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mobby_6kl
Aug 9, 2009

by Fluffdaddy

mmkay posted:

A day or two to chill in Lucca (very near to Pisa and much nicer than it too, imo) is nice.

malder posted:

One day in Lucca, one day in Arezzo.
Lucca should be doable, Arezzo is a bit out of the way... I'd probably have to leave that for another time maybe with Florence. Just realized that Modena and Maranello are pretty close to Bologna too, dunno if I'd be able to squeeze Ferrari in there. Getting to Pisa on time isn't optional :v:

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Ferdinand Bardamu
Apr 30, 2013
I'll nth Lucca. Talk a walk along the top of the medieval walls, while drinking a cheap lambrusco wine. You'll love that memory. :)

Toxx
Aug 25, 2002
Hello

I am looking for some pointers, perhaps points of interest, or goon opinions. This March my wife and I will be travelling to Eastern/South Eastern France. This is a leisure trip. We're both really into food, potential hiking, museums, history. We chose this particular region for the scenery, regional cuisine, and proximity to Marseille. We are looking to either fly into Paris or Zurich. Paris doesn't necessarily interest either of us that much, neither of us have ever been (Just heard many times that it's over rated. We also heard the same about Rome but loved it, so I'm not sure what to think). Zurich doesn't appear to be very exciting either, but I haven't really done much research into the matter. I'm asking here in case anyone has any advice for the region, preferable spot to fly into (Coming from the US). Really anything to jump start me into my own research. Appreciate any and all information, even if it's just telling me to go somewhere else.

Honj Steak
May 31, 2013

Hi there.

Toxx posted:

Hello

I am looking for some pointers, perhaps points of interest, or goon opinions. This March my wife and I will be travelling to Eastern/South Eastern France. This is a leisure trip. We're both really into food, potential hiking, museums, history. We chose this particular region for the scenery, regional cuisine, and proximity to Marseille. We are looking to either fly into Paris or Zurich. Paris doesn't necessarily interest either of us that much, neither of us have ever been (Just heard many times that it's over rated. We also heard the same about Rome but loved it, so I'm not sure what to think). Zurich doesn't appear to be very exciting either, but I haven't really done much research into the matter. I'm asking here in case anyone has any advice for the region, preferable spot to fly into (Coming from the US). Really anything to jump start me into my own research. Appreciate any and all information, even if it's just telling me to go somewhere else.

I would say definitely Paris, simply because the train connection to Marseille is much, much better. Also Paris being overrated heavily depends on your expectations. As a city it obviously offers much more than Zürich. The main argument for Zürich is the nearby Alps, but since you liked Rome I guess you’re not opposed to city tourism.

Other arguments for Paris, would be more flight connections to anywhere in the US and it’s also probably cheaper than Zürich.

Dr. Fraiser Chain
May 18, 2004

Redlining my shit posting machine


If you don't have huge expectations for Paris I'd probably go that route. I think a lot of people build it up to be something and it turns out it's another European capital city.

Hedgehog Pie
May 19, 2012

Total fuckin' silence.
Paris is fun, but you've got to accept that it's also a bit of a shithole. I think certain tourists get caught up in the CITY OF LOVE thing and are disappointed at the hygiene/amount of coloured people. The multicultural bits are the best part of Paris btw.

Toxx
Aug 25, 2002
I actually didn't quite have all of the relevant information. The toss up between Zurich/Paris is to get to Strasbourg and then head south. Ending in Marseille isn't a necessity, but getting back to the origin airport is. I'm still not sure what to think of Paris. The reason we liked Rome was partially due to the food but the city itself seemed interesting. We did the colosseum, forum, and vatican, but generally enjoyed wandering the city. I don't have high expectations for Paris, but I also don't feel like spending more time than needed in a big dirty city. I suppose my biggest question regarding Paris is how it compares to Rome? At most I think we'd be planning 1 or 2 nights in either Paris or Zurich. My thoughts regarding Zurich were: is it actually worth stopping on such a short trip? Or is does it have anything particularly worthwhile in its proximity? For example, I was reading about Lauterbrunnen being a ~2hr train directly from the Zurich airport. Nothing is set in stone yet, we're just pretty focused on that area of France and looking for some advice that may steer us in a particular way when designing our itinerary.

