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Lady Gaza posted:I'm going to Finland, specifically Ylläs, over Christmas. I know it's going to be very cold, about -15C I think, so I've got lots of warm clothes. Has anyone been there or anywhere similar in the Arctic Circle? Any tips? Hopefully will be seeing the Northern Lights, I'm wondering if my camera will hold up in those temperatures. It's going to be so very very dark, enjoy. Keep your feet dry, dress in layers to keep warm, drink lots of water to stay hydrated, and the camera will have abysmal battery life outdoors. Lots of wintery activities available. The place should have tons of young seasonal workers with good English skills.
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Nov 12, 2011 16:10
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DanTheFryingPan posted:It's going to be so very very dark, enjoy. Keep your feet dry, dress in layers to keep warm, drink lots of water to stay hydrated, and the camera will have abysmal battery life outdoors. Lots of wintery activities available. The place should have tons of young seasonal workers with good English skills. I was curious and you might know—I see this place is a ski resort, but how does that work if they only get like 2 hours of daylight a day from like mid-November until mid-January? Do they have stadium lights on the piste, and no one skis off piste or something (and then they'd only have like, two pistes or something and it's super expensive?)? Or is it shut in the middle of winter and people only go there in fall/winter and winter/spring transitions?
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Nov 16, 2011 17:01
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Saladman posted:I was curious and you might know—I see this place is a ski resort, but how does that work if they only get like 2 hours of daylight a day from like mid-November until mid-January? Do they have stadium lights on the piste, and no one skis off piste or something (and then they'd only have like, two pistes or something and it's super expensive?)? Or is it shut in the middle of winter and people only go there in fall/winter and winter/spring transitions? Midwinter is definitely high season for the resorts, and they have massive lights covering every (or almost every) piste.
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Nov 20, 2011 13:03
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Hello goons! For Christmas I'm getting a trip to Europe as a present and would like advice. We would be trying to head out there around the middle of February and money would (mostly) be no object. My shortlist so far is Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Faroe Islands or Germany. I really hate clubbing and winter sports (like skiing), so I'm not really interested in places where this is the main attraction. Neither of us can drive, so it has to be somewhere with some kind of public transport. We're both into art, food, bushcraft and metal, but I'm a bit worried about accidentally ending up at a nationalist rally if we go to an impromptu metal concert. Edit: Also being an arty fart I'd be interested in doing some plein air painting, if anyone has experience of doing this in Northern Europe. Rolled Cabbage fucked around with this message at 10:44 on Nov 24, 2011 |
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Nov 24, 2011 10:35
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Rolled Cabbage posted:Hello goons! http://vimeo.com/12236680 That's really all the motivation you need to go there.
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Nov 24, 2011 10:41
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Rolled Cabbage posted:Hello goons! From what I know about metal and nationalism in (most of) Europe, they don't overlap. Don't know much about the Scandinavian scene but still I think you are exaggerating this issue.
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Nov 24, 2011 23:54
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Rolled Cabbage posted:Hello goons! I'd say Sweden, and maybe visit Norway for metal. It's going to be cold and dark. There's big festivals in Germany but they are in the summer. Iceland or the Faroe Islands would be too hard to get around without a car imo, but Skandies or Germany would be OK. If you're not driving I'd look to see if you can get on a tour, they mainly run during tourist season though (=summer).
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Nov 26, 2011 01:58
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I'm going to Thessaloniki, Greece for a week on last minute plans, and I was wondering if there's anybody here who could recommend something.
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Dec 1, 2011 23:46
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Groda posted:I'm going to Thessaloniki, Greece for a week on last minute plans, and I was wondering if there's anybody here who could recommend something. There is the Mount Athos not far from there: a self-governed monastic state formed by 20 orthodox monasteries. Also you have a lot of medieval byzantine monuments in the city itself. Lots of history geek stuff basically 
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Dec 2, 2011 10:26
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Doctor Malaver posted:From what I know about metal and nationalism in (most of) Europe, they don't overlap. Don't know much about the Scandinavian scene but still I think you are exaggerating this issue. The overlap would be in Slavic Europe, innit? In Scandinavia the worst you can say about metal socially is that it's hillbilly music. Helsinki and Stockholm will both be nice enough in February, not too much snow but the wind from the sea can be a bitch. I infinitely prefer them in the summer, but there's a certain charm to the darkness too. Berlin is a much more interesting city than anywhere in Scandinavia obviously though.
