Roam Around the World

2009-09-21T13:51:00.001-07:00

Hi all!

I have created a new updated website that has a nice layout than this with all the same helpful information!

Check it out at:

www.lynseystravels.weebly.com

Next Trip Booked!!

2009-04-19T20:28:00.000-07:00

So after a lot of debating, I've gone ahead and decided to book my next Contiki trip for this October! I will be heading on the 7 day Aegean Classic trip to Greece and Turkey! This is a cruise trip, so it is much different than most of the trips that Contiki is famous for, so I'll be sure to do a trip review of the Aegean Classic when I get back!

Update on Contiki Referral

2009-04-19T20:27:00.000-07:00

So just a quick update on the Contiki Refer a Friend deal..unfortunately this deal is only offered to people from the US...so if you are from the US and are wanting to book a Contiki trip and would like to do the refer a friend deal, be sure to email me at lstuart722@gmail.com.

Travel Questions from Readers

2009-04-01T10:45:00.000-07:00

So I am excited to see that quite a few people have been coming to the blog and checking everything out. What I am even more excited about are all the questions that you all have been emailing me or sending me through the Contiki Forums. To help out some more, I'm going to post all the questions that are sent to me in this post (I'll update it daily) with answers to give you even more information on what to expect. So keep reading and keep sending questions to me at lstuart722@gmail.com!

Questions:

1. How do we get into the cities each day?

Most days, if you are traveling with Contiki, the bus will take you directly into the city and you will have time to explore and then there will be a pick up point at a specific time. This is the easiest way to get in and out of the cities. If you want to stay in the city and explore longer, then you are able to (as long as the bus isn't leaving and going to the next city or else you will be left behind) and you can get a train or a taxi back to the hotel depending on which city you are in. In the small towns you visit (such as St. Goar, Lucerne, or Innsburck) you can even go into town and then walk back to the hotels. Larger cities, such as Rome, where you are staying quite a bit away from the city center, the bus will drive you to the train station, then you will take the train into town and again there will be a time that you need to meet the bus at the train station to get back to the hotel, but if you want to stay out later, you can grab a taxi at the train station back to the hotel later in the evening. In Paris, I choose to take the train everywhere and get the bus back at the end of the day and that was very easy to do, so in larger cities, the train is a great option.

2. Can I get the refer a friend discount if I have already booked my trip?

Unfortunately no, the refer a friend discount has to be given at the time you book. Also, in order to get it you also have to book a trip that is 8 days or longer. If you haven't booked your trip yet and want to get the refer a friend discount email me at lstuart722@gmail.com with your name and email address and I will set it up for you and contact you with more information.

3. Did I feel rushed on the Discovery Tour?

The European Discovery Tour does move very very fast, however, I personally felt as though I had enough time in each of the cities and did not feel too rushed. I also planned out what I wanted to do before I left, so I had a plan when I went into each of the cities. I think I may have felt more rushed if I was trying to figure out what to do in the time period we had in each of the cities. So I recommend looking up things to do in each city you will be visiting and at least figuring out the tope things you want to do in each city.

4. How many hours a day were you on the bus?

This really varied from day to day depending on where we were and where we were headed. I would say on average we were on the bus for about 4 to 6 hours each day, but most of the time we were sleeping or our tour manager kept us entertained. We did have a few long 8 hour days. The ride from Florence to Lucerne will seem like it is taking forever mostly because alomost the entire bus was sick and hungover.

5. Were there a lot of romances on your tour?

Every tour will be different, but our tour had quite a few couples on it to begin with and then there were a few romances that popped up throughout the tour between tourmates and then with tourmates and locals. Don't go expecting that you are going to have a romance...if it happens, it happens, and if not, you are going to be having a ton of fun anyway, so don't worry about it!

6. Did you use your IPOD a lot?

I used my ipod on the bus to help me fall asleep and sometimes at night to fall asleep too. I also have an ipod touch, so at hotels where there was wifi, I was able to use my ipod touch to get on the internet which was nice. I would recommend if you are thinking about bringing it to bring it. It is helpful to have to block out noise if you want to sleep on the bus or read in peace and others are being loud. Its also a good thing to have if you want to block out the world and have some "me time"

7. Would you recommend going solo?

If that is the only thing that is holding you back, then yes go solo. I loved going by myself because then I didn't need to worry about making sure anyone was happy and that I was doing what they wanted to do and what I wanted to do in each city. There are also going to be quite a few people on each tour that are there by themselves, so you won't be the only one. I really liked going by myself and making new friends. And I wandered around Paris by myself the last day and was so happy to have done that. So going by yourself is fine. Just make friends!

8. How much are drinks and can you get more than just beer and wine?

To be honest, I really don't remember how much drinks were. Some I know were as cheap as 2 euro for a shot or a beer and others were as expensive as 12 euro for a mixed drink. You can get more than just beer or wine, but those options will be the cheapest for the most part. I ended up drinking mostly whiskey because that is what I like, but I also had my share of wine, beer, and whatever the local drink was.

9. Do all tours visit Dachau?

This one I'm really not sure about. From all that I have heard from people on other discovery tours, they have all went to Dachau on their tour, so my assumption is yes. If you are interested in this, that might be something to ask when you are booking your tour.

Contiki Referral

2009-03-27T19:09:00.000-07:00

So if after reading this you are ready to book a trip with Contiki, please consider using the refer a friend deal. I can refer you and if you mention me when booking, then I will get $100 and you will get $100 in excursion dollars to use on your trip...this is a GREAT deal, so please contact me at lstuart722@gmail.com

I hope that you will leave comments on this blog and I hope that it has been helpful for you. If you have any further questions, please contact me at lstuart722@gmail.com

More Sites to Check Out

2009-03-27T19:03:00.001-07:00

Below are few more sites that you should take some time to check out....

www.contiki.com

Plan a trip
Get advice on the Forums
Use the Contikipedia for more information and advice

www.vayama.com

Great site to search for cheap flights around the world

www.studentuniverse.com and www.statravel.com

Two great student websites
Book flights
Book hotels/hostels
Purchase needed supplies

http://www.wunderground.com/global/EU_ST_Index.html

Great site to check on European weather and what the highs and lows for a month are usually

www.tfl.gov.uk

GREAT site to plan out your transportation routes around London

http://www.backpackeuropeonthecheap.com

Wanting to backpack around Europe, or go on a cheap trip? This is a GREAT site put together by an individual who back packed around Europe in 20005
Great resources!

A Few More Tips...

2009-03-27T19:02:00.001-07:00

Here are a few more tips, suggestions, and words of advice for your trip to Europe...

Make sure you choose a trip that includes everything you want to see or do
RESEARCH....figure out what is going to be best for you...going on your own or doing an organized trip
RESEARCH MORE...figure out what it is you want to do in each of the cities you are visiting this way you make the most of your time
Book ahead...anytime you can, go ahead and purchase tickets beforehand either online or at a location where lines may not be as long
Actually experience the culture...don't just go to the McDonalds in every city...try the local food, experience the local culture...try to learn some of the language...takes chances and risks...you never know when you will be back again
Remember that you are going to have to pay to go to the bathroom, so make sure you have coins at all times
Make a budget and stick to it
Don't convert when you are on vacation...if you have a budget and you know how much you can spend, make sure you are only thinking in Euros...trust me...you don't want to be converting everything back because most times it will make you sick and make you miss out on experiences, food, or souvenirs that you will regret not doing or getting later...
Know that its okay to overspend and overpack...and on the other hand, know its okay to not spend as much or pack as much as the rest of your tour
Make sure you have the right converters for your electronics because it won't be good if you don't
PACK A TRAVEL ALARM CLOCK....trust me, wake up calls don't always happen in Europe and you don't want to miss the buss or miss out on valuable time in each city, so its best that you have an alarm clock
Be aware of the people around you in crowded cities...don't walk around paranoid because that will only make you stand out more, but do be aware...look after your money....don't flaunt the cash that you have and be careful at ATMs
Always have some sort of emergency cash set aside for just in case moments
Take a copy of all your important documents...passport, license, insurance etc...and have phone numbers of all your credit cards and have a copy of each credit card number for just in case
Carry your passport with you at all times
Make sure you do the research to find out if you are going to need a visa in any of the countries you will be visiting
Be aware of the weather...winter is cold and wet in Europe, so pack for that type of weather
If you drink the night before you are going into a new city, make sure you won't be too hungover to miss the sites or not appreciate everything you are seeing
BRING MEDICINE!!!
Live it up...do and experience as much as you can, because if you don't you will regret it

If you are going on a Contiki,use the forums...they are a great resource that list more suggestions, tips, and advice and its a great way to meet tour mates before the trip. The Contikipedia is also a great resource to use.

People Pictures

2009-03-27T18:45:00.001-07:00

To show how much fun we had and also so you can see the type of clothes we wore in the winter in Europe, I thought it would be helpful to show you some people pictures with a few captions so you know where we are and what we are doing...during the day I wore a lot of layers and at night I tended to keep the layers on the bottom but wear tank tops or such on the top (taking my jackets with me as well)..hope these pictures will help!

David and Ryan during our last night out in Paris. You can see Cherry in the background wearing a dress.

David and I (I have had quite a few drinks at this point) our last night in Paris. I'm wearing a dress

Eban and Mark last night in Paris

Me infront of the Eiffel Tower...it was absolutely freezing...I think I have four layers on in this picture

Group shot before going to the Eiffel Tower...everyone is layered up

Ladies layered up before our trip to the Eiffel Tower

Me, Ashely, Mark, Vanessa, and Filipe on the Gondola in the cold, wet Venice weather

Jen, Ashely, Tara, me, and Vanessa all dolled up for new years...Jen has a skirt on..Tara has a halter top on...and my silver shirt is backless

Group shot by a lake in Austria

Myself, Ryan and Vanessa in Austria

Group shot at Hard Rock in Munich

Group shot in Munich

Wine tasting in the cellar in St. Goar

Canal Cruise in Amsterdam

What to Pack

2009-03-27T13:05:00.000-07:00

So, like my being an over spender, I am also an over packer. Even after reading tons of lists and suggestions, and hearing to pack what you would and then take, I still over packed, but I'm glad I did because we really didn't have a chance to do laundry (though you could in Rome since we were there for two days or if you are doing Europe on your own, you could probably find more time than we had to do laundry) and I just felt better knowing I had enough to wear in case something happened. Unfortunately, I got rid of my list, but I can tell you the basics of what I packed for a winter tour and then also go ahead and post the recommended lists from Contiki that way you can see what a normal person might pack. If you are a person who tends to over pack or who needs to bring a lot, then I highly recommend buying space saver bags. I bought some from target.com and they were absolutely wonderful and gave me more room in my suitcase. I did end up being overweight on the way home, so if you buy a lot, I would also recommend buying a cheap suticase while you are in Europe. I also left quite a few things in Europe that I didn't want to bring home with me (such as a pair of rainboats and a travel pillow). Again, I took a lot, and some of what I took I never wore,but I am an over packer and I can't help it!

Underwear and socks: I took enough underwear for 14 days and I took 6 pairs of socks because I figured I could wear those twice and be okay
Pants: I took 4 pairs of jeans (1 I wore on the plane) and 1 pair of black pants for going out. I wish I had more pants because they were pretty dirty by the end of the trip
Tops: I took 10 day tops (so sweaters, tshirts, etc) but if you can get by with less thats awesome. You could just do 6 and wear them twice and then I took 6 night tops (tanks topd, tube tops, etc, for the clubs and bars) I didn't wear all of my night shirts, maybe 3 of them at most
Dresses: I brought two dresses one for new years and one for Moulin Rouge. I ended up only wearing one of them
Jackets: I brought 3. I had a long red peacoat, a northface fleece to go underneath the peacoat and a black northface rain jacket. I wore all three. It is really cold in Europe in winter. If you are from the US, its about the same temperature maybe a tad colder, if you are from anywhere else in the world, you will be freezing...bring plenty of layers and jackets
Shoes: I had three pairs (and picked up two more along the way) I had Uggs to keep my feet warm (I recommend these if traveling in the winter); a pair of going out heels; and a pair of rainboots. I used all three
Other Clothing: I also took two pairs of leggings to wear under my pants and I REALLY recommend doing this is you are traveling in the winter and I also had one belt with me and of course gloves, scarve and hat...because again, its cold.
Toiletries: General hygiene stuff such as shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, toothbrush, deodorant, shower gel, shower cap, medicines (cough drops, aspirin, kleenex, cold medicine), hair dryer, diffuser, straightner, hair brush, jewelry, hair bands, razors, shaving gel, ear plugs and makeup. You can buy the travel size of stuff and will be pretty much fine. I brought full size and left it in Paris. I also bought a straightner that claimed to be dual voltage and was not so that died in Munich. I'm glad I brought my hair dryer and diffuser since my hair had to be curly all trip. Again, bring what you need.
Other stuff: Camera (DUH!) Memory cards(I brought two, a 1gb and a 2gb for just in case), Camera charger, converters, journal, book, travel pillow, ipod, ipod charger, travel alarm clock, international cell phone (good investment to have to call home and in case of emergencies; backpack and a belt money wallet...oh and don't forget copies of your passport, driver license, and insurance.

