14/1/14
It’s odd, but now that the
tickets are safely bought and paid for, I feel like everything else is just in
order. I mean, not like I have everything set for me, but I don’t feel so
flustered at “Where do I even begin
planning such a big life-changing trip?”
Ok, admittedly, I had a friend who
badgered and pushed me for the past 24 hours to get my tickets..but it was a
push I definitely needed. I had not flown out of the country ever since I
arrived about two decades ago and had definitely never purchased flight tickets
for myself. Had no idea what current
flight rules were, what sort of privileges you could get.
Tip: If your connecting flight is
more than 5 hours away, airlines are required to provide you with hotel accommodations;
some even give passes to local tours for the long wait. They are (expectedly)
not openly stating this and you have to ask at the connecting country when you
land for any waiting accommodations. I have yet to verify this. I’ll let you
know when I do =) (oh my God… “..WHEN I do”)
Right now, my next step is to
plan how I’ll be getting around Europe. Since I have no idea what the place looks
like (short of movies like Da Vinci Code), and I am a petit female travelling
alone for the first time, my friend suggested to get a Eurail pass.
I’ve read a lot about how it ties
your trip unnecessarily and it makes you try to squeeze in as many trips due to
having paid forward the Passes, and not being able to go on a whim (which is
essentially the beauty of backpacking). However, I think that a Pass would be
good for me because:
(I)
If I’ve paid forward for my transportation
before my trip, then my spending budget there shouldn’t be as big.
(II)
I don’t really have a list of things I want to
see, so the fixed itinerary gives me
that starter list of where I could go in those cities.
(III)
Now this is a weird one. Since I’m alone, and I
don’t think I want anyone from back home to be keeping tabs on me, I think
having a train route to keep me company is somewhat of a comfort.
(IV)
I loved travelling by train (at least I have a
lot of amazing stories of train rides back in the days of yore when I was still
in uni).
So far, I’ve seen the price of the Eurail pass I’m
aiming for is 375 Euros for 15 continuous days travelling to 13 main cities.
Top sites included:
Being the number-crazy hooligan
that I am, let me try to break this down.
16 I’ll arrive in Paris on the
afternoon of Day 1 – I plan to book my accommodation for the first two nights
in Paris to allow me to get my bearings.
17 Day 2 – Eiffel Tower (Paris) The train takes 12
minutes to Versailles. I’ll try to find alternative ways of getting there so I
can extend when my pass is activated.
20 Day 5 – Amsterdam
cheese search. The train to Berlin will take 6h25m; I should check to see if
there’s an overnight train.
22 Day 7 – What else does Berlin
have to offer?
24 Day 9 – Haven’t heard much of
Prague, but it sounds mighty mysterious from my Agatha Christie novel. Train to
Salzburg takes 7h; should check for night trains.
26 Day 11 - Neuschwanstein Castle ↓ (Füssen). Train to
Venice is 9h35m; definitely should try to get night train.
28 Day 13 – Venice
30 Day 15 – Italy escapade !!
2 Day 17 - Monte Carlo Casino ↓ (Monte Carlo). The
train to Barcelona takes 13h+. Definite night train must.
4 Day 19 - Spain escapade!
5 Day 20 - Spain escapade!
6 Day 21 I’ll reserve a whole day
to trying to find my way back to Paris.
7 Day 22 Fly out of Paris in the
morning..I can’t imagine how I’ll be feeling then.
Now I have yet to sort out my
accommodations; of course, all this isn’t yet set in stone. I haven’t actually bought the Pass yet. Waiting
for this month’s paycheck to come in =P I’m trying to find out whether the
Passes fluctuate in price. Does it make a difference if I buy it now or wait
until I arrive in Paris? Hmmmm….
I know all this may not make
sense to you (if you’re as scared as I was at making this amazing trip), but
once the trip feels “real” and within reach, a lot of things start to make much
more sense. Things like train schedules and bookings..
Extra tips from my dear friend:
·
DON’T wear white socks; especially with white
sneakers.
·
Europeans do indeed dress in subdued colors.
Being a color lover myself, I had to reassess my clothe choices (I’m talking
from the standpoint of a person who wears bright pink t-shirts with traffic light
yellow tank-top, blue jeans, army pattern green scarf all as one outfit).
·
Try not to have people easily identify you to
your luggage (ie: no bright blue backpack)
·
Dress in layers so that if it’s too hot, you can
lessen the layers. You can add on if it gets cold.
·
Fleece jackets are great for keeping warm.
·
Three sets of clothes should suffice for a short
trip like mine. One to wear, one to wash, one to have clean.
·
Buy food from the grocery shops. Fruit’s pretty
cheap. But do try the local delicacies when you encounter them.
·
Bring a notebook to scribble in. There’s an
amazing amount of thing’s you’ll want to scribble down and it makes for a great
keepsake.
·
Lock your backpack with a padlock.
Wow….travel-logging is exciting =) and I hven’t even started
my travels yet ….I can’t wait!!
