ChatGPT: What is Slow Travel?

[Pauline]

I just discovered ChatGPT, part of OpenAI, and I am in love! It is like Google but way better. I don’t know much about it yet but it can write essays, even code. I asked it a Wordpress question and it gave me some css code which didn’t solve my problem but was close.

I asked it “What is Slow Travel?” and the answer is based on my definition from the old SlowTrav days. I think it explained it better than I did. Maybe it found my article on Slow Europe.

SlowTrav - What is Slow Travel?

Slow Travel is a way of travel that lets you experience a place in depth. Spend longer in one place instead of spreading your vacation time over several places. A week in a place lets you settle in and get below the surface. Create your own list of “must sees”. Take time before your trip to...

www.sloweurope.com

Here is a screenshot of its answer.

Isn’t that amazing? Now I’m going to ask it Italy travel questions.

https://chat.openai.com/

 

[susan]

Is it like Siri? I did a google search but still don't understand ChatGPT.

 

[Pauline]

It is different from Siri or Google because instead of giving brief answers and sending you to websites, it gives you a complete answer.

When I was at University in Canada in the late 1970s I studied Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing as part of my Computer Science degree. I wrote a version of a natural language processing system call Eliza. It imitates a psychiatrist and you have conversations with it (no original work on my part, I just wrote the program and got the database of responses from an article by the guy who invented it). The program was popular and ran on their main servers. They kept it running years after I left.

I hoped ChatGPT would also do conversations but it doesn’t. You can have a thread with it, but it doesn’t remember what was said previously. I asked it about this and it replied that it doesn’t do conversations. Yet it mentioned Eliza which I asked about earlier in the thread, so it remembered something.

My question about Eliza.

 

[Pauline]

I asked where I should travel too in Europe next spring and it suggested:

>>There are many beautiful and interesting places to visit in Europe, so it can be difficult to choose where to go. Here are a few suggestions for destinations to consider for a trip next spring:

1. Amsterdam, Netherlands: This city is known for its charming canals, beautiful parks, and world-class museums. It's also a great place to try local specialties like cheese and beer.
2. Paris, France: The City of Love is a popular destination any time of year, and spring is a great time to visit. Paris is famous for its art, food, and fashion, and there are plenty of iconic landmarks to see, such as the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame Cathedral.
3. Barcelona, Spain: This coastal city is known for its beautiful beaches, vibrant culture, and rich history. It's a great place to try delicious tapas and explore the works of Antoni Gaudí.
4. Vienna, Austria: This elegant city is known for its beautiful parks, palaces, and music. It's a great place to take in some classical music or visit a museum.
5. Rome, Italy: The Eternal City is a must-visit destination, with its ancient ruins, beautiful art, and delicious food. Spring is a great time to visit, as the weather is usually pleasant and there are fewer tourists than in the peak summer season.

These are just a few ideas, and there are many other great destinations to consider in Europe. It's a good idea to research each destination carefully and consider your interests and budget when deciding where to go. <<

I don’t think it will replace travel forums!

 

[Pauline]

One last question to Mr Chat. “Make a sample itinerary for a two week trip to Europe this spring for a couple in their 60s who have not been to Europe before.”

==========================

Here is a sample itinerary for a two week trip to Europe this spring for a couple in their 60s who have not been to Europe before:

Day 1: Arrive in Amsterdam and check into a hotel in the city center. Spend the afternoon exploring the city on foot, visiting iconic landmarks like the Anne Frank House and the Rijksmuseum.

Day 2: Take a canal tour to see more of the city from the water, and visit some of the many art galleries and museums Amsterdam has to offer. In the evening, enjoy a traditional Dutch dinner at a cozy restaurant.

Day 3: Take a train to Brussels, Belgium and check into a hotel in the city center. Spend the afternoon exploring the city, including the iconic Atomium and the famous Manneken Pis statue.

Day 4: Take a day trip to Bruges, a charming medieval town known for its canals and historic buildings. In the evening, try some delicious Belgian chocolate and visit a brewery to taste some local beer.

Day 5: Take a train to Paris and check into a hotel in the city center. Spend the afternoon exploring the city, including iconic landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame Cathedral.

Day 6: Take a tour of the Louvre Museum to see some of the world's most famous works of art. In the evening, enjoy a romantic dinner at a classic Parisian bistro.

Day 7: Take a day trip to the Palace of Versailles, a beautiful palace and gardens outside of Paris. In the evening, visit a jazz club to hear some live music.

Day 8: Take a train to Barcelona and check into a hotel in the city center. Spend the afternoon exploring the city, including the Gothic Quarter and the Sagrada Familia.

Day 9: Take a tour of the Park Güell, a colorful park designed by Antoni Gaudí. In the evening, try some tapas at a local restaurant and visit a flamenco club to see a traditional dance performance.

Day 10: Take a day trip to the beach town of Sitges, known for its beautiful beaches and lively nightlife. In the evening, enjoy a seafood dinner by the ocean.

Day 11: Take a train to Vienna and check into a hotel in the city center. Spend the afternoon exploring the city, including the Schönbrunn Palace and the Vienna State Opera.

Day 12: Take a tour of the Kunsthistorisches Museum to see some of the city's finest art collections. In the evening, attend a classical music concert at a local venue.

Day 13: Take a day trip to the wine region of the Wachau Valley, known for its beautiful landscape and delicious wine. In the evening, enjoy a traditional Austrian dinner at a cozy restaurant.

Day 14: Take a train to Rome and check into a hotel in the city center. Spend the afternoon exploring the city, including the Colosseum and the Pantheon.

