Hi guys,
My girlfriend and her mother are currently in Paris and leaving for Barcelona tomorrow. From there, they are taking a cruise around the Med. They had looked forward to this trip for a while but the reality of the travel hasn't quite matched expectations though they are having a good time.
The main reason why I am writing this is not to share their complaints but to give a little bit of a reality check to those of you who like me believe so strong in backpacking that you recommend it to all people regardless of their personal circumstances.
My girl has traveled quite a bit throughout Spain, living in a van in NZ and toured the US on Amtrak. She is a fairly veteran traveler so I didn't think to give her as much advice as I did her mother who has never been outside of the country (she hopped in to Canada, and into Mexico but I can't count either honestly as they were day trips or a stop on a cruise where they didn't leave the port) and has led a fairly sheltered comfortably middle class life.
Traveling is a learning experience. Here are how something deviated from expectations.
1.)
Europe has amazing hotels - They sure do. And you pay out the nose for them. Settle for nice hotels. A nice 2-3 star hotel won't always have quality mattresses or quality windows for blocking noise.
2.)
Everyone speak English - While most do, and even more will if you speak a little in their language first (it cuts out the self consciousness) you will find plenty of people who can't (not won't) speak English. I know this is kind of a duh but if you have never traveled abroad it can be surprising. I was both shocked and not surprised at all that Tourist Information at Gare du Est in Paris didn't have an English speaker. I should have known this could be an issue because just before leaving she said, "I hope I am going to be able to understand all these accents...that could be really stressful". The idea of what speaking a foreign language was while traveling consisted of learning how to say Bonjour, Gruss Gott, Grazie, Merci and the like.
3.)
We'll stroll past famous monuments and have a quiet time - Europe is crowded. It is very crowded in tourist areas of cities especially in June (one reason I prefer April-May or Sept-Oct). This may be my fault that I told her how I had Rome "to myself" one night. It was 3am on a Wednesday in May. It is the only time Rome is quiet outside of Cathedrals.
4.)
Trains are the only way to see Europe - Hopping from train to train isn't as convenient when traveling with a decent size suitcase as traveling by car...in the United States nor is it as quick to cover larger distances as is a plane. Since my girl has always traveled for longer period she doesn't have as zealous a "packing light" mentality. Her mom, has always traveled to Holiday Inns, Best Westerns, and the like by car. Packing light consisted of the slight advantage of getting from the parking lot to the hotel lobby where a cart helps you out. Walking miles with bags, was known beforehand but not understood. I mentioned that having a car would have been the biggest stress of their existence but right now the comparison is not between driving in Paris and taking the metro but between interstate driving and taking the Paris metro at rushhour.
5.)
Hotel Costs - If you can get a nice hotel for $150 in most places stateside you can in Europe right? In Switzerland, no. In Paris, no. In Venice, no. In Madrid, with money to spare for a tapas crawl. In Barcelona, highly variable. I asked the mother how she would be with having the bathroom in the hall. She was fine with it. Although, in reality, she wasn't.
6.)
Europe is the United States with cooler architecture. Nope. The mother in particular is used to eggs, toast, meat etc. An North American/Irish/British (Aussie/Kiwi too?) breakfast. For many Americans a "continental breakfast" just light snacks (cereal, yogurt, fruit, break) but its etymological roots are in continental Europe. The idea of eating eggs in the morning is as weird as us going for meatloaf.
7.)
Europe is clean - Sometimes astonishingly so, at other times it smells like urine.
I tried to help both prepare for the trip with things to see, how to get to the hotel, contact information and the like but I forgot one of the most important things: to manage expectations, especially for the mother who is both extremely nice and extremely trusting.
For example, I warned them to keep their baggage close by especially in crowds. But forgot to mention that if people won't move out of your way, if there is a distraction, or something is just off, be extra alert. The two girls got within seconds of being pickpocketed (her bag was being unzipped when someone said something).
The point being, if someone has a purely romantic idea of a place and you are encouraging them to go in a backpackeresque way it can sound better than it is for them. Make sure they know what we are talking about. For example, I wish I could have taken her mother with her bag around Philadelphia by Septa. She probably would have packed lighter or at least have been better prepped for the experience.
When things go wrong for us, we end up with a cool story for the forums. When things go wrong for someone who has never done this, it can be superstressful and she felt ill-equipped to handle it with the foreign-ness of the countries. Tours, cruises and other less hands-on experiences have their value even if it doesn't for us. Anyhow, I am enjoying seeing Europe through a first-timers eyes and thought I would share
--Joey
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Countries visited: USA, Netherlands, Norway, France, Switzerland, Germany, Spain (and Gibraltar), Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Austria, Ireland, UK, Japan, Canada
, Portugal, Czech Republic, Poland, Andorra, Croatia, Montenegro
Next up: Mongolia, China
"I sought trains; I found passengers" - Paul Theroux
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