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Thread: Advice for Traveling
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2007-07-24, 03:18 PM (ISO 8601)
Advice for Traveling
Wooo...so, I'm kind of doing the whole "bum around Europe" thing in a little bit, in a very condensed way. Just five days or so. I'm set to train into Brussels from London, and so I'm looking for any advice/suggested stops based on that general location. As I'm not too familiar with European rail systems, I don't know if I can but I would like to spend at least a day or so in Paris; is this the kind of thing that I should have booked way in advance, or is rail travel on the continent at least somewhat possible with shorter notice?
Beyond that...any advice for the first time traveling alone in a strange land? I'm sure that somewhere out there, one of you has some valuable anecdote you've been waiting to share for ages.
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2007-07-24, 03:23 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2006
- Location
- Canada
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Wear comfortable shoes.
Nothing sucks more then your feet hurting when your somewhere else.
You know besides getting robbed or stabbed or something
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2007-07-24, 03:31 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2006
- Location
- WA, USA
- Gender
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2007-07-24, 03:36 PM (ISO 8601)
Re: Advice for Traveling
Mmm. My feet are already nice and pre-chewed, thanks to Tintagel and the Tor. I'm traveling pretty light...to the point where I'm actually worried about having brought too little. Then I remind myself that I'll never see these people again, and so it matters little that I've been wearing the same pair of shorts for three days.
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2007-07-24, 03:47 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2007
- Location
- NYC
Re: Advice for Traveling
Find some hostels, I forget the name of where I stayed, but it was pretty cheap like 18 euro or something (about 20-21 US dollars)
Don't stay in Paris for one day, you won't get to see anything, probably too tired from the train/plane ride.
Any friends/family in europe, look them up and stay with them.
There's usually really cheap deals on airfare once you are in Europe, so you should look out for that, I think I saw in Germany an airplane ticket to the czech republic for 10 euro or something.
visit Budapest! Awesome city, and stay at the Station Guest House - party hostel very cool if you don't want to go to bed.
Romania is quite nice too, the train ride from budapest to sibiu is about 10 hrs. but cheap roundtrip ($40 though it might have changed by now) and romania is still not on the euro so 1 american dollar = 3 romanian Lei (and everything is priced pretty cheap as well).
always have important things on your person.
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2007-07-24, 04:27 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2007
- Location
- Colorado Rockies, Man!
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Re: Advice for Traveling
I love traveling.I may be kinda young, but I've got some good advice. Bring the necessary stuff, like toiletries (You don't wanna have bad breath while traveling. ) but also, if you're going to be on a long train or plane ride, bring something like a book to keep yourself occupied. Getting bored makes time pass MUCH slower on long road trips.
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2007-07-24, 04:32 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2006
- Location
- The Mindfields
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Make sure you have a valid passport. Seriously, it sounds dumb, but check now, just in case.
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2007-07-24, 04:36 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2006
- Location
- Nowhere
- Gender
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2007-07-24, 04:39 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
- Location
- Star-Club, Reeperbahn
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Visit Hamburg! Hands down the most beautiful city in Germany. You haven't seen the country, if you haven't been to Hamburg.
The port is great, we've got all kinds of museums (although I have to admit that Berlin, our archnemesis, has better ones) and, most importantly, we are nice, polite and reserved, not like evil Berlin (seriously ... what has Berlin ever done for you?).
Outside of Germany, I suggest Denmark (Copenhagen), Rome (my favourite city on the continent) and London, but you've already planned that.
Train travel is generally quite easy and if you don't mind standing from time to time, you don't have to pre-book anything. Also, I recall something like a European railway card for most countries.I think the phrase rhymes with 'clucking bell'.
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2007-07-24, 04:44 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2006
- Location
- Nowhere
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
If I may be so bold, visit the Netherlands, but not Amsterdam or the bible belt (yes, we have a bible belt, Staphorst and virtually all the other traditional clothing places are in there), visit a smaller city like Zwolle, Deventer, Groningen, Nijmegen or any of the plenty of other options, those places really capture the spirit of the NL.
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2007-07-24, 05:04 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2005
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Well, I am someone that has just recently gotten back from travelling around Europe, except we did it by car and spent a good 3 weeks over it. But then we got to enjoy Brussels, an awful lot of France and Spain, and bits of Switzerland. 'Twas ambitious, at the very least.
The thing you have to be very aware of is that things will probably take slightly more time than even your best planning will allow. Brussels alone is a place that you could spend an awful lot of time in - just find a pretty pub and sit down.
If I had to give you my honest opinion I'd suggest condencing your trip down to just France, because after five days you'd be wishing you had so much more time. But then, I guess it all really depends on what you're looking for. Why are you travelling? I went for the scenery, and the architecture. And I was overjoyed. Seriously.
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2007-07-24, 05:17 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2007
- Location
- Ljubljana, Slovenia
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Re: Advice for Traveling
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2007-07-24, 05:44 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2007
- Location
- Wales!
- Gender
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2007-07-24, 11:59 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2007
- Location
- Todash Space
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Shoes...I did paris in 1 day and my I had blisters so bad that my...
well let's just say good shoes, ones that aren't tight, and don't mind getting water splashed on them.
Notre dame is amazing, btw, especially if your an art geek like me.Avatar by Shades of Gray
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2007-07-25, 01:32 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Nov 2006
- Location
- wouldn't you like to know
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
my advice: 5 days is WAY too short for europe...
so you'll have to choose either you want to see lots of details in like one or two cities or see the basic touristy stuff that doesn't take a lot of time which would mean you could see like 4 cities...
either way you'll be seeing so much it'll be impossible to take it all in.
