It is my last day on vacation and I am exhausted. My back hurts, my feet hurt and my clothes are threatening a general strike if I don’t wash them soon. I’ve got news for them: I’m tempted to bundle them up and give them to a homeless person. If I don’t ever wear them again it will be too soon.
As eager as I am to go home, see my boys, play with my dog, eat some fajitas and sleep in my bed, I’m almost as eager to return armed with the knowledge I have gleaned from my first trip to Europe.
1. Get in shape. I have been outwalked by two retirees. They are very fit sexagenarians but still. I only have myself to blame for my aching feet and back. I need to work out. Maybe – maybe – this will be the wake-up call for me to get off my ass and to the gym.
2. No matter how good your shoes are, your feet are going to hurt. Buy good shoes anyway. I remember my first week as a restaurant manager. I worked 12 hour days, 60 hours a week. The first day on the job, I returned home, exhausted, and collapsed on my futon. When I stood to brush my teeth and go to bed, I fell on the floor because my feet hurt so bad. I think I crawled to the bathroom. This hasn’t been quite that bad but it is darn close.
3. You know all of those articles that tell you what to wear and not to wear in Europe? Ignore them all. No One Cares What You Wear. No one. But you don’t want to look like a tourist, you say. You are standing in line for the Lourve. You look like a tourist. You’re taking pictures of castles. You look like a tourist. You can’t figure out how to get the Metro ticket machine to work. You look like a tourist. You’re holding a map while you walk? You look like a tourist. You know what else? YOU ARE SURROUNDED BY TOURISTS! As long as you aren’t the ape-shit crazy dressed tourist – the one that is supporting the Texas Rangers in absentia from head to toe – the locals are going to politely endure you. If they scorn you, you won’t understand what they are saying. (See point #7)
5. The food, no matter where you go in Paris, is pretty darn good. Not great, mind you, but good. Every cafe/street vendor we’ve chosen has been a “Hey, what about here?” choice and it has worked out surprisingly well. Except for the Croque Monsieur by Notre Dame the first night. I wouldn’t say there is a lot of variety in the menu selections – especially in Germany – but I haven’t had anything that was horrible. I don’t have that good of a track record in my hometown. Germany’s food, for someone used to spices and variety, is woefully bland and repetitive. Pork, pork, pork, rump steak, sausage, pork. I loved their breakfasts, though (rolls, cheese, eggs, lunch meat that I could not bring myself to eat for breakfast; my husband liked it).
6. The key to getting around is to act like you know where you are going. Especially on the subway. I used this my first week of college and it worked then, too. Of the four of us, I am by far the best at reading a map, getting bearings and not getting us lost. Or of finding our way after we’ve been lost. I guess if the world ends, as I lamented in one of my 10 Days of Books post, I would be able to get us where we need to go.
7. Learn the language. At least a little of it. The biggest drawback has been not being able to read the language, especially for someone that likes to read every historical marker she comes across. Unsurprisingly, there are a few historical markers in Paris. I can sometimes get the gist of what is written but not often enough. The learner in me is dying to buy a Rosetta Stone version of French, even though we probably won’t return here before going somewhere else.
I am so very lucky to be able to come to Europe. I hope that my husband and I are able to come back some day, sooner rather than later. Right now, we are leaning toward Croatia/Italy. Possibly Barcelona. It will probably be years before we get to but I will be ready when we do.
I have 639 photos from this trip. Don’t worry. I’m not going to post them all here. But, I will post a few of my favorites today and will post others in the days to come.
Click to view slideshow.
