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Ok, got a draft of my Greece itinerary: Sunday, August 10, 2014 Athens Arrive at 10:15 AM Monday, August 11, 2014 Athens Tuesday, August 12, 2014 Delphi (or Galaxidi) Wednesday, August 13, 2014 Meteora Thursday, August 14, 2014 Corfu Friday, August 15, 2014 Corfu Saturday, August 16, 2014 Naupactus or Patras? Sunday, August 17, 2014 Kalamata Monday, August 18, 2014 Epidavros Tuesday, August 19, 2014 Paros Wednesday, August 20, 2014 Mykonos Thursday, August 21, 2014 Naxos Friday, August 22, 2014 Naxos Saturday, August 23, 2014 Santorini Sunday, August 24, 2014 Santorini Monday, August 25, 2014 Santorini Tuesday, August 26, 2014 Santorini Wednesday, August 27, 2014 Heraklion (Crete) Thursday, August 28, 2014 Elafonissi (Crete) Friday, August 29, 2014 Chainia (Crete) Saturday, August 30, 2014 Heraklion (Crete) Sunday, August 31, 2014 Athens Monday, September 01, 2014 Athens The destination is where I'll be spending the night. Got a bit of a ? for the 16th, Google Maps says taking the ferry off Corfu and driving all the way to the north end of Peloponnese is over 5 hours. But depending on the ferry schedule and traffic conditions, maybe I should spend a night somewhere in between and take off a night somewhere else?
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May 24, 2014 01:10
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| # ? May 14, 2024 02:11 |
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Sitting in Dulles Airport waiting for my flight to Prague to board 
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May 24, 2014 01:19
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Just tried Word Lens. Definitely helpful, although still somewhat cryptic. Probably works better on some signs than others. Edit: Sorry for anyone on small screens. I don't seem to be able to edit the image to make it smaller, nor can I put it behind a -timg- tag. Am I missing something or is there really no way for me to edit this?
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May 24, 2014 10:16
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Timg tags work with links rather than attachments.
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May 24, 2014 19:46
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Waci posted:Timg tags work with links rather than attachments. It doesn't even look like I can delete the image from the earlier post, or modify it in any way either. Irritating. Good thing we're at the start of a new page!
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May 24, 2014 21:07
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It's not stupidly big, I wouldn't worry about it too much 
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May 24, 2014 22:51
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Where do you guys stay when you visit London? My wife and I are going in late-ish June so she can do dissertation research, and we're having a hell of a time finding anything that isn't $150/night or so. We're willing to do an out-of-the-way area like Richmond or something if it's connected by tube (but not overground, because that becomes prohibitively expensive), and we've had *some* luck searching on Airbnb, but so far, we're not finding much. Basically, if anyone can recommend a neighborhood that's worked for them in the past, I'd love to hear your ideas.
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May 27, 2014 02:13
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Any recommendations for Goonstadam and Rotterdam? It seems like AirBNB studios give the best value compared to hostels and lower end hotels. 707 Euro for Ibis, city centre, should be ok right? caberham fucked around with this message at 05:23 on May 27, 2014 |
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May 27, 2014 05:14
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tvb posted:Where do you guys stay when you visit London? edit: if you're late enough in June, you might be able to rent a room in the student accommodation of one of the many universities. UCL have rooms available from the 23rd at £57/$85 for two per night. http://www.ucl.ac.uk/residences edit 2: try http://www.easyhotel.com/ edit 3: priceline.com has a lot of cheaper accomodation (starting at $53). Obviously most of the cheaper stuff is lacking glamour... Pablo Bluth fucked around with this message at 08:29 on May 27, 2014 |
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May 27, 2014 07:59
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caberham posted:Any recommendations for Goonstadam and Rotterdam? It seems like AirBNB studios give the best value compared to hostels and lower end hotels. Easyhotel in Rotterdam is pretty cheap (€49) and in a good location. I've never stayed there myself but the price/location is right.
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May 27, 2014 10:28
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Omits-Bagels posted:I believe you'll still have to get a long-term tourist visa. I honestly have no idea about the protocol for a spouse of a foreign grad student. You might want to call the French consulate. I've heard (but take this with a grain of salt) that the French govt wants to see $30k in the bank before they'll grant you one. The school told that to my wife, we have to show 30k before we can apply for our visas. I find that weird, but I understand they don't want us to be a drain on the economy. I am applying for a long term visa, and apparently I have to fill the whole thing out in French. Right now I am only on beginner lessons, I am hoping Google Translate is acceptable to use.
