FRANCE
THE EXODUS IN AUGUST
BUYER BEWARE!! Around the end of July the French pack up and leave the country. Every plane will be filled, the prices of tickets sky high, and the cafes and shopped closed for vacation. Who knew? I certainly didn't. I did find it discomforting that our daughter's ticket was several hundred dollars cheaper than ours..just because she came home on July 17th and we didn't leave until the 30th. Since we particularly enjoyed the villages and small towns, I'm sure you would find many places unavailable if you go the first of August.
CREATURE COMFORTS
Many facilities in France still do not have air conditioning. That includes hotels, apartments, and houses. So if you are renting a place and you are particularly sensitive to heat or extreme cold, check before you rent. It is seldom warm in Paris..no matter what the songs say. I've been there in March, April, May, and July, and the deep summer is the only time I've been warm. Paris is on the 48th Latitude North which is the same as Minnesota and North Dakota...you figure it out!
It also rains a LOT in Paris and so you should take your gear at all times. Even today, you are going to run into some very antiquated (by our standards) toilets in France. By all means have tissue in your day bag, cause you could need it. There are even stand-up toilets for women or a hole in the floor to squat over. While this is pervasive in Asia, I was shock to find it in France.
EATING IN FRANCE
One thing that is difficult to grasp is the dining. Here's a fact that is pretty much standard across the board; they open when they open and not one minute before. The kitchen staff may be sitting outside having a cigarette when you come up to the establishment. If they haven't begun work...don't even think of disturbing them. Often they do not post hours on their doors as we are accustomed to in the USA.
Restaurants: There are levels of dining just as there are anywhere...but in France a restaurant is reserved for fine dining. It is liable to have much higher prices, ala carte, or to offer a fixed menu (three to four courses for a fixed price with options on each course.) The cuisine is more complicated and requires a true chef to create. Don't hesitate to ask exactly what a menu option is...I ran into Stingray on one menu and the waitress had to pull up a photo on her phone to show me what it was. Generally you do need to get reservations at restaurants.
Brasseries are also casual establishments, where dress is informal and where the quality of the cuisine is more or less on a par with bistros. They continue to be open earlier and remain open later than most bistros or restaurants. The majority offer service at stand-up bars, but some do not.
Bistros are a step up the ladder of cuisine sophistication, when compared with cafes. They serve simple fare in an informal setting. They are not bars in which you stop simply to have something to drink. They are eating establishments where the cuisine can be very attractive, but not usually very complicated to prepare.
Cafes mostly cater to local residents, who casually drop by either for something to eat, or drink, or both. They also have a selection of light fare, from sandwiches to hot dogs, salads and a small selection of hot or cold meals that usually include a daily special.
ARCHITECTURE IN REGIONS
Paris is our favorite large city in Europe. I particularly love the architecture and the DOORS. I'm truly an old door nut and I've hundreds of pictures to prove it. The French style is very distinctive and charming. I can walk along the streets of Paris and just get lost in the beauty. This year we rented an apartment in the Marais or third arrondissement. It was great fun to wander from street to street..just looking. .
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| Paris streetscape |
Outside of Paris the French countryside is full of small medieval villages and some dating back to Roman times. While you expect to see ancient ruins in Italy and Greece, I was not prepared to see them in France. Did you know that in the 1300's the Vatican was located in Provence. We visited the Palace of the Popes in Avignon and it was quite something. More on Provence in the highlights section.
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| Palace of the Pope, Avignon, France |
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| Narrow streets of medieval village |
We have all been bombarded with shows and pictures of Provence, but we've come to know just how crowded and hot that area can be in the summer. In 2012, we rented a 200 year old farm house on the side of a mountain in the Languedoc-Roussillon in an area called the Gard. What we found was very friendly people, cooler weather, loads of small villages to visit and markets to see. It was about an hour to Provence, an hour and a half from sitting on the beach, fifteen minutes to a large town. I cannot recommend the area enough.
LAVENDER COUNTRY
Just to the East of Avignon is where you will see lavender in bloom between June and July. Some areas begin their harvest by mid-July. You will not find it until you get into the Luberon Mountains. We began driving on the road to Sault (lavender capital) and drove and drove. I was like a 5 year old kid wanting to be there now! We finally started down the mountain side toward the main valley and whalla! There it was....what a sight.
If I had to recommend an order of visits to France, it would go this way:
- Paris for at least a week. It is a huge city and you cannot hope to see even the highlights in less time.
- Nimes as the headquarters to see all of the South of France. It is a charming city full of old Roman architecture, great cafes, and shopping.
- Lyon is the second largest city in France and has quite an original flavor all it's own. Our visit there was centered around going to the opera, so it is also full of culture.
- In Provence I would recommend going in May or June. If you go mid-June you may still be able to see the lavender in bloom which is quite stunning without the heat and the crowds of July.
I don't know much about Northern or Western France, so I cannot address those regions well. Suffice it to say France has so many faces that you could spend years without seeing them all.
