the time to enjoy a european trip is about three weeks after unpacking - george Ade

Make that 52 weeks. Exactly one year from today I returned to Boston after an exhilarating, eye-opening, fantastic adventure in Europe. I got to visit four countries, twelve cities, an abundance of landmarks, and made my way through the wonders and history that define western/central Europe. I'm pretty sure I covered everything I saw so by reading this blog from the beginning, I hope you get a sense of all that I experienced.

Paris was better than I expected or hoped for. Though on my sister's travel radar for years, Paris never really interested me that much. I don't really know why, and if it hadn't been for the flight availability, I would never have thought about visiting. My eyes were set on Southern France, Prague, Croatia or Greece, all of which I unfortunately couldn't fit in. I certainly don't regret the choice now. Paris had sooooo much to see and so much to choose from. Yes, it was a little on the expensive side, but it offered an abundance of historical museums, churches and landmarks to visit giving me plenty to do in my short time there. Highlights for me were the Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, and Louvre. Yes, cliche and probably typical answers. But there's a reason they're so popular. They're outstanding.

Tours was nice, and I liked being in a smaller city, but if I were to go back, I'd give myself a few days and I'd rent a car. The chateaus are very spread out and each is unique enough that I'd want to see the different designs so I'd need to go at my own pace and not that of a tour. Pompeii was a definite highlight and a must-see if you're in the Rome area. You can definitely make it a half-day trip, but I'd allow myself the entire day to travel from Rome, see and explore the entire place, and return back. Maybe I'd give it two days and spend the 2nd climbing Mt. Vesuvius.

Rome had plenty to do to fill up two days and I think I certainly covered most of it. I didn't feel rushed which was nice but If I had one more day, I would have gone to the Borghese Museum and maybe spent a little more time in the Vatican and St. Peter's as well as giving myself more time to explore Palantine Hill. But other than that I have no regrets about things I wish I'd seen. And even a year later, I still think the Capuchin Monk Crypt was one of the coolest things ever in Rome...and in Europe.

I didn't quite realize until I was there that I'd planned much of my Italian experience in Tuscany, but because I was to rely on trains and public transportation, I purposely chose large cities rather than smaller ones. So Rome, Florence and Venice immediately shot to the top of the list. Siena ended up being a "transition" city, and though the first part of my day there was awful, the view at the top of the Duomo complex more than made up for it. Rolling hills...the wind in my hair...I'm such a cliche. Florence gave me "David" so no matter how shitty the rest could have been (it wasn't, but IF it'd been) "David" more than made up for it. I don't know if I've ever seen a more perfect piece of art. Venice was such a change from Tuscany and it really felt like a completely different culture. While the other cities felt foreign because they had this essence of being "old" and "classic," Venice was it's own little world...a water planet according to Anne and I. And I loved every minute of it. Venice was beautiful, yes...but overall it was just really, really cool.

Munich was a great change of pace from both France and Italy. There was such a different cultural feeling to it that I didn't feel when transitioning from France to Italy. Yes, Italy was different from France, but Munich really gave me this "look you're in a new place" kinda feel. The Bavarian architecture with its onion domes and more streamline designs was quite different from that of Venice, Tuscany or Paris. I don't know the correct terminology for architecture, but visually you could see, and even feel, the difference. My visit to Dachau, though very sad, was a great learning experience. There are many concentration camps open throughout Europe but by finding one in my "path" of travel, I lucked out. I definitely think you should try and visit at least one throughout your lifetime since they are such an iconic piece of history and a great visual as to why an atrocity like the Holocaust should never happen again.

I don't want to assign beauty, as each and every city was gorgeous in its own way, but Innsbruck would take the crown in a fight. The snow-capped mountains surrounding this small, Alpine city makes for a picture perfect vacation spot. Not to mention the kindness of the Hotel Weiss Kruez's staff. Everything about my single day there was perfect. If the weather had been worse, my opinion would probably be different, but the sun was out and shining gloriously!

Salzburg...oh Salzburg. You had the crappy weather, yet you still got me to fall in love. What a classic, endearing place. It's with me every day, and not just cause my panoramic poster hangs above my closet so I get to look at it all the time. I got to live out a childhood dream of living The Sound of  Music and every time I watch it now, I think of being there and that excitement I felt. Salzburg is somewhere I would return to in a heartbeat. The lakes region and the surrounding mountains would be a terrific place to spend a week exploring.

