nirav

Europe, some unpublished thoughts

I traveled for roughly four months last year and I just discovered a set of brief thoughts (future tweets) I had jotted on my iPhone. I never published these in real time due to a lack to internet connection but here they are in no particular order.

Notes from July 2010 - October 2010

• Train rides without an internet connection are awesome; they give me a chance to write. I never seem to find time to do that.
• Stockholm was perfect.
• The only entertainment needed on a train can be found right outside of the window.
• Traveling is more about the amazing people you encounter rather than the sights you see.
• Note: make use of the luggage lockers at train stations. They’re pretty handy.
• 3 month Eurail pass is a god send. Hop on. Hop off. 
• They were cooking naan and curry in an informercial in London. Can’t say I’ve ever seen that on American television.
• Europeans seem more concerned with quality over quantity in anything they do. This makes me happy. Efficiency is important but not when greatly sacrificing quality.
• Riding on the train and boat through the Norwegian fjords is an amazing experience — one that is likely to remain unmatched. I’ve never seen such breathtaking scenery.
• The demographics of European cities are rapidly changing. I always thought America was diverse but London and Oslo are quite a different story. 22% of the population in Oslo is made up of immigrants and there are places in London where it’s hard to find a Caucasian.
• We ate at quite possibly the best restaurant in Edinburgh by pure luck. As we were walking out after being told there were no tables available for the night without reservations, the guy pulled us from the street because a table miraculously opened up. I can safely say it was one of the best meals I’ve ever had.
• The castle in Edinburgh was just meh IMHO. Not worth the entry fee. A huge amount of stuff isn’t even original. Just walking around was a much better experience.
• I wish they had Pepsi Raw in the states. Just tried a free sample in Oslo. It was way better than the corn syrup crap they serve in the US.
• All drinks in Europe, even sodas, have pure sugar. This is what it’s like to live without corn syrup. Food quality++.
• Tried to find Voss bottled water in Voss, Norway. None of the stores here stock it. Weird. Didn’t even get to try it.  They probably just get Voss directly from the tap.
• I wonder where Norwegians go to vacation. Pretty much everything amazing is in their back yard.
• I don’t think we’ve encountered a late train yet. So precise.
• I see no need to ever pay high AT&T rates while traveling, at least in Europe.  WiFi is usually pretty easy to find. And for phone calls, a Skype number does wonders. Just take a smart phone and you’ll be fine.
• Cache stuff in Dropbox or get eBooks for long train journeys. Essential! 
• Finding vegetarian food while traveling is as easy as asking the local tourist office. We found a great suggestion in the Oslo tourist info center.
• If you ever encounter no vacancies at any hostels or hotels in any city, don’t panic; just go to a nearby town and try there. Most likely you’ll succeed and there are always multiple trains going and forth.
• DSLR or compact cam is essential to even do the slightest bit of justice to Scandinavia. Point and shoot or an iPhone is not enough! 
• Bring inflatable neck pillows, they work wonders on long train/plane rides. I find that non-inflatable ones are incredibly hard to carry.
• Oslo drunk food: kebabs.
• Ah the usual lunch in the middle of a fjord. By lunch, I mean on the spot swiss cheese and tomato sandwich with a bottle of coke. Not too shabby!
• I wish nutrition labeling in America was as awesome as it is in Europe. I am guessing printing “suitable for vegetarians” takes a lot of ink or something, right?
• I always thought Norway was expensive but we got some nice surprises: bottled water or soda: $5, regular sized fries at Mickey D’s: $4, any dish at any restaurant pretty much ~$25. Pretty crazy. I need to start getting paid in Kroner.
• If you ever get a chance to go to Bath England, take advantage and go to the morning walking tour. Hopefully you’ll encounter a guide who was as awesome as ours! I learned more in 2 hours about Roman and English history than I ever did in grade school.
• Travel light should be the mantra for any trip. I cannot emphasize this enough. We have only one 43L bag and one small day pack each. It makes it really fun to look at all the people hauling their luggage onto trains.
• Even the badly received British shows are better than anything on American television.
• So looking forward to this 3 hour bike tour of Stockholm!
• Quite few Winston Churchill quotes around in London. Naturally.
• Finding food after 9 PM anywhere in Norway is pretty much impossible. We had to eat french fries from McDonalds. :(
• It’s cheaper to take away food in Europe unlike the states where they actually charge you more!
• Hell yeah. First dinner in Copenhagen and we get royally screwed. Extra charges for tap water, foreign credit card and shitty service. Stark contrast between Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries thus far.
• Spent 19 hours traveling from Bergen to Stockholm. First time traveling in a sleeper car. Our private compartment included a shower too! It’s like a moving hotel room. I’d take this over flight travel any day.