I strongly recommend bringing cough drops and medicine with you. Almost everyone got sick at somepoint and Contiki is famous for the Contiki cough. Everyone had to borrow stuff from me because I seemed to be one of the only people prepared. Again, pack what you need and be sure to pack for the weather. It's cold in the winter and it does rain and you will see snow. Below are Contiki's recommended packing lists. The first is winter and the second is summer.

Contiki Winter Recommendations:

Clothes

1 rainproof jacket/small umbrella
1 or 2 shorts/skirts
1 thick sweater
1 swimwear (some hotels may have pools)
2 or 3 pairs of jeans
2 or 3 T-shirts
Underwear (lots)
Socks (lots)
2 or 3 casual shirts
Trousers
Dresses
1 set of smart clothes (eg tie, blazer, jacket or suit for evenings out while on tour)
1 thick, warm jacket
scarf, gloves and warm winter hat

Shoes

Comfortable walking shoes – waterproof if possible – snow is cold and wet
Thongs/flipflops/sandals
‘Going out’ shoes

Toiletries

Toiletry bag
Toothpaste, Toothbrush, Deodorant
Make up, moisturizers and hair products
Suntan lotion – just because it’s cold doesn’t mean there is no sun
Handkerchiefs/tissues
Insect repellent
Lip balm

Miscellaneous

Travel Clock
Sunglasses
Plastic bags
Washing powder
Sewing kit
Aspirins/medications
Pens and writing materials
Rechargeable phone card
Power adapters
Day bag
Overnight bag

Contiki Summer Recommendations:

Clothes

1 rainproof jacket/small umbrella
2 or 3 shorts/skirts
1 thick sweater
1 or 2 Swimwear and beach towel
1 or 2 pairs of jeans
2 or 3 T-shirts
Underwear
Socks
2 or 3 casual shirts
Trousers
Dresses
1 set of nice clothes (eg going out dress, tie, blazer, jacket or suit for evenings out on tour)

Shoes

Comfortable walking shoes
Thongs/flipflops/sandals
‘Going out’ shoes

Toiletries

Toiletry bag and contents
Aspirins/medications
Suntan lotion
Handkerchiefs/tissues
Insect repellent

Miscellaneous

Travel Clock
Sunglasses
Plastic bags
Washing powder
Sewing kit
Pens and writing materials
Rechargeable phone card
Power adapters
Day bag
Overnight bag

Souvenirs and Such

2009-03-27T12:47:00.000-07:00

This post is full of pictures of things that I actually bought in Europe so that you can actually see what I spent my money on. This is not everything I bought because some things have already gone missing; some things I forgot to grab; and of course other things I passed out as gifts to people. Above is a very blurry picture of a small statue of the Eiffel Tower that I got at the top of the Eiffel Tower.

I bought these postcards in Rome from a guy selling stuff outside the Colosseum. It was a euro for 20 postcards and I couldn't pass up a deal like that!

Swiss Army waiter's knife that I bought in Lucerne

Beautiful rosary that I bought at the Vatican

Really cool bracelet from Paris that I bought at a gift shop right down from Notre Dame. You can't really see it but each of the circles have different French monuments on them.

Two pairs of earrings that I bought in Florence

My most expensive purchase of the trip. White gold, diamonds, and a pearl. From Florence

Second most expensive purchase of the trip. Swarovski bracelet from Innsbruck

A great purchase in Rome from the side of the street. A nice "PRADA" bag

Group souvenir photo from Florence

The next five are all paintings that I got in Paris and I love them so much. They were very cheap too

Beer stein from St. Goar. This is a limited edition made for Contiki, specifically our trip because it has every city we visit on there. I absolutely love it!

Mask from Venice

Windmill from Amsterdam

Snowglobe from the Colosseum

I don't know why this picture is the wrong way, but these are wooden clogs from Amsterdam

Just so you know, I went to Europe with a list of specific things I knew I wanted to get. This is something I recommend that you do. This way you don't pick up too many souvenirs and you don't forget something you really wanted.

Spending

2009-03-27T11:39:00.000-07:00

So for this entry I am going to break down what I spent my money on each day. When I got to Switzerland I stopped recording my spending, but I will give my best estimate, or at least tell you what I bought. Again, I am a spender and I went to Europe with a list of specific souvenirs I wanted to get. I also wanted to get something special for my self in each location, so I tried to get different jewelry in each city which also pushed up my spending. Again, just know yourself and your spending habits and you will be able to make a great budget.

London (100 pounds budgeted)
1. Taxi Cab to London Eye- 15 pounds
2. Train ticket- 6 pounds
3. Dinner- 15 pounds
4. Snacks- 6 pounds
Total London: 42 pounds (leftover money I exchanged on the ferry)

Amsterdam (130 euros budgeted)
1. Taxi- 11 euros
2. Windmill souvenir- 3.75 euros
3. Lunch- 11 euros
4. Hat- 6.5 euros
5. Wodden Clogs- 9.5 euros
6. Coke- 2 euros
7. Train ticket- 2 euros
8. Anne Frank Entrance- 7.5 euros
9. Postcard- 1.5 euros
Total Amsterdam: 52.75 euros

St. Goar (110 euros budgeted)
1. Beer Stein- 88 euros
2. Ring- 15 euros
3. Drinks/Internet- 10 euros
Total St. Goar: 113 euros

Munich (130 euros budgeted)
1. Lunch- 6 euros
2.Taxis- 25 euros
3.Drinks- 15 euros
4. Club- 5 euros
5. Dinner- 10 euros
6. Drinks- 23 euros
Total Munich: 84 euros

Innsbruck (210 budgeted)
1. Bracelet- 120 euros
2.Nutcracker and hat- 25 euros
3.Drinks- at least 40 euros
4. Lunch- 10 euros
5. Club- 6 euros
Total Innsbruck: 210 euros

Venice (130 euros budgeted)
1. Lunch-10 euros
2. Presents-55 euros
3. Food/Drinks-15 euros
Total Venice: 80 euros

Rome (280 euros budgeted)
1.Lunch- 20 euros
2. Dinner- 27 euros
3. Gifts- 25 euros
4. Bag- 25 euros
5. Vatican- 14 euros
6. Rosaries- 25 euros
7. Snow globe-10 euros
8.Dress- 15 euros
Total Rome: 171 euros

Florence (140 euros budgeted)
1. Necklace: 150 euros
2. Earrings: 40 euros
3. Boots: 80 euros
4. Food:10 Euros
Total Florence: 280 euros

Lucerne (100 Swiss francs)
1. Chocolate, 3 swiss army knives, shot glasses- 60 francs
Total Lucerne: 60 francs

Paris (255 euros budgeted)
I have no clue what I spent in Paris, but the following is what I spent money on:
1. Cross
2. Train tickets
3. Entrance to Eiffel Tower
4. Entrance to Musee D'Orsay
5. 5 paintings
6. tshirt
7. Mug
8. Eiffel Tower souvenir
9. Lots and lots of alcohol
10. shoes
Probably more things that I can't remember right now.

Also, public restrooms cost money to go to, so you'll be spending money on that as well. I ended up spending 120 euros on tips because I was intoxicated and just throw case at my tour manager and then spent 40 euros on a taxi to the airport.

As you can see, I spent a lot of money. Most of my money was spent on gifts and souvenirs, so if you don't buy a lot of those you will be good. Also, my optionals were not included in my daily spending because I had set money aside for those in the beginning.

Budget

2009-03-27T10:45:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest parts of taking any trip is figuring out your budget for the trip. There are a lot of different recommendations out there, but you really have to think think about yourself, your general spending habits, how much you are planning on drinking, and how much you normally eat to figure out what your individual budget is going to be. For Contiki travelers, Contiki recommends that you have at least 10 euro a day which will cover food, drinks, spending, and the optional excursions. There are definitely days that I spent way less and 100 euro and then there were days that I ended up spending a lot more than that, but again, you really need to evaluate yourself in order to figure out the best budget for you. Here are several things that you need to make sure you budget for:

Food (if you are a Contiki Traveler figure out how many lunches and dinners you will need to cover on your own and budget for that)
Drinks (if you are planning on going out every night, or even just some nights, budgt somemney for alcohol)
Optional Excursions you plan on doing (Contiki travelers only)
Entrances to Museums and attractions(figure out where you want to go before hand and research the admission prices-very easy to do on the internet)
Souvenirs (for yourself and others- I recommend making a list of everyone you want to get stuff for before you leave and bring it with you..this way you don't forget anyone and you don't overbuy)
Travel (Contiki travelers, you will need to pay for taxis and trains throughout the trip; other travelers you may need to purchase a eurorail pass to get around Europe and you may also need to use taxis and trains and don't forget to set some money aside for travel to the airport)
Lodging (if you are a non Contiki traveler you will need to make sure you have budgeted for your lodging each night)
Tips (for anyone local tour guides you use and for your tour manager and bus driver-generally you should budget 2 euros per day for each of these individuals)
I also recommend having some money set aside for "emergencies"

Now that you have a basic idea of what you will need to budget for, you can start figuring out how you are going to handle spending when you are in Europe. There are also several different ways to do this.

Spend spend spend without caring...take money out whenever and charge whenever as well (I really don't recommend this one)
Pull money out via the ATM whenever you need it keeping track of how much you spend, but not having a limit (I don't recommend this one, because I think you need a limit)
Pull money out via the ATM and know the limit to how much you can take out
Use a preloaded debit card so you can only pull out what is on the card
Figure out you budget and exchange it prior to your trip

Most people on our tour used their ATM cards throughout the trip to just pull out money whenever they needed it. This is something that works well, however, make sure you get money when you are in larger cities, because it may be hard to find ATMs every place you go. Also, make sure you go to the ATM with another person so someone can block you just in case. I would recommend that you do have some sort of budget so that you aren't just pulling money out like crazy and then get home and realize you are broke. Also be aware that your bank will have foreign transactions fees, so find out how much that will be before you leave. Because of this, you may want to pull out large amounts at one time, rather than doing a lot of small transactions and racking up fees.

An important note, if you are going to be using debit or credit cards when you are overseas, be sure to contact your bank and credit card company a few weeks prior to your trip so that they can put a note in your file that you are going to be out of the country. Make sure you give them the exact time you will be out of the country and the different places you will be. This will help when you use the cards because transactions will go through smoothly.

It is also really important that you write down all the numbers of the cards you have with you as well as the phone numbers to each card in case your wallet or credit cards should get stolen. There may be an international phone number, so make sure you look for that and write it down rather than the number to call from your country.

Now that I have gone over the basics that you need to know for budgeting and spending, I am going to explain in detail how I arranged my budgeting and spending. This may be complicated and I realize I was very very detailed with my budget and spending, but this is what worked for me. I should also explain that I am a spender. So I spent almost everything I took with me. Unless you like to shop like me, you will be fine with less money than I had.

I made the decision to exhange all of my money prior to the trip. I did this because I wanted to know exactly how much money I would have to spend and also because I didn't want to deal with ATMs in Europe. I had a lot of cash with me which I realize may not have been the safest thing, but it worked for me and I had no issues at all, but I also used some safety measures to ensure that which I will discuss at the end of this post.

So, to figure out how much money I was going to have for my budget I based everything around two main things. First, I wanted to ensure that I had the recommended 100 euors a day and second, I looked at how much money I currently had and how much I needed to stay afloat when I got back. After both of those details, I figured out I had $2800 (US) that I could go ahead and exchange. This roughly figured out to be 1705 in euros; 100 British pounds and 100 Swiss Francs. Now that I knew exactly how much I had, I broke my money down by day to I knew how much I could spend each day of the trip.

This is where things may get a little confusing, but hopefully it will be helpful. If after reading this you have any questions, please please email me and I will be more than willing to answer them.

The first thing I did was figure out which optionals I wanted to do and go ahead and set the money aside for those. I wanted to do all of the optionals so I went ahead and set aside 280 Euros (this is not the total cost, but from my webinar I had $100 excursion dollars so I did a rough exchange and accounted for those in my budget). The second thing I did was set aside money for tips. I originally only set aside 40 euros for tips (I increased this later). The with the remaining euros, I divided them by each day of the trip.

