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bigruss

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Im currently studying abroad in Rotterdam, Netherlands and one of my friends and my brother are joining me in April to travel around Europe. Im just looking for advice on the places we are planning on visiting:

 

Lisbon

Barcelona

Casablanca

Berlin

Warsaw

Vienna

Brussels/Bruges

 

Any advice on those places, like festivals, good locations, bars, food, etc. We chose these places since my friend already has been to many places and wanted to visit places he hasnt been to yet.

 

THanks in advance!

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QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 10:20 AM)
Im currently studying abroad in Rotterdam, Netherlands and one of my friends and my brother are joining me in April to travel around Europe. Im just looking for advice on the places we are planning on visiting:

 

Lisbon

Barcelona

Casablanca

Berlin

Warsaw

Vienna

Brussels/Bruges

 

Any advice on those places, like festivals, good locations, bars, food, etc. We chose these places since my friend already has been to many places and wanted to visit places he hasnt been to yet.

 

THanks in advance!

 

I've heard Krakow is a better city to visit over Warsaw.

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QUOTE (Chi Town Sox @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 10:56 AM)
Warsaw is more modernized, if you really want the history and old-world Poland, Krakow it should be

 

I've never been I have just read numerous places

 

Krakow has a more vibrant art and music scene from what I've read.

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QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 11:20 AM)
Im currently studying abroad in Rotterdam, Netherlands and one of my friends and my brother are joining me in April to travel around Europe. Im just looking for advice on the places we are planning on visiting:

 

Lisbon

Barcelona

Casablanca

Berlin

Warsaw

Vienna

Brussels/Bruges

 

Any advice on those places, like festivals, good locations, bars, food, etc. We chose these places since my friend already has been to many places and wanted to visit places he hasnt been to yet.

 

THanks in advance!

 

Skip Brussels. Just go to Bruges if you're dead set on visiting Belgium. I'd recommend Munich, Geneva or Zurich if you're in the area.

 

Casablanca is going to be a pain to get to. Might be easier just going to Tangier if you want to go to Morocco. Gibraltar and Granada (the Al Hambra is there) are close by if you go that route.

 

I'd also recommend this website

Edited by ChiSox_Sonix
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QUOTE (ChiSox_Sonix @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 01:25 PM)
Skip Brussels. Just go to Bruges if you're dead set on visiting Belgium. I'd recommend Munich, Geneva or Zurich if you're in the area.

 

Casablanca is going to be a pain to get to. Might be easier just going to Tangier if you want to go to Morocco. Gibraltar and Granada (the Al Hambra is there) are close by if you go that route.

 

I'd also recommend this website

Yea I just spend the last weekend in Brussels and Bruges, Bruges was wayyyy better so Im looking at being there and maybe a place like Gent.

 

Yea, my friend really wants to go to Morocco to say he was in Africa, but Ive heard it just isnt that great and I was worried about the hassle too.

 

Thanks for the heads up on the site!

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QUOTE (Chi Town Sox @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 12:56 PM)
Warsaw is more modernized, if you really want the history and old-world Poland, Krakow it should be

 

I've never been I have just read numerous places

Yea we were thinking of Krakow over Warsaw too, I would rather go someplace more historic than modern since Im living in one of the most modern cities anyways (and the historical aspect intrigues me more).

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QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 02:07 PM)
I really want to see Pompei and Herculanium.

Saw Pompei, and it was fantastic. Very very cool place to see. It's amazing how well preserved some things are there. It's also amazing how short Romans were judging by the size of the doors and buildings.

 

If you go down to the Pompei/Naples area, you have to spend atleast a few days on Capri, one of the most gorgeous places I have ever been.

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QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 12:56 PM)
Yea I just spend the last weekend in Brussels and Bruges, Bruges was wayyyy better so Im looking at being there and maybe a place like Gent.

 

Yea, my friend really wants to go to Morocco to say he was in Africa, but Ive heard it just isnt that great and I was worried about the hassle too.

 

Thanks for the heads up on the site!

 

My sister in law has a time share in Malaga. A bunch of us are going next spring so i've done a little research into the area. Tangier is apparently a tourist hot spot for the Spanish. It's an hour ferry from that part of Spain and apparently it's pretty safe - just watch out for pick pocketers. I'd definitely at least look into it. And as I mentioned, Gibraltar can be reached from there easily if you wanted and that would be another unique experience.

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QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 11:58 AM)
Yea we were thinking of Krakow over Warsaw too, I would rather go someplace more historic than modern since Im living in one of the most modern cities anyways (and the historical aspect intrigues me more).

 

I know you said your looking at going to places your friend has not been to, if he has not been to one of these towns.

 

I was in London/Paris over the summer and although I loved both towns, Paris is really incredible with their sights and total culture change. Really cool to see all of that stuff in real life after seeing it in books/magazines your entire life! Food, Wine, Cheese, Bread, everything was awesome.

 

Best part about vacationing in London, it always rains so you can just duck into the pub nearest to you for a pint and wait for it to pass over LOL.