ITALY
From the Alps to the Amalfi Coast, Italy is beautiful. Most of the country enjoys warm and bright weather all year long. So anytime you choose to go, the weather is not likely to be miserable. It is also a very long country, keeping most people from truly seeing the whole country. While we have traveled from Venice to Amalfi over a period of three weeks, admittedly we have only covered the high spots.
One thing you need to be prepared for is that Italians are very loud and demonstrative. What you've seen on TV is true. In crowded areas, it is a din of noise. I absolutely saw a woman walking down the street talking on her phone and waving her free hand demonstratively...like the person she was talking to could see her emphasis. Also be prepared that when talking to each other or to you, Italians often sound angry. At first I was taken back at why the hostility, now I know it is just their normal manner of communication.
Rome is not my favorite big city or even Italian city. I think Venice and Florence are in a dead heat for that honor. However, Rome must be visited at the minimum of three days to see the historically significant sites. Our first time in Italy we did a "survey course" on land. We flew into Venice for two days, trained down to Florence for two days, toured Rome for two days, and then took the train to Bari on the southwestern coast to board a Greek ferry for Athens. Survey courses on a country certainly are better than nothing, but changing hotels and carrying luggage every couple of days is tough.
Everyone is charmed by the hill towns of Tuscany. Driving in Italy really isn't a problem, parking can be a nightmare. Perhaps you would prefer to take the train from one major city to another, but we really love driving the back roads...even when the GPS confuses us and we get into tight places. In 2008 we drove from Florence to many of the hill towns on day trips. San Gimignano was one of our favorite gems, but we had to park at the bottom of the "hill" which was more like a mountain by the time we got to the top.
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| San Gimignano's town center |
We wanted to spend time and truly see the Amalfi Coast, so I looked for a vacation rental in that area. When I was researching a villa, I was careful to read reviews regarding accessibility because my husband and I both have problems with our knees from time to time and getting luggage up 100 steps would not work. Because of the terrain, we truly had a problem finding a place to meet our needs. We chose a two bedroom place in Ravello which is a stunning village high on the mountain overlooking the Amalfi Coast. The only problem we ran into was there was NO place to park our car except on the side of a mountain road...no problems but very disconcerting to say the least.
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| The view from Ravello, Italy |
So here's that remarkable place to have the romantic dinner overlooking the Mediterranean ! Ravello, Italy.
If you are able to spend time in the Amalfi coast area, please be sure and go to Pompei. I've seen ruins of all kinds but to realize how quickly this city was buried and to see the level of sophisticated living standards they had was truly remarkable. Plan to give it at least half a day.
My picks on Italian Cities to visit:
- Rome give it at least three days if you can
- Florence: No less than three days..
- Venice Two days are a minimum. The crowds go home mid-afternoon and a sunset gondola ride is not to be missed
- Pompei: Ruins like you've never seen them
- Some little village on the Amalfi Coast...If you can stay a week, DO!
GREECE
To be perfectly honest with you our first trip into Greece was not a great experience. I think if you have a chance to go with a friend of Greek origin by all means do it, but we didn't have that link and we found the people there less than inviting or helpful. Matters were made worse by the fact that we were there the week before the Greek Easter holiday; this meant that all the restaurants that served wonderful Greek dishes of meat were closed and only Fish Taverna's were open. Now this may not have been such a bad deal, but for the most part my husband doesn't eat fish...just seafood. The Greeks' enjoy a LOT of fish and Octopus...YIKES!
Our first experience was to the Gold Coast Club in Marathon over on the Agean Sea side of Greece. The time share was quite nice, but it was pretty strange to find that all the furnishings in the unit were made of concrete and only covered with a small pad...I mean bed, sofas, everything. It was pretty hard to get comfortable.
ATHENS
Our first trip to Greece, we did not spent much time in Athens which is were we felt less than welcome, but we did make our way back on the train to Pireas to catch a one day tour of three of the Greek Islands. Athens has a good metro train, but of course it didn't go to the area we were staying in so we had to ride a bus into the city. Pireas is the dock area where all the cruise ships dock. So if you are stopping at Athens for the day and don't want to spend the money for a tour, you can walk across from the docks to the Train Station and take the metro into the Acropolis stop. Bear in Mind, most signs in Greece are in the Greek Alphabet and totally unreadable unless you are Greek, but the train stops do have an English translation on the signage. This is what we plan to do on our cruise there next year.
On our visit in 2013, we did take the time to go to the Acropolis. Even thought there was no way up to visit the ruins except to walk (cane and all), we did it and found it worthwhile. The ruins were amazingly well preserved. Once again the place was CRAWLING with people, but since Athens is a popular stop for cruise ships like ours, we shouldn't be surprised.
Beware, Greece is in a very bad place right now economically, which means the pick-pockets will be out in full force.
