In traveling around Europe by train, the UK stands out by not being a stand-out. Because the British do not like being thought of as European, UK trains are not sleek, modern, and fast like French and German trains. To ensure that American tourists understand that the British are not Europeans, British trains are also not included in your Eurail pass.
This means you will have to buy individual tickets on one of the world’s most grossly inefficient, antiquated train systems. Do not plan on arriving when you hope to or need to. Trains are frequently delayed or canceled because of “leaves on the rail.” A dusting of snow on the Isle of Wight can paralyze the country’s entire rail network for weeks at a time.
Never, never buy a last-minute train ticket in the UK. Buy your tickets in advance. My husband and I once spent three hours traveling from York to London in that dreadful space between train cars jammed with five sweaty men all yammering into their respective cell phones. This delightful travel experience cost us $150 each because I wanted to be spontaneous. It was not a good day to be spontaneous.
Passengers are exhorted to “Mind the Gap” when boarding and exiting British trains. This does not refer to the American clothing chain. This announcement is intended to help you avoid falling into the perilous chasm that maws between the 1950s-era train car and the fantastically sharp, metal-edged platform. This chasm, or “gap” as it is termed by the British, has a depth and width roughly equal to the Grand Canyon’s. Sufferers of vertigo should be cautious when taking British trains due to the risk of swooning into “the gap.”
Be sure to pack light and wear sensible shoes. If you have several bags, you will always have to change trains at the exact moment you have stowed your bags and settled into your seat. The crisp-voiced British train station announcer will calmly state that your new replacement train departs in one minute. This announcement will be broadcast at the exact moment you have only just started to hump your bags up hundreds of narrow, steep stairs towards a platform that is approximately 5.2 miles away. The British will know that you are neither British nor European because you, as an American, will begin to curse. Loudly.
On the bright side, the tea served on British trains is actually quite good.
In 2009, my husband and I embarked on a trip around the world. Our goal for the European leg was to travel from Ireland to Istanbul solely over land and sea. No airplanes. Because we had backpacked before, we knew to turn to Eurail for some train passes, which would also cover some ferry travel.
Unlike the last time we backpacked around Europe 15 years ago, we were no longer under the age of 26. Thus, the 15-day flexi-passes cost about $1000 each. <<Gulp.>> It should be noted that the higher priced passes for those of us in advanced age (a.k.a. anyone over the age of 26) are for first class, rather than second class. Though this may sound like good news, my husband and I became mildly concerned that we would we be too grubby for the high class trains we’d be taking.
Our concerns were for nought. We didn’t look any grubbier than other first class passengers, and even if we did, we didn’t care. We were too busy enjoying all the first class amenities. In France, we were served an excellent meal with fine wine on one beautiful train trip through the Alps. All over Germany, we were constantly given free snacks and drinks and English language newspapers. In Italy, we luxuriated in the only car where people weren’t illicitly smoking. In Greece, we rode in the only car that didn’t smell like a very old, dying goat. In short, it was a stupendous experience, though now my only fear is that I will never be able to afford first class rail travel again.
If you’re thinking about training around Europe, even if you’re visiting only two countries or a single country, visit http://www.eurail.com/
Eurail has passes that offer substantial savings to people of all ages for a variety of European destinations. Passholders are eligible for discounts on local attractions, lodging, and other transport. For example, even though the UK isn’t covered by your Eurail pass, you can get a 30% discount on a ferry from Belfast to Scotland.
If you’d like to stop and visit a few of the places you’re training through, but don’t want to live on trains for a month or more, the Global Flexipass may offer you the best value. With a Flexipass, you get 10 or 15 days of rail travel which you can take at your leisure over 2 months in nearly all the Eurail countries.
After getting from Ireland to Istanbul over land and sea in just under 2 months, here are some general lessons learned during our European train adventure:
1. Buy a ticket and a seat. This is something that’s hard for Americans to understand, but in European countries, you have to buy a ticket and a seat reservation if you want to secure a specific place to rest your posterior. Because I didn’t understand this distinction, during one very hot summer, I once had to ride eight hours on a hard plastic pull-down seat in the stifling space between train cars from Paris to Marseilles.