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Dec 2, 2011 15:30
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Chikimiki posted:There is the Mount Athos not far from there: a self-governed monastic state formed by 20 orthodox monasteries. Also you have a lot of medieval byzantine monuments in the city itself. Lots of history geek stuff basically Thank you very much! This is exactly what I'm in to.
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Dec 3, 2011 00:16
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Ras Het posted:The overlap would be in Slavic Europe, innit? In Scandinavia the worst you can say about metal socially is that it's hillbilly music. Not at all. I haven't heard of a single nationalist-metal band in the entire Balkans. In these parts the worst you could say would be that it's music for drunk unkempt teenagers.
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Dec 3, 2011 01:33
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My family (3-adults) will be travelling to Switzerland, then France, this coming MAy. I lived in Switzerland for five years (1970-75) and this is my first time back. Because of job constraints, we've got two weeks. My wife is enthusiastic about Paris, but not so much about Zurich; we'll have five nights in Zurich starting the middle of May, then will take the train to Paris for the remaining 6-days and fly back to the US from there. I'm trying to keep it relatively loose even so. I'm renting a Renault Scenic in ZH as we'll be visiting my old neighborhood (farm country, really) and some old known spots and at least one old friend, all off mass transit. My only really ambitious plan/trip is from Zurich to Interlaken to the world's highest train station at the Jungfraujoch - this would be a good 12-hour day but it's a view everyone should see once in their life (if it ain't raining and fog - a crapshoot) other than that it's wander Zurich, site-see Roman ruins at Augusta Raurica and try to get to Luzern (both are within an hour of Zurich). Then a train to Paris. My wife wants to see the usual touristy stuff, all of which is Metro-accessible (wow. House of Chanel.) If things settle down she's interested in a day trip to London just for the fun of riding the Chunnel. I was surprised that this actually seems like a feasible day trip. I have four questions: I saw mention of doing some paperwork with AAA for an international permit. Is this required, or do I need something else? I have an agent setting up the flight.hotel/car rental ( I could not get a better deal myself) but would rather deal with this on my own. The other is about mobile phones. I have a company phone and so does my wife, so I can't alter them (i.e. add sim cards) or use them with roaming (company would poo poo - they get the bill). The only one that owns a smartphone is my 18-YO son - an iPhone4. There seem to be a ton of options, from renting one there, to buying an off-plan phone and keeping it in airplane mode & using only Skype...I'm interested in anyone's real-world experience with this. Frankly, if some emergency blows up back home while I'm overseas there isn't poo poo I can do about it anyway, so I'd just as well not have a phone, period - also, I don't own a laptop (again, company issue - verboten) but it seems to me the cheapest option is to buy a cheap netbook & use wifi when & where I can. I don't expect the three of us to go our separate ways, but, back in the olden days before cellphones existed, we got along just fine by setting times & rendezvous... Third: Is there a best way to obtain local currency? Aside from watching the rate - I think I would be better off getting my Swiss francs & Euros (for smaller transactions) here in Philadelphia before I leave...where would one go in the US to get foreign currency? ,,,last: are there any issues with using credit cards for major transactions? Remember, you're dealing with a fossil who hasn't been in Europe since 1977, and I was 14 then... Sorry 'bout the great wall 'o text. 
