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Europe, eh?

  
 
01
08:03 / 31.03.05
Hello fellow Barbeloids and Barbelithians. It's been a while since I've been around these parts. Nice to see that some of the same cats are still in the mix trying to crack grand unification theory with the same rock and roll fervour and subversive posting prowess.

I'm travelling throughout Europe with my brother for the month of May, namely England, Italy, France and Holland, and well, haven't got the foggiest notion as to what to do and see, besides the obvious attractions. Like EuroDisney. I can't wait for Euro Disney...
...just kidding.

We will primarily be based in Italy, and have accomodation pretty much sorted out there. We have rail passes and plan to train from Italy, through the south of France, up to Paris, over to Amsterdam and then back to London. I'm looking for some tips and pointers from accomplished nomadic Barbelith types that will help us make the most of our journey. (not to mention get us from point a to b in relatively one piece.)

Some of my qualms and queries are as follows.

1. Southern France. I hear that Nice is well..nice (...sorry), but what else should we not miss?

2. Paris. I've never been so I have to be a tourist and see the Eiffel Tower and Le Louvre, but what else should I see? How many days should we stick around?

3. Amsterdam. I'm from Vancouver so weed and good looking girls don't phase me. Besides the red light district what should we see? Also getting from Amsterdam to London. What's the best/cheapest way?

4. Customs. I'm an ignoramous North American. How do I not go about pissing off the locals?

5. Saving Euros. I hear that Europe is very expensive and we're on a budget. Any tips for stretching our hard earned loonies? I hear that travelling at night by train helps cut down cost.

6. Accomodations. London and Italy are pretty much taken care of. France and Holland are what we're looking at. Hostells I'm told are the way to go, but who knows? Anyone know of any cool bed and breakfasts or anything? Once again cheap = good.

7. The trains. Any pointers or anything I should be hip to?

8. Crime/sketchy shit/scams to avoid. Being from North America, and with our recent neighbours' antics to the south I keep thinking that you're all living this uber socialist utopia where everyone rides bicycles, drinks wine until 4 in the morning and has alot of great sex. Shaken back to reality by my buddy who travelled through Marseille years ago and had to avoid thugged out Algerian gangbangers. What to look out for?

9. Any other pointers for travelling from travel savvy Barbelithers?

I realize I've flung up a gaggle of questions, but answers to any/all would be greatly appreciated.
 
 
Jub
11:23 / 31.03.05
4. Customs. I'm an ignoramous North American. How do I not go about pissing off the locals?

Establishing the fact you're Canadian rather than American would be a good start - an don't call the French "Surrender Monkeys".

Seriously though - I think as long as you're not too brash or loud people will good to you. Even writing this thread shows a certain savvy which other people don't have - I think you'll be fine on this score.
 
 
ONLY NICE THINGS
11:49 / 31.03.05
Shaken back to reality by my buddy who travelled through Marseille years ago and had to avoid thugged out Algerian gangbangers. What to look out for?

Algerians, obviously. Might be worth investing in a can of Berber-B-Gone, freely available in stores across France...

Paris: The Louvre probably takes about a day. Also, the Centre Georges Pompidou has a superb collection of modern art and some great views. The Place Pompidou is a fun place to hang out for a bit, also. There's some great architecture, great food - personally, I'd take the opportunity to visit Les Halles while it yet lives, but you may not be into ugly modernism. The Rodin Museum is definitely worth a visit. Le Tambour in the 11ieme arrondisement is good for cheap eats.

Amsterdam: why not just go for a wander? It's a fascinating city layout. Otherwise, how about the Rijksmuseum for starters, which has some terrific Rembrandt and van Gogh, and I think some pretty decent Munch also... oh, and if you don't mind having the crap depressed out of you, the Anne Frank Huis is worth visiting.

Customs: Learn the local languages - at least enough to say thank you and apologise. Don't assume anybody actually wants you in their country and you should be fine. Oh, and try to keep the volume of your conversation at about the same level as the people around you - this varies from country to country. Avoid hand gestures outside the descriptive - they can have unintended meanings. Oh, and people in the Netherlands outside Holland get hacked off if you call their country "Holland".

Crime: The usual, really. Like any tourist in any country, you run the risk of being deceived or defrauded by the unscrupulous. Don't carry too much cash, know beforehand how to cancel your cards, that sort of thing. The tourist routes will generally keep you out of bad areas. If you find yourself in a bad area, try not to be too American about it... the usual, really. On the plus side, gun ownership in urban Europe remains low - keeping a decent distance between you and those who wish you ill is usually reasonably effective.
 
 
Smoothly
13:06 / 31.03.05
Both Paris and Amsterdam are small enough to wander around, and getting lost is always an effective way of exploring such places, I find. Somehow it's more pleasing to just come across the key destinations than it is when you make a bee-line for them. Paris is a particularly beautiful and seductive place to amble around at night. But watch out for dog shit. You could pretty much surf your way around parts of the city if you were so inclined.

Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum is closed at the moment I think, but the building itself is fairly spectacular and the Vodelpark behind it is mellow in the springtime. Canal cruises are an inexpensive tourist excursion and are a good way of getting a picture of how the different parts of the city fit together, which is useful in a place that's notoriously easy to get lost in, for one reason or another. But like I say, getting lost is often a good start.
Nice is nice, and it might be worth going to Cannes if you can. And there are lots of very pretty little towns in between.

There are some good threads knocking around which cover a lot of the things you want to know. Here and here for example. There was another good thread about the delights on offer in Amsterdam recently, but I'll be buggered with a rubber fist if I can find it.
 
 
Baz Auckland
07:29 / 01.04.05
The Amsterdam Thread...
 
 
Smoothly
09:32 / 01.04.05
Not that one, Baz. I found that one. I linked to that one, in fact. There was another, from around the end of last year, started by I can't remember who. He was 'lady-friendly' though, and was planning a weekend away with some other heterosexuals. There was some discussion of nightlife, and some club recommendations. I'm pretty sure it was in the Conversation, but searching on the obvious keywords doesn't find it.
 
 
01
04:54 / 18.04.05
I'm thinking about renting a car for the south of france since everything is so close. would this be advisable? has anyone zipped along the coast via autod? Or is it better/cheaper to train it?
 
 
Alex's Grandma
07:30 / 18.04.05
Unless you're particularly into the idea of Cannes in the summertime, open-top Jag, supermodel in the passenger seat, shades, etc ( nothing wrong with that if you are, ) the South of France is easily do-able by bus and train.

There's a particular place in Nice that you'd only go into at peril of your immortal soul ( to be fair, they do explain this on the door, ) but apart from ( or possibly including ) that, it's lots of fun, the S of F.
 
  
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