Final Summary

It is hard to believe our vacation ended so soon.  It was a wonderful and educational experience.  We love the European culture.  It is so diverse and historical.  The food and wine are amazing.

During our Mediterranean Cruise and European vacation we travelled over 13,300 kilometres. The cruise was a distance of 4,800 kilometers and we travelled 2,500 by train.  The remained was the flight between Toronto and Paris.  During the 36 days we visited 2 continents , 6 countries, and 31 towns or cities

Our Favourite City or Town :

Marg :   Paris.  It lived up to all her expectations.  There is history and good food around every corner

Brian :   Barcelona. There is a spirit and tempo that hasn’t been duplicated by any other city that I’ve visited.

Our Favourite Location :

Marg :  The ruins at Ephesus followed by Gaudi church in Barcerlona.  Marg loved the fact that she was walking on streets that had been major roads for people over 2,000 years ago.  She marvelled at the technology that was used to build and support these cities, in what we generally consider primitive times.

Brian :   Doge’s Palace in Venice. This is the palace that perfectly defines power and wealth.

Our Favourite Memory :

Marg :  A big smooch from Brian on the Seine River cruise

Brian :  Walking through the alleyways of the medieval villages such as Eze. With no cars in sight it is easy to walk around and relax and enjoy the varied architecture and small intimate spaces.

Our Top Tip :

Marg :  Pack light if you are taking the train

Brian :  Keep your head on a swivel when crossing a road

Cell Phones

You need a cell phone to do just about anything in Europe.  They have really taken to the smart phone technology in a big way. You can do just anything online.  If you just want to make a telephone call, say to call a cab, good luck in finding a pay phone.  They do exist but you need a calling card from the company that owns the phone because they don’t accept money or credit cards.  The four apartments we stayed in did not have a local phone.

You have three options.

The first option is to purchase an European account.  Most  travel web sites suggest that this is the
best option. You will need a quad band GSM phone but it needs to be unlocked.  You can then purchase a SIM card from the European cell phone supplier.  Rates seem to be all over the place and you’ll need a passport to purchase a card.

You can rent a phone but they are very expensive.  I saw one add that asked for $25 for the first week and $2/day after that.  Then you paid $0.06/minute to call home.

You can buy a phone and get a plan with a Canadian company that allows you to call from Europe. To make cell phone calls in Europe you'll need a quad band GSM phone. This type of phone will allow you to use it both in Canada and Europe.  Bell has a talk and text plan for $45/month and $30/month for data.

Trains

Trains may be the most relaxing way to travel in Europe but it is the most unreliable.   Each of our trips had some sort of delay.  On our trip into Barcelona the train broke down and we had to wait for an hour to board another train.  On our trip back to Salerno from Naples the train was delayed for about 30 minutes when an electrical switching motor was stolen.  On the trip to Nice from Venice the last train was 20 minutes late due to a strike by rail workers.

Trying to move luggage around these older stations is a pain in the butt.  You often have lift down and up a series of stairs.

The food on board the train, when it is available, consists of stale sandwiches and over priced drinks.

Apartments

Renting apartments is a wonderful way to stay in Europe if you are staying in a single location for several days.  The only drawback when compared with staying in a hotel is that you don’t have daily housekeeping.  In exchange for this small inconvenience you get a comfortable apartment in the location of your choosing and you get to experience local life. Without exception the owners of the apartments that we rented from were friendly and went out of their way to assist you. The owners are amazing fountains of knowledge about their town.  They can tell you what to see, how to get there and where the best places to eat, all from a local prospective.

Asking For Directions

When asking for directions in Europe, you’ll be told that the location you want is a 5 minute stroll.  It will end up being a 15 minute hike over cobblestone streets, up and down stairs and a gantlet run through motor scooters.  What is even more amazing is that Europeans are not fast walkers.  They take their time and are only slightly faster than sloths or Japanese tourists.

Rules of the road

When approaching an intersection with a stop sign, you must understand that in Europe that means automobiles treat it like a yield sign and motor scooters take it as an opportunity to aim at unsuspecting pedestrians who foolishly enter the intersection.

Walking in Europe

When walking in Europe you need to keep one eye on the sites and one eye on the sidewalk.  The cobblestones are usually very uneven and slippery.  Every once and a while they will put up barriers to stop automobiles from entering a street and they make for great targets for unsuspecting toes.  Also in some cities such as Nice, if you are not careful where you walk you may get a smelly brown surprise on your shoe courtesy of the local canines.

Graffiti

Graffiti is the scourge of Europe.  Every space of concrete is covered with this pseudo art.  It shows very little imagination and is blight on the cityscape of most cities in Europe. Dubrovnik was one of the few cities that did not seem to suffer from this garbage.