Day 15: Take a tour of the Vatican City, including the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. In the evening, enjoy a farewell dinner at a traditional Italian restaurant.

Day 16: Depart Rome and return home.

This is just a sample itinerary, and there are many other options to consider depending on your interests and budget. It's a good idea to research each destination carefully and plan your trip in advance to make the most of your time in Europe.

=====================

Those are some long train rides.

 

[joe]

I think that its advantage right now is in its ability to be "creative", not necessarily a database for anything current.

Here's what I tried :

The problem with the above is that none of the answers are correct - I checked. No such businesses in Pinerolo.

OTOH, another request of mine came out quite nice :

I might add that both answers started to appear less than a second after I pressed "Enter".

 

[Pauline]

The poem is not bad but it did rhyme risotto with risotto!

Interesting that none of the answers in the first question are correct. Who is loading that database of information? I asked about vegetarian restaurants in Paris and it listed one twice.

Maybe the next release will be better. But it is fun to play with.

 

[susan]

Well I'm obviously doing something wrong. I keep getting "error occurred..." After my first few questions, I tried to ask the same question about slow travel and I still get the error response .

 

[Pauline]

I think it is still in beta. But that doesn’t look good. Maybe it is affected by the snow storm

 

[joe]

The poem is not bad but it did rhyme risotto with risotto!

Interesting that none of the answers in the first question are correct. Who is loading that database of information? I asked about vegetarian restaurants in Paris and it listed one twice.

Rhyming risotto with risotto might be forgivable, but it appears that also here there is a factual error : no restaurant by that name in Torino. The fun factor is certainly there, but any one using it for current info should be careful. The site does say that the database is only updated to the beginning of 2021 - still, it seems strange that it got all these businesses wrong. They all closed in the last two years? Seems unlikely...

 

[Andrew]

I asked about places to eat in my town in Vermont, and it gave generic names with the town name (Diner and Country Store, when actually the only place with food service is the Village Store), and some more distinctive names, which I googled and found in southern New Hampshire, not very close.

 

[susan]

I tried it again today and it worked - even as it is snowing here right now. Yay!
I asked for places to eat in my town. It recommended 4 out of 5 places that I would also recommend. Fun new toy! Thanks!!

*Edited to add, it's about 50/50 so far with answers and the error reply. Maybe it is the cold weather?

 

[Pauline]

I asked it why Jack White and Meg White divorced and it replied that they were siblings. WRONG! That was false info that they put out when they started the band White Stripes but it was found out that they were married. How could ChatGPT not know that! Wikipedia is more accurate on some things.

Still, very interesting. I’ll ask about my town.

 

[GailS]

ChatGPT and Other Chat Bots Are a ‘Code Red’ for Google Search - The New York Times (nytimes.com) An interesting article in the NYTimes about ChatGPT.

 

[Pauline]

ChatGPT and Other Chat Bots Are a ‘Code Red’ for Google Search - The New York Times (nytimes.com) An interesting article in the NYTimes about ChatGPT.

Great article, thanks! It mentions the AI drawing program DALL-E which I tried. Here is “painting of a hiking trail in Lenk Switzerland” but it looks like generic Switzerland to me, not Lenk.

Now this could put Getty Images out of business which I would be happy to see (because they tried to sue me back in the SlowTrav days).

 

[joe]

Another good and concise article :

A new AI chatbot might do your homework for you. But it's still not an A+ student

ChatGPT gives users their very own virtual assistant. It could transform academia, experts say — for better and worse.

www.npr.org

"AI has basically ruined homework," said Ethan Mollick, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, on Twitter."

I wonder how good it is at editing texts....

 

[Pauline]

Watercolour of Florence Duomo.

Pauline × DALL·E | A rectangle watercolour of the Florence Duomo.

Created with DALL·E, an AI system by OpenAI

labs.openai.com

 

[Pauline]

I was wrong about ChatGPT not doing a conversation. This is from its description:

• Remembers what user said earlier in the conversation

I found this to be true in some longer threads where it refers to your earlier comments.

 

[Pauline]

I think spammers now use ChatGPT to write posts. We just had one posted on this thread explaining the difference between ChatGPT 3 and 4 which sounded like it was written by ChatGPT. With a not too subtle link to a Beirut apartments for sale web site in one of the points!

 

[Pauline]

ChatGPT 4 is available now on OpenAI and Google has released their version called Bard.

There is a good article in todays NYTimes by Thomas Friedman about this.

Opinion | Our New Promethean Moment

I just saw magic, and it’s the future.

www.nytimes.com

I asked ChatGPT 4 What is Slow Travel and got a similar, but more detailed, reply. Paragraph 2 is not part of our definition here, but is the definition used by others.

========
Slow travel is a travel philosophy that emphasizes taking your time to fully immerse yourself in a destination and experience the local culture, rather than rushing through popular tourist spots and trying to check off as many sights as possible in a short amount of time.

Slow travel typically involves traveling by more sustainable and eco-friendly means, such as walking, cycling, or using public transportation, rather than flying or driving. This allows travelers to connect more deeply with their surroundings, observe the local way of life, and reduce their environmental impact.

In addition to taking a more leisurely pace, slow travel often involves staying in one place for an extended period of time, rather than moving from city to city every few days. This allows travelers to develop a deeper understanding of the local culture and make meaningful connections with the people they meet.

Overall, slow travel is about savoring the journey and embracing the idea that sometimes the most rewarding experiences come from slowing down and taking the time to fully appreciate the world around us.