THE ISLANDS
By far the most delightful part of Greece. We took a one-day tour to three islands. The visiting order of the islands was Poros, then Hydra then Aegina. These islands were enchanting.
On Hydros there are no cars, so these donkey's were hauling luxury suitcases from yachts to hotels. It was really cool to see.
On our 2013 trip we visited several more of the Greek Isles. I would not say I would encourage you to visit any of the lower islands except Santorini. I've expounded on our visit there more on my Cruise page, but needless to say it was a marvel to behold.
SPAIN
Viva de Espana! While I find most Spaniards a little aloof and not openly friendly unless there is a tip involved, it is still a wonderful culture with wonderful food and music. It also doesn't hurt that Spanish Men are gorgeous to look at. I guess the women are too, but who noticed.
There is nothing like sharing a Paella and some wine in a plaza with a friend and most especially if there is a guitarist in the area providing some great music. My daughter and I spend several weeks in Madrid and Barcelona in 2011. This was not my first trip there but it was hers. It was like Christmas morning for her as a five year old....every corner was something wonderful and new to see. It was a memory this mother will never forget.
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| Paella |
Just to be strolling around in Spanish cities invites wonder serendipity experiences. We were trying to find our way to a certain area in Barcelona and cut through a plaza. There we ran into someone handing out fliers about a concert that night. We decided to go back that evening to hear this guitarist and it was one of the highlights of our trip. TIP: plan some time to "be in the place" so that you have the flexibility to react and enjoy spontaneous opportunities. That is very hard to do on a controlled "guided tour."
I've been to most of the areas in Spain except the Northern shore around Bilbao. I think my all time favorite towns are Barcelona and Seville, but there is so much charm in the little White Hill Towns above the Costa Del Sol. We spent a week in Marbella and did day trips to Ronda and Mijas.
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| Village of Mijas |
I think the biggest culture difference for American's traveling to Spain is the fact that all the businesses close down at 12- 1pm until about 4-4:30. This is siesta time and you may as well go with it, because you are going nowhere during that time except a good bit of walking. After 5 you will begin to see Tapas our in the bars. In most places you either take your plate and pick up tapas off serving trays or order a specific type of tapas. In some places they charge you by the number of toothpicks you have on your plate. I can tell you that you can have dinner off these tapas, but you'd better love fried food, cause most things are. Dinner begins somewhere in the 9:30-10:30 range and they really think you are weird to come in asking for dinner at 8pm. That said, in the larger towns, they have begun to be less rigid about dinner times. Just ask as you start in whether you can order dinner or not.
Seville is the capital of Andalusia and the origins of Flamenco Dancing. You MUST NOT go to Spain and miss this cultural phenomenon. This picture came from the dinner show at Carmen's Table in the Plaza de Espana in Barcelona, but these shows are very prominent in the night life of Seville and all of Andalusia.
Granada and it's magnifican palace, the Alhambra, is worth the drive to see it. I've been there twice and the second time was equally enjoyable. Granada itself is a true Spanish experience. The old town enjoys the ambience of ancient cities, but the avant guard experiences offered by much larger cities. If you must do only a day trip, then spend your time in the Alhambra. Do not rush this time, because it is truly unique of any ancient homes I've ever visited.
THE NETHERLANDS
Of course when you think Holland/the Netherlands, you think of Amsterdam, but there is a lot more to the country than just one city. The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying country, with about 20% of its area and 21% of its population located below sea level, and 50% of its land lying less than one metre above sea level. Much of the Netherlands is formed by the estuary of three important European rivers, which together with their distributaries form the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta. Most of the country is very flat, with the exception of foothills in the far southeast and several low-hill ranges in the central parts.
Given this topography, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised to be riding along a road, looking over a marshland and seeing a sailboat sitting in the middle of the marsh surrounded by land. Just how did that boat get there you may ask...traveling up one of the canals, which not visible from the road. Just a little shocking to the eyes.
I'll cover Amsterdam proper in the City Highlights, but not far in any direction from Amsterdam are some very interesting sights. My step-daughter and I were there in 2008 and took a tour from downtown out to Edam to see the famous cheese being made and to tour several small villages with working windmills. Most of the old style windmills have been replaced by the large turbine models, but the old ones are most charming.
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BELGIUM
The first time I visited Brussels Belgium, I was captivated by the quaint streets and CHOCOLATE shops. The natives are very friendly and most all speak lovely English. Brussels is a great city to wander in and just get lost, because the old town is small and you can't go too far. My step-daughter, Kelly, and I did just that.
The Grand Place is the central square usually buzzing with activity. Please make time to go there after dark as it changes into a wonderland of lights.
Now back to the Belgium sweets. Of course you know about the chocolate, but you haven't lived until you've tried street waffles...OMG it is sooooooo good.
The one place in Belgium I would love to visit and have not yet done so, is Bruges. It is full of canals like Amsterdam, but has that Flanders history to add the quaintness. Just wish I could fly over right now.
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