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May 27, 2014 15:26
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Flaggy posted:The school told that to my wife, we have to show 30k before we can apply for our visas. I find that weird, but I understand they don't want us to be a drain on the economy. I am applying for a long term visa, and apparently I have to fill the whole thing out in French. Right now I am only on beginner lessons, I am hoping Google Translate is acceptable to use. Don't do this, find someone who actually speaks French to help you fill out the forms. French bureaucracy is enough of a hell to deal with for starters, you're going to have a hell of a time if you're filling out forms with Google translate, which is borderline unintelligible for anything but the simplest of sentences.
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May 27, 2014 16:48
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HookShot posted:Don't do this, find someone who actually speaks French to help you fill out the forms. French bureaucracy is enough of a hell to deal with for starters, you're going to have a hell of a time if you're filling out forms with Google translate, which is borderline unintelligible for anything but the simplest of sentences. I was joking, I was looking online for a site that has people looking to help others, any suggestions?
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May 27, 2014 16:51
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I'm looking for suggestions for a 2-3 day trip within Netherlands or possibly Belgium. We currently live in Amsterdam and would like to see some nature for a change. Preferably by train. One of the ideas is the Terschelling island but it's mostly sold out for the weekend - there are some unattractive and not very cheap hotels left (€130-160 for a double). Any other suggestions? And if we pick Terschelling after all, will it be interesting enough for two days of hiking/cycling?
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May 27, 2014 22:41
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tvb posted:Where do you guys stay when you visit London? Check out the Qbic in Whitechapel. Cheapish, great location and not your standard bland travel lodge fair.
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May 27, 2014 23:52
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So I'm just looking at couch surfing for a place to stay in Goonstadam.quote:I only have one bed (a double bed) and no other sleeping option. That means that we will be sharing my bed - and both sleeping naked - without any sexual intentions, by the way. Man, I'm just going to stay in a hotel near Vondelpark and call it the day  Oh yeah Goonstadam gooooon meet June 28, Sunday! We got goons from different towns coming over!
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May 28, 2014 02:40
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Sergiu64 posted:Ok, got a draft of my Greece itinerary: I'd recommend adding a day to Athens on either end, since the local ruins are great and plentiful, the food is incredible, and the city is big enough that you will spend a good chunk of time moving around, especially on travel days. Santorini is beautiful and a must see, but four nights there might be overkill. It tends to be a bit overpriced compared to the other options in the islands, and the sections worth seeing are exhausting to get around with all the hills. Naxos has a fantastic beach, and good local farms so it's a bit nicer to spend more leisure time. I'd definitely prefer to reduce the number of islands, since if you are ferry hopping that gets old fast. I've only been to Naxos, Paros, and Santorini, so I'm not sure what I would suggest to cut out.
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May 28, 2014 19:28
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Wish I had time for Greece  Year 2 of my European work trip  More instant noodles and tea. This time we got to bring more black pepper and black bean sauces. Why not get this poo poo in some China town in Europe? quote:European instant noodles taste like crap! I whole heartily agree. Plus dinner in Italy starts at 8 and lots of places from 6-8 don't really serve food 
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May 29, 2014 10:58
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My family is taking a quick 10 day trip to Europe in July - 5 nights in London and 5 nights in Edinburgh is the current plan as far as I know. Anyone have a quick list of their favorite things to do in either city? We're definitely going to the Tower of London and really want to do some scotch tasting tours in Edinburgh, but are open to suggestions past that. I'm going to do some snooping back through this thread and other online sources, but I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts I'm also looking for good places to grab a beer at night.
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May 30, 2014 05:44
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Is there possibly a backpack across Europe thread or a great resource on how to do it you guys know of?
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May 30, 2014 05:58
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goodness posted:Is there possibly a backpack across Europe thread or a great resource on how to do it you guys know of? This thread is the closest thing to it, just ask your questions here and probably one or several people can answer them. First pointer: The Eurail passes are often not as good of a deal as they seem, particularly if you're doing multiple countries. In some countries (e.g. Germany) the Eurail pass is better than others (e.g. Spain). Second pointer: Unless you think you're never coming back to Europe, then try to spend more time in fewer places. Third pointer: Even if this is your one Europe trip in a lifetime, don't spend less than 2 nights in any medium-sized or major city.
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May 30, 2014 07:51
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What would be good budget for a 2 person euro hike trip. Let's say for 2 months?
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May 30, 2014 09:29
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It really depends where you are. Across the last 6 months I have averaged about Euro 250-300 per week for everything inc travel costs (just for myself). However that is with a fair amount of drinking and partying so you could definitely spend less than that. Some places like London, Paris, Amsterdam etc cost a lot more just because they are expensive cities while pretty much anywhere east of Berlin is gonna be super cheap.