I had day one (London) and day ten (Lucerne) already covered because the currency for those days were separate. Next what I did was create stacks for each day so I would know which city each stack went with. Then I determinded the following:

Each day I needed to buy lunch, I set aside 10 euros to cover lunch
Each day that I needed to buy dinner, I set aside 20 euros to cover dinner
For Innsburck (because it was new years) I set an extra 60 euros aside for drinks
For every day of the tour I set aside 30 euros for alcohol (just in case I drank every day)
For Amsterdam, Venice, Rome, Florence and Paris I set aside an additional 20 euros for entrance fees to museums and sites as I knew I would be visiting different attractions I need to pay for on those days.
Then I evenly split the rest of the money with any extra going to Paris

So, in going with that plan, I ended up with the following budget in each city/for each day:

Day One London- 100 pounds
Day Two London to Amsterdam- 130 euros
Day Three Amsterdam to St. Goar- 110 euros
Day Four St. Goar to Munich- 130 euros
Day Five Munich to Innsbruck- 210 euros
Day Six Innsbruck to Venice- 130 euros
Day Seven Venice to Rome- 130 eruos
Day Eight Rome- 150 euros
Day Nine Rome to Florence- 140 euros
Day Ten Florence to Lucerne- 1oo francs
Day Eleven Lucerne to Paris- 110 euros
Day Twelve Paris- 145 euros

As you can see, I had well over the recommended 100 euros a day and like I said, there were some days when I hardly spent anything and other days that I spent well over the 100 euros a day. I know myself and I know my spending habits, so I wanted to make sure I had plenty of money. I had also budgeted an emergency 250 euros that I could put on my credit card if necessary.

So how did I carry all this money around? Well, once I figured out how much I had per city, I got little envelopes and divided my money up by day, so each envelope held the money for a different day. On the plane ride I carried all the envelopes with me as carry on. In Europe, I locked all the envelopes in my suitcase with the exception of the current day which would be in my wallet and then the next day (for in case I spent over my budget) in my day bag (purse). Any left over money from one day would be put in the envelope for the next day.

I tried my best to also keep a record of what I was spending my money on and how much I spent each day. This got messed up near the end of the trip. I came home with a little over 100 euros and 40 Swiss Francs, so I did end up spending most of my money. My next post will break down what I have record of spending my money on and will include pictures of many of my souvenirs.

One other recommendation when it comes to spending money in Europe. I usually just had a wallet and a purse, but it bigger cities like Rome and Paris where pickpocketers are infamous, I did use a belt wallet that tucked into my pants to secure my passport and money.

Contiki Optional Excursion Review

2009-03-27T09:03:00.000-07:00

One of the great things that Contiki offers on almost all of their trips are optional excursions. These excursions are meant to help you experience the culture more and really to enhance your trip. There is an additional cost for each of the excursions, but I recommend doing at least some of them if not all of them.

Amsterdam
Canal Cruise
Euro 29.00
A cruise on Amsterdam’s world-famous canals is the perfect way to see this wonderful city. You’ll pass many famous sights including Dutch gabled houses, the Anne Frank house, churches and the Red Light District. The included beer, wine, soft-drinks and snacks will make your evening complete.

This excursion is great for several reasons. First, its a great way to kick off the tour and start you crazy adventure in Amsterdam. Second, its a great way to start getting to know your other tourmates. Third, you get to see the city. Fourth, can we say free alcohol? This is basically a booze cruise and its a big party with all of the tour. With our group, everyone did this excursion and we all had a great time at it, so I highly recommend that you do this one if it is offered for your tour.

Amsterdam
Sex Show
15-20 Euros

I can't remember the exact price of this excursion, but this is one that is not advertised on the Contiki website. After the canal cruise your group takes a tour of the red light district and if you would like, you can go on a second excursion which is to get to a live sex show in the red light district. At the show you get two drinks included with your ticket and you get to watch people do all kinds of crazy things and many people from your tour may also decide to volunteer themselves to go up on stage and do some crazy things. Doing this excursion is really up to you and what you are willing to do and see.

St. Goar
Wine Tasting
Euro 8.00
A chance to sample and learn about some of the most famous wines of the Rhine region of Germany. There’s also the opportunity to purchase some of your favourites! Don’t leave your tasting glass behind – it’s yours to keep.

I really enjoyed this excursion, but I am also a HUGE fan of wine, especially sweet white wines which is all we tasted. If you don't like wine then this may not be for you, but it was really interesting to hear about the production of the wine and it gave us something to do after dinner in St. Goar which was good because if not we would have all ben really bored. It is also relatively inexpensive compared to most of the other excursions. You get to try 6 wines and eat cheese and crackers as well and again, its a good time to bond with the rest of the tour. I highly recommend this one, especially if you are a wine lover like me.

Venice
Venetian Restaurant

Euro 29.00
Our chosen venue guarantees a warm and friendly welcome in true Venetian fashion. You’ll enjoy a superb selection of local specialities and some local wine, making it an unforgettable evening in one of the most romantic cities in the world.

I don't recommend this one for the food, because honestly the food wasn't all that great to me personally. It did help in that I didn't need to find food on my own, but again, I wasn't overly impressed with the food. What I did love however, was the atmosphere and the experience of the excursion. We really got to experience Italian culture and entertainment and it was great to watch a few of the tour group really get into the culture. I think it is a good excursion to go on if you are really looking to enahnce your cultural experience and if you want to have fun with your tourmates, oh and did I mention there is unlimited red, white, and sprakling wine with dinner?

Gondola Ride

Euro 21.00
No trip to Venice is complete without a ride on the canals in a world-famous gondola. Take in the sights, savour every minute and treasure this truly memorable Venetian experience.

This is an ABSOLUTE MUST DO. Please do not go to Venice and not get a Gondola ride. This was one of my favorite experience of the trip even though the weather was bad and the water was bumpy. This is the way to see and experience Venice and it was so much fun, and really relaxing and just nice. I do recommend buying a bottle of sparkling wine for 5 euros though to enjoy on your ride. This really enhance out gonodola's experience. You can also try to get your gondolier to sing (we weren't successful, but with the water they way it was, I'm glad we weren't successful)

Rome
Guided Imperial Tour

Euro 26.00 (10-19 people) / Euro 25.00 (20+ people)
Join a local guide for an excursion back in time. You’ll wander across the cobbled stones of the Roman Forum, marvel at the Colosseum and learn why the glory of Imperial Rome still stands out in the history of western culture. Price includes entry into Forum and Colosseum.

This an excursion that I did, but I think its one that if you want to do the sites on your own, you are better off doing them on your own. If you are a big history buff, then this is somethign you need to do because you learn so much about the city and the sites from the tour guide. It was nice to have tickets to get into the attractions and not have to wait in long lines, but after the Forum, I was ready just to explore the Colosseum on my own and not deal with our crazy, old tour guide anymore. So I recommend this if you want an easy way to get into the sites and if you are a history buff, but if you aren't you many be better off doing the sites on your own. Entrance to Colosseum, Forum, and Palantine Hill are included with this excursion.

Florence
Souvenir Group Photo

Euro 11.50
A photo of you and all of your new friends is the perfect souvenir from your tour. The photo will be taken with a panorama of Florence in the background or in one of the city’s famous piazzas.

So this was the one excursion that I actually wasn't planning on doing. I really didn't think I needed a group picture because by that point I would have so many, but I caved and got it and am so glad I did now. Its a really nice picture and its probably the only one you will have of the entire group. We just happened to take ours infront of a naked statue, but other groups have taken theirs outside beautiful churches. Its a greak keepsake to have from the tour, and it really isn't that expensive (as long as you don't convert). I recommend doing this excursion.

Tuscan Evening

Euro 38.00
A beautiful setting in the Tuscan hills is the venue for our traditional Tuscan evening. Enjoy a selection of antipasta, delicious freshly made pasta, a wonderfully aromatic main course and dessert – all washed down with some local Chianti wine. A truly special evening.

This is an AMAZING excursion that you have to do. The food is incredible, the wine is endless, and the atmosphere and entertainment is great. Most people on the tour also got a little dressed up for this one which was nice to see. Its a huge meal and definently worth the cost, so I highly recommend that you do this excursion.

Space Electronic Disco

Euro 12.00
A chance to dance the night away at Florence’s largest night-spot. Your first drink is included in the price and will get you started for an evening of fun. Enjoy the great music and maybe take the opportunity to show off your karaoke skill.

So this probably seems like the tackiest excursion available, and really it is, but you will have so much fun if you go to Space Electronic Disco. It is really a great way to continue the fun from dinner and everyone just has a great time and this is where a lot of the romances on our tour began to really bloom. There is karaoke, dancing, drinking, and local Italian men, what more could you ask for? Again, the cost for this is relatively cheap and it is a really fun excursion.

Paris
Moulin Rouge

Euro 137.00
Enjoy an evening at the world famous Moulin Rouge cabaret. The spectacular show includes dancing girls, dazzling costumes, live animals and a variety of comedy acts. A sumptuous three course meal (including drinks and champagne during the show) will make this an unforgettable evening.

Obviously this is the most expensive excursion and I chose to do it because again, I wanted to experience everything and anything while I was on this trip. The food was great, the drinks were great, and the entertainment was also wonderful. If you can't budget it there are plenty of other things you can do, or if you just want to go to the show, you can buy a ticket seperately for around 80 euro and just go to the show. I recommend this excursion if it is something tou are interested in and something that you are thinking about wanting to do. If you aren't all that keen, then I would spend your money elsewhere. And if you have the budget for it, then definently do it.

Don't feel like you have to do all the excursions. I thoroughly planned out my trip and budget beforehand so I knew I had enough to do all the excursions. I am really glad I did everything because a lot of them included meals, so that was less dinners that I had to worry about on my own, and again they are meant to enahnce your experience. At the beginning of your tour, your tour manager will give you a list of all the optionals and you will pick and pay for the ones you want to do. No one will pressure you to do them all aand there were plenty of people on our tour that didn't do them all. I do recommend doing at least some of them so you get a more enahnced cultural experience.

Hotel Review

2009-03-26T15:07:00.000-07:00

**Disclaimer: this is not an indepth review of the hotels, this is just merely a small overview to help you get a better understanding of what you should expect out of the hotels on a Contiki tour**

When you are on a Contiki tour most of the hotels you stay at are not going to be 4 or 5 star hotels. You have to understand that you get the kind of hotel that you have paid for. None of the hotels we stayed at were horrible, but there are some that I would not recommend to anyone and some that I would rather not stay at again. For the most part, all of the hotels are located outside the city. At some of the hotels it was easy to get right into the city, and at others it was more of a challenge. I also had a different set up than most people because I chose to be in a triple share room because that helped bring the cost of the trip down for me. Also, for couples, its important to know that a lot of times you may get a room with two single beds, or a room that has two single beds pushed together, so don't go expecting to always have a full or queen sized bed waiting for you. In most of the triple rooms we have two single beds pushed together with seperate bedding on each and then another single bed. It wasn't the case for us, but according to our tour manager, sometimes in hotels when you do a tripple share, the third bed may be hiding somewhere.

Now on to each hotel..

Royal National Hotel, London: This hotel was nothing spectacular. I would say the location is good because you are located right near to a tube station (Russell Square) and taxis pull up to the courtyard all the time, so you hardly ever need to wait very long to get a taxi. It is also a good location because the Contiki basement is practically in it and there is a nice pub located right on the corner. There are also great restaurants located within a quick walk of the hotel and a little convience store that you can get some snacks and any last minute items for your trip. One of the strange and slightly annoying things about the hotel was the fact that for many rooms there was only one key. So if one of your roommates went off with the key, you are stuck outside the room waiting and practically begging for someone to come up and let you in. This happened to me and I had to wait almost 15 minutes before someone let me in. The rooms were small, but nice with three single beds, a tv, and a decent sized bathroom with a good shower. Noise was also minimal which was good, so I managed to get a lot of good sleep on the first night.

Ibis, Amsterdam: This hotel may have been the nicest, cleanist, and most modern of all the hotels we stayed at. The rooms were so nice with great bathrooms and a really nice lay out. In this room we had two singles pushed together and then another double. There are two restaurants and a bar in the hotel. Again, we only had one key to the room, but when I managed to lose the key, the hotel staff were very nice and considerate and quickly made me a new key. Dinner at this hotel was a buffet with no labels as to what we were eating and I was not very impressed with the food. The rooms also had an extra mirror, so if the bathroom was taken, you could still get ready and put on makeup elsewhere. The one major drawback to the hotel was the location. The hotel was located about a 30 minute drive from the main part of the city (the hotel was located next to the airport) and we found it difficult to get to. The hotel does offer a shuttle from the train station at the airport to the hotel, but we learned quickly that they don't enjoy waiting for people and they only come every once in a while so we ended up having to take a taxi back to the hotel.