Edit: Leaning towards Paris. Points of interest if just staying for a night or two? Or just do it like Rome and look at a list and pick a couple things that look fun? To clarify, the main point of interest on the trip is to explore Alsace.

Toxx fucked around with this message at 23:29 on Oct 18, 2023

mobby_6kl
Aug 9, 2009

by Fluffdaddy
I'd go with Paris, I liked it and I'm not even a huge France stan. IMO it's only an issue for someone expecting it to be like a magic romcom location and not a real place. It's pretty nice to just walk around, eat, go to a few museums, but there's like traffic and some homeless people and bird poop. Unless you're likely to come to Paris again, I would check out Sacré-Cœur, the Eiffel tower, Trocadéro square, Versailles, etc, as cliche as that is.

Haven't been to Zurich, it's closer to Alsace but would be more boring I feel. The Swiss alps are amazing though so I guess it's up to you if you'd like to spend more time that way. But it seemed like Paris would be more for for 3 our of 4 here: "We're both really into food, potential hiking, museums, history" and the rest of the trip would have enough hiking.

Rojkir
Jun 26, 2007

WARNING:I AM A FASCIST PIECE OF SHIT.
Police beatings get me hard
I'm not a big city tripper or into the whole city of love stuff nor into France, but wandering around in Paris is pretty awesome and it has some world class museums.

Chikimiki
May 14, 2009
Yeah Paris is really nice for wandering around, as the city itself (the area called "intramuros") is not that big, public transport is good and there is tons of stuff to see. Some people are indeed disappointed because, as the previous posters said, they expect some kind of plus-sized Disneyworld attraction, when it is actually one of the biggest cities in Europe (10 million inhabitants if you count the suburbs) and as such has all the problems a big city may have: grime, pollution, scams, stress, etc.
Again, know what you are getting into, but it is still very worth visiting.

Can't really speak on how it compares to Rome, but I figure it to be similar on some points such as the unique architecture, the loads of history, the chaotic atmosphere... and different on other points: Paris being more hectic, more diverse, also a bit colder (climate wise and humanly).

Also, I'd agree with mobby_6kl that it would nicely complement your trip to Alsace. Strasbourg is only a 2 hour TGV ride away from Paris.

Zurich itself is nice but boring for a tourist - no offense, it is supposedly amazing for living there, but there is very little unique to visit. The countryside is the main attraction.

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Toxx posted:

Hello

I am looking for some pointers, perhaps points of interest, or goon opinions. This March my wife and I will be travelling to Eastern/South Eastern France. This is a leisure trip. We're both really into food, potential hiking, museums, history. We chose this particular region for the scenery, regional cuisine, and proximity to Marseille. We are looking to either fly into Paris or Zurich. Paris doesn't necessarily interest either of us that much, neither of us have ever been (Just heard many times that it's over rated. We also heard the same about Rome but loved it, so I'm not sure what to think). Zurich doesn't appear to be very exciting either, but I haven't really done much research into the matter. I'm asking here in case anyone has any advice for the region, preferable spot to fly into (Coming from the US). Really anything to jump start me into my own research. Appreciate any and all information, even if it's just telling me to go somewhere else.

Zurich is my favorite city in the world, but yeah mainly for living there. There's stuff as a tourist and it's super nice and livable (e.g. all other cities' public transport are garbage in comparison, including like, Tokyo), but you are also paying approximately €1/minute that you are in the city; it is comically expensive. Apparently that's what you get if everyone earns a living wage and people prefer to buy local.

One note is that you're not going to do much potential hiking in Europe in March, unless you stay super low elevation. Everything in the Zurich/Strasbourg area above 1000m will likely still be under snow, and everything 1500m will guaranteed still be under snow, and even at plain-level you may get snow in March (maybe 20-25% odds, depending exactly where and when in March "March" is). The main ski season goes until mid-April, and there's still snow well after that.

