PalenQ

Just back from yet another fantastic trip to Europe - and had a simply wonderful time. Here are the places I visited:

AMSTERDAMNED - Flew in there and stayed a few days. The literal hi-light of my trip. So cerebral - a city that never ceases to disappoint me. even in late fall the city had a magic touch.

Night Train to MUNICH - spent day in a city that I can never really understand why it is so popular in light of to me many more romantic and older-looking ('Europe of our dreams) cities but I always have fun.

Night Train to VENICE

Venice - Fantastic! Loveliest city in the world - even better in off season than when elbow to elbow in summer. And yes the fog really does creep in on little cat feet and the floods roll in like an elephant - enjoyed swimming in St Mark's Square. Yup I really immersed myself in Venice this time!

ROME - I am eternally in love with Rome.

FLORENCE - I felt some kind of rebirth in Florence as I usually do. Awesome baby!

NICE was very nice!

TGV Train to Paris - ah gay Paree - so so formidable, extraordinaire, incroyable, fantastic!

Spend some days with French friends in my old stomping ground of Orleans, about which the best thing I can say is it is an ordinary and bustling French regional town.

Chunnel Train to London. I never tire of London - always keeps me alive. Weird I noticed a dramatic decline in the number of song birds in London and other places I day tripped to - was I imagining it or have cats wiped out the bird population in the few years since I was last there?

Flew home from London. Traveled all by train - first class of course!

OK - Will continue my trip report by breaking down what I seen and done in each stop. Again the trip was totally awesome!

cigalechanta

Sounds like a good time!

LoveMyLab

I will be looking for your review of Paris, as that is on next year's list (first time)

Your Hairless Nut Friend
LML

cigalechanta

Me too, get going Pal

Jill2013

Sounds great, would love to hear about the night train to Venice, where did you catch it from. Heading to Europe Nov 2013 and thought train would be good for kids (7 & 10).

Golemtoo

Hey man, I left my Let's Go Anywhere in a Ute hostile in Amsterdam in 1969. If you find it, send me a brainwave. Peace and over and out.

Golemtoo

It could have been Ibiza. They say that with like a spitting sound.

Golemtoo

Or it could have been London. I really don;t remember.

Odin

I don't think many who live in Europe have called Eurostar the Chunnel train since about the mid 90's.

LoungeLizardess

Did you really make this trip or is this some kind of put-on similar to what justwishin gives us in the Lounge? I'm asking sincerely, I honestly can't tell if you are serious or merely fooling around on a boring day.

bilboburgler

LL what part of "TGV Train to Paris - ah gay Pare" did you think was serious....?

PalenQ, far to few smiley faces and exclamation points to make this a great thread, I also think you missed towing a 'fridge with you the whole way.

PalenQ

LoungeLizardwaa - yes I just did this trip but yes I am being a bit tongue in cheek about it so it may seem faux. It will not be your average trip report.

Golemtoo

Really LoungLizard, I thought this was real. Wow, what a bummer. You must be the center of fun at funerals.

tower

Pal..the old saying.."you can take the boy out of Central Michigan, but you can never take Central Michigan out of the boy!!" Small town humor will never be understood by big city folks. Give 'em hell, Palenky-man!
stu

tower

and remember, "whatever plays in the old time Roscommon barbershop, stays in Roscommon."

Golemtoo

Hey, I was born and live in the biggest of cities. Ususlly I only get UP humor though.

PalenQ

tower - thanks for the encouragement! Shave and a haircut two bits!

PatrickLondon

Song birds - did you perhaps go to London earlier in the year in the past? Or maybe you spent less time in the parks this time.

PalenQ

ARRIVING - AMSTERDAM SCHIPHOL

Always like landing in Amsterdam - kind of like going home to a city I have visited for many years and previously spent a lot of time on business in. And Schiphol is such a neat airport - a perpetual favorite in polls of passengers.

I have various traditions like when landing at Schiphol regardless of time of day I always have a Heineken, a tin straight from the supermarket near the Customs exit - and I always sit outside on the plaza in front of the train station, no matter how cold or rainy and welcome myself back to Holland with a Heinie.

And getting into Amsterdam from the airport is a snap - but I was heading not to Amsterdam but to my cozy and cheap B&B in nearby Haarlem - to get there I hopped the express public bus - a bus that rolls like a train largely on a dedicated right of way most of the way. Yup a tram without wheels!

Customs are always a breeze at Schiphol - never been stopped or even acknowledged going thru. Stamp my passport upon entering the Schengen Countries and bam on my way. For Amsterdam the trains are just a few steps from the Customs exit - there is an ATM smack outside Customs too - not having to hunt and peck for ones like in some airports that seem to hide them and only have regular bank exchanges outside Customs (with lower rates than ATMs, always IME the best way of changing money - no need to change at home like in the US with terrible exchange rates always it seems - just wait until landing and head for an ATM - never fails.

Tot Ziens - next my cozy B&B in Haarlem and a bit about Haarlem, a great day or half-day trip from Amsterdam if you are not staying in Haarlem itself - one of the nicest oldest-looking Dutch regional towns - yes Dutch as opposed to a very cosmopolitan Amsterdam where in the tourist center English does seem to be the Lingua Franca.

PalenQ

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ite-things.cfm

Another thread I am working on about Amsterdam, combining things from my many many trips there.