fritzrl

...what is it you *really* long for after travelling to or around Europe, wherever it was you went?

We (my Partner and I) spent a month in July in London, Berlin and various places in the Czech Republic, including (of course) Prague. To say it was terrific would be a gross understatement.

I miss: sidewalk cafes, unhurried meals in restaurants, really stunning museums, outspoken but friendly residents, speaking German almost all the time, excellent public transport systems.

My partner would vote for many of the above, I think, but would likely add: beer. This is astounding, because he never touches the stuff in the US, but really grew to love a tall glass of Pilsner or Weisse while lingering at a cafe and surveying the passing crowd.

And *you* miss...?

ira

Hi fritz,

>This is astounding, because he never touches the stuff in the US, but really grew to love a tall glass of Pilsner or Weisse ....<

Could this be because he got real beer?

elaine

I only rarely drink wine at home while dining, and yet in Europe I always have at least one glass with dinner. It's 'real wine' in both locations, and no, I don't feel under any cultural pressure to order wine in Europe.
I just enjoy it. Maybe it's just part of being on vacation, or being in another place, and changing from the usual routine.

In your case, ira may be right, I hear the beer IS better.

jonesie

Breakfasts-- full Scottish breakfast, chocolate spread and sprinkles on toast in Amsterdam, "lunch" meats and cheese with breakfast....always a fun adventure!

I miss really good beer.....the best ones never seem to get exported!!!

That everything is new and different- you can go anywhere in the US and see the same shopping malls and stores, it's so boring!

suze

The excellent food and wine! Also dining out (being cooked for and waited on is such a luxury) since I do that more on vacation than ever at home.

StCirq

I miss the constant pleasing-to-the-eye sensation - everything in general is just so much more attractive in Europe.

And I miss the food, all of it. I'm usually just devastated when I walk into the Safeway when I get back.

palette

I miss the energy in the cities; the way the residents use their locales -- markets, cafes, etc. I live/work near/in DC, and everyone just scurries around back and forth to work - no street markets, few outside cafes (with lots of auto fumes). It just seems so much more liveable "over there."

Scarlett

Mmm, the food, the smells, the sounds, the music, hearing other languages and accents all around me, feeling not at home ,yet in some places, starting to feel at home there too.

dln

My opinion is on much the same lines as every one else's--wonderful food and drink! But I also feel that StCirq has hit the nail on the head about everything just being more pleasing to the eye in Europe. Of course I realize that some places in Europe have their unattractive aspects--can't keep the billboards away even there!--but on the whole, Europe is lovely. And that's why I love going.

FainaAgain

I miss food which tastes like food.

sandi_travelnut

I miss not having to worry about everyday mundane stuff. Going to work, doing laundry, feeding the animal, taking the kid to school, housework etc.. I like waking up and eating a breakfast that someone else prepared, looking at "eye-pleasing" scenery at almost every turn and the problem of the day is having to find time to fit in visits to beautiful cathedrals and museums....

SuzieC

...and then there's the history one is walking through, over, across. I can "feel" this in the US, I know... but not quite that same thing as to see Notre Dame ... started in the 12th Century...to walk on those narrow streets, houses huddled cheek to jowl..
and the PRIDE of the Europeans in their homes. Well, sometimes, I don't think USA'ers in Urban Areas...sometimes, are quite so fastidious. So there is a pleasure in the pride...

LoveItaly

I miss everything, the food (especially the way it is cooked), the history of the buildings, the lifestyle, the outdoor cafes, the church bells, just really everything. And especially all my friends.

But I love my home too.

P_M

I thought I was the only person in the world who drinks beer in Europe but not in the US. However, in the last year or so I have begun drinking beer in this country, but only when I'm in an Irish/English style pub. That's the only time it really appeals to me.

More than anything else, when I'm home I miss the way I feel when I'm in Europe. That feeling is impossible to describe unless you've felt it too, but I think most people on this board can relate. I also miss the culture, history, scenery, wine, beer, museums, architecture, food, chocolates, and meeting European people. I miss the learning that comes with overseas travel.

The only bad thing about being in Europe is that I miss my dog terribly. So when my trip starts winding down, and I get that sad, sinking feeling that can only come from a good vacation that's ending, I think of my dog and what a happy reunion we will have when I get home. Then I feel better.

cigalechanta

I'm not a beer drinker but I too, love the Weisse when we were in Alsace. and especially one called Wiecksie Witte.
I miss all of the things you list but in France. And all the great cheeses and wines, and local aperos, digestifs, cows, goats and all the flora and fauna.

RufusTFirefly

There are now many excellent regional beers brewed in the USA. Just about any liquor store will have a lot to try, in addition to many excellent imported ones.

I don't know where some of you live, but in Baltimore, D.C., and central Maryland, it's not all identical mall chain restaurants. There are thousands of independent dining establishments spread all over the area. Many have excellent quality and are very creative.

Perhaps you just need to get off the main highways and look around a bit. We even have four restaurants with sidewalk dining in our little town of 15,000 people--two are Italian and two regional/American. Not to mention an establishment that brews its own beers, several of which are very, very good. And I've never had a restaurant kick us out because we eat at a more relaxed pace than most folks do.

Oh, and just about any place I've dined that has a bar also has a variety of digestifs.

There is, however, that sense of History that you get in places like Rome, Paris, Venice that you don't get in even the oldest American cities. Walking in the footsteps of Julius C. in ancient Rome is always a thrill for me.

cigalechanta

But Rufus alot of these trinks are not imported, like my favorite apero, Suze.
We have tons of sidewalk cafe's here but every village has one in France ; not every little town in the USA does. Some beers are not imported. We can get anything that is, here. The cheeses are not the same because ours must be pasturized. And you cannót translate the ambiance in a European country to here.

jdraper

I would agree with all of the above, especially the food and drink. However, the thing that I miss most about Europe is being able to spend the entire time uninterrupted with my hubby, no telephone calls, no errands and no interference. The opportunity to simply wander at a leisurly pace through such wonderful places, and almost always fall in love all over again, can't be replaced. Take Care Jackie

cigalechanta

Another thing is the simple book covers, none of those flashy covers we have here. And the packaging on the most mundane things are usually beautiful. I use my wooden madelaine box for a sewing kit, a suze ashtry as a soap dish, my Nancy bergamottes tin I store my lipsticks and so many other little things that conjure up memeries every day.

suesnothome

I really enjoy hearing the church bells when in Europe. I'll bet there isn't a church bell within 50 miles of where I live.

I'm not a beer drinker either, but when in another country, I always try their beer at least once and usually enjoy it.

I also enjoy the wonderful wine and trying out different foods.