My daughter has the opportunity to go abroad this summer, but since reading your impressions of France, especially the concerns for safety (gypsies? thieves?), I'm very worried. Is it as dangerous for teens as it is for the elderly?

It was good to know about the exchange rate, that was helpful, but where do I go to put money in an international account now?

Also, if you only had one month to stay which would you choose? Paris or Antibes? It would be in June.

Definitely Paris! And try to take some day or weekend trips. And I do not understand the concern about thieves and gypsies! Paris is no more dangerous for teens and the elderly (or for those in between) than any large city. As long as your daughter is mature enough to travel and takes the precautions she would take if visiting Boston, for example, she will be fine. I have been to Paris numerous times - as a teen, as an adult, middled-aged and beyond and have never been bothered by thieves, gypsies or other such problems.

Please don't limit her chance for this great experience by alarmist posts on Fodors about Paris!

It is not <dangerous for the elderly> that's just a ridiculous impression being passed around here lately. Some, if not most, of those making the crazy comments have never even visited the city! I found Paris one of the easier European cities to navigate safely, and traveling solo female.

As for funds, I assume a normal checking account at home with an ATM card would be the most efficient. You deposit money and she can withdraw in Euro from cash machines in Paris.

PARIS, paris, paris, paris....

Which posts? I pretty much read all the threads relating to Paris, and I don't recall even one where more than a handful of folks, if that, concluded Paris was dangerous.

Anyway, it isn't, and you should let your daughter go. Teens can lose their wallets just about anywhere, in my experience, and if she takes normal precautions she'll be fine. I don't let my teenage daughter hang around in Washington, DC, after dark, but I'd have no problem with her doing so in Paris - just to give you some perspective.

I don't think LeLapin read the threads all the way through... but just the "titles"...there were assurances, and well, "TRUTH" all through the answers not just assumptions...

Paris! Of course!

Please let her go. There are dangers all around. (Don't send her to High School, I've heard all the kids do drugs when they're not busy having sex.) Arm her with knowledge and street sense- and then trust her.

Troll alert! Troll alert! Intruder detected. Send a security team to Zone Three (nutcase portal).

oh, come on, you guys can't take this seriously. This is one of the most obvious troll posts I've ever seen.

o.k. what's a troll? I'm not sure if you're referring to me or not?

Let me try again.

I'm not sure what troll means, being new to this --or any other sights where people talk or 'chat". I think a troll is a fat, ugly, (recently popular) troublemaker or implies one who is leading other's on --as in fishing or trolling. Or are you saying a combination of both?

Well, I'm hurt. I didn't just read the 'threads'. i tried to read all the responses to the devalue of the dollar versus euro ( i didn't know ). and I got caught up in some of the other conversations and decided this might be the place where I could address my concerns. And get some much needed info in traveling to another country.

Thank you to those who offered their support.

Maybe, I'm not as sophisticated as some of you are but i find I don't appreciate being called a troll by degas and christine? (sorry if I have christine wrong)

But still I would like to know what makes me unworthy of your time and response?

To all others, my daughter says she would like to go to Antibes. She's the kind of kid who doeasn't want to go to the "popular" places but she only knows America and so means Mcd's, disney, great adventure, and those typical places that we are overly subjected to here. She goes to school in a farmhouse, where there are not 50 students in the school and that is grades 6 through 12. She's been there since 6th grade.

We're not altogether country bumkins though (or trolls) as I was born in NYC and grew up mostly outside the city, but I do need some help and I thought (from what I read) that there was a good amount of knowledge from all different people and experiences i could use.

I didn't expect to be called names! that is very childish!

Well then... I change my vote to Antibes! Seriously, if your daughter is old enough to travel I very strongly believe she is old enough to pick the destination and research to prepare for the trip.

le_lapin, I'm not sure why people decided this was not a serious post and am sorry for the rudeness of some. Don't let them get to you. There's tons of great information to be had on this board, and only a bit of aggravation to put up with, as the price of getting to the gems.

I don't know why people thought this was a troll....well, actually I do, but the explanation would take more time than my sore wrist wants to take typing, and it doesn't have anything to do with you, le lapin, but rather with the long history of posts on this board...but do send your daughter to Antibes, keeping in mind that petty theft is probably as common, if not more, in the Riviera area than it is in Paris.

I would look at the programs offered in Paris and Antibes, and if they both look worthwhile I would have your daughter learn a little about both places and make the decision herself. I was in Antibes many years ago and loved the old town and the walk along the water by the port. The area is filled with things your daughter won't find at home and is close to many interesting towns on the Cote d'Azur. If it appeals to her more than summer in the city of Paris, then it sounds good to me. All other things being equal, it would be hard to go wrong either way.