If I were you I'd just stick with France... Spend a few days in Paris and a few in Brussels... Paris is very expensive though so staying there will cost a lot...
Don't leave ANYTHING important in a hostel if you've booked for more then one night!
talk to other tourists in the hostels... you'll meet the most interesting people there and they will be able to tell you lots about what they have done and what they liked etc. besides that if you make a few friends it will make it a lot more fun then just wandering around alone.
don't go into the louvre unless you plan on spending your entire trip there... it's too big to handle in one day and there are more interesting things in Paris like the eiffel tower.
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2007-07-25, 04:10 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2007
- Location
- Belgium
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Re: Advice for Traveling
It doesn't matter where you're going or what you're gonna do, I only have one piece of advice: take a towel. It's all you really need, and it's the most versatile tool known to man.
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2007-07-25, 05:47 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Location
- Refugee of Aiur
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Re: Advice for Traveling
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2007-07-25, 05:59 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jul 2006
- Location
- Los Angeles, CA
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
My best travel advice: don't panic.
Stuff goes wrong. You miss trains, or you can't find a cafe, or you lose your money, or you can't find a hotel room, or you miss your flight, or you can't read the language and end up on the wrong metro line and are wandering around Moscow in the dead of winter trying to find a cab.
Very few of those things are life-threatening, and most of those problems can be solved with a smile, a helpful stranger, or judicious application of monetary funds. The important part is to keep a level head, which you sound like you have.
(Also, always carry a bit of food on you. Few things suck more than being lost AND hungry.)
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2007-07-25, 07:33 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2005
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Seconded. Smaller Dutch cities are much nicer than the 'Randstad' (the cluster of large cities in the western Netherlands). Gezina's suggestions are quite good.
But to be honest, I don't think the Netherlands are the best Europe has to offer. I don't know what you consider the general vicinity of Brussels, but I can recommend the following:
Berlin. Beautiful and varied architecture, and much historical stuff (mostly focused on WWII and the Soviet era).
I'd also consider other French cities. Although Paris is nice, I prefer Lyon or Avignon. Both are beautiful cities.
Brussels. It's got chocolate.
Prague is also very nice, but it's a bit far from Brussels. Still, it's small enough to visit in one day.
Rome. It's probably too far from Brussels, but it's one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
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2007-07-25, 07:43 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2006
- Location
- Star-Club, Reeperbahn
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Um, Berlin has some things to offer, sure, but it's not a typically German city. It's still torn apart between East and West, and while there are some nice parts (mostly the Potsdamer Platz and the area around the Brandenburger Tor), most of Berlin is just plain ugly.
I think the phrase rhymes with 'clucking bell'.
Lord Flashheart by Kalirush
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2007-07-25, 07:47 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2005
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Agreed. Paris is unlikely to impress or surprise, at least to the extent that you might be hoping, and what you'd expect given how much you'll be paying for it. Avignon, Carcassone, Annecy and the like, and million chateaux and other such touristy places are a much better bet in my opinion. And yeah, if you've only got 5 days, you're probably only gonna manage one country, skimming.
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2007-07-25, 08:20 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Location
- The sunny South
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Re: Advice for Traveling
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2007-07-25, 08:24 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Feb 2006
- Location
- Nowhere
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Triple post much, Charity?
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2007-07-25, 10:16 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jun 2007
- Location
- NYC
Re: Advice for Traveling
Ah, thanks for the correction, I had gone to Europe sometime ago, and the exchange rate was a bit lower.
Other places to see
Stuttgart in Germany (quite nice, I enjoyed it) - there's also a bunch of castle ruins, if only I could remember the names...
Paris is ok, it is such a tourist trap, I hear southern France is quite nice however.
Portugal - lovely.
5 days is not enough to see a lot of stuff, I suggest staying in one area and explore around there.Last edited by jazz1m; 2007-07-25 at 10:18 AM.
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2007-07-25, 10:22 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2006
- Location
- Stormwracked verdant hive
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Never forget disposable bags for... biological necessities--- ye never know when your meal forgot its keys and decides to go back up to get them.
Never forget headache medicines, stomachache medicines, painkilling ointments for feet after much walking/hiking/running, bandages, iodine and other first aids.Avatarcred: HELL YEAH to THE Oneris! Ma'am, thank you, ma'am.
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2007-07-25, 10:37 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Location
- Refugee of Aiur
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
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2007-07-25, 10:57 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Location
- The sunny South
- Gender
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2007-07-25, 11:06 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
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- Refugee of Aiur
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2007-07-25, 11:07 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Dec 2005
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2007-07-25, 12:06 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2005
- Location
- Denmark
- Gender
Re: Advice for Traveling
Hmmm...travelling alone. Keep your money and passport in one of those things you carry around your neck. But keep it under the shirt so you don't look like a tourist. Don't accept drinks from anyone, they're after your kidney. But above all, avoid the Paris metro after dark. Avoid it like the plauge.
If you want to visit the Eiffel tower, keep in mind that it takes all day just to get up and down again. The lines are so long. Don't try to walk the first two stages, your legs will cramp up. But the view is worth it!
I only had one day in Paris, but "La Defence" was quite impressive. That and the Eiffel tower was all I had time for. The Metro is one of the great mysteries of the modern age. The lines go like a pile of spagetti. There is no timetable, the trains just...run.
Or you can just come and visit wonderful Copenhagen. The riots are almost over now.Last edited by Miklus; 2007-07-26 at 02:00 PM.
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