PainterofCrap fucked around with this message at 06:26 on Dec 4, 2011 |
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Dec 4, 2011 06:21
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PainterofCrap posted:Your PA DL will be fine, you only need a Euro DL if you're here for more than a year. I rented in Switzerland with mine no probs. Phones? The roaming rates between countries (especially Switzerland) suck balls so honestly the most convenient thing (if it's possible) would probably be to just leave $50 with your accounts person and tell them that you'll need to send a few texts while in Europe but you'll pay. If you're really set on getting your cash in the States, you can order it from your bank. But depending on your bank (have you checked their foreign ATM charges?), unless you're really certain the currency markets will go one way or the other, don't bother getting a bunch in advance (a couple hundred of each will take care of you in airports and until you can find an ATM). The rates you'll get from ATMs are pretty good. For a country known for its banks, they sure don't have many ATMs though. So get a fair good whack of cash when you go and don't worry about keeping small change in Switzerland, all shops will accept 100, 200, 500 and 1000 franc notes without batting an eye. 50 euro notes are the biggest normally used in France however. Just about every sit-down restaurant, hotel, department store or tourist attraction will accept Visa and/or Mastercard. Little shops where you buy a coke and a newspaper, get a sandwich to go, taxis (ruinously expensive in Switzerland, btw), and possibly some boutique shops won't. You'll have no trouble if you have a chip and PIN card, these are preferred. Make sure your CC and debit card PINs are 4 digits.
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Dec 4, 2011 13:27
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PainterofCrap posted:The other is about mobile phones. I have a company phone and so does my wife, so I can't alter them (i.e. add sim cards) or use them with roaming (company would poo poo - they get the bill). The only one that owns a smartphone is my 18-YO son - an iPhone4. There seem to be a ton of options, from renting one there, to buying an off-plan phone and keeping it in airplane mode & using only Skype...I'm interested in anyone's real-world experience with this. Get a regular mobile, and purchase local SIM cards. It's a vanishingly small portion of your total expenses and just makes things so much easier. Here in Sweden, a new, unlocked GSM mobile is as little as $40 (even with our 25% VAT). If you get it in the US, make sure it's explicitly tri-band or quad-band. Everybody should have a burner. Don't worry about planning ahead for the local currencies. ATMs and your debit card will work just fine. Compare your banks' international rates if you have cards from several. However, contrary to greazeball's good advice, I'd have to say you in general can't count on the PIN code working with merchants' card machines and American credit/debit cards. You'll just have to sign. This can really suck with, for example, rail ticket machines. I've never needed an international driver's license--neither for car rental or for the cops. AAA even told me that it'd be unnecessary for most of Europe when I got my first one. I would [and did] get one anyway, though.
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Dec 4, 2011 19:39
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Thank you both for the valuable advice! I am somewhat ignorant of SIM cards. It appears that I could buy an unlocked GSM phone now, on eBay, and then buy a SIM card when I arrive in Switzerland...that will have an assigned number? And minutes? Or are these options when buying a card? Sorry if this is a derail, but it is really the only thing I'm truly flummoxed about.  (edit) yeah, looks like I could also buy a SIM card for about $70 that would be good in CH, so I could have a phone ready to go before I land. Not sure it would work in France, though...maybe buy another SIM card there? PainterofCrap fucked around with this message at 04:14 on Dec 5, 2011 |
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Dec 5, 2011 04:08
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PainterofCrap posted:Thank you both for the valuable advice! I don't know about switzerland but in Germany you can just buy a SIM card for 10 euro (with 10 euro of credit on it) that you activate online and it has a number already. If you're paying for the SIM card you're doing it wrong, most carriers only charge the cost of the initial credit.
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Dec 5, 2011 05:15
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^What carrier? Goddamn Vodafone.PainterofCrap posted:phonez I bought an unlocked quad-band GSM phone off these very same forums a few years back (ca. 2007) for some study and travel through Europe and picked up a local SIM card from a Vodafone shop and ran it on a pay-as-you-go plan for months. Probably wasn't the cheapest route, but for convenience and immediacy, it was great. However, after heading back there earlier this year, I found that it was actually cheaper to buy a brand new goddamn phone. If you've ever seen The Wire you'll know what I mean by a "burner." I brought my old phone, same one from 2k7, to a shop there and was told my old SIM had expired. No problem, gimme a new one. I was then informed that I was free to use my own phone and buy the SIM card separately, but that it would cost me 18E for the card, and the card would only come pre-loaded with 5E worth of credit. So the card itself, 13E, plus the 5E free credit. I was THEN told that the cheapest phone in the store was 19E and came pre-loaded with 15E worth of credit, plus the new SIM card. So phone + SIM = 4E, new credit (and more than I needed for a short 2 week visit) for 15E. You can bet your rear end I paid the "extra" Euro. Wasteful? Yep. But that's the way the cookie crumbled. And it was cheap. Note: Phone is seen here: http://europe.nokia.com/find-products/devices/nokia-1800/specifications Not a smartphone by a long shot, but you can call and text and the ballin' flashlight saved me bumbling around hostels at night.