You can get good food in any city in Western Europe with over 100k people, especially if you're just staying a week – there are good restaurants everywhere and you can only eat out so many times in a week.

You could also look at flying into Frankfurt - sometimes much cheaper than Paris, although IME Zurich tends to be the cheapest major airport in central-Western Europe. Also sometimes flying to a smaller city is cheaper, bizarrely, so also look at flying directly to Strasbourg. It's not rare that something like New York->Zurich->Stuttgart is cheaper than New York->Zurich.

Saladman fucked around with this message at 13:40 on Oct 19, 2023

Chikimiki
May 14, 2009

Saladman posted:


You could also look at flying into Frankfurt - sometimes much cheaper than Paris, although IME Zurich tends to be the cheapest major airport in central-Western Europe. Also sometimes flying to a smaller city is cheaper, bizarrely, so also look at flying directly to Strasbourg. It's not rare that something like New York->Zurich->Stuttgart is cheaper than New York->Zurich.

Yeah Frankfurt is only 2h30 away from Strasbourg, and there is a direct bus for 50€ from Lufthansa. Also look at Basel Airport, there may be some cheapish flights there.

Toxx
Aug 25, 2002
Thank you all for the feedback. I believe we are almost certainly going to do Paris for two nights.

After speaking with my wife and getting a better idea of what her plans were for the trip (I’m just excited to go honestly) It does appear as though Alsace is the focus of the trip. Any suggestions for Strasbourg, Colmar, or the region in general? It’s a shame hiking is pretty much out considering the time of year, I didn’t realize that - although I’m unsure why I didn’t, it seems quite obvious after it was mentioned. Museums or points of interest that might not be immediately obvious?

Honj Steak
May 31, 2013

Hi there.

Toxx posted:

Thank you all for the feedback. I believe we are almost certainly going to do Paris for two nights.

After speaking with my wife and getting a better idea of what her plans were for the trip (I’m just excited to go honestly) It does appear as though Alsace is the focus of the trip. Any suggestions for Strasbourg, Colmar, or the region in general? It’s a shame hiking is pretty much out considering the time of year, I didn’t realize that - although I’m unsure why I didn’t, it seems quite obvious after it was mentioned. Museums or points of interest that might not be immediately obvious?

As long as you’re not going into high mountains you can definitely hike in Alsace in March. It could even be quite decent weather, but that’s of course not guaranteed.

Entropist
Dec 1, 2007
I'm very stupid.
The Vosges west of Colmar aren't that high. I was there in early May this year and there was definitely no sign of snow (and quite nice hiking) though March may be different and can also have snow at valley level.

I don't really have suggestions there, we just drove to a different peak/forest/lake each day and hiked there and it is pretty. I was also in Colmar a long time ago, it has a beautiful old town but feels somewhat touristic. To Strasbourg I only made a day trip so I don't think I saw anything off the beaten path.

webmeister
Jan 31, 2007

The answer is, mate, because I want to do you slowly. There has to be a bit of sport in this for all of us. In the psychological battle stakes, we are stripped down and ready to go. I want to see those ashen-faced performances; I want more of them. I want to be encouraged. I want to see you squirm.
Strasbourg and Colmar are both pretty cool, there’s also Riquewihr nearby which is possibly the prettiest of the lot

Also just agreeing with what others have said about Paris - if you expect a big city with cool stuff, you won’t be disappointed. If you’re expecting the Disney or Vegas version of Paris, then yeah you’re going to be let down. Although in my experience, “<city> was a letdown” is usually code for “I wasn’t expecting so black/brown people, or that much graffiti”

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Toxx posted:

Thank you all for the feedback. I believe we are almost certainly going to do Paris for two nights.

After speaking with my wife and getting a better idea of what her plans were for the trip (I’m just excited to go honestly) It does appear as though Alsace is the focus of the trip. Any suggestions for Strasbourg, Colmar, or the region in general? It’s a shame hiking is pretty much out considering the time of year, I didn’t realize that - although I’m unsure why I didn’t, it seems quite obvious after it was mentioned. Museums or points of interest that might not be immediately obvious?