Some fancy high speed trains, like many TGV routes in France, require reservations. Although some trains don’t, if you know you’ll want to sit down, make sure you’re buying a seat with your ticket. Even if you have a Eurail pass (which is a ticket), you will still need to make reservations for certain trains and/or specific seats. The Eurail staff at most major train stations are very helpful with this.
2. Make triple-sure you understand what your tickets say. When you keep moving around a lot, it’s hard to keep track of every country’s train ticket and what everything means.
In looking at the wrong box on my Italian train ticket, I read the carriage number for the time of departure. (I can neither confirm nor deny that there was a small amount of wine involved in this mishap.) Needless to say, we missed our train from Naples and didn’t get to Bari until much later in the evening than we had planned.
3. Remember that, in Europe, how dates and times are displayed differs from the U.S. For example, “April 1, 2011,” is written as 4/1/11 in the U.S. In Europe, the same date is written 1/4/11. Clearly, this reversal of months and days could have serious ramifications for a train reservation.
Train times in Europe are also displayed differently, with less reliance on A.M. and P.M. to indicate morning or evening. Train times are shown on the 24-hour clock, so that 1:15 p.m. is displayed as 13:15 in Europe. (Subtract 12 to get the time.) In Europe, if a train table says 1:15, you’d probably prefer being in a bar or in bed.
Of course, there are a few location-specific lessons that may be of use to you if you’re planning on riding the rails around Europe. Some, we learned the hard way. Hopefully you won’t have to:
If you’re looking to stay in a place with good rates and some design flair, without a lot of the usual scenesters and tourist sprawl that accompanies those things, check out the Hotel Sublim Eiffel in Paris’ very residential 15th arrondissement. Should you stay out well past your bedtime as often happens in Paris, the rooms are wonderfully dark and quiet for some good do-do action. (NB: “Do-do” is French for “sleep” and is not related to the American “doo-doo,” which does, admittedly, happen in hotel rooms, but let’s not discuss that here.)
On my recommendation, some friends of mine recently stayed at the Sublim. They also loved it, attesting to the hotel’s excellence and value. Of course, immediately after that, the hotel appeared in a major newspaper’s write-up of “hidden gems” among Paris hotels. Hopefully, this won’t ruin the vibe or the value.
Back in October of 2009, President Obama had just been surprised to find that he won the Nobel Peace Prize right before I left the States to visit the beautiful country of Ireland. In predictable fashion, rather than celebrate this recognition, the right wing commentators commenced their fantasist ravings about the vast global conspiracy behind the President’s honor and, somewhat surprisingly, the left wing gasbags began tutting over whether the timing was right for the President to receive the honor. (No, I did not leave the States to avoid listening to all this kvetching, but that would have been a good reason for a wee break, to be sure.)
Landing in Dublin, in a cab to the hotel, the Irish taxi driver (a man from Meath), instantly and genuinely congratulated my husband and me for our President’s honor. Our taxi driver also quickly pointed out that President Obama was “a native son,” being part Irish on his mother’s side a few generations back. Indeed, fast-forwarding to 2011, President Obama tipped a pint of Guinness in the village of his ancestors, aptly observing that they keep the best Guinness in Ireland. In every village he visited and in Dublin’s fair city, the throngs who came to cheer on the President definitely showcased Ireland’s love for President Obama.
To think that President Obama is so proudly embraced by normal Irish folks– when a vocal weirdo contingent in the President’s own country absurdly believe he’s not even born there, and when the President’s own American supporters couldn’t even congratulate the man for receiving an amazing honor– well, that’s why I love Ireland. You don’t have to win the Nobel Prize or be the Leader of the Free World to experience Ireland’s embrace, however. You just need to spend as much time as possible in pubs. Listen to music. Talk to folks. Swap stories. And, of course, drink pints. Lots and lots of pints.
In Dublin, perhaps the best pub city in the world, it’s tough not to overdo the Irish hospitality. There are just too many great places to enjoy a pint while chatting with locals and/or listening to music. To avoid your getting overwhelmed, definitely visit a few favorites (listed below). They meet my criteria for a proper Dublin pub:
There should be some history or story attached to the pub, one that the barmen and regulars like telling.
There should be regulars who frequent the pub, not just tourists. There should be at least one regular who had his/her first drink at the pub, or who has been drinking there for over a decade.