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May 30, 2014 10:31
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Democratic Pirate posted:My family is taking a quick 10 day trip to Europe in July - 5 nights in London and 5 nights in Edinburgh is the current plan as far as I know. Anyone have a quick list of their favorite things to do in either city? We're definitely going to the Tower of London and really want to do some scotch tasting tours in Edinburgh, but are open to suggestions past that. I'm going to do some snooping back through this thread and other online sources, but I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts I can only speak to London. The Tower of London is cool, and I believe the ticket will get you into some other castles if you like, although they may take travel to get to. Also go see The British Museum, which is an amazing collection of plundered treasures from around the world. The British Museum is good for a full day worth of exploration, but even a dedicated history buff like me will need to take a break half-way through, so you may want to spread it out across two visits if your travel distances aren't too much. Admission is a voluntary donation, recommended around 5 bucks, so multiple visits won't break the bank. My next visit to London I'm seeing the Natural History Museum, which I'm told is excellent. I've also had the National Gallery (paintings) and the Imperial War Museum (Churchill's WWII bunker) recommended to me. I've been told Tate Modern (museum of modern art) is excellent, I've only stepped inside briefly and had to bail because I was sick on that trip so I can't speak to it myself. The two most famous churches are Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's Cathedral. Westminster Abbey was closed for Royal Wedding prep when I was last in London, but St. Paul's is a very impressive building, and the view is good if you are up for climbing a whole ton of stairs. If you want good food London has huge variety. Base the choices on your price point and what's close to you. Indian places are a good option in particular. For nightlife Soho is a popular spot. I'm more of a fan of the pubs, since I'm a fan of beer and love trying new ones. It's rare to run into a pub that only has beer you have tried, so take advantage of the huge selection. Have fun, London is a fantastic city.
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May 30, 2014 13:00
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goodness posted:What would be good budget for a 2 person euro hike trip. Let's say for 2 months? As Saros said, it's super variable since it depends on where you want to go, how much you want to travel, and what you want to do when you get to where you go. Also keep in mind that train tickets can cost money even with Eurail or InterRail (what is your citizenship?), and often it's cheaper to simply fly from place to place thanks to EasyJet, Ryanair, WizAir, etc. The railcards (IMHO) are only good if you want to see, say, France and Germany and spend a ton of time in those two countries. They're terrible for what people usually use them for, which is like "fly to Amsterdam, two days NL, two days Belgium, two days France, four days Germany, one day Switzerland, two days Italy, fly out". By hiking do you actually mean hiking or do you mean backpacking? Hiking's definitely cheaper since you can just pitch your own tent in the wilderness and cook your own food. €20/night hostel + €10/day food + average-of-€10/day travel is pretty reasonable comfort for backpacking, and then you can do half that if you're actually hiking.
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May 30, 2014 14:47
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Prague was great...wish I was still there, rather than being in Budapest. I dunno, I'm just not feeling enjoyment here like I did in Prague - when I was there, I was happy each time I headed out into the city, I took hundreds of pictures and generally had a great time. Walking around Budapest just doesn't have the same appeal, I'm having trouble getting myself out of the hostel.
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May 30, 2014 15:45
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Kylaer posted:Prague was great...wish I was still there, rather than being in Budapest. I dunno, I'm just not feeling enjoyment here like I did in Prague - when I was there, I was happy each time I headed out into the city, I took hundreds of pictures and generally had a great time. Walking around Budapest just doesn't have the same appeal, I'm having trouble getting myself out of the hostel. Wow, weird. I had an opposite experience in Budapest and Prague. Try going to the Turkish baths and the local food.
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May 30, 2014 18:08
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EgonSpengler posted:I'd recommend adding a day to Athens on either end, since the local ruins are great and plentiful, the food is incredible, and the city is big enough that you will spend a good chunk of time moving around, especially on travel days. Thanks for the advice!
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May 30, 2014 18:10
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Democratic Pirate posted:My family is taking a quick 10 day trip to Europe in July - 5 nights in London and 5 nights in Edinburgh is the current plan as far as I know. Anyone have a quick list of their favorite things to do in either city? We're definitely going to the Tower of London and really want to do some scotch tasting tours in Edinburgh, but are open to suggestions past that. I'm going to do some snooping back through this thread and other online sources, but I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts In Edinburgh, depending on the weather, I'd say the National Museum of Scotland is pretty lovely (and you can do as much as or as little as you want). The National Gallery is very central and worth a look as well. The general consensus on the Castle seems to be that it's not bad, but rather expensive. However, even if you choose not to actually go into the castle, do go up to it, since you can walk quite far up and still get a nice view over the city. Another lovely view is from the walk up to the National Monument ("Scotland's Disgrace") and around the monument itself, as well as around the observatory up there. If you have time (and the weather is nice) walking up Arthur's Seat is a fantastic walk, though sometimes rather steep. You can either walk around Arthur's seat (start from Holyrood Palace/Parliament) or you can walk past it and back down towards the city and/or university on your way back. Holyrood also lies at the end of the Royal Mile, the opposite end being the castle. If you would like to spend a day outside Edinburgh, I would recommend going on one of the tourist tours into the Highlands. I have done one tour to Loch Ness with Rabbie's (http://rabbies.com/one_day_tours_scotland_ed.asp), and they use small busses, we had a lovely driver and it was a fantastic day. We left somewhere around 8am from the Royal Mile and were back in the city (and rather tired) at around 8pm the same day. They are worth it!