Yeah as others have said you may be able to hike in Alsace in March, especially if it’s late March. Still, spring doesn’t start until April (eg you don’t really even get buds until the first week of April) so even if it’s not snowy it wouldn’t be particularly nice. If it’s a really nice sunny day then the wine route can be nice but I’d think it would be better with a bike or car than by foot. I’ve been all over the Vosges and Alsace, and I will also say that it is MUCH better experienced with your own vehicle. Public transport to Colmar and Strasbourg is fine, but getting to places like Haut Koenigsbourg or getting between Kayserberg-Riquewihr-Ribeauvillé would be very annoying without a car. Ribeauvillé is pretty incredible and was voted most beautiful town in France at least once. Biking from Kayserberg to Selestat through the wine route would be a really nice day if the weather is good in March - there are lots of side roads between the vineyards so you don’t have to bike on the main road through the area.

Alsace north of Strasbourg sucks and can be skipped. Even supposedly the most beautiful villages like Wissembourg are mediocre and boring, at best.

If you can’t or won’t drive, then Baden-Baden is close by and easily accessible by public transport and is a great spot for an overnight trip, for both modern culture and history. Cute village and the baths themselves are nice and modernized. In case you or your wife are body shy, do note that German saunas (even in major public bathhouses) are mixed gender and nude.

E: I mean there definitely is hiking in the Vosges, but if someone was coming from a long way for like 10 days
I would not out it on anyone’s agenda, even in a better time of year. Like Gerardmer is fine if you live nearby but it’s like… very underwhelming as a mountain ski resort.

Saladman fucked around with this message at 18:15 on Oct 21, 2023

Chikimiki
May 14, 2009

Saladman posted:

Yeah as others have said you may be able to hike in Alsace in March, especially if it’s late March. Still, spring doesn’t start until April (eg you don’t really even get buds until the first week of April) so even if it’s not snowy it wouldn’t be particularly nice. If it’s a really nice sunny day then the wine route can be nice but I’d think it would be better with a bike or car than by foot. I’ve been all over the Vosges and Alsace, and I will also say that it is MUCH better experienced with your own vehicle. Public transport to Colmar and Strasbourg is fine, but getting to places like Haut Koenigsbourg or getting between Kayserberg-Riquewihr-Ribeauvillé would be very annoying without a car. Ribeauvillé is pretty incredible and was voted most beautiful town in France at least once. Biking from Kayserberg to Selestat through the wine route would be a really nice day if the weather is good in March - there are lots of side roads between the vineyards so you don’t have to bike on the main road through the area.

Alsace north of Strasbourg sucks and can be skipped. Even supposedly the most beautiful villages like Wissembourg are mediocre and boring, at best.

If you can’t or won’t drive, then Baden-Baden is close by and easily accessible by public transport and is a great spot for an overnight trip, for both modern culture and history. Cute village and the baths themselves are nice and modernized. In case you or your wife are body shy, do note that German saunas (even in major public bathhouses) are mixed gender and nude.

E: I mean there definitely is hiking in the Vosges, but if someone was coming from a long way for like 10 days
I would not out it on anyone’s agenda, even in a better time of year. Like Gerardmer is fine if you live nearby but it’s like… very underwhelming as a mountain ski resort.

As a local, I can wholeheartedly agree.
Do note that with climate change, the weather can be quite tricky: some years March was exceptionally warm and spring began very early, other years there was snow and subzero temperatures. So definitely keep a bit of flexibility in your plans.

Dog on Fire
Oct 2, 2004

This might be a bit of a silly question, but what about that bedbug situation in Paris right now? Has there been a noticable raise or does it seem to be on the same level as it's always been in Paris? We're travelling to Paris next weekend and it's impossible to gauge from the media what to really expect.

Also the raised counter-terrorism alert level in France: business as usual or "Yeah it's definitely a bit more wild out there right now"?