There should be woodwork. Real wood bars, floors, wall panels, etc. All contribute to an atmosphere of requisite coziness.
The pub should not be brightly lit, and should definitely not have those halogen lights that blind you when you look at them and burn your head and/or ears if you’re too tall.
If the pub does food, it should not be the pub’s focal point. Rather, the menu should list a few tasty items (soup and brown bread, stew, etc.) to help absorb the pints you’ll have.
There should be a minimum of those annoying game machines that light up and cling-clang constantly. Not a one is vastly preferable, however.
Last, but certainly not least, the Guinness should be poured well. The other tap libations should taste like the lines are clean.
The true professional could try visiting these pubs in the order I list them on foot. It’s a great walk if you’re up to it, starting over near Christ Church Cathedral and working your way to St. Stephen’s Green. (Don’t worry. Having to walk will help keep you out of trouble. And, if worse comes to worse, you can always have a full Irish breakfast the next day to sort yourself out.)
The Brazen Head, 20 Lower Bridge St.
You’d be remiss not visiting the pub that claims to be Ireland’s oldest (purported to have been established in 1198). Lots of music, great soup, and a really fine Guinness in a city of fine Guinnesses. See their Web site for what’s on: http://www.brazenhead.com/
The Long Hall Bar, 31 S. Great George’s St.
A Victorian treasure, this pub will take you back to a time when gents drank their pints while wearing top hats. With a beautiful long bar and lots of gleaming brass, this may be the classiest historic place to down a few.
O’Donaghue’s, 15 Merrion Row
With live music 7 nights a week, O’Donaghue’s is true to its place in Irish music history. Catch some traditional Irish music, or “trad,” as it’s known, while enjoying a pint or several. The pub’s Web site has great info to help you brush up on your Irish music education: http://www.odonoghues.ie/
Toner’s, 2 Upper Baggot St.
This is a fantastic traditional pub, which Yeats reportedly frequented. The poetry continues; I was taught to hurl the very poetic “toe-rag” as an epithet by a very funny man named Sean late one evening.
Should you ever find yourself leading the free world and winning a Nobel Prize without getting any appreciation from your countrymen for it, take solace. Someone in Ireland claims you as Irish and toasts your success, embracing you as a native son. If your life’s pursuits are less lofty, the welcome you’ll receive in a Dublin pub (after a few shared pints, of course) will be no less.
Paris’ 7th arrondissement is home to impressive government buildings and embassies, loads of iconic and lesser known monuments, some great museums, really nice architecture, good shopping, and lovely garden spaces. In spite of its hauteur and occasional pretense, the 7th is, in general, a condensed version of all that is wonderful in Paris all in one quarter. If you do all of the following, this will take you an entire day long into a very pleasant evening.
(1) Start your day at Cafe Roussillon, on the corner of rue de Grenelle and rue Cler. Have a coffee and a tartine (bread with some butter and jam) while standing up at the bar, where you’ll pay less than if you sit down. (A rule at all cafes, not just this one.) Sometimes, they’ll have other pastries, depending on what’s available, but a tartine and coffee is a very typical way to start the day.
Next, (2) proceed down the rue de Grenelle toward the gold-domed Invalides, and walk partially around the structure to your left, checking out the buidling’s impressive exterior, passing by the looming cannons, lovely stretches of green grass, and sweet garden areas. Long a military hospital for injured soldiers, Invalides is now better known for one of France’s more famous warriors: Napoleon.
You can visit the inside of Invalides a bit later after you stop and smell the roses (if they’re in bloom), at the (3) Musee Rodin, 79 rue de Varenne. The Musee Rodin has one of the most beautiful gardens in Paris, and even features its own rose variety, the Rodin Rose. Of course, in addition to flowers, the Musee Rodin is a showcase for a sculptor who changed the art form, Auguste Rodin. It only takes an hour or two to visit, and you can get tickets online in advance through the helpful Web site: http://www.musee-rodin.fr/welcome.htm
You won’t be able to miss the French government buildings on (4) rue de Varenne near the Musee Rodin, such as the Hotel Matignon (the official residence of France’s Prime Minister) and France’s Ministry of Agriculture. Occasionally, security will be a bit of a hassle on the rue de Varenne because of the profusion of government offices and embassies in the area. If there are any protests involving angry farmers from the French countryside, you should definitely try to take in the action that will transpirin front of the Ministry of Agriculture– particularly if you get to see the Ministry entrance blockaded with potatoes or manure.