Hotel Montag, St. Goar: This was an absolutely picturesque little hotel that actually only has 28 rooms. The rooms were nice and we had two single beds pushed together and another single bed to the side. The drawback to the rooms were that the lighting in the room was terrible. The bathroom was a little dingy, but nice with tile floor and a walk in shower. This hotel also had an additional mirror to help with getting ready in the morning. The dinner served at the hotel was absolutely amazing but took a while as there was only one person prepping in the kitchen and one man serving our entire group. The hotel also offered an internet cafe for a reasonable price so many people on the tour took advantage of that. There was also a small bar in the hotel with great drinks and great specials. The one strange thing about the hotel was the wake up call which was literally someone coming to our room opening the door and then closing it again. This hotel also only had one key per room. This is a hotel that you have to pack an overnight bag for.

Leonardo Hotel and Residenz, Munich: This hotel was another great one that we stayed in. The beds were comfortable and the room was incredibly nice, clean, and modern. Again we had a double bed and then a single bed in the room. Some people in our group had some issues with the hotel mainly because their rooms were not ready and they had to wait close to an hour to get into their rooms. The bathrooms were really nice with a great walk in shower, but the door to the bathroom is see through, so just be aware of that. The one drawback to the hotel was the fact that it was located away from the city, so we had to get a taxi that was about 20 euro back from the clubs to the hotel. Overall, it was one of the better hotels.

Innsbruck: I'm not quite sure what the name of the hotel we stayed at in Innsburck was, but it was a really nice hotel with a lot of space in the rooms, a great bathroom, and lots of outlets which was great. The hotel served an amazing dinner and the bar was a really great place that was a lot of fun and pretty cheap to drink at. They also had a vending machine in the lobby with cheap beer if you would rather drink that. There was also a computer set up in the lobby that had internet for a small fee. The hotel was about a 20-30 minute walk to the main part of town, but was a very easy walk right along the river.

Park Hotel Venezia, Venice: This was a hotel that I was really not impressed with. First, there are two seperate buildings to the hotel and if you were staying in the building away from the main hotel, it was hard to figure out which door you had to go in to get to the room and the hotel staff was not helpful or friendly at all. Our room also did not have any towels in the bathroom and it took close to ten minutes to get the attention of the staff at the front desk to try and get some towels. There is a tiny bar at the hotel and good luck getting service. They will, however, sell you a bottle of whiskey for a very very cheap price. I really enjoyed the breakfast that we had at this hotel. Rooms were basic and very very small. Also, location of the hotel is not really in Venice and was quite a distance from the ferry stop.

Prime Roma Cassia Hotel, Rome:
I really didn't have a problem with this hotel. We had three single beds in our room and the bathroom was nice. The only strange thing was that we had to put our key in a hole in order to keep the lights on. The bathroom was very nice, but the tub had an issue draining anytime someone took a shower. There was great closet space, which was nice since we were there for two nights and there really wasn't a lot of walking about space in the room. The hotel was off by itself located quite far from the city and there is really nothing around the hotel. There is a little shop/bar about a mile or so up a hill from the hotel that sells alcohol and the amazing giant doughnuts. There is also a great hotel restaurant and a nice hotel bar. You can also get a code at the hotel for 5 euros to get on wifi.

Florence: So I have no idea what the hotel we stayed in Florence was and I can't find my list. This hotel was neither bad nor good, but it did have an elevator that broke and people were stuck in it for quite a long time. There are computers in everyroom, so for a small fee you can use it and get on the internet. The rooms were very small and the bathrooms were very long and the shower was actually cold which I did not enjoy at all. Breakfast, however, made up for my cold shower. The hotel was also located in a very sketchy area and we had to walk down an alley to get to it. It was also located away from the city and we had to get a taxi from the club back to the hotel.

Lowengraben Jail Hotel, Lucerne: To be honest, I absolutely hated this hotel. Yes, it was cool because it had a theme, but I really did not enjoy it. the rooms were very small and dingy and the bathrooms were like little cubicles that were just absolutely nasty. we had three single beds with two of them being bunk beds and the beds were hard, uncomfortable, and the sheets were also tough. You also didn't get a key to the room, you got a code, and I struggled with that several times. There are also no elevators in the hotel and there were quite a lot of stairs to go up. The food however was good and the hotel was located about 5 minutes from the major part of town. This is a hotel that you have to pack an overnight bag for.

Ibis Paris Berthier, Paris: This Ibis was not as nice as the one in Amsterdam, but it was a good hotel. We had three seperate beds again and plenty of room for all of our things. There was also a TV in the room and the bathroom was seperate from the shower and sink which was nice. There are nice restaurants in the hotel and also a nice, but slightly pricey bar in the hotel. Again, this hotel is located outside the main part of the city, and is about a 10 or so minute walk from the closest train station. The staff at this hotel were absolutely AMAZING as they provided a subway map for me the day we got there and were willing to give me advice and then when I was the idiot that overslept and had an hour to get to the airport before my flight they were very very very helpful in arrnaging transportation, calming me down, and then coming out to speak to the driver about the need to get me to the airport quickly, so I was very impressed with their customer service skills.

Overall, there were no hotels that were so terrible that I needed to leave and find another one. Yes, there were a few with problems that I wouldn't recommend, but when I think about what I paid and what I got, I am satisfied. Also, for the most part, the hotels are just somewhere you sleep and get ready, so please don't let them define your trip.

Paris

2009-03-26T10:51:00.001-07:00

Much like Rome, Paris is a city that is able to blend both new and old. It is a city full of history and a city full of vibrant culture. When visiting Paris, make sure you have at least two full days devoted to the city and if you can, add a third day to be able to visit the beautiful Palace of Versailles located about an hour from the city and very accessible by train. There are so many different things that people think about right away when you mention Paris and because of this, there are so many things that you can do, see, and experience when in Paris.

We arrived in Paris in the late afternoon and began our time in the city with a driving tour much like what we had done in Rome. We drove past many of the main sites are were able to have some stops for photos. We also drove around the L'Arc de Triomphe in the Contiki bus which was a rather scary experience. After our drive around the city we headed to the hotel to check in and eat some dinner. After dinner we all headed out to the Eiffel Tour to see the city at night. Just so you are aware, right before we got to Paris there hd been a major ice storm so there was ice everywhere in the city and it was absolutely freezing. Unfortunately, because of the weather conditions many of the major sites were either closed or you could only go up so far. Thus was the case with the Eiffel Tower. What is magnificant about the Eiffel Tower at night is the light show. Recently the light show has been shut off early due to conserving energy, but if you get the chance to see it at night, it is absolutely spectacutlar.
Again, because of the weather, we were only able to go to the first level of the Eiffel Tower. This was incredibly disappointing. Also, a lot of the walkway was roped off as well because of ice on the Eiffel Tower so you couldn't get to the edge to take great pictures of the city. It is something that I am still glad I did, but I wish the weather had been better so that we could have gone higher and been able to take pictures of the city. After the Eiffel Tower we headed back to the hotel and most people stayed up a little while longer hanging out and having a few drinks at the hotel bar.
The next morning the tour group left the hotel around 8am to head into the city and visit a French Perfumery. I made the decision not to go with the group because there was so much that I wanted to do and see in Paris that I wanted to take the city on by myself. The train system in Paris is very easy to understand and I had planned my routes out the night before so I had no problem getting around. So, I slept in an extra hour and then headed out to explore the city. My first stop was to Sacre Couer and Montmatre. Yet again, the weather prevented me from seeing Sacre Couer inside as the gates were closed and you could not climb up to it. You could, however, climb to the top of Montmatre to get absolutely stunning views of the city and be harrased by gypsies and men trying to sell things to you. Often times, Sacre Couer is something that is overlooked on a visit to Paris, but I highly recommend going and seeing the beautiful church and experiencing the views of the city from the other side.

The next stop on my adventure in Paris was to head to L'Arc de Triomphe. To get to L'Arc de Triomphe you need to head underneath the road through tunnels that have been built. Do not attempt to cross the road, because more than likely, you will not make it across the twelve lanes of traffic. The L'Arc de Triomphe is the symbol of French victory and it was commissioned by Napolean in 1836. At the base of the monument is the tomb of the unknown soilder. When visiting, you have the option to climb winding, narrow stairs to the stop for rooftop viewing-PLEASE DO THIS. I am incredibly out of shape and do not like winding stairs, but what I experienced at the top of the L'Arc de Triomphe was amazing and unforgettable. There is a small museum explaining some of France's history and the history of the monument itself and then you walk up to the roof and are overwhelmed by the incredible views of the city. The cost is very minimal (just over 6 euro) and again, is worth it. You may have to stop a few times as you climb all the stairs (which I had to) but it was an incredible experience.

My next stop was to head over to the Louvre. The Louvre was once a royal palace and today is the home of the world's richest collection of art. The Louvre is most famous for being the home to the Mona Lisa and thousands of visitors flood the museum each day to catch a glimpse of the painting. If you are wanting to fully visit the museum, you could spend an entire day there. Also, lines can become long to purchase tickets, so try to do so in advance. There are also other entrances beside the glass pyramid and these entrances are much faster than waiting to go through the glass pyramid. The cost to enter the museum is just under 10 euros and just like the Sistine Chapel, you are not permitted to take pictures of the Mona Lisa, but somehow, many people from our group ended up coming back with pictures. I decided not to go inside the Louvre. Mainly I just wanted to see the palace and see the pyramid. I wasn't interested in spending the money to go in just to see the Mona Lisa. I realize this may make me seem crazy, but I wanted to explore and do other things in the city.

When I was at the Louvre, I ran into my two roommates for the tour and headed with them to Notre Dame. This was the one thing I was looking forward to in Paris. Generally, you are able to pay a fee and climb the bell tower, but because of the weather this was closed. The building is absolutely spectacular and is everything that you can imagine. Walking inside you can feel the holiness of the place and will be amazed by the beauty of the church and its famous stained glass windows. Visiting Notre Dame is a must do for anyone going to Paris. After visiting Notre Dame we had lunch at a cafe down the street where I got to experience real French Crepes. This is another must do when in France.

After Notre Dame we spent a couple hours shopping as Paris is known for its amazing shopping. After that, we decided to head over the Musee D'Orsay which I was very excited about seeing. Musee D'Orsay was originally a train station and has been transformed into an art museum that holds mostly modern art from the impressionist and post impressionst period. Admission is 8 euro and if you like you can purchase an audio guide to help you get through the museum or you can tag along on a daily tour. This is quite an impressive museum and if you are an art lover, this is a great muesum to spend a few hours wandering around. Musee D'Orsay was our last stop of the day and we met the bus across the street to head back to the hotel to get ready and all dolled up for our last night in Paris and our final night of the tour.

On our last evening, we had the option of attending the world's most famous cabaret for dinner and a show- the Moulin Rouge. This is an incredibly expensive dinner and show, but for me, it was part of the French culture that I wanted to experience and I knew I would regret it if I didn't go see the show. Dinner was incredible as was the lovely bottles of wine and champagne that we got during dinner and during the show. The Moulin Rouge is a very intricate show with beautiful costumes and showcases quite a lot of French culture. If this is something you may be interested in, I recommend that you attend. Also, there are a lot of half naked women, so if that is going to offend you, don't go. It is also important to note that you can't take pictures in the Moulin Rouge and that you actually have to check your cameras in. This may scare you, but our cameras were fine. Several of us did go ahead and remove the memory cards from our cameras just in case something happened, that way we wouldn't lose our pictures from the trip. After the Moulin Rouge we headed to the Irish bar next door to celebrate our trip, have one last big night out, and start saying goodbye. Paris was incredible and the last night was the most fun that I had on the entire trip.

Other great things that you should consider doing while visiting Paris include going to the Hotel National des Invalides which is where Napolean's impressive tomb is; visiting Musee Rodin which is the home to some of the world's most incredible sculptours; and taking a day trip to Versailles which is one of the most lavish and incredible palaces in the world. There are also many other art museums that you can visit in Paris and quite a lot of shopping if you are interested in doing that.

Lucerne

2009-03-25T12:49:00.001-07:00

The morning after Florence was a little rough for most of the people on the trip because of the amount of fun that they had. Luckily, we had quite a long journey to our next stop which was Lucerne Switzerland. Lucerne is located in Switzerland with the Alps surrounding it and tends to be a tourist stop. There are two very famous sites in Lucerne. The first is the Chapel Bridge which was originally built in 1333 but was burnt in 1993. The bridge has been recreated to look as it once did so that tourists can have the experience and also have a chance to see the paintings int he bridge that depict th history of the town. The other major site in Lucerne is The Lion Monument which is sculpture of a Lion that commenorates the Swiss Guards that were killed during the French Revolution in 1792. The sulpture is both a depiction of loyalty and also of betrayal and is a place where the Swiss remember the fallen, but also remember what their joining with another country did to their people who were killed when they did not need to be. It is a touching and moving monument that should be visited when you are in Lucerne.

