Tidbits

• Alphabets - The word Alphabet is derived from the first two Greek letters - Alpha and Beta (as in Alpha Male and Beta Testing.)  Our first stop in Greece was Olympia.   I saw a road sign and read it as if it was in Russian - I was correct.  It was for Patra, a major town on Peloponnesian Peninsula, written of course in Greek.  As you can see below, both languages use Cyrillic script and are so similar.  It only took me 40 years to realize that!
     
• Bathrooms - Most European hotels are converted from old buildings and castles, but they have now squeezed in bathrooms "ensuite" in every room.  Naturally, they are cramped.  Toilet, half size shower and sink in between.  No counter space, no hooks to hang clothes.  Showers were so tiny at times that if you dropped your soap, there wasn't enough space to bend down to pick it up.  In fact, our bathroom on the cruiseship was much more spacious and well laid out.  We were glad that we didn't have to share bathrooms with the whole floor!
  
  - Similarly, bathrooms in museums were also afterthoughts - even in places like Florence, Milan and Venice.  You'd expect them at the Ground Floor level, around the main entrance.  Well, the sign would be at the entrance, but they would walk you several steps, then either up or down one level, and then walk another hundreds of feet before reaching bathrooms on mezzanine level.  I don't know what the disabled would do.
• Crime/Petty Crime: Any time we mentioned Italy and Greece, people would warn us about "lawlessness," petty crime, rash driving and sudden strikes.  Especially in Naples and Sicily.  We certainly noticed the aggressive driving and disregard for traffic rules, but fortunately, did not experience any of the others.
  
  - The typical "wedding ring," "woman with infant," "ball under the cups," "thread around the wrist" tactics of distracting you to pick your pocket were common near touristy places.  A firm NO took care of those, but it is fun(?) to watch those people in action.
• Cruise ship facts:  All our destinations, except Santorini, had cruise ports large enough for our ship to dock.  In Santorini, our ship was moored a mile away and we were tendered in to the shore in smaller boats (100 people at a time.)  That of course takes longer.  In other ports, once the ship docked, we could just walk off.
  
  - Ports are generally close enough to the city/attractions, or had buses or taxis nearby.
  
  - These days, Port (left) vs Starboard (right) distinction is not that meaningful.  Cruise ships dock on either side - depending on the availability of the berth.
  
  - Cruise ships have rotating rudders.  With that, they can gently go sideways to either dock, or pull away from the dock - without so much as a bump.  Ships can also back up or make a U-turn or 360 degree turn, for that matter.  In Dubrovnik, our ship pulled up to a bridge (that was too low for us to go under), made a 270 degree back turn and backed up to dock (so we can depart straight out.)  That was so amazing.  Looked easier than a 3 point turn or parallel parking!
  
  - Tipping: Costa has made tipping much easier for everyone.  They charge  €7 per person per day flat.  No need to fill out envelope, get cash, none of that.
• Driving in Europe: All European countries, other than UK, drive on the same side of the road as the U.S. (or is it the other way around?)  Rental cars are available with unlimited mileage.  You can cross country borders but not to some eastern European countries.  Of course, there is a drop off charge if you return the car at a different location - more severe if in another country.
  
  - Gas prices are €1.65-1.85 per liter – nearly $8 per gallon.  Funny thing is that the prices drop as you go away from major cities.  Diesel 7-8 cents cheaper in Italy, but 40 cents cheaper in Greece.
• History is written by the victors - For as far back as you go, history is full of stories written by the victors.  One way to demoralize and control their subjects is to convert their places of worship to the religion of victors.  Until Constantine adopted Christianity, Christians were persecuted all over.  Pagans, Jews, Muslims, Hindus all had to go through similar experiences.  Imagine, Rome was anti-Christian until the 4th century, and then became the seat of Christianity.  Jerusalem has been the battleground and holy land for Jews, Christians and Muslims.  In Athens, Acropolis, and Parthenon in particular, was a Pagan Temple, which was then converted to a Church and later to a Mosque.
• Hotel booking: Booking.com worked well for the most part.  Cancel without penalty 24-48 hours in advance.  No prepay – pay the hotel (credit card OK.)  Otherwise, try hostels – hostelworld.com – max age 41+ - caters to younger travelers, but anyone is welcome.  Quality varies substantially.
• International Drivers License: All books I read suggested to get one.  They were specific about needing one in Italy – for sure.  Well, we rented a car only once – in Sicily, through Hertz.  As it turned out, they didn’t need it.  When I asked, they said “International Drivers License is OK.”  Since I had paid $15 to get one from AAA, I used it.
• Some Italian city names/Words: Firenza (Florence), Venezia (Venice), Milano (Milan), Roma (Rome), Napoli (Naples)
  - Broderie = Embroidery
  - Uscita = Exit
  - Chiavi = Key
• Language Help - Each country spoke its own language - I didn't know any of them.  Spanish would have helped, but I didn't know that either.  Luckily, most Europeans learn English as a subject in schools.  Also, in touristy areas, in hospitality industry - hotels, trains, planes, even in major restaurants - there is always someone who speaks and understands English.  We were able to manage just fine.  Things are more iffy on buses or trains, but even that worked out.  Best way to begin is to ask "Do you speak English?"  BTW, how do Europeans from two countries speak with each other? in English, of course.
  
