I’m going to level with you upfront: this is not a great episode. It’s a conference day in a city I’ve already said my piece about, and the most visually interesting thing I filmed was a lighting fixture in my hotel hallway that juts out at an inexplicable angle right next to the door. As a lighting designer I have thoughts about it and none of them are complimentary.
But I’m here. So let’s talk about what’s worth talking about.
Travel Con
The conference opened with Jules — Juliana Brosy, Traveling Jewels — who talked about audience and trust and the relationship between a creator and the people who watch them on the couch at home. The point that landed was this: whether you have ten views or ten million views, the people watching feel like they know you. Your face, your voice, your travel style. That relationship is real whether or not the numbers validate it.
I sat with that for a while. I think about the people who follow this project not because they’re planning the same trip but because they want to see the country through someone else’s eyes. That’s been part of my thinking since the clamming regulators in Washington, since the aurora on Rialto Beach. You don’t have to be going somewhere to want to watch someone go there. That’s a real thing.
The term of the day was “sharpening the saw” — the idea of investing in your own craft and knowledge base so the work gets better. That’s what I’m here for. Three days of that. Looking forward to the next two sessions.
Throughout the conference, I had the pleasure of listening to and connecting with several amazing travel content creators, including:
@laura-bronner, @chubbydiaries1, @nomadicmatt, @hopscotchtheglobe, @chrisandsara, @NotAScratchGolfer, @travelingjules , @LocationRebel, @AliceFordAdventures, @AskAConcierge
And more about the conference over here! www.travelcon.org
The Security Guard’s Assessment
I was chatting with a security guard at the convention center and asked him — being from out of town, having seen things in the news and on social media — if there were areas he’d suggest staying away from. His answer was Portland. He added, to his credit, that the city is on its way to turning around and he’s looking forward to that.
I found this oddly reassuring. Not because it validated my own take from last night, though it did. But because it was honest. He works there. He sees it every day. He’s rooting for the city even while naming the problem.
The bartender at the Italian place I’ve been to twice now is looking forward to moving to Alaska. These are the people serving Portland right now. I wish them well in wherever they end up.
A Note on Restraint
If you can’t say anything nice about a place, probably don’t keep saying things about it. That’s where I’m landing. I’ve said my piece. The conference is good. The room at the Sesta is great. There’s a YouTuber meetup in the lobby tonight that I’m actually looking forward to.
Portland will get there or it won’t. That’s above my pay grade.
Day two tomorrow.
