Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 3:20 am Post subject: Going to Europe
...on a 2 week cruise, to Lisbon, Florence and Rome, Moscow, Tallinn, Stockholm, Helsinki, London, Amsterdam, Cannes, and Paris.
For those of you who've been/lived there, what are the HIGHLIGHTS of these countries? The must sees On this cruise I'll only be spending one day in each port, unfortunately, so my time is very limited. I already have plans for Russia, Amsterdam, Rome, London, and Paris. _________________ Currently learning:
Location: El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Angeles del Río de Porciúncula
Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 1:09 am Post subject: Re: Going to Europe
David wrote:
...on a 2 week cruise, to Lisbon, Florence and Rome, Moscow, Tallinn, Stockholm, Helsinki, London, Amsterdam, Cannes, and Paris.
For those of you who've been/lived there, what are the HIGHLIGHTS of these countries? The must sees On this cruise I'll only be spending one day in each port, unfortunately, so my time is very limited. I already have plans for Russia, Amsterdam, Rome, London, and Paris.
How wonderful! I am green with envy. But only 1 day at each port?
Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 2:42 am Post subject: Re: Going to Europe
Elaine wrote:
How wonderful! I am green with envy. But only 1 day at each port?
Thanks, Elaine! That's right. Only one day in each port. The idea is to get a "taste" of Europe. By the way, I think I have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to do in London, Paris, Florence, Amsterdam, and Rome (hit up most popular stuff, (Big ben, Eiffel Tower, etc.), what i am really unsure about is Lisbon, Stockholm, and Helsinki.
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If you go to Cannes sometime between the 14th & 25th of May, you'll be able to see movie stars & professionals at the film festival.
That sounds great, but I won't be in Cannes until June 1. :(. _________________ Currently learning:
My goal when I visit Europe is always to EAT. Screw the sights, bring on the cuisine! I joke -- the sights are nice, too. But after awhile, you seen one castle, ya seen 'em all.
Lisbon is supposed ot be remarkable for its beautiful blue-figured tile, which I think is called azulejo, or something like that. Other than that, I don't know much about it, which is sad, because I should -- those are my distant cousins, after all.
Walker has posted some very beautiful pictures of what I think was Stockholm, or someplace very like it, and it looked very picturesque. So even if there is no major "sight" to hit, sometimes just wandering around and seeing what you can see is more fun anyway. I was personally bored by the Eiffel Tower and ho-hum about Big Ben -- they look just like the posters, you know. Not really any more or less impressive in real life. My photo albums are all full of little quirky things that caught my eye as I walked around -- public benches with wrought iron camels in them on London streets, unusual architecture, cows in fields, thatched roofs, flowers on walls along canals, interesting signs, horses with their manes in fancy braids, sex toy shops next door to medieval churches -- weird stuff like that. _________________ An apple a day....
Thanks y'all. I'll be leaving for Europe (by plane to Stockholm; by boat all the way to Rome) on May 20th with my family.
Uriel, that is sort of what I've had planned since the beginning...I guess it is sort of foolish to try and narrow down what Ill see and what I won't...in Europe, everything is probably amazing!
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Walker has posted some very beautiful pictures of what I think was Stockholm, or someplace very like it, and it looked very picturesque.
I'll check that out. I was counting on Walker to give me some suggestions on Stockholm and perhaps Helsinki. where the heck is he?!!!!
I was personally bored by the Eiffel Tower and ho-hum about Big Ben -- they look just like the posters, you know. Not really any more or less impressive in real life.
The only interesting thing at the Tour is the view (except if you like iron and/or constructions). If you're to spend just one or two day in Paris, you can skip the Tour Eiffel : too much queueing, too much waiting, too many tourists → there are so many better things to see. On a second thought, you'll have to queue anywhere, especially at hot spots for tourists. Even walking in the Ist, IInd, IIIrd, IVth, Vth & VIth arrondissements turn to a nightmare with all those cohorts of low-speed tourists strolling around with their noses up in the air.
Have to agree with you, greg. The Sacre-Coeur and Notre Dame were both much more beautiful. David, bring your tennies, because you will be walking everywhere, and I do mean walking everywhere. These are big cities, and it's the only way to really get around (the traffic's heinous anyway, and not much faster). If you only have a day and want to see a few famous paintings in a museum, skip the Louvre, which you would need a week or two to do properly, and hit the d'Orsay, right across the street/river: it's smaller, less crowded, and you'll be able to actually enjoy a few impressive paintings without being overwhelmed to the point of numbness as will happen in the Louvre, which suffers from too much crap syndrome (and I have an art degree). Take some time to just chill out in the gardens or float down the Seine on a boat tour (which your tired feet will appreciate and which will take you right past the Ile de la Cite, so you can gaze up at Notre Dame as you drift by). Rather than go to the Eiffel Tower, get some dinner at a cafe nearby so you can watch it light up at night while you eat. It's better in context than up close, anyway. DO check out the Champs Elysees -- very pretty! And don't forget to pick up a little tour book in each city you visit as a souvenir. _________________ An apple a day....
