Europe String

Some tourists are stupid. Some of them (okay, okay, I could probably write WE hehe) pay for twice or even thrice the usual amount. Others are easily tricked into paying to see an insignificant establishment that not a single soul who know any better would even pay a centavo for.
Of course, unsuspecting tourists only realize that they have been had only in the end… after the money has disappeared into someone else’s pockets and they become part of a stupid-tourist-stories exchanged between dubious characters who are out there to pry on, well, stupid tourists.
Some are kinda obvious …read more

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NFL season will officially start on Thursday, o6 September 2007. Many Americans will understand when I say that this is something BIG. Touring Europe for the first time is also something BIG. Just that these are two different things and they are both HUGE.

If the only great travel deal your wife/girlfriend/mom/sister has found is during the NFL season; and
If you like to see Europe but would LOVE to watch the games

then, you are probably tearing your hair out right now.
But, there is absolutely NO need for you to go bald this early in your life yet. …read more

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Looks a lot like Paris hired Santa this year as one of the most expensive cities in the world seem to be in the spirit of giving.
For the summer, Paris let people use 14,100 bikes for free.
And now that it is close to Autumn, Lynn of the Paris Traveler has informed us that Paris now has FREE PARKING, as well!!!
“There are 145,000 paid parking spaces in the City of Lights, but during this month 123,000 of them are free, and best of all, you’ll actually be able to find one!”
For the complete details, read this page. And while you …read more

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Would you like to have a preview of what you will be seeing soon?   Well, here are a few links to several webcams in famous European cities:

Paris Live has webcams placed strategically in several areas around the Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysees, Notre Dame, Centre Pompidou, Montparnasse, City Hall and Place de la Bastille.
Downtown Barcelona is available on realestate-dreams’ website.
Big Brother also has its eyes on Piazza San Marco in Venice.
The calm waters of Stoupa, Pelopenesse in Greece can also be observed.
See the London Eye and the BigBen.

source 

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It’s my first time here in Naples. We’re on an extended weekend getaway, touring some parts of Southern Italy. We’re staying at this beautiful vacation house of our fellow Frankfurt expatriate friends in the Amalfi Coast. Yes, we’re guests: pampered but not required to pay.  One of the best ways to travel on a budget.
But before we were whisked away to this island getaway, we stayed for a night at a hotel a few streets away from Palazzo delle Arti Napoli. And as we were aimlessly walking around, we found a great market where you can get designer clothes — …read more

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This is for our readers in the US who are planning their European sojourn.
If you do not have the time nor the energy to plan your trip, you may want to consider one of Sophisticated Traveler, Inc.’s Independent Travel Packages. I swear, they have one of the cheapest travel packages I have EVER seen.
As an example…
A travel package to Budapest (Hungary) will only cost you from US$1288, if you are coming from Philadelphia. For other US city origin, cost is as follows: US$1310 – Boston/JFK/Newark, US$1316 – Atlanta, US$1318 – DC, US$1445 – Chicago/Houston, US$1498 – LA and …read more

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GOOD is when you have finally saved up enough for your dream to travel to Europe. Yes, even if it’s on a tight budget.
It’s even BETTER if you do get a great travel deal.
But, if you get a freebie, that is the BEST.
Complimentary… gratis et amore… handout… free…
Whichever way it may be labeled, this will be music to every budget travelers’ ears.
Janet Jackson and Luther Vandross surely got it right when they said that the best things in life are free.
And below are just some of the best of the BEST when it comes to traveling on a shoestring which …read more

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Here are a few great pictures on Flickr, showcasing European hostels. It should give you an idea of how different each hostel’s condition is.

Hostel Celica – a former Yugoslavian prison – is cool, according to jpete.
Hopefully, there are improvements on the Dover Castle Hotel (an old picture from clarissa).
I am not surprised that the famous Flying Pig Hostel in Amstedam made it to Flickr, courtesy of Dave Knight.
The Circus Hostel in Berlin where Shamrock Tatoo stayed looks clean. Highly recommended.
Lizvang stayed at the Leinster Inn Hostel.
The Copenhagen hostel where gaijin4life stayed at looks like something out of a budget …read more

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Yes, do follow Mother Goose’s advise when you visit another foreign country. Of course, you need not follow Mother Goose to the letter by buying a fat pig (besides, even if you are willing to buy one, it will probably be out of your budget range).
What will you get out of it?
A trip to the local market will expose you to the local culture. Imagine all that haggling going on between the sellers and the possible buyers. Think of all those goods — some of them may even be strange — that you would be seeing there. Check …read more

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You may have to share your temporary living space with a cockroach
A coed bath & toilet could be your only chance of getting clean
You will probably find yourself wishing hard that you used that extra backpack space to bring more rolls of tissues
That scary looking man on the bus could be your dorm-mate
Chances are, your flight will be canceled
If you miscalculate, you may have to perform some trick on that European square for some spare change
Bed bugs bite
Strange looking cheap food may fill you up but may not agree with your stomach
Your couchsurfing host may be that weirdo on …read more

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