Finally, there was Vienna. A gorgeous city that doesn't need much more discussion from me. Overall, I really, really loved my adventure in Europe. I'm the kind of person that wants to see and do everything, all dependent on cost of course, so it was ridiculously hard trying to figure out my itinerary because I wanted to go everywhere in Europe. I barely scratched the surface of my "to do" list. I think I need at least a year and a completely disposable income next time. But with what I did see and experience, I would never give that up. I saw history and iconic landmarks...places where I could have easily spent the entire day staring at their amazingness. There's not much more I can think of to say, but I will leave you with the quote below. My blogging isn't over, but my European recollections have come to an end.

the rewards of the journey far outweigh 

the risk of leaving the harbor - unknown

people travel to faraway places to watch, in fascination, the kind of people they ignore at home – dagobert d. runes

Towards the end of my trip last year, I wrote out a long list of topics that I wanted to "blog" about, yet a year later the more eloquent thoughts about such topics have dissipated from my mind. And looking at my notes, some things I wrote make no sense at all. Yet,  I do want to comment on some of them so this is going to be a multi-topic post.

Women in Art
Although I only really went to two large art museums, each church or iconic landmark contained numerous paintings so I saw quite a bit of artwork and there was one thing that really stood out to me. I've never studied art and really know nothing about it as a critic, but I can tell you I really liked how accurate the depiction of women was. In a society obsessed with dieting, beauty and airbrushing/photoshop, it was so nice to see women with curves and that little pudge of stomach I know I have around the belly button. It was so shocking to see every single bare skin painting have this aspect of a woman's body. Even the Egyptian statue made of stone had the belly pudge. I know that being skinny was bad back then cause it meant you were poor, but I still wish girls were raised with these images instead of all size 0 models and celebrities. Its funny how the image of "ideal" has been completely inverted.

Cece's Advice #6 - Don't feel guilty about not doing everything you want, or feel you should.
I already wrote out my apology for not enjoying Vienna that much, but I want to give a little advice for those out there like me with obsessions about utilizing and not wasting time/money. With everything I did I thought about whether each activity was worth the admission cost or the time and effort; or whether I was utilizing my time during the day well enough. So in Vienna, when I did a day and a half of activities in three, I just kept having to remind myself "it's okay not to do everything...I'm tired...I'm on a budget..." This way, the guilt was suppressed. I occasionally had to tell myself that same thing in Paris or Rome because there was just so much to do, but there's only so many hours in a day that places are open, and I just had to accept that its alright that some things were missed. Its like picking and choosing your battles. And I only ever had two days to do "everything." 

Packing/Laundry
He who would travel happily must travel light - Antoine de St. Exupery 
While I already said my spiel about the suitcase vs. backpack debate, and what is the best way to hold all your belongings on a trip, I didn't talk about what goes inside. If I recall correctly, this was the contents of my suitcase: 7 long-sleeve shirts, 3 jeans, 7 pairs of underwear, 3 bras, 7 or so pairs of socks, 1 pair of sweatpants for sleeping, 1 or 2 t-shirts for sleeping, 1 sweatshirt, 2 fleece zip-up jackets, 1 windbreaker, 1 hat, 1 scarf, 3 pairs of gloves, 1 pair of hiking boots, 1 pair of sneakers, 1 belt. Sounds like a lot when all listed out, but for 21 days, it's actually not that much. Especially since I didn't do laundry at all (I understand if you think I'm completely disgusting right now). My clothing decision was probably the most "down and dirty" one I made, but it saved me a lot of money and time/effort in not having to find a laundromat. In the end, it was a good decision and I had thick enough skin for the worst of the dirty laundry. But...had I not had a shower available at least once a day, my feelings may have been different.

Budget

When preparing to travel, lay out all your clothes and all your money.  Then take half the clothes and twice the money - Susan Heller
I've touched upon keeping a tight budget in many posts and how I'm really cheap, therefore decided not to visit certain museums or eat because of that. But I thought I'd mention it one more time because it's important. And I really liked the quote. It kind of goes along with the packing/laundry piece above. Besides my plane ticket, which was purchased with frequent flyer miles, I spent about $2000...that's less than $100/day. Before I even left, $500 was spent on my EuroRail pass which was my main source of transportation and all my lodging was $300. That's almost half of my total expenses. Add in the $400 I planned to spend based on my research about city passes and tourist cards plus the $150 I budgeted in advance for the "big events" like the bike tour, chateau tour and "Sound of Music" Tour and you've got a grand total of $1350. Which means I spent $650 on food, souvenirs, gifts, train reservations, other transportation and anything else I needed. That's only $30/day, which I think is pretty good for a vacation like that especially when I think about all I did and accomplished. Although I budgeted for a total less than $2000, I can tell you that I wasn't way over and easily could have spent more if I wasn't so cheap.