We're travelling with a small kid so I guess I'm trying to measure how possible it is that we're sticking our noses where there's constant fumigation going on (health aspect) and where we need to evacuate from every second building because of a yet another bomb threat etc.

EricBauman
Nov 30, 2005

DOLF IS RECHTVAARDIG

Dog on Fire posted:

This might be a bit of a silly question, but what about that bedbug situation in Paris right now? Has there been a noticable raise or does it seem to be on the same level as it's always been in Paris? We're travelling to Paris next weekend and it's impossible to gauge from the media what to really expect.

That was never real, and it's no worse in Paris than anywhere else in moderately developed countries

Greg12
Apr 22, 2020
is it too late to jump in to say that Zurich Airport is an absolute dream to get into and out of compared to, uh, everything

There are two 3-hr mainline-only train itineraries from ZRH to Strasbourg every hour, all day long, leaving from the mainline train station in the airport basement. No subway transfers, no stairs, no turnstyles, no figuring out how to pay for the subway if the machines are all broken.

If you need a snack to take on the train, there's a grocery store with a cafeteria in the airport right when you leave customs. You can get all your coffee and your alpine cheeses, chocolates, dried meats, and Lavaux wine to go.

Everyone who you will need help from speaks at least enough English to help you, even the grocery clerks.

If you're not interested in Paris the City, consider that.

(One night in Zurich is fine. It's a Faberge egg of a city. These guys think you'll be bored walking around medieval alleys or standing gobsmacked at what those giant cathedrals look like inside after the Reformer iconoclasts were finished with the whitewash? getouttahere. And yeah, the alps are really that convenient to get to. You can get from Zurich main station to the peak of Pilatus in two hours on public transit.)

(I am writing from my point of view as a big boy who has taken my big suitcase and carry-on on the Paris Metro and other public transit. If all else is even, why stress, especially if you could be jetlagged and miserable.)

distortion park
Apr 25, 2011


Any recommendations for around the Bardenas Reales in Spain, November-ish? Including "don't go". Looks like a nice place to hire some e-bikes with my parents and cycle some trails assuming they exist? Would only be a couple of days.

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Greg12 posted:

is it too late to jump in to say that Zurich Airport is an absolute dream to get into and out of compared to, uh, everything

There are two 3-hr mainline-only train itineraries from ZRH to Strasbourg every hour, all day long, leaving from the mainline train station in the airport basement. No subway transfers, no stairs, no turnstyles, no figuring out how to pay for the subway if the machines are all broken.

I agree with everything you said, but you're missing a key part of every tourist's memory of Switzerland, and Zurich in particular:

Greg12 posted:

If you need a snack to take on the train, there's a grocery store with a cafeteria in the airport right when you leave customs. You can get all your coffee and your alpine cheeses, chocolates, dried meats, and Lavaux wine to go. It'll merely cost you 100 CHF ($112 / €106) per person for a small shared takeaway portion.

When someone asks "where're you from" and I say "I just/recently/most recently moved here from Zurich" and they say "oh I've been there", then 90% of the time, the next thing out of their mouth is something along the lines of "it was loving expensive, I think I paid $18 for a small egg and ham sandwich in a random cafe." This might be becoming less true though now that the US has become insanely expensive. I was in Miami Beach last Christmas and we went to a random pizzeria and it was almost $100 for the two of us, after including tip & tax and like, a single beer each. We cooked in our rental apartment the next night.

Buuuut yeah Zurich does have an amazing and super convenient airport and the flight savings might even make up for the incredibly expensive leg of the train ride from Zurich to Basel.

mobby_6kl
Aug 9, 2009

by Fluffdaddy

WaryWarren posted:

I'll nth Lucca. Talk a walk along the top of the medieval walls, while drinking a cheap lambrusco wine. You'll love that memory. :)
Yeah Lucca was a real pro-tip. Probably not enough to do in Pisa for more than a day otherwise, and it's just 20 minutes by train.

Bologna ruled too, I've seen it often recommended as just a nice place to visit and it absolutely is. Would be better with no calorie (or credit card) limit so you could go into every single restaurant to try something, though. Everything looks absolutely amazing.

