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Man, thank you all so much for your advice. It's been invaluable in fleshing out our ideas about this trip. I think many of you may be right about the allocation of time to smaller cities like Dresden and Nuremberg, so we're looking to cut both down to 2 nights instead. It sounds like I also had too much time set aside for Munich and Krakow, so we might reduce that a little, but still leave some time since we had wanted to see sights outside of those cities (e.g. Auschwitz and Wieliczka, Neuschwanstein). I've also been to Budapest, and yeah I also prefer it in most ways to Prague. We're toying with inserting it into the itinerary now - does anybody have any experience with the Polish railways? We would probably go from Krakow, and it seems like an impressively long journey (close to 10 hours). I had also been thinking of including Wroclaw as a halfway stop between Dresden and Krakow, but unsure how much time would be worth spending there? Also, any thoughts on Bratislava? I had never thought to go there, but it's en route between many of the places we're already planning to visit. Worth it? Current revised itinerary: Berlin (5 nights) Dresden (2 nights) Krakow (4 nights) Budapest (4 nights) Vienna (4 nights) Prague (3 nights) Nuremberg (2 nights) Munich (3 nights) Nuremberg is the location I am most wavering on. I had especially wanted to see the rally grounds, and I'd heard the Christmas markets are especially awesome there (though, I expect the Christmas markets in many of the places we're visiting will be fairly spectacular..), but i'm not sure. Also, huge appreciation for people's thoughts on places to visit in and around these cities. You guys have already added a few things to our list that I probably wouldn't have thought of!
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Oct 1, 2018 02:06
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Fat Albert posted:Also, any thoughts on Bratislava? I had never thought to go there, but it's en route between many of the places we're already planning to visit. Worth it? Skip it. Bratislava is OK but when you've got so many great cities nearby it's really not worth a stop. The old town is very small (like a couple of blocks small), and the castle is fairly modern (albeit impressive).
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Oct 1, 2018 06:25
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Wtf is this thing? 
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Oct 1, 2018 18:18
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You mean you don't know?? 
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Oct 1, 2018 18:44
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It's a bidet. They're common in southern Europe but are not seen anywhere in northern Europe. Bidets are used for cleaning your pooper with water. Fans claim it's more hygienic than using toilet paper.
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Oct 1, 2018 19:14
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The inferior alternative to a proper bumgun.
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Oct 1, 2018 19:17
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Carbon dioxide posted:It's a bidet. They're common in southern Europe but are not seen anywhere in northern Europe. I know what a bidet is, but I'm seriously stuck trying to figure out how you make the water from that faucet reach your anus in a way that's not going to make a giant loving mess.
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Oct 1, 2018 19:55
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Jesus Christ that's not a bidet, it's a mop sink.
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Oct 1, 2018 20:19
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Anything is a bidet if you're flexible enough.
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Oct 1, 2018 20:33
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Julio Cruz posted:Jesus Christ that's not a bidet, it's a mop sink. Thanks! I knew it couldn't be a bidet because it was in the middle of a hallway between the toilets and the showers. And I've used bidets before, in Rome and Napoli.
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Oct 1, 2018 21:13
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Beachcomber posted:All the best vacations are about checking off the most boxes in a list of historical sites in the least amount of time possible. My father spent his entire week in Malta just sitting on a terrace in front of our hotel, ordering milkshakes and reading the paper, that was probably his best holiday ever.
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Oct 1, 2018 21:27
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Shibawanko posted:My father spent his entire week in Malta just sitting on a terrace in front of our hotel, ordering milkshakes and reading the paper, that was probably his best holiday ever. I love doing this, too. I may spend more time in a city than I "need", but if it's a decently habitable city, I'll find a place and just chill. Visit a museum, gallery, or other tourist area, then have a few drinks over the course of a night and stumble into bed with a kebab in hand. I think this is why my next vacation is just going to be 3 cities over a two week period, even if there's "little to do" there. If there's a public square, I'm in.
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Oct 2, 2018 19:01
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mojo1701a posted:I think this is why my next vacation is just going to be 3 cities over a two week period, even if there's "little to do" there. If there's a public square, I'm in. Go to Ljubljana, you will not regret it.
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Oct 2, 2018 20:18
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Carbon dioxide posted:It's a bidet. They're common in southern Europe but are not seen anywhere in northern Europe. That isn't a bidet though, it's a mop sink, like others already said. This is a bidet: 
Collateral Damage fucked around with this message at 20:45 on Oct 2, 2018 |
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Oct 2, 2018 20:41
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mojo1701a posted:I love doing this, too. I may spend more time in a city than I "need", but if it's a decently habitable city, I'll find a place and just chill. Visit a museum, gallery, or other tourist area, then have a few drinks over the course of a night and stumble into bed with a kebab in hand. This is why I don't really understand the people who want to visit 5 different countries in a two week period. I go on holiday to relax, not to force myself into following an exact-to-the-hour itinerary so I can check off as many things from a Buzzfeed listicle as possible.