Airplane Behavior
This one is not related to Europe specifically, but travel in general. I think people's behavior in airports and airplanes is fascinating. You go to the airport and sit at the gate, and the second they warn you boarding will start in 5-10 minutes, people are already standing and getting in line. Even if they're in the last boarding group. It's really funny. They're trying to be the first on in order just to sit some more. And unless you're flying Southwest, its all assigned seating so it's not like being early is going to get you a better seat. Best choice in overhead baggage storage, but that's about it. I do think part of it comes from nerves and anxiety around flying, but sitting in the Vienna airports, I was just really astounded and absorbed in all the "craziness" I was witnessing.

Pros/Cons of Traveling in Low Tourist Season
I traveled from November 18th - December 8th, certainly not prime tourist season (though by the time I hit Vienna, it was much busier due to the Christmas season). And as such, there were definite pros and cons I discovered to traveling at that time of year. The biggest pro of all was fewer people, fewer people, fewer people. If you got the hint earlier, I'm not a huge fan of crowds. I love cities, but being pushed and shoved and surrounded by people in small spaces stresses me out. And less people also means more availability with lodging therefore more choices, shorter lines...all great things. Hotel/hostel rates were another pro. I'm not certain, but I'm pretty sure the rates I got at my hostels were less than during prime tourist season. Especially in Venice, when our hotel in Lido cost almost nothing for 3 people. It's an island, so like Nantucket, is dead in the winter...giving way to great lodging rates. The cons were few and far between, but the one that kept popping up for me was limited hours of operation, and in some cases complete unavailability for some attractions. Many places didn't open until 9 or 10am, and then they also closed at 4pm rather than 5 or 6. Another battle I had to overcome in terms of scheduling.

Money belts/Saftey
Before I left for Europe, a lot of what I heard from people were bad things about items getting stolen, and warnings to be careful. I should bring a mace, or a weapon or something. I listened, sure, and did my research about safety; but in the end all I brought for security was a money belt, my laptop security cord and a small TSA approved lock for my suitcase. The money belt was a great thing to have because I was never paranoid about my wallet, passport or any other important document being stolen or falling out of my bag. It was always on me no matter where I went. Sure the money got a little sweaty and my passport a little warped and I looked like an idiot when paying for stuff, but it took so much nervous anxiety away and allowed me to enjoy myself much more. I wasn't paranoid or scared about anything else except losing my money, or passport, or driver's license, so quelling these fears by wearing the belt was an excellent decision. I had one fright on the Paris-Milan night train that I'd lost my license, and had accepted it was officially lost when I departed, until I pulled it from the pages of my passport.

The laptop security cord was from college and is used to lock laptops to desks to prevent stealing. I used it to lock my suitcase to my hostel beds. Each night I would organize everything and pack it all up tight, loop the cord through the handle of the suitcase, around my bed post and then lock it, along with the zipper of the bag, with the TSA lock. It may have looked crazy and paranoid but it helped me sleep at night. When I was 13, I was a victim of attempted pick-pocketry in Bolivia so robbery scares me more than anything else. A friend's mother thinks I'm an absolute nutjob that I shared co-ed hostel rooms, and in Munich's case my roommates were all male, but that didn't phase me at all. It was whether or not my belongings would be there the next morning that freaked me out.

Walking everywhere
Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time - Stephen Wright 
So true, Stephen Wright, so true. With each city I came upon, I was one with the streets. In Paris and Rome I would take a train to a "starting" point for the day, but each city was easy to navigate and I could find an efficient walking route that hit all the landmarks and led me back around to the hostel by the end of the day. All that walking, combined with all the tower climbing, gave me thighs of steel by the end.

chug-a-chug-a-chug-a-chug-a choo-choo

I've already talked about train travel but have saved my discussion about night trains for its own post. I only took 2 night trains, Paris to Milan and Venice to Munich, but from each, I learned which ones to take and not to take next time I galavant around Europe.

I initially planned to ride the night trains in order to cut down on my budget, because I already had my train pass, and to also cut down on travel time. The Paris to Rome train was a great use of my travel time because instead of spending almost an entire day traveling from one to the other, I was in Paris one night and Italy the next morning. So it was a great use of time for that, but the 25Euro reservation fee didn't save me any money. In short, time savings, great! Money savings, not.