I think I saw most of the main points of interest so I had some time to go to Modena. Nice town, but it was raining and they're (like in other cities too) building some kind of giant tents for a festival or something, so all the beautiful views are kind of ruined. The Ferrari museum there is kind of meh for :20bux:, like there are nice cars but it's one big hall with maybe 20 models. The BMW museum I was in a month ago just felt much more substantial for half the price (so just like the cars I guess). Maybe the Maranello one is more interesting. I didn't want to bother with public transport but turns out they have a shuttle that goes between the museum. Oh well, there's something for the next time, as well as the Lambo, Ducati and some other car museum.

Because I didn't do my homework in advance, I thought getting from Bologna -> Pisa would be easy but when I checked the tickets, there weren't any direct trains, only with 1-2 changes for like 50EUR. Ended up on a 10pm Flixbus which actually worked out perfectly as I could maximize my Bologna time, and the bus stop is closer to the tower (and my accommodation) than the train station, which is on the opposite side.

Greg12
Apr 22, 2020

Saladman posted:

It'll merely cost you 100 CHF ($112 / €106) per person for a small shared takeaway portion.

oh come on, it's not that bad; isn't it the one in the airport a migros?

but you're right; to me CH is about "buy loaf of dense bread, alp cheese, and a cailler bar and sit with my feet in a lake that is somehow both in a city center and at the foot of a glacier." I shield myself from the "CHFCHFCHFCHF" aspects of a vacation there.

Dr. Fraiser Chain
May 18, 2004

Redlining my shit posting machine


Saladman posted:

This might be becoming less true though now that the US has become insanely expensive. I was in Miami Beach last Christmas and we went to a random pizzeria and it was almost $100 for the two of us, after including tip & tax and like, a single beer each. We cooked in our rental apartment the next night.

Y'all got ripped the gently caress off in Miami drat. A very fancy pizza here is $30s, and if I get rolled for the beers at $12 a piece we're only half way to a hundred.

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Dr. Fraiser Chain posted:

Y'all got ripped the gently caress off in Miami drat. A very fancy pizza here is $30s, and if I get rolled for the beers at $12 a piece we're only half way to a hundred.

Well uh… $30+$12+tip+tax is over a hundred bucks for two people.

It was La Locanda, I see it’s $27 for their burrata pizza, we also got a pistachio mortadella pizza that I dont see on their menu right now but was probably also around $27, and we probably split a carpaccio appetizer ($19), and probably one drink each for $7-$10-ish. So yeah would have been right around $100 after tax and tip. If we got a basic pizza instead then it would have been like $75, still pretty pricey! You’d have a hard time paying that much anywhere in Italy, at least. La Locanda isn’t a particularly fancy place either.

Greg12 posted:

oh come on, it's not that bad; isn't it the one in the airport a migros?

but you're right; to me CH is about "buy loaf of dense bread, alp cheese, and a cailler bar and sit with my feet in a lake that is somehow both in a city center and at the foot of a glacier." I shield myself from the "CHFCHFCHFCHF" aspects of a vacation there.

Yeah I’m exaggerating a bit but it would be like $60 for a small grocery meal for two if eating the stuff the poster described. Bundnerfleisch is $110/kg so 100g of that dried meat will add a lot, and a decent bottle of Lavaux would be around $15-18.

Saladman fucked around with this message at 22:52 on Oct 22, 2023

Ferdinand Bardamu
Apr 30, 2013

mobby_6kl posted:

Yeah Lucca was a real pro-tip. Probably not enough to do in Pisa for more than a day otherwise, and it's just 20 minutes by train.

Bologna ruled too, I've seen it often recommended as just a nice place to visit and it absolutely is. Would be better with no calorie (or credit card) limit so you could go into every single restaurant to try something, though. Everything looks absolutely amazing.