  - In Pisa, we took the city bus to the Leaning Tower.  We knew it was about 20 minutes of walk, the bus would get there in say 10-15 minutes tops.  We were hoping that we could see the Leaning Tower from a distance, but because it is in a walled "Castle" we couldn't.  I asked the person standing next to me if he spoke any English, and where the Tower was.  He didn't quite understand it, but someone next to him did.  And then 5-6 people around had a discussion in Italian about what we were asking for, and the verdict was that we get off at the next stop.  Sure enough, that was the place - but all we could see was the wall and never would have guessed to get off there.
  
  - In Naples, we took a bus to Catacombs of San Gennaro.  From the map, we knew that it couldn't have been that far.  Just to be sure, I asked a girl next to me if she spoke any English.  She enthusiastically responded "Yes."  She had heard about the Catacombs, but didn't exactly know where it was.  It was next to a Basilica, but we didn't know the name of that either.  Once again a group discussion ensued and the girl told us that she was getting off AFTER our stop so she would let us know - and she did.
  
  - Trivia - Greeks thought of themselves as culturally and linguistically superior to everyone else.  Hence, anybody who did not speak Greek was speaking gibberish or "Bar Bar Bar" and were therefore called Barbarians.
• Left Luggage: Airports and Train Stations generally have Left Baggage service, where you keep bags for, say, €5 for first five hours and then 70 cents per hour - which adds up to €15-€20 per day.  It is a great convenience and we used it from time to time.  Better option is to drop them off at your hotel where you are staying that night.  They will hold your luggage even if your room is not ready then.
• Meals - To me, food is optional.  Yes, you need it, but never is the primary focus of my trips.  Eat when/where you find it convenient, and skip it if not.  Most European hotels offer some sort of B&B (Bed and Breakfast) plan - sometimes, it is very minimal like plastic wrapped croissants and juice from a gallon jug (Agora Hostel, Catania); other times, it is lavish 25-30 item buffet (plus omelets, if you like.) including cereals, bread, meats, cheeses, fruit, yogurt, milk, tea, coffee and juices - and cakes (Hotel Corsaro, Nicolasi, Mount Etna.)  Or, on cruise ships, where there is no end to it!  During our trip, we had:
  - Oct 17 - light breakfast on airplane, 3 course dinner in Paris
  - Oct 18 - sumptuous lunch at Abbasses, Paris - Oct 19 - lunch in Pisa
  - Oct 20 - breakfast at hotel, Panini Sandwich for lunch, sit down dinner in Florence
  - Oct 21 - breakfast at hotel, snacks on train to Naples, 5 course dinner at Pompeii
  - Oct 22 - breakfast at hotel, 5 course dinner at Pompeii
  - Oct 23 - breakfast at hotel, Pizza in Naples (we were in Italy, after all.)
  - Oct 24 - light breakfast, (best) pizza in Sicily at Mount Etna
  - Oct 25 - breakfast at hotel, sit down dinner in Catania
  - Oct 26 - light breakfast at hostel, sit down lunch in Milan
  - Oct 27 - sit down lunch in Budapest
  - Oct 28 - lunch on train, 5 course dinner on cruise ship
  - Oct 29 - Splurge - Breakfast, 7 course dinner (Bari)
  - Oct 30 - Splurge - Breakfast, 7 course dinner (Olympia)
  - Oct 31 - Splurge - Breakfast, 7 course dinner (Athens)
  - Nov 1 - Splurge - Breakfast, Lunch, 7 course dinner (Santorini)
  - Nov 2 - Splurge - Breakfast, 7 course dinner (Corfu)
  - Nov 3 - Splurge - Breakfast, 7 course dinner (Dubrovnik)
  - Nov 4 - Splurge - Breakfast, Pizza and Tiramisu dinner (Venice)
  - Nov 5 - Breakfast at hotel, Pizza for dinner
  - Nov 6 - Airplane food
• Money: Most European countries now accept Euro (€) as their currency.  It however takes some time before the conversion happens.  Croatia, for example, became part of Euro Zone in July 2013, but it would take several years before they would convert their currency to Euro.  During our one day trip to Dubrovnik, Croatia, locals proudly proclaimed that they do NOT accept Euros.  Buses and local businesses accepting ONLY local currency Kuna is understandable.  There were money exchange shops around, so converting wasn't a significant problem.  We needed 24 Kuna to take a bus back from town to the port.  For 4 Euros, we received 29.5 Kunas.  Problem solved.  Better yet, where credit cards are accepted (e.g. tickets for Walls of Dubrovnik), currency issue doesn't even arise.
  
