I´ve got a rather unique travel tradition. Rather than cultivate a relationship with a hometown barber, most of my haircuts the last three years have come during my time on the road.
Make no mistake, I´ve tried out a lot of barber shops and salons in Los Angeles: I’ve just never found one that I particularly liked or that was good and reasonably priced.
Tonight I got a really nice haircut in Puerto Iguazu, Argentina for less than $8. I’ve got business cards at home for barber shops I have patronized in San Diego, St. Louis, Boston’s North End, Poughkeepsie, Honolulu, Panama, Victoria, BC, London, Paris, Berlin, New Delhi, and Hong Kong (that’s just off the top of my head).
Maybe if I ever find a decent person in LA or Philadelphia, I won’t need to do this, but it has actually become a bit of a game for me. My eyes lit up as I spotted a barber tonight on my ride back from Brazil–and it was just a few blocks away from where I am staying. I put off my $8 haircut from Avo in Glendale to get a $7 tonight in Argentina. And I’m glad I did.
Nice, did you get the Juan Verón?
A few years ago I needed a haircut in Hanoi so I went to a guy recommended by a friend. It ended up being an epic, almost 2-hour extravaganza, with multiple washings and a tool that looked something like an RPG launcher.
Days later, while I was flying to Vientiane, I was shocked to read a big profile on him in the Vietnam Airlines in-flight magazine.
Tran Hung Hair Creation, if anyone’s interested. Very reasonable prices.
@gluedtothewindow: Nah, thankfully I still have hair on my head! 🙂