The seven let-downs of the world?

It's a familiar feeling for most tourists: excitement about your trip, the anticipation of the wonder you are going to feel when faced with the Pyramids or the Eiffel Tower, a mounting sense of adventure at the prospect of escaping from the humdrum routines of getting up, driving to work, sitting at a desk, driving home, watching the telly, going to bed then getting up the next morning to repeat the process, and the sense that in a foreign country, far away from home, you'll also be estranged from your worries.

So with all these expectations, it's hardly surprising that even when standing at the foot of the French 324-metre triumph of engineering in Europe's most beautiful capital city, or drinking cappuccino in St Mark's square, disappointment sets in. You're still the same person as you were back home, with the same problems, stresses and worries, but with aching shoulders and sore feet.

But it's not really Paris or Venice at fault; it's unrealistic expectations that are to blame for your dissatisfaction.

Having said that, I can understand visitors' complaints about Stonehenge's unflattering location between two motorways, but what I can't get my head round is the visitor who complained that the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain was "wet and pointless". I mean, just what exactly did she expect?

Source: The Guardian