  - The only other place where we needed to exchange money was in Budapest, Hungary.  Their currency Forint (HUF) is 200-225 per 1 USD, depending on the exchange rate.  For one day, we needed 10000 HUF ($49.13)  We went to an ATM, and a single 10000 HUF bill popped out.  It was easy to break it though.  400 HUF for 2 liter bottle of water, 1250 HUF for Lunch Special, and 2500 HUF for the shuttle from the hotel to the airport.
  
  - Capital One and United Explorer cards (also Discover which purchased Diners) boast NO foreign transaction fees.  Using credit cards gets you the best possible exchange rates.  We got $1.35-1.38 per Euro during our trip.
  
  - Cash: Plenty of places - public transportation and small establishments - only accept cash.  We weren't sure how much cash we would need daily, and didn't want to carry too much on us unnecessarily.  All travel guides recommend carrying a money pouch that you wear inside your clothing - not my preference.  On trips, I don't carry my wallet.  I just have an ID (Drivers License), one credit card and cash in a small business card holder.  We just split our cash in several places - backpack and different shirt or pant pockets.  Bank of America has reciprocal agreements with major banks around the world where there is no ATM fee for using each others' ATMs.  In France, it was BNP Paribas, and in Italy, its counterpart BNL (Bank of Italy.)  As soon as we reached Paris, we searched for a BNP ATM location near St Michel Metro station and withdrew €500 in 50s, 20s and 10s.  There never was any problem breaking 50s, so next time in Naples we just got the 50s.  Because credit cards were accepted so readily, we didn't use up all our cash, and in the end, paid for everything in cash on our last day in Venice.
  
• Olive Branch history - As you travel around in Greece and Italy, you realize that olive trees are everywhere.  It is no wonder that olive branches - as a sign of peace or victory, or as a wreath worn by brides or Olympic winner, or on coins, became such symbols.
• Passport: One of the great benefits of holding a U.S. passport is the ability to enter so many countries without a formal visa.  Visiting EU countries (as a tourist, up to 90 days) is just such a thing.  Although we visited five countries (France, Italy, Hungary, Greece and Croatia) – not counting the layover in Frankfurt, there were only two stamps in our passport – on one page, right next to each other.  One showing entering EU (in Paris); another leaving (in Frankfurt.)  In fact, I think the only way someone (FBI) could find out all the places we visited would only be through the hotels we stayed at.  All hotels/hostels religiously noted down our passport information – not sure if it goes in to any central database, or just remains with the hotel.  (True in other countries like China and India as well.)
• Phone/Internet/GPS:  Rental car companies charge €19.99 per day for GPS.  Very few cars are equipped with GPS – you generally don’t get them at locations other than at the airport.  Just as well.  Our phone did the job just fine.
  
  - Another option Auto Europe offers is to rent a unit in the US that is shipped to you before your trip – you are charged for the duration of your trip (like $120 in our case.) and you return it after your trip.
  
  - AT&T offers a data plan $30 for 120 mb (5 minutes of surfing consumes about 3 mb data.)  Without a plan, charges are astronomical.
  
  - When we landed in Pisa (our first stop in Italy), we purchased a 200 minutes, 1 GB data card for €15.  The phone came in handy from time to time, but mainly it gave us internet access to search Top 10 sites in each city, Trip Advisor recommendations for restaurants, and most importantly, Google maps to find places when we got lost, and directions when we drove in Sicily.
  
