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Tips And Tops
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����Austria ����Denmark ����France ����Germany ����Belgium ����Spain
This section contains my personal views on traveling to Europe and travelling in general. Please do not take them seriously as they are solely based on my experiences that I learnt from day to day during that one month of traveling. Here they are;
  1. Plan you trip in advance of which destination to go first and which one to go last.
  2. Plan your budget of money and length of time you expect to travel.
  3. If you are travelling in a group, divide the stuffs that you will bring between your rucksacks. This is to avoid more than one persons bringing the same stuff(s). For example if you already bought the Train Timetables book, maybe your friend can bring a travel guide book.
  4. Keep all important stuffs (passport, travellers cheques, train pass and some cash) in your money belt. It should be worn tightly under your clothes. Bring some cash of different currencies (according to what countrie(s) you are planning to go). This is especially useful for paying the lockers, taxi, etc.
  5. Here are some of travel checklists (apart from mentioned elsewhere);
        a) A personal stereo or a story book (not too thick though) to help pass the time during that long night journey.
        b) Comfy shoes. A pair of good sandals is recommended or a pair of boots if you're planning for trekking.
        c) Some medicine (plasters, painkillers, multi-vitamin and anti-diarrhoea tablets, tampons)
        d) Jackets, a pair of gloves and a snowcap (depends on what season you are going and whether you want to go to the highlands or not)
  6. Avoid bringing too many bags. One way to save space in your bag is to roll your clothes instead of folding them like usual. You'll be surprised on how much space left after you are done! Maybe you can use this space to put souvenirs that you'd buy during your travel.
    Roll your clothes

  7. Get insured before you go unless you can afford to lose something without being covered.
  8. Taking a train is one of the cheapest modes. To further cut your budget on accommodation, take a night train (if the journey is far enough to cover the whole night). Secure a train timetables book beforehand to save time checking at the stations. One recommended book is Thomas Cook European Rail Summer Timetable (the timetable changes for different seasons).
  9. Some night journeys require you to book a seat/couchette/cabin/bunk bed (depends on types of train). E.g. of such journey is from Firenze to Venezia. Check from the timetables book.
  10. The disadvantage of taking a night train if you travel alone is that nobody will take care of your bags if you fall asleep. Unless you are in a group of 2 or 3, at least everyone can take turn in doing a sentry.
  11. There are some train tracks that run along beautiful sceneries. For this, take a day trip to fully enjoy the experiences, of course. Examples are (normal and tourist railways);
        a) Bergen - Oslo (Norway)
        b) Myrdal - Flam (Norway)
        c) Interlaken - Lucerne (Switzerland)
        d) Interlaken - Jungfrau (Switzerland)
        e) Mt. Pilatus - Alpnachstad (Switzerland)
        f) Niece - Monaco (French Riviera)
        g) Barcelona (Spain) - Lucerne (Switzerland)
        h) Edinburgh - Aberdeen (Scotland)
        i) Perth - Inverness (Scotland)
        j) Manchester - Sheffield in England (personal opinion)
  12. Secure a very handy guidebook that can recommend you of places of interests plus lists of cheap hotels and hostels in various countries. If you are planning to spend a night(s) at a particular place, check whether you need to book in advance especially if that place is very touristy throughout the year (e.g. is Bergen). A very good book normally explains all these in one book.
  13. If you are traveling alone, when you reach a station at a foreign country after an overnight journey, look out for these three places first;
        a) Tourist Information Centre (for maps of the city and any other advices)
        b) Locker for your luggage (if you want to spend time only for a day)
        c) Ticket Counter (to secure a place for your next night journey and to confirm the time)
  14. Be familiarised with some of the common symbols like i for Tourist Information and WC (stands for Water Closet) for toilets.
  15. It's always a good idea to be friendly with other travelers as long as you pick the right persons. Well, you can share experiences with each other, take an excursion together and they can help take pictures of you too.
  16. Avoid jaywalking. For most countries in Europe, this is illegal.
  17. You've been travelling for quite some time and feel like watching a movie? Well, to bad for you. Except for England and the Scandinavians (as far as I know), English movies are dubbed in different language.
  18. Be alert with what might be sensitive to the locals. For example, if you were in a Muslim country, dress modestly. This is particularly important especially if you are in places of worship (i.e. mosque).
  19. Be careful with your belongings especially if you are sharing your train couchette or hotel room with a stranger. If you're only taking your knapsack to walk around town it is better to lock it or carry it in front of you (instead of carry it on your back).
  20. There are various locking systems for the lockers to keep your luggage safe such as;
        a) Receipt system - most common. Just memorise the code numbers printed on it. If the receipt has a printed bar code, you scan the code to the scanner on the locker door to open it.
        b) Key system - you can only lock it and keep the key after you insert your money into the money slot.
        c) Code system - you set the code yourself and memorise it. It's more like having a safe box at home. The only place that has this system (that I know of) is in Prague.
        d) Someone will take care of your bags. The most expensive.
Now I would like to rank some of the places according to some characteristics. I know I still haven't covered the whole world, and I only went to major cities of the countries. But again it's only my personal rankings.

    The best sceneries;

    1. Switzerland
    2. Norway
    3. Scotland
    4. Germany
    5. Venice (only!)
    6. French Riviera

    The friendliness of the locals;

    1. England (British are very polite)
    2. Scotland
    3. Switzerland
    4. Norway
    5. Sweden

    The top 5 excursions;

    1. Norway In A Nutshell - Bergen, Norway
    2. Berlin Walk - Berlin, Germany
    3. Mt. Pilatus - Lucerne, Switzerland
    4. Gondola ride - Venice, Italy
    5. Zaanse Schans, Volendam, and Marken - Holland
Tips And Tops
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