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Oct 2, 2018 22:01
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Julio Cruz posted:This is why I don't really understand the people who want to visit 5 different countries in a two week period. I go on holiday to relax, not to force myself into following an exact-to-the-hour itinerary so I can check off as many things from a Buzzfeed listicle as possible. Ehh people are different. I personally like a mix of the two, whereas my mother loves the actual travelling part of it and thinks that any minute not spent looking at/learning something is a wasted minute, so she 100% enjoys going on trips that are planned out down to the minute. She'll send me her itinerary since they all have her hotel/flight info, etc, and it'll be like 6 single-spaced pages for a two week trip around say Northern Germany by train. It looks like pure hell to me, but she loves it and comes back raving about everything she saw. I tend to travel like that for like a week, and then I spend a few days with a much more relaxed schedule, then repeat for as long as I'm holidaying for.
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Oct 2, 2018 23:55
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HookShot posted:Go to Ljubljana, you will not regret it. Absolutely. My original plan for next year (assuming I could afford it) was to do Prague, Bratislava, and Vienna (originally Budapest, but Vienna's closer). Now I'm leaning towards Ljubljana, Budapest, and possibly Zagreb (I have a friend who moved from Canada to become a doctor in Croatia, and also runs in some way a small B&B in Povile, I think). At least there the cost of living should be lower, if AirBnB prices are any indication. Then again, theoretically next year, I get a third week's paid vacation, so that's something to consider. Julio Cruz posted:This is why I don't really understand the people who want to visit 5 different countries in a two week period. I go on holiday to relax, not to force myself into following an exact-to-the-hour itinerary so I can check off as many things from a Buzzfeed listicle as possible. Yeah, I admit I kind of made this mistake just now with Ireland by going to five different cities and spending only 48 hours at most in any place that wasn't Dublin.
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Oct 3, 2018 00:49
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I think at least some of it comes from the criminally low amount of holiday time most Americans get. Europeans and Australians generally have way more time off, so there isn’t quite that same impulse to try and “see” 6 countries in 8 days. That said, I think it’s a mistake a lot of people make, particularly on their first trip abroad before they really realise what a bad idea it is. And yes, Ljubljana is cool but the rest of Slovenia is even better. There’s way more to see than just Lake Bled!
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Oct 3, 2018 06:50
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Julio Cruz posted:This is why I don't really understand the people who want to visit 5 different countries in a two week period. I go on holiday to relax, not to force myself into following an exact-to-the-hour itinerary so I can check off as many things from a Buzzfeed listicle as possible. How else can Luxembourg be a tourist stop over? Gotta inflate the number of countries visited!
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Oct 3, 2018 09:05
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Question about analog bidets, I tried using it once but the water pressure isn’t that hard, so it was more of a water brush feathering my butt. Guess it’s good enough for a good outer rinse? You guys don’t go Indian style and jam the left hand in there do you? I think doing that just makes a bigger mess out of the shallow bidet and no one wants to leave chunks in there  Just use an electronic washlet and keep things cleaner. Oh and don’t poop and use the bidet at the same time. Backspray is gross and contaminates the nozzle
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Oct 3, 2018 09:09
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webmeister posted:I think at least some of it comes from the criminally low amount of holiday time most Americans get. Europeans and Australians generally have way more time off, so there isn’t quite that same impulse to try and “see” 6 countries in 8 days. Absolutely. If I had 4 weeks (once I get my CPA, hopefully I can negotiate that as a minimum), you bet I'd take time and explore more. Hell, we just elected a government in Ontario that's planning on rolling back the mandatory third paid week after five years that was recently implemented. As for Slovenia, part of the plan would be into looking into day tours so I don't have to do as much of my own planning. I'll let you know more in 9-10 months when I have money saved up to travel again.
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Oct 3, 2018 16:04
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webmeister posted:And yes, Ljubljana is cool but the rest of Slovenia is even better. There’s way more to see than just Lake Bled! Yeah but you can base yourself in Ljubljana and basically do day trips everywhere if you've rented a car.
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Oct 4, 2018 04:09
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Okay, quick question but I guess it requires experience with this specifically. Traveling through Switzerland for like, 4ish days with a friend. Wish i had more time, but alas. I crunched the numbers and getting a rental car (even with gas prices factored in high) would be cheaper than the rail pass by $100 to $150 (curse my friend and still being 25. And curse the swiss for favoring the young!  ).However, this does not factor in the free boat rides and discounts on cable cars and such. Is that a big enough savings (not talking about peace of mind of being on our own schedule, just in pure money) that it's worth it, or will the travel pass make up for the extra dough in free boaty and cable/coggy stuff? E: also, taking recommendations for things to do in Munich in the mornings while recovering from Oktoberfest. Will have a couple mornings. Rodenthar Drothman fucked around with this message at 09:44 on Oct 4, 2018 |
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Oct 4, 2018 09:17
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If you have mornings, I don't think you're Oktoberfesting correctly.