Walking back toward rue Cler around the side of the Invalides you didn’t see on your way over to the Musee Rodin, take in more vantages of the impressive, gold-domed structure. Even if you’re only mildly interested in the military and/or megalomania, (5) Invalides is worth a look inside for its fascinating military museum, and, of course, Napoleon’s tomb. The military musem has an impressive array of weapons from the Middle Ages and a very robust set of archives relating to the Second World War. Different themed exhibits also appear throughout the year. More info in French (with some in English) is available online at: http://www.invalides.org/
After viewing government power, military history, and loveliness for the morning, head back to (6) rue Cler for your lunch. Rue Cler is an amazing market street, with several wonderful shops for buying picnic items. There’s an array of small shops from which to select your perfect picnic lunch: cheeses, fruits and vegetables, breads, sausages, and more are there for the buying. For wine for a picnic (or for any reason), be sure to visit Le Repaire Bacchus, at 29 rue Cler. In addition to a diverse selection of regional French wines, the staff are very helpful, and they give great advice about good wines at every price point. If you don’t travel with a cork screw, they’ll open your picnic bottle for you.
On a picnic weather day, the (7) Champ de Mars is very close by– a perfect grassy spot for a picnic and a nap in the sun between the Eiffel Tower and the Ecole Militaire. “Champ de Mars” means “Field of Mars.” Named for the God of War, military drills were once practiced here. Now, rather than war exercises, you’re now likely to see a free concert put on by Paris’ local government in the summer, or some folks from the neighborhood playing petanque or card games among the gravel alleyways under the trees. (Petanque, or boules, is similar to bocce, except the balls are metal and there are different rules of scoring according to the region in France you’re from.) It’s great fun to watch experienced players play petanque, particularly if they’re older and they’re playing for money– which helps you learn more colorful French phrases than you were probably taught in high school French class.
The “Grotesque” Eiffel Tower
Of course, if you haven’t done it yet (or, if it has been a while since you did), you should go to the top of the (8) Eiffel Tower once you’re finished with your picnic and nap. Though touristy for sure, it’s popular because it’s a beautiful marvel of engineering with stunning views over Paris.
This opinion wasn’t always shared, however, and the Eiffel Tower was often decried as a monstrosity after it was first constructed for the Universal Exposition (a world’s fair of sorts) by Gustave Eiffel in 1889. (In other parts of Paris, you can also admire Gustave Eiffel’s work at the Bon Marche department store and Credit Lyonnais bank, where he built the metal structures. Across the Pond, he was responsible for the internal structure of the Statue of Liberty.) Only built to last 20 years, the Eiffel Tower proved useful as a radio tower during the war years of the early 20th century so the Eiffel Tower was able to defy its critics to become the landmark we all know and love today. The evening lights are a treat to see from other vantage points all over Paris. For history and visitor info in just about every language of the planet (along with some interactive items for children), take a look at: http://www.tour-eiffel.fr/
By now, you should have worked up a bit of a thirst, so stroll back to rue Cler and head to (9) Cafe du Marche to sit on the terrace (or stand at the bar for a lower price) and enjoy an “apero,” or “aperitif.” This pre-dinner cocktail time is essential in France, and usually consists of ordering a kir or two, along with some nibbly snacks–typically nuts, some sausage, or small cubes of cheese. At Cafe du Marche, this wine accompaniment generally takes the guise of some zesty sausage. (If you’d like to split up your apero time at more than one place, the Roussillon, where you started your day, has some really good apero-snacks as well. Last time I visited the Rousillon, there were some very good, reasonably priced cod fritters which at least 3-4 people could share.)
Should you feel like classic, easy cafe food for dinner, then be sure to stay and dine at the Cafe du Marche, especially if it’s a warm evening and there are abundant people-watching opportunities from the terrace. However, there are numerous options for good fare in the 7th, all within very easy walking distance from rue Cler. A few of my favourites are:
Restaurant Samo – a Korean restaurant that is one of the best places in Paris, or anywhere, to eat
Thoumieux – a traditional French brasserie, at 79 rue St.-Dominique, online at: http://www.thoumieux.com/
Breweventures 