I think I saw most of the main points of interest so I had some time to go to Modena. Nice town, but it was raining and they're (like in other cities too) building some kind of giant tents for a festival or something, so all the beautiful views are kind of ruined. The Ferrari museum there is kind of meh for :20bux:, like there are nice cars but it's one big hall with maybe 20 models. The BMW museum I was in a month ago just felt much more substantial for half the price (so just like the cars I guess). Maybe the Maranello one is more interesting. I didn't want to bother with public transport but turns out they have a shuttle that goes between the museum. Oh well, there's something for the next time, as well as the Lambo, Ducati and some other car museum.

Because I didn't do my homework in advance, I thought getting from Bologna -> Pisa would be easy but when I checked the tickets, there weren't any direct trains, only with 1-2 changes for like 50EUR. Ended up on a 10pm Flixbus which actually worked out perfectly as I could maximize my Bologna time, and the bus stop is closer to the tower (and my accommodation) than the train station, which is on the opposite side.

Bologna owns, I will go there over Florence in a heartbeat. I'm going to Bolzano, Vicenza, Padua, and Trieste next month. Second/third-tier cities only.

Jack Flint
Dec 12, 2006
Fleece as white as snow in a city
Heading to Edinburgh for a week - unfortunately have to work a couple of those days. Any recommendations for laptop friendly cafes that are somewhat centrally located?

Planning on a day trip or two to distilleries, does anyone have experiences to share? I've been to a few, so places focusing on the product rather than the general process would be especially good. Other dram-related tips much appreciated as well!

Stupid Decisions
Nov 10, 2009
Slippery Tilde

Dog on Fire posted:

This might be a bit of a silly question, but what about that bedbug situation in Paris right now? Has there been a noticable raise or does it seem to be on the same level as it's always been in Paris? We're travelling to Paris next weekend and it's impossible to gauge from the media what to really expect.

Also the raised counter-terrorism alert level in France: business as usual or "Yeah it's definitely a bit more wild out there right now"?

We're travelling with a small kid so I guess I'm trying to measure how possible it is that we're sticking our noses where there's constant fumigation going on (health aspect) and where we need to evacuate from every second building because of a yet another bomb threat etc.

The bed bug situation is probably impossible to know but with potential bad media coverage for hotels I would expect them to be upping their game on checks and inspections at the moment. I wouldn't worry about the fumigation aspect too much either, bed bug treatment can take days, often requiring the rooms to emptied and in some cases furniture to be taken apart. It's not a quick spray around 15 minuites before someone checks in.
But even with that I would always recommend having a quick check for any signs of bed bugs in any hotel you stay in, Paris or anywhere else. I have 10+ years working in hospitality management and they are a massive pain to get rid of and something you absolutley do not want to take back home.

Jack Flint posted:

Heading to Edinburgh for a week - unfortunately have to work a couple of those days. Any recommendations for laptop friendly cafes that are somewhat centrally located?

Not sure how laptop friendly they are but both Rocksalt Cafe and Scott's Kithen do great breakfasts.

Carbon dioxide
Oct 9, 2012

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2397725-pariss-bedbug-problem-is-probably-no-worse-than-other-major-cities/

Stalizard
Aug 11, 2006

Have I got a headache!
I went to Italy in June 2022 and those fuckers in Parma just now sent me a traffic ticket. A lot of the citation is in English but the payment info is ambiguous as hell - it says that if I pay within 5 days of issuance of the citation it's one price and if I wait over 60 days it's a much higher price, but I live in Atlanta and this says it was issued at the end of August. As far as how to pay, they only gave me an IBAN number to transfer to.

Anybody ever deal with one of these before? If I ignore it are they not going to let me back into Europe?

Greg12
Apr 22, 2020

Stalizard posted:

those fuckers in Parma just now sent me a traffic ticket.

No they didn't

You didn't get poo poo

Stalizard
Aug 11, 2006

Have I got a headache!
I got a "notification of contravention of the highway code" from the comando di polizia locale that has all the details of the car I was driving at the time and an infraction date that corresponds to when I was in Parma, is that not a traffic ticket?

Entropist
Dec 1, 2007
I'm very stupid.
No you didn't receive anything, what are you talking about? It must have gotten lost in the mail.