Venice to Munich, when looking back, was one I decided was not worth the time advantage for a couple of reasons. I didn't know when Anne and Lauren were departing Venice for Vienna so I made the assumption they would be in Venice through early evening. Instead, they headed back mid-afternoon so I had 7 hours to kill. Because the reservation fee of the night train cost as much as a hostel would have, it would have been a better use of my time to take an afternoon train to Munich then spend a night in a real bed. This wouldn't have added any time for me to see Munich but had I not taken the train I could have slept in a real bed and had a shower. And real beds are much better than train beds. And any shower is better than no shower.

The sleeping conditions weren't bad on the train, but they're not prime either. In the generic couchettes of the night trains, the cheapest sleeping quarters you can get on a train because they dont have seats, there are 6 beds. The beds are narrow bunks, 3 on each side, which can be folded against the wall while the botton can be converted into a bench for sitting. Not uncomfortable, but it gets cramped when the couchette is full, especially since the luggage space is really limited. Each person gets sheets, a blanket and pillow so its not a bad night's sleep, just crowded. In my Paris to Milan couchette, I shared with 3 other 20-30 year olds. On the Venice to Munich train I shared with a cute Japanese family of mother, father, 2 yr old and 6 month old. Though they had little kids and more people, I liked that train better. They offered to switch my bottom seat for the top which I graciously accepted so I climbed to my bunk and crashed, all alone in my own little "bunk" world. Next thing I know, the conductor is waking me because we are arriving in Munich, Germany. They are very good about waking you with enough time to orient yourself and get your shoes, luggage, clothing etc. together.

So there's my schpeel about night trains. It all depends on what the circumstances of your travel are and how much you're willing to pay, but they're a convenient way to get to one location to another far way without wasting a day where you could be sight seeing. And though a little small, its a bed, pillow and blanket so you can at least have a decent night's sleep.

if you are alone you belong entirely to yourself... - leonardo davinci

A person needs at intervals to separate from family and companions and go to new places. One must go without familiars in order to be open to influences, to change. – Katharine Butler Hathaway

There are both pros and cons to traveling alone. Pros include: 1) choosing your own destinations as your not trying to please friends, family etc. 2) at each place you can take as much time as you want as no one is waiting, or holding you up 3) housing is easier to find with less people; you only need one bed. Cons include: 1) never having anyone besides yourself to say "ohmigosh that is beautiful" 2) never having anyone to take your picture with, or take a picture of you 3) no one to sit down and eat with.

All the cons I listed above are certainly cons to traveling alone, but they're not the be all end all. You can work around them, and some of them have cons themselves, therefore making them a pro? Though it would be fun to admire the Colosseum with my mother or act out "The Sound of Music" scenes with my best friend in Salzburg, solo trekking around Europe didn't lessen any of its beauty. Mumbling repeatedly to myself how amazingly spectacular everything was was just as cathartic as jumping up and down and squeeing to a travel companion. This goes along with eating too. It can be done alone, even if it's not as much fun. You might save money too cause the incentive to eat in a restaurant is lessened significantly when you're alone. Or at least it was for me...

Con #2 is easily solved if you're a perfectionist about pictures as I am. I don't take pictures as a hobby, but I know what I like in terms of framing and I like things in focus so if either of those 2 are off, I tend to redo and delete later. I took 3500 pictures in Europe; I kept 1900. And since only I know how I want the picture framed, even if it's just a picture of me and a landmark, I've learned I don't like other people (foreign, tourist or sibling) taking the picture. Also, when you're traveling alone you learn quickly how to get your head and the landmark in the picture while minimizing the number of takes you have to do. Though a little embarassing, I found it easier to do it myself than have someone do it and the picture ends up being crappy. I wonder what the people thought of me who volunteered to take a picture for me yet I turned away politely. Anyway, by not having a buddy you lose out on getting full body with the landmark pictures, but even alone there is still the option to ask someone to snap the photo for you.

Like I said above, physical loneliness has both pros and cons, but they can be dealt with. And as Katherine Butler Hathaway said, "one must go without familiars in order to be open to influences, to change." What is much harder to get past is the emotional loneliness. When your heartstrings are being tugged so hard you'd give anything to be surrounded by people you love, people who you can reflect on the day's travels with and share in this wonderful opportunity together.