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Oct 4, 2018 16:19
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mojo1701a posted:Now I'm leaning towards Ljubljana, Budapest, and possibly Zagreb (I have a friend who moved from Canada to become a doctor in Croatia, and also runs in some way a small B&B in Povile, I think). At least there the cost of living should be lower, if AirBnB prices are any indication. I'm not sure how much Zagreb can offer you that Ljubljana and Budapest can't. If you're getting that close to Adriatic, consider a seaside town instead. Venice is under 3 hours drive from Ljubljana, Rijeka is under 2. Venice is of course Venice, but Rijeka is IMO underappreciated and you can go to several islands from it. BTW since I believe you mentioned hockey in one of earlier posts, Medvescak Zagreb have lively home games, Ljubljana (HK Olimpija) should too. Budapest also has a hockey team but I don't know how popular the sport is there.
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Oct 4, 2018 23:52
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Czech and Hungarian hockey games are wild and I seriously recommend one if you get the chance.
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Oct 5, 2018 00:49
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Are you folks talking about Ice Hockey or the in Europe popular Field Hockey? The hockey ladies, and also the hockey gents tbf, are mostly known for getting loving drunk and doing stupid poo poo in the dressing room after practice. Carbon dioxide fucked around with this message at 06:16 on Oct 5, 2018 |
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Oct 5, 2018 06:13
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Rodenthar Drothman posted:Okay, quick question but I guess it requires experience with this specifically. I've done the calculations before and the half-fare card plus buying tickets works out cheaper unless you're really going to spend all day every day on the train (prices are calculated by distance). The half-fare card will still get you the discounts on the cable cars in the Alps. But yeah, it's expensive. ed: sorry, cheaper than the rail pass greazeball fucked around with this message at 07:14 on Oct 5, 2018 |
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Oct 5, 2018 07:07
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Carbon dioxide posted:Are you folks talking about Ice Hockey or the in Europe popular Field Hockey? I don't think it's popular anywhere outside Netherlands. Even on this pic one team seems to be Dutch.
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Oct 5, 2018 08:24
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Ice hockey because what are the odds US/Canadians are going to be asking about the other sort?
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Oct 5, 2018 09:23
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Field hockey is also quite popular in Germany, but not as popular as ice hockey.
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Oct 5, 2018 12:16
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Dutch people don't accept anything on skates unless it's the nascar equivalent of ice skating and everyone goes 50 rounds around the same 400m track
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Oct 5, 2018 15:18
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Doctor Malaver posted:I don't think it's popular anywhere outside Netherlands. Even on this pic one team seems to be Dutch. It was popular for a while in Australia when our nation teams were quite good, but they suck now and nobody cares about any sort of hockey
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Oct 5, 2018 16:42
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Carbon dioxide posted:The hockey ladies, and also the hockey gents tbf, are mostly known for getting loving drunk and doing stupid poo poo in the dressing room after practice.
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Oct 5, 2018 17:00
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greazeball posted:I've done the calculations before and the half-fare card plus buying tickets works out cheaper unless you're really going to spend all day every day on the train (prices are calculated by distance). The half-fare card will still get you the discounts on the cable cars in the Alps. But yeah, it's expensive. E: Ty for the advice. Beachcomber posted:If you have mornings, I don't think you're Oktoberfesting correctly.
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Oct 5, 2018 22:15
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Rodenthar Drothman posted:I think they rolled it all into one (they call it the "Swiss Travel Pass" now). https://www.sbb.ch/en/leisure-holidays/travel-in-switzerland/international-guests/swiss-halffare-card.html Still there for me?
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Oct 5, 2018 23:33
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Doctor Malaver posted:I'm not sure how much Zagreb can offer you that Ljubljana and Budapest can't. If you're getting that close to Adriatic, consider a seaside town instead. Venice is under 3 hours drive from Ljubljana, Rijeka is under 2. Venice is of course Venice, but Rijeka is IMO underappreciated and you can go to several islands from it. Like I said, this is just preliminary, but that's enough of an endorsement for me to skip Zagreb. Also, I don't remember if I mentioned that I have a high school friend who moved to Croatia from Canada to become a doctor, but his family's from Rijeka, and he either lives there or Povile.
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Oct 6, 2018 00:31
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I was hoping for some more inspiration for a warmer (+10 degrees) European trip in January and was considering Lisbon. Sorta kinda doubting between Lisbon, Athens, Sicily, the Canary Islands or other options with a <5hour flight time (Israel?) Is Lisbon nice? How are other options in comparison? Good food (high-end innovative dining is our preference, we like to do unique stuff), culture and city-tripping-on-foot is a must!
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Oct 7, 2018 20:07
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Oct 7, 2018 22:12
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My parents are going over to Europe (Germany, Belgium, France) for just under a month next year, and are looking into cellular options. As far as I can understand, newish EU law has made many basic prepaid options very viable, if not ideal for someone travelling and needing occasional data and voice in several counties. While they aren’t going the UK, many of their carriers offer free sims that seem to have really decent prepaid options (Vodaphone, for example, offers 1£/day for unlimited calling+some data). Am I understanding roam like at home laws correctly? And if not, does anyone have some quick recommendations on cheap prepaid SIM card options? Thank you!
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Oct 7, 2018 23:07
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