Stalizard
Aug 11, 2006

Have I got a headache!
d'oh

thanks friends

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Stalizard posted:

I went to Italy in June 2022 and those fuckers in Parma just now sent me a traffic ticket. A lot of the citation is in English but the payment info is ambiguous as hell - it says that if I pay within 5 days of issuance of the citation it's one price and if I wait over 60 days it's a much higher price, but I live in Atlanta and this says it was issued at the end of August. As far as how to pay, they only gave me an IBAN number to transfer to.

Anybody ever deal with one of these before? If I ignore it are they not going to let me back into Europe?

If your car rental company paid it in advance and then bills you in return, then you’d probably have to pay (well - they’d take it out directly from your credit card). Since like that didn’t happen, you can ignore it - they’re not going to take you to small claims.

It is not a criminal penalty and debts under … €2000? I believe don’t go on a file in Europe. The cutoff might change country to country, and anyway you’re a foreigner so they can’t file the debt on your record anyway, even in the unlikely case it’s above the cutoff threshold.

mojo1701a
Oct 9, 2008

Oh, yeah. Loud and clear. Emphasis on LOUD!
~ David Lee Roth

Boy, it's been a while since I've checked in on this thread.

I finally decided that it's time I give myself a proper vacation and time off since the pandemic. I got the OK from my new boss to take a couple of weeks off at the beginning of December and I'm thinking of London.

I'm not planning on doing a whole lot because I've been there before and I just wanted to relax for a week or so, but this is my first time being there during the winter. Is there anything special to look for during the first half of December? I realize this is a vague question, but I'm just trying to get an idea as to what I want to do because it's relatively short-notice and I really don't want to wait because if I don't go now, I won't have a chance for another 8 months.

I know I'll have to visit some family there, and my current itinerary is to visit the War Cabinet Rooms, Sherlock Holmes Museum, and maybe a few other things I think of later.

Also any recommendations for a second city to visit around that time would be very welcome, too. I have just over two weeks and don't mind using all of it up before tax season.

Hedgehog Pie
May 19, 2012

Total fuckin' silence.
Regarding a second city to visit, Birmingham has a well-regarded German Christmas market at this time of year. It can get very busy, especially on the weekend, but it's an idea for a (half-)day trip.

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Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

mojo1701a posted:

Boy, it's been a while since I've checked in on this thread.

I finally decided that it's time I give myself a proper vacation and time off since the pandemic. I got the OK from my new boss to take a couple of weeks off at the beginning of December and I'm thinking of London.

I'm not planning on doing a whole lot because I've been there before and I just wanted to relax for a week or so, but this is my first time being there during the winter. Is there anything special to look for during the first half of December? I realize this is a vague question, but I'm just trying to get an idea as to what I want to do because it's relatively short-notice and I really don't want to wait because if I don't go now, I won't have a chance for another 8 months.

I know I'll have to visit some family there, and my current itinerary is to visit the War Cabinet Rooms, Sherlock Holmes Museum, and maybe a few other things I think of later.

Also any recommendations for a second city to visit around that time would be very welcome, too. I have just over two weeks and don't mind using all of it up before tax season.

ChatGPT is honestly super good for this kind of question, as this is an incredibly populated area with an absolute ton of tourist information and training data. ChatGPT blows for out of the way destinations like Algeria or Cameroon, but it does a great job on London and environs. Just tell it what you like doing and it will almost certainly do a better job than anyone here can, and much faster.

Also it's worth keeping in mind that once you're in London, you can be anywhere else in Europe within 2 hours for not even €100 round-trip direct flights. Flights in Europe are hilariously cheap (or not hilarious, if you are somewhere that will go underwater in the next 50 years) -- you can fly for 2 hours for the same price as a half hour train ride in the UK.

E: If you do want actual human recommendations though, suggest what you like doing - I guess like WW2 stuff and popular media stuff? From the two things you mentioned. There's something for everyone in London, but not everything is for everyone!

Saladman fucked around with this message at 22:53 on Nov 6, 2023

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