  - Technology can and does fail, and we had trouble getting signal from time to time, but overall, it made our life a lot easier WITH it than without.
• Planning the trip: With so many choices with so many destinations and limited number of days, planning became a nightmare.  We tried several scenarios, but it wasn't quite working out – planes vs trains vs buses vs drive – each scenario would change the whole itinerary and therefore all the other aspects – what to see, when, how, where to stay, how to get there, and so on.  In the end, it all came together.
• Rick Steves' European Empire – has substantial influence on Americans traveling to Europe -- His guidebooks, maps, PBS TV series and actual tours.  Website and chatline is extremely helpful.  Enthusiastic chatters respond to your questions quickly – great advice.  My trip turned out to be much better as a result – mainly places to stay and driving around.
• Road signs - When traveling overseas, it helps to know the words for "road" or "street" - especially if the word appears BEFORE the name of the street.  I struggled in China until I realized that "Lu" was that word.  Similarly, we were looking a street in Paris that began with "Rue" something - only to realize that everything on the map started with "Rue" - which meant "street."  In Italy, the word is Strada, and in Greece, Dromos.
  
• Sicily - a part of Italy?: Although Sicily has been part of Italy for quite some time, being an island, they have a culture of their own.  However, it was much like Naples (Southern Italy) and other places in Northern Italy.  Our only driving experience was in Sicily - for two days - from Palermo to Catania.  Once outside the cities, there wasn't much traffic, and driving was fun.  In the cities, it was a dog-eat-dog world.  The clerk at Hertz gave a word of advice:  Be careful.  The only rule here is that there are NO rules!
• Smoking - Far too many people appeared to smoke in Europe - not just the tourists either.  They smoked everywhere - thankfully mostly outdoors.  The worst was city bus drivers smoking with their windows open - while the rest of the bus was air conditioned.  The other offenders are those who either smoke just outside the doors, or take their last big puff before entering the room and then exhaling.  The less you are used to second hand smoke, the more sensitive you become.
• Ticket validation in Italy - All guidebooks warn you that in Italy, don't forget to validate your bus/train ticket as soon as you get on, or at the platform.  If you are caught without a validated ticket (even if you HAVE a ticket), the fine is €50 - no exceptions.  The reason being that tickets are valid for a couple of months from the date of purchase, but are validated only when you actually use them.  If it is a single use ticket, then it is not good the second time around.  Naturally, people have an incentive to carry a ticket without validating it - and use it for two months!
  
  - Well, our first day in Italy - we took a superfast train from Pisa to La Spezia so we will have more time at Cinque Terre (after taking a second train.)  The first train arrived late, and when we reached La Spezia, we ran to catch the next train.  We got on the train, but didn't have time to validate the ticket - actually, we forgot.  Within minutes, the Ticket Checker (TC) came by, looked at our tickets and reminded us that we didn't validate our tickets.  Oops!  I apologized, and tried to explain what happened.  The TC informed us that we were supposed to have talked to the TC on the first train and have our tickets marked as such.  Then she pulled out her book and showed us (in English) the rule about validating and the €50 fine.  Yikes!  This was going to be a painful lesson - "Welcome to Italy!"  I didn't think it would work, but I had nothing to lose - so I showed her our receipt to prove that we had purchased the ticket today in Pisa, and that it was our first day in Pisa, and so on.  She finally took mercy on us and warned us NEVER to do it again.  We promised.
  
  - Couple of hours later, as we were returning from Cinque Terre back to La Spezia (and then on to Pisa)  The same TC came by again!  Thankfully we had validated our tickets this time.  Just to see if she remembered us, I gave her the old tickets.  She sure did.  Before she said anything, I then gave her the correct tickets.  Then we laughed and joked a little.  She asked where we were going next.  As it turned out, on Saturdays, the last train for Pisa leaves La Spezia at 5:41 PM, and the train we were on was the last one to connect to it.  Thank goodness!  We were debating whether to stay in Cinque Terre to watch the sunset and take a later train back.  We would have been stuck in La Spezia for the night!  Any case, lesson learned about validating tickets.  After that, we would validate our tickets EVERY TIME even if it was not necessary just to be sure (24 hour tickets, for example, are to be validated only once!)  
• Travel to/from Europe:  Being off season, United Award ticket (60,000 miles plus $80) got us an open jaw ticket from San Francisco to Paris, and return from Venice via Frankfurt.  The $80 was for airport fees from Venice (Fees vary from airport to airport.  London Heathrow (LHR) is by far the most expensive.  Better to connect from other airports.)  During Summer, regular fares were $1600-1800.  We undoubtedly got a much better deal.
• United Mileage - I had heard stories in the past about people traveling so many segments before the end of the year just to qualify for some promotional deal.  I thought I would never do such a thing myself.  But I did -- in December 2012.
  