I wouldn't consider either place to be any more dangerous than a city in the U.S. Obviously your daughter needs to learn to be cautious wherever she travels.

I spent 6 months in Paris, and went down to the Riviera for a vacation. I did not feel unsafe at all in either place, but uncomfortable with some of the looks and comments I had from the french guys. Make sure your daughter knows not to make eye contact with any men on the streets/trains etc - not only to Europeans consider it rude to look at strangers (they all look at the ground/window in trains) but with men, it's like giving an invitation. That said, France is just as safe as the States, so just take the same precautions you would sending her to any good-sized city.
As far as which area - Paris is a must to see at least once in life, but I would've much preferred to have lived in the South of France for a time - it's so much warmer and friendlier

thank you, Suze, StCirq, and Nikki,

I appreciate your comments and help, although i would still like to know what troll means!

My problem is I don't know, nor does my daughter, what the difference is between the two places. she is 15 right now, but will be 16 when she goes. I feel she doesn't really know yet, what she wants.

To me Paris is ancient, historical, and has so much culture and she has no idea. I don't either because I was only there for two days, years ago but I got a glimpse. She thinks because everyone( here) and in the media says "Paris", then she wants to be somewhere else. Of course, that is an aspect of her that I admire, but also an aspect in her naivette, to think Paris is equilivant to MTV or other overly commercialized, consumerized, aspects of our culuture.

I know nothing of Antibes, and I've tried to research but i must not be very good at finding the right sights. Can you suggest some? I feel Antibes would be a place where she would not be comfortable.

She loves to read. Salinger is her absolute favorite, as is Kurt Vonnegut, She is not a trivial person but she is quite sardonic. But, she suffers from the dichotomy of intellectual and realistic worlds. This will be a great awakening for her. And this is my wish for her; to begin to take her ideals into an older world place and integrate them and stretch and grow. This is also her wish for herself which is why she says she doesn't want to go to a place that is so 'popular'. What does Antibes have to offer in this regard?

Am I asking too much from you? I apologize. It was so good for me to see that so many people are still traveling to Europe and especially to France with all that has been going on in our country. I really did believe that I was being niave in letting my daughter go. Many,many, people have questioned our intent at this time in the U.S. and world difficulties and have cautioned us against it.

I am not one to adhere to that type of fear so please do not address your responses soley to that concern. I allowed my daughter to fly to DC after September 11 on a class trip. And her older brothers have flown numerous times within the US since.

But, there is a huge difference to me in sending a young adult (o.k my youngest child) so far away. I can so much appreciate because I cannot comprehend sending a child a few years older to fight in a war.

Perhaps, sending is the wrong word. Maybe, having a child go off to war is a better description.

My apologies, I don't know how to reconcile the differences. There simply are no words.

Has your daughter come up with Antibes because there is a program she is considering there, or is it just a place she would like to travel to? I am a little confused about the purpose of this trip. Is it an organized program or just an independent month with your teenage daughter out on her own? You don't give your daughter's age, but if she is still a high school student I would be much less likely to worry about the trip if it were the former. Why do you think she would be uncomfortable in Antibes?

A troll, by the way, is used by people on this message board to describe a person who posts a message which is not a serious inquiry, which is probably designed to stir people up.

Le lapin,

Is she going alone or with a group? My dumb question, but you have not indicated either. If with a group take Paris. If alone, no comment.

In my six months in Paris, I did learn and grow in a lot of ways - it is great for that. There are so many different cultures there (like Toronto - i don't know what US city to compare it to; maybe NY?), and it is an older world, full of history. But all of France is good for that too.
To give you an idea, choosing between Paris and Antibes would be like choosing between New York and a mid-sized California coastal community. Then, to both, add the history, French/European culture, and beautiful landscape/buildings.

I would feel safer sending my daughter to Antibes. There are far fewer gypsy types down there than in Paris. You may look into a Catholic boarding school in the south of France. The sisters will look after your girl very well and keep her away from trouble( unsavory men). I have heard of horror stories about young and naive girls falling prey to seductive men from North Africa. They swoon these American girls(especially the plump ones, and these days most American girls are beyond plump) and lead then astray.
If you want your girl to have a French language experience have you thought about Quebec. There are many convents still in Canada that might provide your daughter with a good education and offer her an environment free from the distraction of boys. You might sleep better knowing she is in good hands with the sisters.