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Dec 5, 2011 05:17
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FaceEater posted:I was THEN told that the cheapest phone in the store was 19E and came pre-loaded with 15E worth of credit, plus the new SIM card. So phone + SIM = 4E, new credit (and more than I needed for a short 2 week visit) for 15E. Fantastic. It looks to be coming down to this for me. In my son's case, I think his iPhone4 is 800/1600 GSM compatible; if so, buying a temporary travel plan from his provider (ATT) seems to be the way to go. My wife has a netbook, so that may cover e-mail via wifi.
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Dec 5, 2011 05:39
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greazeball posted:You'll have no trouble if you have a chip and PIN card, these are preferred. Make sure your CC and debit card PINs are 4 digits. I agree with the rest (except you will never see a 500 CHF note since they haven't been printed in like 15 years) except this; a six digit PIN is fine. I have a 6 digit pin which I use all the time for everything and I have literally never encountered a problem in mover than 2 years of living in Switzerland. However, as you're an American, your credit/debit card will NOT have a pin, and a LARGE number of restaurants, shops, etc, do not accept cards without PINs. Most ATMs (but not all ATMs) do accept PIN-less cards. Also note that you can spend Euros essentially everywhere in Switzerland, although it's worth getting some of the franc, as they usually round somewhat unfavorably. Also Jungfraujoch is expensive as poo poo (~$200pp) so if you're not quite wealthy, I would definitely skip it. It's not mindblowing or even any better at all than the Aiguille du Midi at Chamonix (which is 1/5th the price). If you do have $1000 to spend on a day trip, it's pretty nice (clear weather pending).
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Dec 6, 2011 00:18
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PainterofCrap posted:Fantastic. It looks to be coming down to this for me. Make sure your provider provides the microSIM an iPhone 4 needs (and that his iPhone 4 is UNLOCKED, not just jailbroken). You can cut a SIM into a microSIM without too much hassle, but it's easier to just buy the microsim straight out.
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Dec 6, 2011 00:19
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I booked a Standard Eurostar ticket online. When it came time to select my seat, I was able to choose one in a Standard Premier cabin. Is this normal?
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Dec 6, 2011 01:58
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Saladman posted:I agree with the rest (except you will never see a 500 CHF note since they haven't been printed in like 15 years) except this; a six digit PIN is fine. I have a 6 digit pin which I use all the time for everything and I have literally never encountered a problem in mover than 2 years of living in Switzerland. My debit/credit card has a 4-digit PIN. The regular CC I carry does not. Saladman posted:Also Jungfraujoch is expensive as poo poo (~$200pp) so if you're not quite wealthy, I would definitely skip it. It's not mindblowing or even any better at all than the Aiguille du Midi at Chamonix (which is 1/5th the price). If you do have $1000 to spend on a day trip, it's pretty nice (clear weather pending). Thanks! I have to check that pricing again. Chamonix is too far on my time. Pilatus looks like a good alternative at less than $100/person, and it's half the distance of Interlaken. (edit) crap, you're right. $215/pp. PainterofCrap fucked around with this message at 03:11 on Dec 6, 2011 |
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Dec 6, 2011 03:00
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My wife and I are planning a trip for June that will be ~3 weeks. We will be flying in and out of Paris. I'm havin a hard time deciding on a general plan for the trip. We want to spend maybe 4 days in Paris but then get out and do something else the rest of the time. I'm really into food and wine and countryside, so is she, but I also kind of want to do the "hit up 2-3 big cities" kind of trip. We have friends in Amsterdam, and my wife spent a few months in Annecy, so our two general plans are either 1) Check out Paris. Train to Brussels/Ghent for a bit. Train to Amsterdam. Back to Paris. 2) Check out Paris. Rent car/take trains to Annecy/Geneva. Then southern France or head across the country in the general direction of Bordeaux, then back to Paris. I am leaning toward #2 because it seems more relaxing and full of food and wine and pretty views. But I also worry that it may get boring because neither of us know what kind of stuff to see in Sourhern/Central France and our combined French skills are rudimentary at best. Any really cool poo poo to do? Is that plan dumb? Better to do Benelux? Thanks.