There are several things tht Switzerland is most notably known for. First of course are Swiss watches, followed by Swiss Amry Knives, and Swiss Chocolate. After we visited the Lion Monument we headed into a store where these famous goods were explained to us and we had the opporunity to purchase items. Swiss watches are rather expensive, but again, if you are looking for something to treat yourself to or are looking for a gift for someone, a Swiss watch may be a good present. Also, be sure to have some Swiss chocolate whe you are visitng as it is absolutely divine.

After visiting the stores full of watches, knives, and chocolate, we had a little bit of free time in the town. A group of us walked around for a bit and then settled in a small cafe to sample some yummy Swiss hot chocolate. One thing we all noticed right away was that the hot chocolate was very very bitter, so we had to add quite a bit of sugar before it was to our liking. Again, this was a nice way to relax, experience the culture, and just watch the local people in their interactions.

Our hotel for the evening was a themed one as it was once a jailhouse and had now been converted into a hotel. We had an included dinner at the hotel and the dinner was rather good with a chicken curry like entree and then a really delicious and cute ice cream desert that was made in the design of the Swiss flag. After dinner, some people in the group went out for drinks and others went to bed early in order to be fully rested and ready for our last stop of the trip.

Florence

2009-03-25T11:42:00.000-07:00

After Rome, our next stop (and our final stop in Italy) was the beautiful Renaissance city of Florence. Florence is the capital of the Tuscany region of Italy and is known as being the birthplace of the Renaissance. Florence is also famous for several other things including certain goods most notably leather and gold. It is also the home to one of the most infamous royal families in all of European history, the Medici Family and several well known pieces of art.

There is a much different feel in Florence than the other Italian cities that we visited. Whereas Florence does have some absolutely spectacular sites and many old palaces and churches, a lot of Florence seems new and walking around it feels more like a massive marketplace and shopping center than a city full of ancient treasures. When we first arrived in Florence we went to a beautiful church, Santa Maria. Just looking at the intricate designs on this church begins to give you a glimpse into what the rest of the city will be like. After visiting Santa Maria, we were taken a leather demonstration to see the process of making leather and also to receive tips on how to know if what we are buying genuine leather or not. This was a neat demonstration, but I would have rather spend more time in the city than listening to how leather is made and then of course being cattle horsed into the shop to be convinced to purchase leather goods.
After the demonstration we had a little bit of free time before meeting up for our included guided tour of the city. Several of us decided to take advantage of the great shopping in the city and headed on a hunt for leather boots . After quite a search, we luckily managed to find some. We also had even more gelato that was absolutely amazing. I highly recommend trying the gelato in Florence if you can. Following out free time, we met back up with the group to take our group photo and also to meet our tour guide who was going to take us around the city explaining the major sites and the history of the city.

The included tour was very worthwhile. Our tour guide did a great job of explaining the different sites we were seeing and really unfolding the story of Florence to us. It was a nice and relaxing way to see the city in a short period of time. Our tour ended at one of the iconic areas of Florence, Santa Croce which is the largest Franciscan church in Italy and is the resting place for several notable Italians. The church is created with intricate designs and beautiful colors and the fresco paintings on the Basilica ceiling are breathtaking. On a good weather day, you also have the option of climbing to the top of the Dome of Santa Croce to get stunning views of the city itself. Unfortunately when the weather i bad or wind is strong, the Dome will be closed. There is not cost to enter Santa Croce, but there is a small fee to climb the Dome and like most churches in Europe, you can feel free to leave a donation after visiting.
Right next to Santa Croce are two other great sites that if you have the time you should visit when in Florence. The first site is the Baptistry which was built in the 11th century and is one of the oldest buildings in the city. Inside you will find mosaic artwork and a marble pavement of the zodiac. Again, this is another great example of the type of architecture and art that Florence is famous for. The other site right by Santa Croce is the Campinile bell tower. If you are up to it, you can purchase a ticket and climb the 414 stairs to the top to see an incredible view of the city. It is quite a workout but definently worth it when you get to the top.

Other famous sites in Florence that you should be sure to visit when you are there include the Galleria delgi Uffizi which holds the largest collection of Renaissance art, tapestries, and sculputers by many of the art masters. Another site to visit is the Galleria dell'Academia which holds art and sculptures from the 13th-16th centuries. Most famously in this museum, is Michelangelo's David. If you do not have time or cannot get in to see David at the Academia, then you can head over to the Piazza della Signoria where you can catch a glimpse of a reproduction of David as well as see magnificant statues that are located throughout the Piazza.

One last area to visit during your time in Florence is the Ponte Vecchio which is a bridge built in 1345 that is the only remaining medival bridge in the city as the rest were destroyed during World War II. Today, the Ponte Vecchio is the home to many of the fine jewelers selling one of Florences pirzed goods through gold and silver, so if you are looking to pick something nice up for yourself or for a loved one, this is the place to visit.

After spending the day in the city, we headed back to our hotel to get ready for a fun evening out. Our evening started with a tradition Tuscan meal that included another buffet style meal with several courses, unlimited wine, and famous Italian entertainment with a piano player and an Opera singer. Again, there was amazing food, drinks, and dancing/singing. By this point in the tour, I had completely lost my voice, so it was a rather interesting evening for me. This is an optional excursion with the Contiki trip, that I highly recommend. After dinner we headed our for more dancing at the Space Electric Disco where we had more drinks, sang karoke, everyone got rather friendly, and of course we danced. For the most part, we had taken over the club, but it was a Sunday night. Several locals did show up so if you wanted to, you had the opportunity to mix with some of the locals. Again, this was just a great overall night where we got to let loose, have fun, and experience the nightlife of the city.

When in Rome....

2009-03-24T21:55:00.000-07:00

Personally, I think that Rome is the most incredible place that I have ever visited as it is the perfect blend of old and new. In itself, Rome is an infamous city and was the heart and soul of one of the largest empires in the world. Rome is also the birthplace of a lot of what is in the world today from politics to the arts. And Rome is a place where you walk around in absolute awe at the amazing ancient wonders that are around ever corner. Then there is the new in Rome with the amazing food and absolutely incredible shopping. And the fact that such an ancient city can still look beautiful as it continues to grow and develop amazes me. Rome is also a city where politics and religion collide with Vatican City being so close. Rome is incredible. Please, if you listen to nothing else in this blog, go to Rome at some point in your life.
We arrived in Rome in the late afternoon and the weather in Rome was just as lovey as the weather in Venice had been. We started off our visit in Rome doing a bus tour of the city so we could get our first glimpses at the amazing sites in the city. After our bus tour we headed into the city and our first stop was a plaza where a flea market had been set up. We had a chance to walk around and try our first, but certainly not our last, gelato. After this stop we continued walking through the city and stopped at the Pantheon. The Pantheon might be the most incredible building in Rome. The Pantheon was built in 125 A.D. and is the most well preserved building in Rome. It is hard to believe when you look at the structure and go inside of it, that this building has been standing there, intact, with hardly an wear or damage, for close to 2000 years. The beauty of the building inside is also breathtaking and the cieling is carefully crafted with a hole in the center which is referred to as the "eye of the gods." The Pantheon is one of the sites in Rome that you wouldn't find if you just walked around the major areas of the city, its tucked away and when you walk into the area where it is, it is incredible that you were just walking past a modern day mcdonalds and now you have run into one of the most magnificant buildings ever created.

After the Pantheon we continued our night walking tour of the city and headed toward the infamous Trevi Fountain. The Trevi Fountain is Rome's most famous fountain (Rome is full of hundreds of fountains) and has been featured in several films. Its also a huge toursit spot, so when you visit the Trevi Fountain expect hordes of tourists to be there taking pictures and throwing coins into the fountain. Make sure that you also embark on this "ritual" when you are at the Trevi Fountain by tossing coins into the fountain. If you throw one coin, you will return to Rome, two coins you will find new love, and a third coin is for marriage. Throw as many in as you like, but make sure to indulge in the ritual so you can say you left a part of you in Rome.

After visiting the Trevi Fontain we headed towards dinner. Tonight dinner was at another authentic Italian restaurant and was a buffet style feast. Again, like the night before in Venice, we began our meal with different appetizers, meats, and antipastos. We were then offered an array of different pastas and finally had a selection of delicious deserts. I was incredibly impressed with this meal and thought the food was much better than the night before in Venice. I was disappointed with the atmosphere, but it was a dinner included in the tour price, so I really could not complain about it. After dinner we went across the street from the restaurant to an absolutely gorgeous church. I chose not to stay in the church very long, however, because a service was going on and I felt as though it was very rude for 51 tourists to be wandering about and talking during a church service. After dinner we wandered through the city again seeing the sites at night and met the bus up by the Arc of Constantine we headed back to the hotel for a quiet night in so we could be rested and ready for our full day in Rome the next morning.

We started our day in Rome very early the next morning as we wanted to get to the Vatican before the lines got very long. First thing in the morning is the best time to go to the Vatican. Also, be prepare to spend a very very long time at the Vatican. The Vatican Museum is a very interesting place with artifacts and art from around the world. Unfortunately you really cannot beeline through the museum to the last part- the Sistine Chapel, so be prepared to be stuck in long lines of people getting through the museum. Oh, and there are a lot of signs that are misleading that make you think you are almost at the Sistine Chapel...ignore them..you still have a while to go. When you finally do get to the Sistine Chapel you will be hoarded into a room with lots of other tourists looking at potentially the most incredible creation of art. You are technically not allowed to take pictures of the Sistine Chapel, but many people on our tour managed to snap a shot or two. I wouldn't recommend doing it just in case you get caught, but if you decide to take a risk, please make sure your flash is off. Also, another word of advice, if you are expecting the infamous "Creation of Adam" to be huge, its not. So you are going to need to look closely in order to find it and you may be disappointed in how little it is. But, overall, it is still beautiful and amazing.

Another great place to visit when you are in the Vatican City is St Peter's Basilica. This is the largest church in Christendom and you can take all the picture you want inside and it is also absolutely beautiful. If you want to be tricky and get the St Peter's faster than other people, just follow a tour group out the tour exit of the Sistine Chapel. This way you don't have to get back in line to enter St. Peter's. One other really touching place to visit is the burial chambers of the Popes. Even though I'm not Catholic it was a very touching place to walk through and experience. While you are in the Vatican City you can also go to the post office and mail a postcard back home from the Vatican, oh and make sure you are on the lookout for Swiss Guards!
After spending half our day at the Vatican we headed towards the Colosseum to find some food and meet back up with the rest of the tour group. We ended up just grabbing some pizza at the restaurant in the subway station right next to the Colosseum and we were just sitting right next the Colosseum eating what Italians are known for. It was an experience that felt so normal, but how often can you say you were eating right next to the Colosseum? We met up with the rest of our tour group and started our guided tour of some of the major sights in Rome starting with the Roman Forum.
The Roman Forum is another must do when you are visiting Rome. The Forum was once the epicenter of the Roman Empire and it was here that the decisions of the empire were made. Today, most of the buildings lay in ruins, but they are still magnificent and you are walking on hallowed ground where people like Caesar and Mark Anthony once walked. Most of the ruins are those of different temples dedicated to the different Roman gods. It would be very difficult to know what the ruins you are looking at are unless you either have a tour guide or a book guide explaining the different ruins. I recommend either taking a tour or getting a guidebook while you visit so you can really grasp what it is you are looking at. Another great piece that lays in ruin at the Roman Forum is the very place that Julius Caesar was burned during his funeral. Like most major attractions, there is an entrance fee to the Roman Forum, but if you are also visiting the Colosseum you can generally purchase a pass that will let you into the Forum, Colosseum and up to Palatine Hill.

Palatine Hill is the central hill of the seven hills that Rom was built on and it is one of the oldest parts of Rome. Palatine Hill overlooks the Roman Forum on one side, and Circus Maximus on the other. Like the Forum, Palatine Hill boats ruins of ancient Rome's buildings mostly temples and palaces. The ruins at the top of Palatine Hill are very minimal, but the views from the top of the hill are absolutely spectacular, so if you have some extra time in Rome, take advantage of the fact that you can get entrance to Palatine Hill included in your Colosseum and Forum ticket package.