Edited by Chi Town Sox
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Right, I've been travelling around Europe for the past month (and also went to places before that), so I've got recommendations on the places that I've been to.

 

Stockholm - Pricey, but a cool city to check out nonetheless. Quite artsy and cultural if you're into that type of stuff. Gamla Stan (Old Town) is pretty cool with it's old cobbled laneways and bars etc. There's enough bars and pubs around for a good night out, and they also have plenty of boats on the harbor that you can go on for a good time as well.

 

Dublin - Temple Bar is the main sort of tourist area, pretty overpriced and not that good though. Baggot St. is a much better place to go out at. Besides that you've got the Jail, the Whiskey Distillery and the Guiness Factory, but not much else really.

 

Brussels - Would only recommend it for a weekend. The thing I love about Belgium is the food and drink. They make fantastic pommes frites (french fries) and Belgian Waffles. And they make fantastic beers, the Delerium Cafe has loads and loads for very cheap (3 Euro's for a bottle of Duvel which is about 9% ALC). Besides that, you've got the Mannekin Pis (little man piss) and the Grand Place. Not much else really.

 

Paris - Pretty obvious what to check out, Eiffel Tower, Lourve (was closed on a Tuesday when I went so be warned), Notre Dame Cathedral and the Arc Du Triomphe. Not really a place you go to for a night out though, more of an arts / cultural experience.

 

Zurich - Went here last week with 2 mates visiting someone who works over there. Priciest city I've been by far, drinks and food is not cheap here at all especially when eating out (e.g 30 franks for a Fish and Chips and a Bottle of Heineken at an Irish Pub). Not a big tourist city, you've got the river and Lake Zurich which is nice, more the city you just go to walk around in. Has some really cool nightclubs though, but you really need to know where they are. Oh and it's LOADS of Strip Clubs and Brothels as well. A work colleague of my mate over there blew 2500 Franks for him and 2 others for a night out there.

 

Barcelona - Favorite city I've been to here by far. Would be fantastic in the summer. Loads to do, go watch a game of soccer at the Nou Camp, go to the Barceloneta Harbor, walk down Las Ramblas, and go see all of the famous churches in the city and go visit the Montujic Area (where the Olympic Stadium is and the Castle which has an amazing view overlooking the city and the harbor).

 

I'm off to Berlin on Monday and that'll be it for my European Travels.

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QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Jan 27, 2011 -> 10:20 AM)
Im currently studying abroad in Rotterdam, Netherlands and one of my friends and my brother are joining me in April to travel around Europe. Im just looking for advice on the places we are planning on visiting:

 

Lisbon

Barcelona

Casablanca

Berlin

Warsaw

Vienna

Brussels/Bruges

 

Any advice on those places, like festivals, good locations, bars, food, etc. We chose these places since my friend already has been to many places and wanted to visit places he hasnt been to yet.

 

THanks in advance!

 

 

Avoid hostels in any Slovakian city, especially if the chicks there are hot...

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My family hit Poland, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Andorra in '99. I only turned 13 during the trip (in Paris IIRC) so I was too young to appreciate a lot of the things I would appreciate now. One city that absolutely stands out in my mind is Sanremo in Italy. I'd like to go back there, possibly make it my honeymoon spot once things get to that point.

 

I've been to both Warsaw and Krakow many times. I like Krakow better, but as mentioned earlier, Warsaw is more modern (and sterilized I think) and Krakow is old Poland.

Edited by Swingandalongonetoleft
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Berlin is super fun, one of my favorite places on earth. If you go, you should definitely check out two museums - The Checkpoint Charlie museum, which is about the Berlin Wall, and the DDR Museum, which is dedicated to East Germany and is phenomenal, in my opinion. I would also take a day trip to Potsdam. It's a smaller city just south of Berlin, and full of modern history, including four power summits just post World War II, and there was also the big East German film studios Babelsberg, which is still open I believe and you can tour. There is also a concentration camp just north of the city in Oranienburg that also does tours.

 

Berlin is more like New York City than any other place I've been to. There is a ton for you to enjoy nightlife wise, an amazing arts and music scene. Hipsters hang in Prenzlauer Berg, a district that used to be in East Berlin.

 

You should definitely eat a Doner Kebap sandwich in Berlin. It's really amazing Turkish food and is on virtually any corner. My favorite Kebap sandwich is right off Bahnhof Zoo by the A&O Hostel. If you are looking for an inexpensive hotel, I'd recommend the art'otel on Kufurstendamm. It's right off the U9 subway line, very nice and inexpensive with great service. If your hostelling, I've heard great things about Generator, but I don't know if they are still around. Also, don't forget Currywurst, it was invented in Berlin.

 

Brussels is boring. Vienna was fun, I don't remember a lot. It involved a girl though. She was an au pair. There's some interesting architecture.

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QUOTE (Rex Kicka** @ Jan 30, 2011 -> 01:40 AM)
Brussels is boring. Vienna was fun, I don't remember a lot. It involved a girl though. She was an au pair. There's some interesting architecture.

 

The girl had a nice pair and it made for some interesting architecture?? Wow, now that's how to spin a euphemism!

Edited by FlaSoxxJim
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