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Dec 6, 2011 05:31
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While this doesn't fit your style of countryside and wine, it would be awesome to tour the Neolithic cave of Niaux in Ariege in southwestern France. Mind-blowing.
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Dec 6, 2011 05:48
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I should mention that I also love really old poo poo. That sounds right up my alley. Thanks.
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Dec 6, 2011 05:53
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Sub Par posted:My wife and I are planning a trip for June that will be ~3 weeks. We will be flying in and out of Paris. I'm havin a hard time deciding on a general plan for the trip. We want to spend maybe 4 days in Paris but then get out and do something else the rest of the time. The first option is the easiest one I'd say, since rail is very developed in that area. Your second option is harder, since going to Annecy is already difficult, and then heading in the direction of Bordeaux (which is on the other side of the country, mind you) is even more - central France is a very rural mountaneous area, so travel is very slow, and all TGV lines run through Paris.  I'd recommend you to check out the area in between Paris and Annecy, since you have nice cities (small ones like Dijon or bigger ones like Lyon) and wine producing countrysides - the Rhône valley south of Lyon and the Bourgogne region around Dijon, namely. Also, you have a TGV connection to Paris. Otherwise, there is also the Loire valley - and the cities of Orléans, Tours, Angers and Nantes along the river - that has some nice wine and a big load of amazing manor houses. Also, word of advice for Paris: while it is a very pretty city, it still remains one of the biggest urban areas in Europe along with all the problems. So be careful if an area or people seem sketchy, especially in the Metro, and be aware of tourist traps. It's not the Bronx of course, but it's not Norway either.
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Dec 6, 2011 11:10
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PainterofCrap posted:My debit/credit card has a 4-digit PIN. The regular CC I carry does not. Pilatus is a good alternative. Keep in mind also that Switzerland has probably the worst public transportation service in the world. If there are 4 of you, it will be about 10-20% as expensive to drive instead of taking public transit. E: You might already know that, but I'm not sure the SBB/CFF was as much of an almost-parody-worthy ripoff in the 70s as it is today. VVVV My "worst public transit" is exclusively re: the price of taking the train vs. price of driving and what a huge disparity it is; the service is good if you have a money tree (except that it shuts down at midnight and can leave you stranded). It is literally cheaper for one person to drive a humvee across Switzerland than it is to take the train. What's especially offensive is that the Swiss charge tourists twice the price they charge locals for train tickets, so they're twice of the already-insane Swiss price. (the halbtax is, essentially, just a 'gently caress tourists' card, since all Swiss residents have them and tourists can't get like one month/one week halftax cards.) (For reference, a train ticket from where I live to Geneva Airport, a 45 minute train ride, is $26 pp, one way. The equivalent price of gas for me to get there is $6, one way.) Rant off, but seriously Swiss public transit is pretty messed up. I've never looked back after I bought a car after taking public transit for a year. If you are traveling in Switzerland with more than one person, get a car, is the moral of the story. I've lived in Switzerland for a few years now, and most Swiss don't seem to notice how hosed it is until they get a car and realize how much cheaper it is to drive. Again, Jungfrau is beautiful but it's not $220pp beautiful. Saladman fucked around with this message at 20:08 on Dec 6, 2011 |
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Dec 6, 2011 16:50
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Saladman posted:Pilatus is a good alternative. Being Swiss I can't agree with this. Our public transport is very reliable and always on time and it goes almost everywhere in Switzerland! The price is where the problem is at, it's quite expensive I can't really argue with that and it always been like this. The problem currently is that our country is going very well economically, while everyone around us is tanking thanks to the EU. That means most of the things will be very expensive, and since we are already one of the most expensive country it all becomes quite pricey. Also anyone saying the Jungfraujoch isn't mindblowing, either hasn't ever been there or is from France  EDIT: Almost forgot! If you want to know any train price just go to http://www.cff.ch you can enter your destination and it'll tell you the price times etc... 1 picture, thousand words etc.. 