I found it really, really interesting that while surrounded by 1000s of people I didn't know and couldn't communicate with I never felt lonely. Yet, talking for only 10 minutes with 1 or 2 people at my various hostels, I felt more alone than ever just wishing someone could have made the journey with me. Overhearing an English-speaking family on the train, or in the streets of Siena, made me nostalgic for family vacas and wishing my entire family were with me seeing all these wonderful things. Nothing else I ran into or found myself surrounded by affected me in this way except using and/or hearing well spoken English. It really hit me. When you can't understand the language you're able to tune everything out; but the second you understand, it's like a dog hearing a high pitched whistle. You perk up and can't concentrate on anything else. Just how you wish you had someone to communicate with, to experience with.

The emotional loneliness was an issue I didn't encounter often, therefore I never got a chance to figure out a way around it. Unlike all the other cons of being alone where a solution was possible, there was never a moment when I heard English and didn't want someone to be there next to me. But I wouldn't give up my 3 weeks of travel for anything. It was an opportunity not to be missed and I saw and learned so much. It was an eye-opening experience and maybe it would have been better with a buddy. But travel companions bring decision making, which means an increase chance of a dispute... So in the words of my good friend Lumiere, "then again, maybe not."

certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living – miriam beard

The night train from Paris arrives in Milan right on time. I'd slept for most of the trip so I am as rested as can be after sleeping on a fake bed. I hang out in the Milan train station for about 20 minutes before my train headed for Rome begins to board. I hop on and since Europe isn't late because it's awesome, we depart and arrive in Rome right on schedule. Anne, my sister, and Lauren, her roommate are waiting at the end of the platform since their train back to Vienna is about to begin boarding. We talk and catch up in the 10 minutes we have together but then they must leave and I need to drop my bag off at the hostel.

The hostel is only a 5 minute walk from the train terminal but its a little hard to find as there is no sign outside the entryway. After a short backtracking moment though I figure it all out and go through the process of dropping my bag off. Then it's back to the train terminals and onto a train down to Naples. And from there I hop on another train to Pompei. Based on my research I did beforehand, I knew there were 2 train stops you can get off of...1 nearer to the center of the town and the other at the ruins. But I was running out of time if I wanted to spend a few hours at the site, so I get on the first train headed to Pompei...going only to the center of town. I'll have to find my way from there I guess...

The farther you get from big cities, the less they speak English. Therefore I get no help with directions to the Pompei Ruins from the station attendant in Pompei. I have the general direction in mind so I head that way and somehow end up at the entrance. And as I think it's the front entrance it takes me a little while to understand the map the site gave me for the ruins. None of the roads exist where I think they do...and that's cuz I had come through the back way. Once I get my bearings though I head off through the ruins.

There's no words to describe the fascinating and enormous ruins of Pompei. Mt. Vesuvius, which I could just see through the clouds, erupted a ton of years ago encasing and preserving an entire civilization in dirt, ash, lava etc. So when you hear that one (or maybe just me) might think "ok, it'll all be old stone things that are falling apart and are hard to appreciate because I can't imagine what it was supposed to be like." Nope, I was WRONG. Yes, there are a lot of old stone things, some of which may be considered falling apart.

But there are also a lot of stone and brick buildings that almost look new and flawless. The artwork has been preserved fantastically and though outside all the time and exposed to the forces of nature, the colors are still bright and distinct.

The tiling in the ceilings, walls and floors looks almost new. Or maybe not new, but really close to it. My jaw drops seeing all these things that are thousands of years old yet appearing less than a hundred.
It's almost like the people of the city of Pompei wanted to create their own Plimoth Plantation without actors and using all real things, not replications or duplicates. So outstanding. And HUGE -- it's 164 acres which is like 150-160 football fields.

I don't remember any of the names of the Temples or the houses and the histories behind any of them so I will leave you with the rest of my favorite pictures I took and let you try and take in and appreciate the amazingness. But like I said, it's really hard to capture how truly outstanding Pompei is without being there yourself.

The sun set fast by the end of my 3 or so hours there. Even though it had been that long the time had flown by as there was so much to see and take in. As I'm walking back to the train station a homeless dog starts to follow me and I don't want it to. Just when I think it's been distracted enough by trash it catches up to me. I get nervous for a second that it will follow me onto the train as I'm getting close to the station but it gets sidetracked once more and so I cross the street and speed my step in order to throw it off. Thankfully, it works. I arrive back in Rome around 7 or 8 and am extremely tired. My room is really nice and big and I have 5 roommates but it's so spread out it's not a bad situation at all. I take a shower which feels so wonderful since it's been almost 2 days without one and I get ready for touring the next day. Rome, here I come.