The next stop on our guided tour was the infamous Colosseum. When most people think of Rome the Colosseum and gladiators are probably some of the first things that come to mind and when in Rome, you can see both of these. Surrounding the outside of the Colosseum are locals dressed up as gladiators to entertain the tourists and have pictures taken with them. If you want to do this, then please feel free to have you picture taken with a Roman Gladiator, but be aware that these men will harass you to pay them after you have taken a picture with them, so be prepared to pay. Also outside the Colosseum will be a lot of people trying to sell an array of items to you from tripods, to Rome postcards, to knock off bags. If you are looking for these items,outside the Colosseum is the best place to find them.
The Colosseum is nearly 2,000 years old and is the largest amphitheater of the Roman Empire. It is most famously known for hosting games, especially those with gladiators. Today, a lot of the structure has been damaged by both nature and by man and the floor is no longer there. Part of the floor has been reconstructed, however, so that you can get a feel of what it must have once looked liked. The one great thing about the floor not being there anymore is that you now have the opportunity to see the intricate rooms and hallways where animals and men were once held before coming up to the main stage of the Colosseum to serve as entertainment for up to 50,000 people. The Colosseum is a site that you absolutely must go to when you are in Rome and it is worthwhile to go inside it as well so you can really see and understand the awe of the structure.

Unfortunately, the lines to get tickets for the Colosseum can be incredibly long, so if you are in Rome by yourself and not with a tour group that will arrange your tickets for you, there are several different shortcuts to getting your tickets and avoiding the long lines- especially during the summer time. First, you can purchase tickets at the Forum ticket office. You can purchase tickets for the Colosseum at the Forum, call ahead and order tickets, or buy tickets online prior to your visit. If you are doing a guided tour of the Colosseum there is a seperate entrance for tours, so that is another way to get into the Colosseum much quicker. The guided tours are great if you don't mind spending a lot of time in the Colosseum and if you are prepared to listen to a lot of history behind the Colosseum. For me personally (and I am a big history fan) I just wanted to explore the Colosseum rather than be bound to following and listening to a tour guide the entire time, but again, this is something that is a personal preference. One other word of advice about visiting the Colosseum, unless you really really need to go to the bathroom, I would avoid the bathrooms at the Colosseum at all costs. They are quite nasty and smell very very bad.

After the guided tour of the Colosseum ended a small group of us decided to head down to do some shopping while we were in Rome. Rome has some of the most incredible shopping in the world and the mst famous shopping street in Rome is the Via Condotti which you could literally spend a day going up and down. The Via Condotti boasts some smaller tourists shops at the beginning of the street and leads all the way down to top, high end fashion stores with small restaurants and cafes situated between the stores. During the holidays this is a great street to go down to get really good bargins and sales on clothes. This street will always be busy, so be prepared for crowds, especially in stores that are having sales and don't be surprised if you have to wait outside of a store for a while before getting in because of how crowded it is. If you love to shop, this is one place you need to go when you are in Rome and be sure to check out some of the side streets as well because they also boast some great smaller stores.

After shopping for a while, Vanessa and I decided to go ahead and grab dinner. We stopped at a very small restaurant right in the middle of Via Condotti and had the most amazing meal of the entire trip. I had a spinach and ricotto ravioli which was divine along with the restaurants speciality desert and bread. It was nice to sit and have a "classy" meal and a very Italian meal in Rome and was a great way to cap an amazing day. Aftr dinner we decided to head back to the train station in order to make it back on time to meet the rest of the group to get the bus back to the hotel. In heading to the train station, we literally ran into the Spanish Steps and were both so excited to find them. The Spanish Steps are beautiful, especially at night, so if you are over in the area, make sure to stop by and visit them. The rest of the night was spent in the hotel hanging out, drinking, and enjoying the largest doughnuts that I have ever seen or eaten.

Another thing that you may be interested in doing while you are in Rome is taking an Angels and Demons tour to hit the major sites included in the book. This has become very popular and is something that you can plan out on your own before getting to the city so you know where you are going and how to get there.

Venice

2009-03-24T20:07:00.000-07:00

We spent New Year's Day getting lost in Venice. Italy was what I was most looking forward on the trip because I had always dreamed of visiting Italy. An important thing to note, if you are traveling during the holiday period a lot of shops and attractions may be closed during the holidays, especially on specific holidays such as Christmas Day or New Year's Day. Luckily, Venice had a lot of things still open and while some of the higher end shops were closed and some attractions were closed, there was still so much to do and see and so many places to get lost.

You can't actually drive to Venice, instead you have to take a water taxi across from the mainland to Venice. This is a very choppy and bumpy ride, so again if you get motion sickness, have something available. The one downside to our day in Venice was that it was rainy and yucky, but hey, we were in Venice and that made us super happy so the weather really could not get us down. We started our day off by walking along the harbor and entering Piazza San Marco and seeing the incredible St. Mark's Basilica and its beautiful bell tower.

After exploring Piazza San Marco, we headed further into the city to go on a Gondola Ride. When you are in Venice, a gondola ride is something that you have to do. Venice is famous for its canals and its signing gondoliers, and there is not better way to explore the city than in a gondola. It is also incredibly romantic, so if you are on a honeymoon or on vacation with your significant other, its something great to experience together. We loaded into our gondolas in groups of six and my gondola decided we were going to spice things up and purchase a bottle of sparkling wine for our ride. This is another thing I highly recommend to make your gondola experience all it can be. For 6 euros you can purchase a bottle and enjoy it on your ride. I will be honest, gondola rides can be a little scary, especially when the weather isn't the greatest and the water is slightly choppy. Also, they are not the easiest little vessels to get in and out of, so be aware of that when entering and exiting the gondola. I was amazed at the skills that the gondoliers have to maneuver through the small canals without crashing into a building or tipping us over.

After our amazing gondola rides we headed with our tour manager over to a glass blowing demonstration. One of the many things that Venice is famous for is venetian glass. Most of us went to the demonstration because we were freezing and knew that there would be a fire in the room where we were watching the demonstration, so we would be warm for at least a little while. The glass demonstration did not take up a lot of our time and was actually a really neat thing to experience. We watched a skilled glass maker create a glass horse in front of us from scratch. We then were walked through the showroom and saw all the amazing creations that have been made in Venice out of glass. If you have a some extra time in Venice, I would also recommend going to a glass demonstration as it will very much so impress you.

We then headed out to explore the city on our own. Venice is an incredibly confusing city to walk around. Maps will do you no good, so please, do not even bother with them. It is also way more fun and exciting to get lost in Venice and it is amazing what you can discover in the city when you allow yourself to get lost. The good thing is, the city was kind enough to put up large yellow signs that will point you in the direction of main attractions and areas such as Piazza San Marco, so as along as you know how to get home from one of the large areas or arrange to meet your group in a large area, you will be fine if you get lost. A group of us decided to wander around the city and see what we could find. We of course went into a few touristy shops and then just walked around and took the city in. After doing that for a while, we made the decision to find somewhere to grab a slice of real Italian pizza and we found a small little restaurant where we ate delicious food. We then walked around some more and decided to go to a cafe and experience another thing that Italy is famous for, espresso. It was great to spend some time just sitting, talking, and getting to know the other people we were with and this is what we did while we sipped our espressos and hot chocolates.

After our exploring and getting lost in Venice, we met back up with the rest of our group and most everyone headed to the optional excursion for the evening which was a traditional Venetian meal. We were taken to the backroom of an authentic Italian restaurant where we were serenaded and entertained by an accordian player. We were served a several course meal that started with meats and antipastos and then were served platter after platter of different types of pasta. We were also provided with unlimited bottles of red, white, and sparkling wine to enhance our meal. This was a great way to sample some of the local delicacies and be emerged in the local culture. We all had a great time and yet again, there was dancing and singing. After dinner we headed back to the hotel where several of us spent the evening hanging out and getting to know one another more.

Happy New Year! Celebrating in Innsbruck

2009-03-24T19:37:00.001-07:00

After our visit to Dachau we all loaded back on the bus and began our journey through the mountains to Innsbruck, Austria. What I have failed to mention about my trip thus far is that I went on my trip just after Christmas and through the new year, so today was New Year's Eve. We were given a special treat by our tour manager and bus driver as instead of staying on the main highway to get to Innsbruck, we took some back roads that led us through some absolutely breathtaking scenery. We made several quick stops during our drive two of which were at absolutely stunning Austrian lakes- the Agensee and Tagensee. We also made another stop on our journey as we had finally found snow. Most of our tour were individuals from Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa and most of the people n the tour had never seen snow before let alone played in snow before, so we made another stop and played in the snow. It was great and incredibly entertaining watching people having snowball fights and watching their reactions as they experienced snow for the very first time. That will definitely be an experience that I will never forget.

We arrived in Innsbruck late in the afternoon and headed straight into the city. The main issue with our time in Innsbruck during the afternoon was that most everything was closed already because it was New Years. Most of the small tourists were still open, so we walked around to those and then managed to find a Swarovski that was still open where several of us decided to spend quite a lot of money. Innsbruck is an absolutely gorgeous little town as it is surrounded by snow capped mountains. I wish that we had more time in Innsbruck or had gotten there earlier when more things would have been open. Innsbruck is known as the winter sports capital and the Winter Olympics have been held in Innsbruck several times.
After visiting the town for a couple hours we headed up to our hotel which was a very nice hotel, but was located about a 15 to 20 minute walk to the town's center where all the festivities would be later that night. Many of us decided to take our time and get dolled up for the evening and after getting ready we headed down and had an absolutely delicious meal from the soup to the desert. Directly after eating, we all headed to the hotel bar to begin the celebration of the night and of course to sample some of what Austria is famous for by consuming many, many rounds of schnapps. When in Austria, make sure you try schnapps. I found a flavor I enjoyed and with the number of flavors that are offered, you will also find one that you enjoy.
Around 10pm all 51 of us headed into the town center to really celebrate New Years. You can imagine the commotion that we caused walking from the hotel bar to the town center. In the main plaza, a stage was set up with bands constantly playing (and singing in English which was great for us) and around the plaza local businesses had set up booths offering local food, drinks, and other random things for those of us celebrating to enjoy. At midnight on New Years it is traditional for the Blue Danube Waltz to be played so again, we were dancing and also running around kissing everyone on the tour celebrating the beginning of a new year. Right at midnight, Innsbruck has a spectacular fireworks display from the top of the mountain so we ran from the main plaza to the street where we could get a better view of the fireworks. It an incredible sight and a great way to bring in the New Year.

After the fireworks display we roamed around the town trying to find another bar to go hang out at, but most places were packed, so we changed our plan an headed to a free dance party that was going on. Basically a large gym like building had been rented out and people were dancing the night away in circles surrounding their coats. About ten or so of us were at the dance party and we had an amazing time. This may have been the most fun that I hate out with the group the entire tour. We were all just so happy and did not care what we looked dancing like crazy people. Around 2 in the morning we decided to finally call it a night and had one hell of a time walking back to the hotel. I can't imagine a better way that I could have spent my new year and I believe it really helped get the year off to a great start.

A Day of Rememberance and Reflection...Visiting Dachau

2009-03-24T19:05:00.000-07:00

The next morning we left Munich and were surprised by our tour manager when he informed us that before leaving Munich and heading to our next destination, we were going to stop at a very special place- Dachau Concentration Camp. Dachau is located 10 miles from Munich and was the first concentration camp established by the Nazi Party. Dachau was created to be a camp for political prisoners and served as the prototype for all other concentration camps that were established. In total, Dachau became the home for 200,000 prisoners. Of the 200,000 two-thirds were political prisoners and one third were Jews. This concentration camp was mainly used as a work camp, but over 35,000 people are thought to have died at Dachau from either disease, malnutrition, or in the crematorium.
Today, Dachau is open for the public to come and visit and is meant to be a place where people can learn, can remember, and can begin to understand in a small way the horrors of what occurred in concentration camps throughout Europe not that long ago. For most of us, we grow up learning the history of concentration camp and learn about the horrors through our textbooks, but nothing can compare and nothing can really begin to make you understand until you have walked on the ground that hundreds of thousands of prisoners walked on and see the conditions they were forced to live in.

When visiting Dachau the camp is now split up into what I see as four different sections. When you first enter into the camp a museum has been produced in several of the buildings that explains the history of the rise of the Nazi party, the formation of Dachau and talks about the different prisoners that were held in the camp. This is a very informative museum, but if you are stretched for time when visiting you may want to skip the museum. The second part of the camp today are the barracks. You can walk into the barracks and see how they were when prisoners were at the camp. When you go to the barracks think about how many people had to share these living spaces and think about the sanitation in the barracks. Throughout the barracks are signs with facts and quotes about the camp and about the experience living in the camp. The third part of the camp today are the religious houses and churches that are located in the back of the camp. These are beautiful buildings in a horrid place. The last part of the camp is the area that will cause an emotional experience for anyone who visits- the crematorium. This is where prisoners were burned after death and where some people were killed. At the crematorium is a sign that reads "think about how we died here." You cannot escape the reality of the horrors that occurred in this place when you visit the crematorium. You are forced to think about the imprisonment and forced to think about the mass killing that occurred where you are standing.