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Dec 6, 2011 18:23
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Going to support the Swiss mass transport. While expensive, it literally has no match in Europe, the railway system is the most frequent and reliable I've ever seen. Also if anyone plans a longer stay and more trips in Switzerland, I would suggest just outright getting halbtax. Mine paid off on the third trip, one of them being Junfraujoch though. Its 150 franks I think. Everything here is very expensive, but worth it, especially the tourist services. You should always ask at train station for combined tickets and day trip discounts. It’s really worth it in cases like mine when you come from the eastern European Balkan reality of a tight budget. Also last weekend I did Zermatt and Klein Matterhorn so that’s also a possibility if you want appreciate the Alps at their best. Also mind blown.
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Dec 6, 2011 21:36
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My family lived in CH for five years...and we never once saw the Matterhorn or went to Zermatt Saw the Rheinfall about 900 times. One trip to Niagra cured me of that: the Rheinfall went from awesome to...picturesque (There is a great vantage point about 1/3 the way down that I wish Niagra had, though). The comments about Swiss mass transit I find shocking. As it is, I'm renting a car the whole time I'm there (five days: whoopee) but intend to take trams in Zurich. Time will tell if my wife + son heed my warnings about Paris & the Metro. I'll have at least two wallets, and nothing irreplaceable in either of them. Lightest fngers outside of Rome!
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Dec 6, 2011 23:53
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Rolled Cabbage posted:
Not sure how long you're staying, but if you like metal and want to meet a lot of people very easily, you should go on a metal cruise! http://www.tallinksilja.com/sv/cruises/special/galaxy/closeUp.htm There is also the Sweden Rock cruise, but it's later in March (I'll be going on it probably). These both leave from Stockholm and you're on the boat overnight, and there's an after party at some pub in central Stockholm (usually Anchor) if you're not too tired/hungover. Being on an enclosed, warm boat is pretty nice in the middle of winter there.
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Dec 9, 2011 00:29
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My friend and I are doing an internship in Berlin for the summer; we're spending eight to nine weeks there and the remaining three to four going exploring. Neither of us has planned a major trip before, so we're looking for help on itineraries. We are both students on a budget, so we're torn between trying to stick in one area and tearing all over to see what we want to see. Neither of us has a driver's license. Mutual Interests: Biking (though we're not good at it); cities; rock music, mostly German and Norwegian; cool weather. My Interests: Communism, especially the GDR, and WWII; vegan food; beer tastings Her Interests: Ossuaries, catacombs, etc.; Roman age through Medieval history, esp. Scotland and Ireland Work gets off early on Fridays. Our tentative schedule for Berlin weekend trips is this (though it's subject to change as festival lineups do): JUN 9 JUN 16 JUN 22-24 Hurricaine Fest JUN 30 Christopher Street Day Parade JUL 5-7 Hamburg (friend is hyped about the Beatles) JUL 13 Heidelberg Castle Lighting JUL 19-22 Koeln JUL 26-28 Prague and Kunta Hora Ossuary AUG 4 We're pretty chill about city sightseeing -- it doesn't matter if we don't catch everything, just a change of scenery is nice. Then: Denmark - 4 days. Biking around Copenhagen, visiting free city Christiania, and a day trip to Helsingør. Norway - 7 days. Two different people have invited us to couch surf in Oslo and go to shows together. We may want to go at a different time, because if there's a chance to see our band-of-the-now live, we're on it. Then, taking the train up to Bergen, seeing the fjords, and camping a bit. Maybe visit Stavanger if interesting things are going on there (who knows what odds.) Ireland - 7 days. My friend really wants to see Newgrange Catacombs, I'd like to spend a few days in Dublin, and it'd be nice to check out the Aran Islands or another historical site. Amsterdam - 3 days. Promised a friend we'd really live it up here. Although it sounds a bit tamer than that, also probably fun to bike through. Paris and day trips - 5 days. We have an unoccupied mansion to crash in, so might as well see some catacombs and palaces and brush up on our French! Versailles would be a good day trip, not sure about the others. We were also thinking about Budapest and Vienna, because they're both beautiful cities, but I'm not sure how much there is to do there compared to other destinations and/or how touristy they'll be (not that we've been really trying to go off-track.) I'm sort of leery about the amount of cross-ocean flights we're taking for budget reasons, but on the other hand, it's not like we'll have a chance to go back for a long while. Thoughts? Saeku fucked around with this message at 15:14 on Dec 9, 2011 |