Thanks for the maps, Greg. I guess the Tower, etc. are overly-hyped. Can you recommend any good, relatively inexpensive places where I can get authentic French food?
Your idea about viewing the Tower from afar sounds good, Uriel. I can do two things at once: enjoy a great view, and enjoy great food!
Interesting side note: I just want to say that the reason I haven't asked anything about Russia (I'm going to St. Petersburg) is because in Russia, you can't just walk around freely. You HAVE to take a tour. Apparently it's still pretty strict almost 20 years after the fall of the Iron Curtain. _________________ Currently learning:
Shoot, it's all authentic, and it's all good. I mean, you can eat in a gas station in France, and there'll be goat cheese and walnuts involved. I'm not sure the French even know how to make a bad meal! _________________ An apple a day....
Can you recommend any good, relatively inexpensive places where I can get authentic French food?
I was about to tell you to spend some time in Belleville, a popular area mostly in the XXth arrondissement (métro line n° 11 — stop : Belleville — 15-20 mn away from Beaubourg, Hôtel de Ville, Seine banks etc), where you can find very good Chinese or Asian restaurants (so can you in the IVth & XIIth arrondissements).
But if you're looking for good French restaurants for a reasonable price, you may find them almost anywhere. Don't hesitate to try Maghrebine cuisine (couscous, tajine etc) : it's delicious.
My advice if you want to see some unusual things in Paris : go to the Northeast → Xth, XIth, XVIIIth, XIXth & XXth arrondissements, where you can see :
2) At a stone's throw from La Villette : le parc des Buttes-Chaumont where you'll see real Parisians relaxing in the sun.
3) Both La Villette & Buttes-Chaumont organise outdoor free film projections on big screens at night during the sunny season. I don't know if it's June, July or August. However you may get info on the spot or at any tourist office in Paris.
Oh and I almost forgot : the Père-Lachaise cemetery too is in XXth : http://www.pere-lachaise.com/perelachaise.php?lang=en.
Many famous people await your visit there : Molière, La Fontaine, Balzac, Proust, Frédéric Chopin, Maria Callas, Édith Piaf, Oscar wilde, Arthur Rimbaud, Jim Morisson, Eugène Delacroix, Sarah Bernhardt, Colette, Modigliani, Beaumarchais, George Sand, Guillaume Apollinaire, Rossini, Simone Signoret, Ingres etc.
Last (unrelated) thing : Paris is often called Paname.
Oh and I almost forgot : the Père-Lachaise cemetery
Many famous people await your visit there
Sounds scary
Now seriously: I visited the Père-Lachaise once and I was really impressed. I like visiting old cemeteries, we have a lot of them in Poland but unfortunately only one in the town I live in.
Yep, sounds scary but actually wandering along the alleys of Père-Lachaise can be a good way to relax and travel in time, especially when the sun is shining : looks less lugubrious...
By the way David, if you go to the Parisian Northeast (still intra muros : XIXth & XXth arrondissements), you can pop up at those places.
1) An electrotechno-music bar & restaurant called L'île enchantée that is at 65, boulevard de la Villette in the Xth (close to where 4 arrondissements meet geographically : Xth, XIth, XIXth & XXth) → tph : 01 42 01 67 99, site : http://www.myspace.com/ileenchantee.
It's half way from métro stations Colonel-Fabien (line 2 → marine blue colour) & Belleville (line 2 → marine blue colour or line 11 → brown colour).
2) A more "traditional" bar called Aux folies at 8, rue de Belleville in the XXth → tph : 01 46 36 65 98, métro station : Belleville. It's a pittoresque meeting place in Belleville, a multicultural area : Chinese from North & South China, Asians in general, Africans, Maghrebines, Ashkenaz & Sefarad Jews, Eastern Europeans, 'Gallic'-looking French people, tourists eager for dépaysement etc. The bar is run by a Kabyle family and there meet many specimens of Bellevilloise social fauna : locals living in the arrondissement, alterglobalist-"looking" people, bobos (wealthish, greenish, leftish cultureux riding city bikes → it's a coarse cliché but that's basically it).
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I'm not sure the French even know how to make a bad meal!