  - After traveling a lot on United, I had 24700 miles accumulated in 2012.  I needed only 300 more miles to become a Premier Silver member.  You can always purchase miles, but those don't qualify you for the Premier membership - only actual travel miles do.
  
  - All I needed to do was to travel to LA one way.  Of course, I would then need to come back.  If purchased 3 or more weeks in advance, you find fairly decent deals to LA or Las Vegas.  I figured I could easily make a day trip to Las vegas and be done with it.  San Diego - which is farther than both LA and LV - had cheaper tickets - and more miles.  For $59 each way, I will collect total 900 miles.  That was even cheaper than purchasing miles directly.
  
  - I picked Tuesday December 11 - when nothing else was going on - for the trip.  9:23 am flight would take me to San Diego in 1 1/2 hours and 3:47 PM flight would bring me back - just like going to work for the day in San Francisco.  It was a Canadair regional jet -a 50 passenger plane.  I hadn't flown on a small plane in quite some time.  That made it exciting - the take off and landing is much more like a roller coaster ride.  And the speed / noise makes it feel even more so.
  
  - As I landed in San Diego, I was debating how to spend the interim time - wasn't quite long enough to go to the city, but too long to kill at the airport.  When I got out, they were announcing Last Call for a flight to San Francisco at the very next gate.  That flight was delayed for some reason, and had seats available because people switched to other earlier flights.  I asked if I could take an earlier flight back, and they were fine with it.  Within minutes, I was flying back again - this time as a Premier Silver member (not that it made any difference.)  I was home by 4 PM.
  
  - Premier membership is good for the rest of the current year and all of next year.  I had no more plans for 2012, and trips in 2013 were uncertain.  THIS Europe trip was the only one in 2013.  Because United is changing the eligibility for Premier status in 2014, I will not be a Premier member next year.
   
• Water, Water everywhere: Most of the world’s population lives near water – oceans, lakes and rivers, for obvious reasons.  It is no wonder that most of our trip was in and around water.  In fact, there was not a single day when we weren't near water.  Eight days of cruise took us from Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea, Agean Sea -- Mediterranean Sea is a generic names for all of these.  Before that, we spent days on the west coast of Italy – Pisa, Cinque Terre/La Spezia, Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento and Amalfi.  Down in Sicily – Palermo, Agrigento, Catania, Syracuse are all on the coast of Mediterranean Sea.  In Paris, we stayed within 100 feet of  Seine River, and crossed it several times every day.  Arno river in Florence and Pisa, and Danube in Budapest.  The only city that did not have a river nearby was Milan (canals, but no river.)
• Weather: We couldn't have "ordered" any better weather.  It was 60-70 degrees and clear skies pretty much everywhere.  Actually, we nearly escaped rains just in time on three occasions – Florence, Milan and Venice.  Umbrella wasn't opened.
  - In Florence, we met someone who had just come from Naples and complained that it rained there while they were there.  We were leaving for Naples the next day.  Apparently, the same weather system was moving north towards Florence.  The day we were to leave Florence, around 5 am, the front arrived and there was a downpour.  It was a 10 minute walk from our hotel to the train station.  Luckily, it was barely a drizzle when we left for the train station; rains started again when our train left Florence.  It was absolutely clear in Naples by the time we reached after 3 hours, and for the next two days.
  
  - Milan: the day we were in Milan, the weather was perfect.  Next day, when we left for Budapest, it started raining just when we were getting on the plane.  Clear skies in Budapest, and also the next day back in Milan.
  
  - Venice: we had clear weather in Venice the day we boarded the cruise ship (Oct 28) and when we returned a week later (Nov 4.)  That afternoon, though, it looked like rain.  Good time to visit a museum - Doge’s Palace (Palazzo Ducale.)  It was still raining when we came out, so had to drop the plans to walk around at night or taking vaporetto around Venice.  Instead, we just had dinner and chilled out.  The next day was crystal clear to do the rest of sightseeing and walking around.
• Wristwatches - Most Europeans wear (not digital) large wristwatches; whereas in the U.S., you have to find a person wearing one.  We are all so used to checking time on our phones, that wristwatches are not needed.  Because I didn't need my phone during the trip, I had turned it off and put away.  It was so difficult to know what time it was when going around - hiking, in trains, airports, or museums.  Even hotels didn't have alarm clocks in the rooms.  Worst was on the cruise - only at the stairs you could find time.  Luckily, most men wore watches with large dials - visible from a distance.  Note for the next trip: take a regular wristwatch!