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Dec 9, 2011 15:00
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Saeku posted:
I don't know if you've been to London before, but I would definitely recommend London over spending a few days in Dublin. When you're in Ireland check out the south west of it (Cork, Kerry) instead of Dublin. Also you say you're on a budget, and as you'll be staying in Berlin, check out the Schönes Wochenende train tickets, they're a very cheap way of getting around Germany for city trips on weekends. You have also chosen some of the most expensive places in Europe, especially with all the time you'll spend in Scandinavia. Check out Skyscanner.net and start booking trips on budget airlines in advance. Learn their rules, avoid check-in luggage to avoid their extra charges and things like that. sweek0 fucked around with this message at 16:34 on Dec 9, 2011 |
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Dec 9, 2011 15:26
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Thanks very much for the advice, sweek0. I was thinking free lodging/camping in Norway and the empty house in Paris would offset a bit of the costs. Maybe we won't do Denmark. I'm a bit wary of going rural to the cheaper interesting destinations, because I'm Indian and we both get seen as GLBT a lot. Kraków, Prague, or Budapest would be safe and more economical maybe.
Saeku fucked around with this message at 15:50 on Dec 9, 2011 |
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Dec 9, 2011 15:48
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Budapest is amazing and I could've spent forever there, but it's a deceptively long train ride from Berlin. Unless you were going overnight it'd probably be a full day of sitting on a train to get there.
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Dec 10, 2011 03:10
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I went from Berlin -> Prague -> Budapest a few weeks ago. I'd recommend breaking the trip up with a few days in Prague as as the above poster said, its a long trip.
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Dec 10, 2011 03:28
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Saeku posted:JUL 5-7 Hamburg (friend is hyped about the Beatles) The only Beatles thing there is in Hamburg is the Beatles museum (pretty fun museum actually), and that's about it. The main attraction of Hamburg is actually the red light district (where that museum is conveniently situated), though the shoddy bars the Beatles played in there still do exist (more or less).
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Dec 12, 2011 22:58
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I'm going to Germany and Poland from Christmas to New Years. I want to bring my laptop and my girlfriend wants to bring her hairdryer and curler. Whats the best adapter to buy and should I buy a converter? After doing a little research, some sites say I should buy a converter but others say that most electronics are compatible with the higher voltages anyway. There are plenty of good adapters on amazon, but I'm having trouble finding a reliable converter. Most of the converters on amazon have really mixed reviews and say they are not for hairdryers. Can anyone give me advice from personal experience?
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Dec 14, 2011 01:14
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| # ? May 12, 2024 21:09 |
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yoslow posted:I'm going to Germany and Poland from Christmas to New Years. I want to bring my laptop and my girlfriend wants to bring her hairdryer and curler. Whats the best adapter to buy and should I buy a converter? After doing a little research, some sites say I should buy a converter but others say that most electronics are compatible with the higher voltages anyway. There are plenty of good adapters on amazon, but I'm having trouble finding a reliable converter. Most of the converters on amazon have really mixed reviews and say they are not for hairdryers. Can anyone give me advice from personal experience? Converters are terrible unless you want to spend real money getting one with a decent wattage rating that will work for a high-power item like a hairdryer. Absolutely do not get a converter (> $50, i.e. probably more than the hairdryer itself cost) . Hairdryers often have a switch to go from 120V (US) to 220-230V (Europe). If her hairdryer doesn't have that, I'd buy a new one, or use the ones that come in hotels. My housemate bought 2 cheap converters when he moved here, and it was a brief adventure in the converters shorting out and dying within about 2 days of use. Your laptop will 99% be already good to go in Europe, unless you have some terrible knockoff product you bought on the streets of NYC. The power supply will say on it what voltages it supports. Germany and Poland have the same "schuko" plug, so all you need is one or two adaptors from US to Schuko (and possibly a new hairdryer). Saladman fucked around with this message at 09:10 on Dec 14, 2011 |
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Dec 14, 2011 09:08
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