Carisia

DMAC - thanks for the great advice - I was really wondering about the weather and your comments will definitely help me revise what I'm packing. Hey, can you give me some insight as to best modes of transportation b/w the countries/cities you've been to? Thanks! p.s. (fleeing at dawn to rid yourself of the travel freak is hilarious, hopefully I won't run into that situation, but if I do, now I know what to do! )

Canadian Dude

Lucerne Switzerland is a great city, lots to see and do...I was there for a couple of days and really enjoyed the sights and people.

A cool club to hit is the Sedel, near the HI hostel. A former women’s prison outside the city, which now hosts noisy punkish/industrial bands and DJ nights at the weekend, with a kind of community-squat atmosphere during the week as bands practise in the graffitied cells.

One of the oldest bridges in Europe is the Kapellbrücke, it runs through the city center area.

And the Lion Monument made in 1821 to commemorate the 700 Swiss mercenaries killed in Paris in 1792.


I really enjoyed this place, and would recommend a visit there.

You can catch a train from Paris to Lucerne...

__________________
"The father who does not teach his son his duties is equally guilty with the son who neglects them." Confucius
Support Travelpunk.com by Booking Your Hostel Here

worldwidemike

Hi Carisa,

Obidos is a cool looking town in Portugal. Very atmospheric, but unfortunately, also a tiny bit touristy. I did it as a "day trip" on the train from Lisbon. Same with Sintra, which has three castles...the most moody and evocative being the Moorish one on the hilltop. Neat to march around in for a day.

You said you were kind of planning on skipping over Southern France. I found Provence to be the most gorgeous part of France. Hilltop towns, Roman ruins, castles, a very "Mediterranean" scenery and pace of life -- I recommend it highly. Of course, you can't do everything on your first trip, obviously. But it is definitely worthwhile.

As for Italia, Venice is the most beautiful city in the world. Try to make sure you're there overnight (although it's expensive), as the mood of the place changes dramatically when the tour boats are gone, and the pace slows down. And listen...no horns honking, no traffic noise...that's because it's all on the water...swish.

Definitely, I enjoyed the heck out of S. Italy and especially the scenic Costa Amalfatano (or Amalfi coast). I rented a moped in Sorrento and buzzed along the coast...beautiful. My all time favorite picture is of the village of Positano, looking like it is rising up out of the sea.

Southern Spain is great, like TP recommends. I enjoyed Granada, too. If you can, try to do some walking around the Alpujarra Mountains -- quaint, scenic little villages.

Enjoy the heck out of your trip. My overall advice would be if you're enjoying a place, chuck the itinerary, and slow down and spend more time. If something isn't thrilling you, feel free to speed up and get on to the next thing. It's YOUR trip...no one is going to grade you on it afterwards and say, "Tsk, tsk...you skipped Florence...minus 10 points!"

worldwidemike

__________________
Check out my travel web page at:
Worldwidemike.com
"Life is not measured in the number of breaths we take, but by the places that take our breath away..."

dmac

carissa,
with the rail pass i have either bought tix that were really cheap for day trips just to another town and back, but most of the time they dont check anyways.
but for long trips like say paris to madrid, the overnight couchettes are good, its about 20 £ extra, which is basically 20$, and you get a good night sleep, as long as you have a few glasses of wine before the trip, withought paying for a hostel.
also if you are going a long distance check ryan air, easy jet, you can find really really cheap prices for flights with them. a lot of the people i have met are doing mainly that with some train rides in between.
just do your thing and have a blast.

D

__________________
When in charge, ponder
When in trouble, delegate
When in doubt, mumble.

llemus7

carissa,

sorry read this a little late. I will recommend for you to check out A city in spain called San Sebastian. I personally think is one of the most beautiful cities in spain. Maybe you can hit it on the way to france coming from Lisbon.

__________________
"If you share a good idea long enough, it will eventually fall on good people."

Carisia

Hi ALL - sorry for the late reply, but I've been travelling through France and Italy past 2 weeks. CD, WWM, DMAC and LLEMUS7 - you guys are the best! Thank you so much for all your input. So far, I've done Paris, Geneva, Verona, Venice, Florence and Rome. Dunno whereto next... Would like to do S. Italy, but may not have enough eurail days to do Spain/Portugal later... Want to go to Spain or Portugal from here then, but having a hard time finding cheap flights from Rome and dreading the idea of making the treck back to Milan and then doing the overnighter train from there.... so we'll see what happens. Anyhoo, loving it all! Will keep in touch. Cheers!