Like the Anne Frank house, I believe Dachau is an important place to visit in you are in Munich, however, like the Anne Frank house, I would ask that you only go to this place if you can be serious and if you are willing to experience emotions that you have never felt before. You will be walking on ground where people died and out of respect for those who were killed at Dachau it is important that you be mature and serious when visiting. What was so difficult for me visiting Dachau was knowing that people were imprisoned there for years and were dying there and the world sat back and let it happen. It breaks my heart and I cannot fully explain what the impact of visiting Dachau was for me. It is a place where you are forced to remember and reflect, but it is also a place of hope because as people continue to visit and learn and hope arises that this will never, ever happen again.

Munich

2009-03-24T17:47:00.000-07:00

The next stop on the journey was to the capital city of Bavaria, Munich. The bus drive from St. Goar to Munich was incredibly long and we arrived in Munich around 3pm and headed into the city together around 4pm. Our first stop when we got to the city was to visit the infamous Marienplatz and the Glockenspiel which is a large cuckoo clock that chimes at 11am each day and reenacts two stories from the 16th century. Since we arrived in the city after the Glockenspiel had gone off, our tour manger got our group together (now imagine this with 51 people in the middle of this plaza in Munich) and had us reenact what the Glockenspiel does each time it went off. It was a very entertaining moment and several other tourists stopped to watch us an take our pictures.

There are many things that you can do to spend your time in Munich. Right off the plaza are quite a lot of streets full of wonderful shopping. If you want you can stop by a store and get yourself a ledenhosen to wear to impress and maybe pick up a local. If you are interested there are also many beautiful churches and catherdrals in Munich that you can visit including the Peterskirche which is located closest to the Marienplatz or you could visit the Frauenkirche. If you would rather you can also visit the Residenz palace complex which now serves as a museum which also contains the treasurery. If you want to get away from the city center or if you are a sports fanatic, you can stop by the impressive Munich Olympic site.
Due to the fact that we arrived in the city around dinner time, a group of us decided to head out to find somewhere that we could enjoy the local delicacies of Munich. After wandering around for quite a while, we finally settled on a beer hall. The atmosphere in a beer hall is amazing and when you are in Germany visiting at least one is a must. Our group sat on large benches around a table and each of us attempted to find something local that we could eat. Some of the most well known local delicacies in Munich include Weisswurst (white sausages), large pretzels, pork knuckle, and Apfelstrudel (Apple Streudel) for desert. You can get platters of different sausages with kraut or you can play it safe and just have a pretzel and desert.

After dinner our group decided to head over to the Hofbräuhaus which is one of the oldest breweries in Munich and one of the largest and most famous beer halls in Munich. The Hofbräuhaus, like the beer hll we ate dinner at, has the most amazing atmosphere that is almost hard to describe in words- this is a place you have to experience for yourself when visiting Munich. The beer hall is filled with long tables and benches where locals and tourists unite and bond over German beer, large pretzels, barwhences in lednhosen, and the music of the opmpah pah band. When we first arrived at the Hofbräuhaus the beer hall was packed for dinner and we couldn't find anywhere to sit. Disappointed, we decided to go find another beer hall to drink with the plan to return to the Hofbräuhaus in a few hours.

You would think that in Munich it would be easy to find a beer hall to drink at, but during the dinner rush, if you aren't eating, you won't be able to get a seat in a beer hall. Yet again disappointed, we headed to the one place in Munich where we could easily get drinks and easily find a table- the Hard Rock. Please do not go to the Hard Rock when you are in Munich. Yes they made good mixed drinks and yes they were not busy, but who goes all the way to Munich and just goes to the Hard Rock? You really won't get to experience the local culture there unless you end up like me and get hit on by an 80 year old German man who makes you dance with him and then proceeds to lick your arm. We stayed at the Hard Rock for a couple hours and were feeling quite good when we left and headed back to the Hofbräuhaus.
When we returned to the Hofbräuhaus we were able to quickly find the rest of our group and after a little bit of bartering with some very intoxicated Italian men, we were able to find a table to sit at right next to our group. We ordered quickly and started getting into the atmosphere of the beer hall. What amazes me about Germany is the size of the beer that you get. This is serious beer not wimpy beer from back home. Beer in Germany is served in litre steins and to my amazement, I was able to finish two. What is also great about the beer halls in Germany is that Jager is incredibly cheap. For $2 I was able to get a shot of Jager, so of course we decided to try a few of those as well. In the beer hall, after people get a few drinks in them, a lot of dancing, singing, and standing on tables starts to occur. For our group in particular, some of our tourmates were really getting into the singing, dancing, and cultural experience of the beer hall, and our group was removed by security before 11pm. According to our tour manager, he has never been kicked out of beer hall in Germany with a tour group especially that early in the night.
After being kicked out of the beer hall, several of us decided to continue the evening and experience even more of the German culture by experiencing the night life. We loaded into taxis and headed to a park to dance the night away. This may be the strangest and sketchiest place that I have ever been in my life. Basically the nightlife that we experienced were a bunch of dance clubs right next to one another in what seemed to be an abandoned warehouse park. Each warehouse was a different club that had dancing and drinks. We all had a ton of fun mingling with the locals and dancing with one another. It was a great way to end the night in Munich. I recommend experiencing the nightlife while in Munich, but there may be a better place than the warehouse park to go to.

Or if you are smarter than we were, you can stay at one of the beer halls in Munich for the night.

Rhine Valley and St. Goar

2009-03-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

After Amsterdam we headed down into Germany and began our drive towards the little, quiet town of St. Goar. We spent more time on the bus playing get to know you games while also trying to catch up on some of the sleep that we lost the night before from the craziness of Amsterdam. Even though you may be really tempted to sleep the entire way from Amsterdam to St. Goar try to stay up because the views are absolutely breathtaking and you do not want to miss them. Basically St. Goar is just a pit stop on the European Discovery Trip. We arrived around dinner time again and checked into our hotel (which was a super cute little hotel) and headed down to dinner. We had a great several course dinner. After dinner several of us headed to our optional excursion for the evening which was a wine tasting. We were taken to a wine cellar around the corner from our hotel and got to sample six different wines from the region. I really enjoyed the wine tasting because I am indeed a lover of wine especially white wine and the region that we were in only created white wine. We also got to sample a very special wine called ice wine that can only be created when grapes have been below freezing for a specific amount of time. Being a wine lover I did indeed have to purchase several bottles to take home with me. After the wine tasting we headed back to our hotel where most people headed up to bed. Others got online as there was an internet cafe in the hotel (and thus began the facebook friendships) and a few of us stayed up and had a couple drinks. We were all in bed before midnight though and the bartender told us that we were the lamest Contiki group he has ever had come through the town.

Early the next morning we got up and before we headed to Munich we were able to shop at the little stores surrounding our hotel. First, we went to a beerstein center where we were surrounded by all kinds of beer steins and learned the history of beer steins in Germany and how they are made. It was really interesting to see all the different kinds of steins and if you want, you can treat yourself to one. Other shops that were available to visit were a cuckoo clock shop and a birkenstein shop.

Again, St. Goar is a very nice quiet town, but for our trip it was merely a rest area. Take my advice...get sleep when you are in St. Goar, its the last time you will really be able to sleep until Switzerland.

You Are Now Entering The Red Light District

2009-03-23T20:16:00.000-07:00

If you want to start your trip to Europe off on a fun and crazy note, then Amsterdam should be your first stop. We left London very, very early got on the bus and headed to Dover. This was a nice quick ride and gave us all a chance to start getting to know one another and to learn the simple rules of the bus. When we got to Dover we saw the beautiful White Cliffs and got on a Ferry to enjoy a nice, bumpy ride over to France. If you get motion sickness easily definitely take some medicine with you. I don't ever get motion sickness, but after walking around on the Ferry for a bit I was starting to feel a little sick. The great thing about the Ferry is that there is quite a lot for you to do to entertain yourself on the journey. Of course you can spend the time getting to know fellow travelers, or you can roam around the Ferry itself visiting its great Duty Free shops and if you need a drink, there's a liquor store on board.

After the ferry ride we continued on the bus to Amsterdam playing speed dating along the way in order to get up, move about, and meet more people on the bus. For food, we stopped at a rest area in Belguim where we got to try and order food in a foreign country for the first time. Luckily, one of the servers spoke English, so everyone flocked to his line to order. This is something I regret about my trip, I depended too much on finding people who could speak English. I wish I had known a least part of the languages before going to Europe rather than being the tourist that needs someone to explain things to them in English. We arrived in Amsterdam in time to check in, change quickly, and head up to dinner. In Amsterdam we stayed at the Ibis hotel out by Schipol airport. This was by far the nicest hotel that we stayed at the entire trip and I was throughly impressed with the room. It's important to note here that I made the decision to be in a triple room. I did this to save money, but in the end it was a great decision because generally e had a bigger room than everyone else. Dinner was a buffet which was okay. I wasn't overally impressed, but we could have had worse. There was a lot of choice, but our dinner was also rushed because we had places to go and things to see in Amsterdam.

To kick off our night in Amsterdam we headed into the city and went on a Canal Cruise. This is something that I highly recommend you do on your trip. Like the river cruise in London, it was a great way to get things started and see different highlights of the city. On this cruise we also had a tour guide pointing out certain sights and giving us a taste of the history of Amsterdam. The other bonus to this canal cruise was that complimentary wine and beer were served throughout the cruise and you could drink as much as you could in the time of the cruise. If you are doing the contiki, I highly recommend going on the canal cruise because its a great way to start celebrating with your tourmates and getting to know them in a social setting. Oh and be sure to go to the bathroom before you leave the canal cruise, because it will be a lonnnng time before you see another bathroom.

From the canal cruise our amazing Tour Manager led us into the heart of the city to explore the nightlife of Amsterdam. We headed straight to the Red Light District and wow, was that an experience. If you are in Amsterdam, you need to wander into the Red Light District at some point as it showcases a large part of the city's culture. Yes, you walk down the street and are surrounded by women trying to sell themselves and the auroma of the streets is pot, but you can see that this is a culture that is free and accepting and pushes the norms of society. It's also interesting to see the different parts of the district and how seperated each area is (in terms of the characteristics of the women in the windows) and if you happen to walk by a window with a curtain closed, then you know something is going on behind there. An important tip about being in the Red Light District is that no matter how much you want to, you CANNOT take any pictures...seriously, don't try...

If you want to experience the culture that Amsterdam is really famous for you will have the opportunity to that evening. On the Contiki tour there is the option to go to a live sex show when in Amsterdam and after going to that (or if you opt out of the sex show) you can visit one of the infamous coffee shops (which aren't famous for their coffee). Really its up to you what you want to experience, what you want to do, and how much you want to "live it uo" during your time in Europe. Go in with an open mind and do what you want to do. You never know when you will be in Europe again.

We actually had additional time in Amsterdam in the morning before we left and headed to Germany. Again, we got up bright and early and headed into the city. Most of the group opted to head to the Anne Frank House first thing. If you are ever in Amsterdam visiting the Anne Frank House is a MUST. However, if you are not willing to be serious and really take all the emotion in, then for those visitors who are there for a reason, please don't go. It is hard to explain what you feel when you get to the House and you are inside it. I read the book when I was younger and understood the story, but actually being there and being forced to see and understand the reality of the situation will touch you in ways you may have never thought possible. It is a very touching place and somewhere that you should visit. There is an admission cost, but the cost is worthwhile for the experience you get.

There are many other options for things to do to spend your time in Amsterdam. If you enjoy drinking or are interested in learning more about the brewing process you can visit the newly reopened Heinekein Experience where you learn about beer and get to sample some as well. If you are an avid art fan then there a multiple museums that you can visit including the Van Gogh museum. You also have the opportunity to experience the culuture of Amsterdam again as you can wander back through the Red Light District or head to a coffee shop during the day. Its also just nice to walk around the city, look at the beautiful canals and do some shopping. If you are the type of person that is going to want to do a lot when in Amsterdam, I recommend doing some research before you go and planning out where you want to visit and what you would like to see so that you can cover as much as possible while you are there.