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May 30, 2014 18:15
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Sergiu64 posted:Wow, weird. I had an opposite experience in Budapest and Prague. Try going to the Turkish baths and the local food. Oh, I've been enjoying the food, eating a lot of goulash and pastries, although I think the food in Prague was equally good. Haven't gone to the baths yet, but I plan on going tomorrow.
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May 30, 2014 18:46
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EgonSpengler posted:I've also had the National Gallery (paintings) and the Imperial War Museum (Churchill's WWII bunker) recommended to me.
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May 30, 2014 19:31
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I'll be going to Europe for first time in August and have never stayed in hostels before - so a question about that. The first place I'm going is Amsterdam where I'm meeting up with three people who will have gotten there a day earlier. They'll be there three nights total and I will only be there for the last two of those - is there anything odd I should do with booking hostels to make sure we're in same room? Wasn't sure if I should book separately and then just ask to be in same room when I get there or something or if we should all book the two nights together and then the three of them separately book the first night.
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May 30, 2014 20:28
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Unless you booked together you probably wont get the same room. Your only chance is to nicely email the hostel and ask them to shuffle you together well ahead of time.
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May 30, 2014 21:14
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Unless you have a private room for yourself it's quite rude to talk to each other in the room when other people might be trying to sleep. And even if you do have a private room you probably don't want to spend too much time in there because it isolates you from meeting any random people. If you want to hang out you should probably do that in the common room.
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May 30, 2014 23:08
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SubponticatePoster posted:American here, but I went to the National Gallery and it was goddamn fantastic. It's also arranged by time periods so if you're interested in a particular era it's easy to find stuff.
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May 30, 2014 23:33
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I just(!) bought a round trip ticket to Frankfurt for two weeks in Europe. I will be there for the first half of July. My plan is to get out of Germany ASAP and explore the area around Budapest, and/or see Rome. I've spent a month in South America and probably another 8 weeks traveling abroad over the last four years, I am fairly efficient and somewhat experienced at travel, but I haven't been to Europe in almost 15 years (Spain France England). Looking for advice, tips or anything else. I just needed to get out of the country for a while, my schedule is wide open at this point. Suggestions and/or detours greatly appreciated. This is my rough itinerary June 29th - Arrive in Frankfurt 7am June 30th - Monday Morning - Fly to Rome on Ryan Air ($45?) July 4th - Friday Morning - Fly to Budapest July 6th - Sunday train to Vienna (3 hrs) July 8th - Train to Prague July 12th - Fly to Frankfurt July 13th - Fly to USA (leave 1pm) 1 day Frankfurt 4 days Rome 2 days Budapest 2 days Vienna 4 days Prague 1 day Frankfurt (ish) I am thinking I should go with 5 days Rome, and a whirlwind through the east, 3 days Budapest and 3 days Prague and skip the extra last day in Frankfurt, since my flight doesn't leave until 1pm and I'm not checking luggage.
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May 31, 2014 11:21
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goodness posted:What would be good budget for a 2 person euro hike trip. Let's say for 2 months? How much money do you have? You're in a cheap part of the continent but it'd still be wise to have access to $2000
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May 31, 2014 16:40
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Hadlock posted:June 29th - Arrive in Frankfurt 7am Just as a brief word of caution in case you don't know this: "Frankfurt Hahn" and Frankfurt Airport are really rather distinct. So if you arrive at FRA and want to continue from HHN to Rome, you will have to travel between the two places: FRA → HHN In order to get from Frankfurt to "Frankfurt" Hahn (which is actually slightly closer to Luxemburg than Frankfurt), you will have to inevitably take a bus, either from Mainz (get there by S-Bahn) or directly from Frankfurt, since rail links to HHN are woefully inadequate. If you knew this already, then don't mind me, but this is something that Ryanair likes to do (It's the same for "Stockholm" Skavsta, which is near Linköping, for example).
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May 31, 2014 16:42
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Hadlock, try to catch a world cup match in Italy or Germany that is shown in a large public place, should be cool. For the itinerary, I'd just skip Vienna so you have more time for the rest, it'll be alright.
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May 31, 2014 23:21
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Heh, I'm going to watch the USA-Germany match here in Bolzano. 
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Jun 1, 2014 00:00
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