures (such as the famous bent penis sculpture) but claim to have insufficient space for seats. And despite their claims of a lack of space for seats, they have been able to greatly enlarge the size of the tax free shop. So whilst passengers may end up sitting on the floor, the airport does not care. If you have come off a long flight, then do not bother to look for somewhere to get a shower. There is nowhere.
And this is the 21st century. Most travellers now carry mobile phones, tablets etc. all of which need charging. But try finding sockets in Oslo airport. And if you have a long wait for a flight, then do not count on finding much to do at the airport….things like TVs to watch or any other facilities that good airports (such as Singapore) provide for waiting passengers. So, while you are sitting on the floor waiting for your flight with nothing to do, then remember that you are paying to use the airport. Things are so unpleasant at Oslo OSL airport that I am now considering going across the border to Sweden in future to avoid the unpleasant experience that Oslo airport OSL is.
A photo of a couple, seen in Bergen, Norway. Not sure which country they were from, but not Norwegian.
and another portrait photo…from the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
jeritilley@hotmail.com
They deserve to go out of business……Norwegian Post
Thought for the day…” Make your life a mission, not an intermission”.
Customers can forgive a lot, IF they see that a company is trying. Mistakes will be made, that is natural, and customers will generally forgive IF the company is seen to be trying to resolve the problem. But not Posten.no (Norway Post). Not once, but TWICE they have messed up a delivery coming from New Zealand to Oslo. They delivered the letter to the WRONG address, then sent it back to New Zealand for a second time. But the worst thing is that they do not want to try to put matters right. They will not even give out the email address of the customer manager. Try emailing them…..and you will wait a long time for a pathetic reply. Try asking them for compensation, and again you will wait and wait. They really are hopeless. They deserve to go out of business with staff like that working for them. Bad enough that they messed up the delivery the first time, but to do it TWICE and then send the letter back to New Zealand AFTER I had emailed them to advise them of the problem is unforgiveable. Guess who will be avoiding Norway Post in future?? I hope that bankruptcy comes soon.
The photo today is from rural Ethiopia……..not sure what they were looking at……..
and another photo from the archives….autumn in Geilo, Norway
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com
Finals to land – Not the Quality Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day…” Doing things right is not as important as doing the right things.”
” The past is to improve yourself, and the future is to prove yourself”.
Another photo to prove that you do not need an expensive camera to get a good photo. Many modern ‘compact’ cameras offer great zooms (the new ones go up to an extreme 60X zoom!) , but even a 20X zoom will get you a photo like this. Good light and also a high shutter speed will give great results. Even though the aircraft was moving at around 260 km/h at this point, the high shutter speed of 1/2000th has given a good, sharp photo. Once again, the Panasonic Lumix camera has done well !!
The Portuguese government is trying to sell TAP Airline, as part of its attempts to raise much needed funds. It has already sold the airports operations to a French company, but a recent bid by a Brazilian company for the airline fell through. The airline has huge debts and also a reputation for poor service.
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com http://www.norefjellspa.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
Finals to land – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day….” He who has never made a mistake has never made a discovery”.
” The walls around you do not define the wealth within you”.
Did you see the story from Brazil about a man in Sao Paulo who has buried a Bentley Continental Flying Spur car in his garden for his afterlife. The 62 year old businessman got the idea from the pharaohs in Egypt, and he plans to use it after his death. The car is worth around USD 400 000.
Finals to land for the photo today…..and an Airbus A320 of the Portuguese airline TAP seen here about to land in Funchal on the island of Madeira. The landing speed will be around 120-140 knots (depending on the weight), or about 220km/h. The airline is based in Lisbon. The number of complaints online about this airline show that it has problems, with onboard service being the biggest area of complaint. The airline is owned by the Portuguese government, who are now trying to sell it to raise much needed funds.
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com http://www.norefjellspa.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
Swiss Bells – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day….” A wise man can see more from the bottom of a well than a fool can see from the top of a mountain”.
” A ship in a harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are for”.
I had forgotten just how good travel by train could be. I recently travelled down through Europe on long-distance night train, and it was very interesting to compare this trip with the return trip, which was by air. No early check in at an airport, no expensive airport ‘box’ hotel, and no long queues to endure. No silly security checks, and nobody on the train was worried that I was carrying toothpaste or liquids which at an airport would be taboo. No need to check in at all, just board the train and find the sleeping compartment. Pleasant evening on the way down through Europe, good snacks in the cafe, and coffee that was far better than airline coffee. And add to that a good nights sleep and it makes a very pleasant journey. Then next morning breakfast in the train cafe and voila, it was time to arrive (and on time too). Compare that to the hassle and frustration at airports and being squashed in economy class for the flight back. Flight back was late, on an old aircraft and delayed even further due to passengers travelling with far too many carry on bags. Perhaps one day the train will be THE way to travel again…….The recent trip was a very interesting comparison.
Today’s photo is from the central part of Switzerland, with a photo of Swiss cow bells on a woodland hotel. Very Swiss !
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com http://www.norefjellspa.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
Simple but powerful, shapes and colour – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell
Thought for the day….” Money cannot buy happiness, but it sure makes misery easier to live with”.
” Love is like a war, easy to start, hard to end”.