-Lynsey

There's No Place Like London

2009-03-23T12:59:00.000-07:00

With the European Discovery trip, and most trips that Contiki offers that leave from London, its important to note that London itself is not actually included in your trip which means if you want to do London you are going to need to do it on your own. Contiki will, however, arrange your accommodations in London if you would like to explore London a few days before your trip or for a few days after your trip has ended. Because of my budget and the fact that London was at the bottom of the places I wanted to visit, I just made sure to book a flight that would get me to London with enough time to see and do what I wanted to. If there is a lot that you are wanting to see and do in London I would recommend being there a few extra days at least. It is also important though to remember that everything is going to cost you more in London so be prepared for this.

Getting to London is fairly easy from any airport, but if you choose to travel in the winter like I did, or during high travel times, expect delays whether it be due to weather or long secruity lines. Also, be prepared to wait quite a while to make it through customs when you get off the plane. What's great about Heathrow (which is where I flew in) was that there was a tube station at the airport so after getting through customs and grabing my suitcase, I headed straight to the Tube and went to the hotel.

In London, I stayed at the Royal National Hotel which is located near the center of London and is a decent hotel. I wouldn't say that it was a great hotel, but it did fine for one night and for my needs. The one good thing about the Royal National for people going on trips with Contiki is that the Contiki Basement is located right around the corner from the hotel so you can go down there to get internet access; meet up with fellow travelers; or weigh your suitcase to make sure you are within the weight limit that Contiki has set. This is also where the pre tour meeting will be held.

I got to London later than I had expected which through me off and caused me to have to rush to make it to the hotel/Contiki basement in time to meet a fellow traveler, Tara, who was from NC and was also travelling by herself. I had managed to meet Tara online through the Contiki Forums before leaving and we had arranged to meet up in London and explore together. We had also pre planned what it was we were going to do and had booked tickets online so we wouldn't have to wait in a long line at each of the attractions we were going to go to. Pre planning for London is something I highly recommend if you are only going to be in London for a few hours/a day. Also, I recommend if you have that time crunch, to go ahead and book whatever tickets you can online before you leave.

Tara and I had decided to spend our day in London doing three things. First, we jumped in a taxi and headed down to the London Eye and the Thames to take a River Cruise that we had pre booked. The river cruise is something that I HIGHLY recommend. It about a 45 minute cruise up and down the Thames that introduces you to the sights in London from Parliament, the London Bridge, the Tower of London, and other great places. You can either sit inside the boat or out on top and take great pictures of the area. There is also an individual who is guiding you during the River Cruise telling you where you are and giving you and insight into the history of London. In the winter, the cruise can be very very cold and windy, so if you are doing it then, be sure to wear extra layers, gloves, and a hat. This was a nice taste of London and a great way to start the trip off.

After the River Cruise we embarked on a joruney on the famous London Eye. Tara and I had decided to do something special for our London Eye flight by booking the Champagne flight where you get a glass of champagne during the flight. We decided to do this to start our trip off on the right foot and celebrate being in Europe. It was really nice to sip a glass of champagne while looking out over London. I'd also recommend the London Eye as it is a great experience and again, you get to see the city in a unique way.

After the River Cruise and the London Eye we went to the London Dungeons as this was something that Tara was interested in doing. Basically the London Dungeons is a "themed attraction" that focuses on different stories from the history of London. It is very theatrical and entertaining, but only because of how dumb it is. Unless you like tacky themed attractions, I do not recommend the London Dungeons. It was interesting, but I would have much rather spent my time going to Westminster Abbey or the Tower of London. We ended up leaving the London Dungeons before our "tour" was over because we really weren't that interested anymore and because we had to get back to the hotel in time for our pre tour meeting.

For Contiki goers, the pre tour meeting is a time where you meet other travelers and your tour managers and you take care of routine things such as checking your insurance, passport, and filling out emergency contact information. This is really just an informational meeting, but its important that you go if you can because details of the next morning and your departure are given out. After the pre tour meeting a grouo of us went out to dinner to an Italian restaurant just down from the hotel. This was one of the BEST places we ate the entire trip and I wish I had remembered the name of the restaurant. After we ate we went to a convience store and picked up some snacks for the bus and went back to the hotel to get some sleep before our big departure. Other people from our tour decided to go ahead and start the party by going to the bar attached to the hotel, but I recommend going to sleep and getting rest so you can start things out on the right foot the next morning.

European Discovery

2009-03-23T12:37:00.000-07:00

So let's start talking about the actual trip that I took with Contiki. After looking at different trips I utilized another great feature that Contiki has by attending a "Virtual Webinar" where Contiki employees break down the different trips that they have to offer. These webinars are usually focused on a specific destination (i.e. Europe) or a specific time period (i.e. Winter). I attended the Winter European webinar that was offered to learn a little more about the trips Contiki had available for me to take during my Holiday break. The great thing about the webinar was that I was able to learn a little more about each trip Contiki was offering and ask questions at the same time (or you can just sit back and listen to the questions that other people have) while make 100 excusrion dollars that I could use on my trip to pay for optionals (I will talk more about this in a later post). Almost immediately after the webinar, I knew which trip I wanted to take and I picked up the phone, called Contiki, and booked the trip.

From the Contiki website:

"If holidays were compared to courses at a dinner party, the European Discovery would be the appetiser. 8 countries in 12 days gives you a taste of all the big cities as well as some of the hidden treasures, so you know where to come back to next time! From Amsterdam to Rome to Paris, you won't want to miss a thing. In fact, sleep will probably be the last thing on your mind!"

The European Discovery trip was indeed a brief taste of Europe. Generally you get an afternoon and a night in each of the places you visit with more time alloted to the big hotspots such as Paris and Rome. You spend most of the mornings and days on a coach bus with roughly 50 or so new friends. Most of the coach time is spent catching up on the sleep you didn't get the night before or getting to know your tourmates a little more. This trip is great if you want to see as much of Europe as you can with a small budget and in a short period of time. Its a great trip for couples to go on together or a group of friends to do and even great for solo travelers (trust me, you won't be the only one on the tour alone!). Below is the daily itinerary for the trip straight from the Contiki website (the winter version as that is what I went on, the summer version of European Discovery does vary slightly).

London to Amsterdam Day 1
Meet your Contiki Crew and see the White Cliffs of Dover before travelling through Belgium and into the Netherlands to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam to Rhine Valley Day 2
This morning take time to explore one of Europe's most intriguing cities. Maybe visit Anne Frank's House or the Van Gogh Museum. This afternoon we cross the German border and head for the stunning Rhine Valley.

Rhine Valley to Munich Day 3
This morning learn how beersteins are crafted before travelling to the capital of Bavaria, Munich. Explore and see the famous Glockenspiel before joining us in a traditional beer hall.

Munich to Innsbruck Day 4
We continue through impressive mountain scenery into Austria. Explore the cobbled streets of the Winter Olympic town Innsbruck with its magnificent Royal Palace and Imperial church. Don't forget to try a piece of delicious Austrian strudel and some local schnaps!

Innsbruck to Venice Day 5
Today we wind through the astonishing beauty of the Brenner Pass to cross the border into Italy. It's a short boat ride to the historical centre of Venice to see St Mark's Square, the Doges' Palace and the Bridge of Sighs. There's no better way to see Venice than from a gondola so why not join us for a ride before treating yourself to a Venetian evening meal?

Venice to Rome Day 6
Past medieval hillside villages and through the Apennine Mountains, we travel south to the fabled Seven Hills of Rome. Do as the Romans do and stroll past the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and Piazza Navona. Later be delighted by your first glimpse of the Colosseum on our sightseeing tour.

Rome Day 7
A full free day to explore the treasures of Rome. Your chance to join a tour through Imperial Rome with a local guide, before time to visit St. Peter's Basilica, the Spanish Steps or check out the shops.

Rome to Florence Day 8
Our morning drive leads us to Florence, the Renaissance city set in the beautiful Tuscan Hills. Learn about the Duomo, Giotto's Bell-Tower, Piazza della Signoria and Santa Croce as our local guide walks us through the city. Free time to shop or visit one of the famous museums.

Florence to Lucerne Day 9
Our path takes us toward the towering Alps and the vast serene lakes of Switzerland. Be charmed by medieval Lucerne and enjoy shopping for local specialties - watches, chocolate and Swiss army knives.

Lucerne to Paris Day 10
Our focus today is the journey to Paris. We weave our way through the beautiful French countryside to the "City of Lights".

Paris Day 11
Visit a French perfume house and then take the opportunity to visit some of the most celebrated icons of Europe. The Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Nôtre Dame, Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysées all await your arrival! Tonight, why not complete your Parisian experience with a French meal and a famous cabaret?

Paris to London Day 12
Today we drive past World War I battlefields on the way to our cross-channel ferry back to England. Time to swap addresses and say goodbye as we arrive early evening in London.

Next up...an indepth look at each location visited!

-Lynsey

Who is Contiki?

2009-03-23T12:16:00.000-07:00

I had always known that I wanted to go to Europe but I had put off going for quite a few years because either I didn't want to take the time off work or I really couldn't justify spending the money it would take to get there...if you are currently in the same boat where you are debating this then STOP DEBATING and GO! Going to Europe was one of the best decisions that I have ever made and I do not regret any of the money that I spent on the trip nor do I regret the time I missed at work. If this is something you want to do and you have the resources to do it and still survive when you get back, then please seriously consider going.

Originally I had planned to go with several friends on a trip to Europe, but that plan fell through and I was still determined to go to Europe even if it meant going by myself. I knew that I wanted to go on a tour and go to as many places in Europe that I could in a short period of time. I also knew that I would feel more comfortable going by myself if I were on tour with people in my age group who were there to see the sites and explore the cities while also having a good time. I did a lot of research on all the different tour companies out there and the specific tours they offered and in the end I decided that Contiki would be the best company for me to use.

Contiki is a company that isn't as widely known in the United States as it is in other countries such as Australia and New Zealand, but if you are between the ages of 18 and 35 it is a great company to utilize for your trip. Because of the specific age range, Contiki is able to target and mold its trips to the people going on the trip as they understand what it is that 18-35's are wanting to do when they are travelling around the world. Contiki not only offers a wide variety of trips to Europe, but they also go to Australia, New Zealand, United States, Canada, Mexico, Russia & the Baltic, Asia, and Egypt so more than likely they have a trip that is right for you. The trips that Contiki have range from a short speciality trip (like Amsterdam for Easter or Munich for Oktoberfest) to a 40 day camping trip around Europe. Another great thing about Contiki is they have different levels of trips so you can go on a superior trip that is generally more expensive per day and you stay in hotels or you can go on a budget trip where you may be camping or staying in hostels.

The best thing to me about Contiki when I was planning my trip is that they can take care of everything. Not only do they plan out most of your days, but they provide you with transportation, arrange your hotels, depending on the tour have most of you breakfasts and dinners taken care of, can book flights and arrange for extra nights stay in certain locations, and provide you with an array of optional activities to enhance your trip. And above all of this, you have a tour manager who is with you to help make your time the best it can be and provide you with valuable information to make sure you get around each place you visit smoothly. With all of this you could expect to pay a ton of money, but looking back, the cost per day is incredibly cheap and knowing that I hardly had anything to worry about when I was in Europe was absolutely priceless.

All in all for the 12 day tour and my flights I paid $2500 which I think is great. Yes, I know there are cheaper ways to get around Europe, especially if you backpack or plan it by yourself, but being a single traveler it was worth it to have someone else take care of everything for me and really not have to have a headache trying to plan every little detail out.

So again, if you are in the 18-35 age range definitely check out contiki as I highly, highly recommend them.

From their website:

"With Contiki, you get an up-close look at the places you’ve always dreamed of visiting and can leave the trip details to us. Contiki saves you the time and money in planning by providing trips which include comfortable accommodations, a majority of meals, expert insight to the local hotspots and exciting optional excursions to create a truly unforgettable experience. Our trips don’t take you on a typical journey; they give you new perspective. That way, you not only see the world, you get to interact with it."

So check out their website and all the different trip's they have to offer:

www.contiki.com

-Lynsey

Welcome!

2009-03-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

Travelling is one of my favorite things to do and in December 2008 I embarked on my biggest travel adventure thus far on a 12 day tour of Europe. I went on this trip by myself not really knowing what to expect and only knowing a few fellow travelers that I had met online prior to the start of the trip.

The hope of this blog is that I can provide insight into the different facets of going to Europe from the perspective of a young, single female who visited most of these places for the very first time. I hope that you will be able to take something away from this blog that will help you either decide to go to Europe (which I hope you do); use Contiki as your vacation planner (which I highly recommend); or just learn a few more tips before you go off on your journey.

If after reading this blog you have any additional questions please feel free to contact me at lstuart722@gmail.com

Happy Reading!

-Lynsey