Here's what I have learned in a lifetime of travel: Expect the unexpected--deal with it; be prepared for almost any uneventuallity, and deal with it; keep your sense of humor, remember, when it gets trying, this too will pass; don't use American standards to judge others; take notes about names, places, you want to revisit; don't expect the second (third) time to be the same experience; pack lightly; smile, get a good night's sleep; eat lightly but try the local fare; remember the good parts and forget the rest.

Just wanted to thank you for the good advice. We leave Tuesday for France and Italy with our four children (first time to Europe). I'm getting a bit nervous (mostly about the kids) so I was very glad to find your words of travel wisdom posted this evening. Thanks again!

Julie: I am sure your trip will be a success. Although I did not travel when the kids were small, we see lots who do, and the thing is, they get tired easily, so my advice would be to not try to see too much (kids get bored and restless on planes/trains/and can only do so much sightseeing--the great cultural significance of Italy is mostly lost on them, but most of Europe has wonderful walking paths, bikes are everywhere, and interesting shops abound. My experience with kids is that they don't like to try new foods, and are more comfortable with familiar stuff (they have McDonalds all over the world, even in Shanghi).

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I'm not sure if this is the direction this thread is going, but I'll add my most "profound" travel thought. This is not meant for either Julie specifically, but for anyone looking to enjoy a trip. Relax and don't pin all your hopes for seeing Paris or Rome or wherever on this one chance. If you love it, you'll make the effort to go back. More importantly, you'll enjoy the present trip more if it doesn't have to carry the weight of all of your European fantasies forever and ever! Just throw yourself into experiencing whatever the current trip brings, and you'll almost certainly have wonderful memories, regardless of whether you "did" the destination sufficiently. (And then when you get home, for heaven's sake avoid those people who say, "What, you didn't see _______???" about whatever didn't fit in!)