Stupid companies. There are a lot around, run by stupid people. I am hoping that they go out of business fast, but sadly they are still around, bugging me. Air France is one example. Try finding an email address on their website. Of course, they freely give out numbers to ring on an expensive telephone line, but very conviently hide their email addresses. They are quick enough to take your money, but when you want to get a refund, then the walls go up and they just do not want to know. A good company will not cover up its email address, as email is the normal way of communication in the 21st century, except for Air France of course. Until I get my refund from them, then Air France/KLM/Transavia will not see anymore of my money.
Simple and powerful for the photo today, and a photo of a well-know petrol station sign in perfect weather and with perfect light. Simple, but it works. Did you know that the colour red can make you feel hungry, whilst the colour green has the opposite effect? The colour blue is said to convey trust and reliability. Blue is also the favourite colour of most people Chromatophobia is the fear of colours, whereas leukophobia is fear of the colour white.
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com http://www.norefjellspa.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
Another Autumn morning in Norway – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell
Thought for the day…..” Do not talk, unless you can improve the silence”.
“Every day is a gift. That is why they call it the present”.
Two nice stories in the news at the moment to bring a smile. Firstly, the man in the UK who has set up a premium rate telephone line at home so that when he gets cold-callers and advertisers ringing him, then it costs the companies a lot of money and he also gets 70% of the proceeds of the premium rate telephone call. Apparently he is now trying to keep advertisers on the phone as long as possible so that he gets even more money from them whilst they rack up a large bill on the premium rate number. Then there is the other story about Hasan Syed, again in the UK, who paid to have his twitter tweet promoted, advising people not to fly with British Airways because their customer service is horrendous. Normally it is advertisers who pay for promoted tweets, but Mr. Syed was able to use this system to give his complaint against BA huge publicity.
Autumn is well under way in Norway, and there have been some fantastic mornings recently. Out with the camera again, to yet another lake, and more reflections and lake views in the photo today. On the ground are many blueberries and wild mushrooms, and the some of the trees are now yellow and red (not the everygreens of course!). About the only sound when I took the photo were the fish (trout) jumping in the lake. The hunting season is underway now, mainly for elk, although also for deer, reindeer,mink and red foxes. Being Norway, you have to have a license to hunt, and new hunters must undergo a 30 hour training course and then take a test. Luckily, no test and license is needed to take photos like these. I am looking at getting a new camera now (perhaps my 5th Panasonic in a row) but seeing results like these, then there is still a lot of life in the current camera.
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com http://www.norefjellspa.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
Waiting for the Bus – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day.. ” Coincidence is fate breaking a lock so that you can open a door”
” Dwelling on the past will only change you in the future”. ” Doing your best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment”
Another company has joined the list of companies that I will never use again, Booking.com What some companies are not realizing is that poor service will actually cost them money. To make matters worse, the managers at Booking.com just will not admit their mistakes, and nobody at that particular company will do anything about the problems. So they will lose out, and if you want good service, then I cannot recommend this company. No problem when a company makes a mistake (we all do that) but when nobody will do anything about the mistakes, then that shows that a company is not good.
Off to the capital of Mozambique today, Maputo, and a typical photo of a bus queue there. Situated just 120 km north of the South African border, and on the Indian Ocean, this ugly, neglected city is home for about 1.7 million people. Originally ruled by the Portuguese, it became independent in 1975, although Portuguese is still the main language in this part of Mozambique. Until 1992 the country had a long civil war, with an estimated 1 million people killed due to the war and famine between 1977 and 1992. Mozambique has a high fertility rate, with around 5.3 children born per woman. Transport in Mozambique is often a problem, with irregular and unreliable buses, so the queues seen in the photo today are very typical.
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
New Zealand, Lake Hawea – Not the Quality Spa Resort Hotel, Norefjell.
Thought for the day…..” Life begins at the end of your comfort zone” ” Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day”
CUSTOMER SERVICE . Two very different experiences recently. The first company failed to deliver an item which I had ordered, but when I sent an email to them to ask what had happened, I received a very open and honest email from the person responsible, in which she said that it was Friday afternoon and that she forgot. No excuses, no trying to avoid the problem, but she admitted that it was her mistake, and only her mistake, and that she was truly sorry for what had gone wrong. We all make mistakes, and honesty is usually a good policy. Compare this to Booking.com the online hotel reservation service. After several problems, I emailed them, but Booking.com will not admit their mistakes. Booking.com sends out several standard emails, and even after these, will not admit their faults. So guess which company I will use again, and guess which company I will never use again??? Not the first time that I have had problems with Booking.com and after my experiences with them recently, then no way will I use them again.
Today’s photo shows the beautiful Lake Hawea in New Zealand, on a beautiful summers day. The lake is up to 392m deep and is about 35m long. It is 20m higher now than previously, as it was raised to allow for hydro electric power systems. It lies in a long valley formed by glaciers, similar to the nearby Lake Wanaka. At the closest point, Lake Wanaka is only 1000m away from Lake Hawea. Fishing and boating are popular on the lake, and there are several campsites around the lakeshore. The cafe and restaurant (Sailz) in Hawea village does excellent coffee and food as well!!
http://www.qualitysparesort.com http://www.qualityresortnorefjell.com
ALL PHOTOS ON THIS SITE ARE AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE.
jeritilley 