|
The only difficulty you
face when planning a visit to Europe is deciding where to go.
There is so much to see, so many beautiful cities and so little time
that you are spoilt for choice. In no particular order, these are
five cities that you should see.
There are many, many more
such as Barcelona, Madrid, Budapest, Prague...
London. When you tire of London you tire of life as someone
once said, and it is still true even now. London is dirty, noisy,
crowded and the public transport isn’t the best in the world but
there is something about London that has to be experienced. Hyde
park, Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, a walk along the Thames,
Harrods, Oxford Street, Covent Garden, Soho. You can go on and on.
Paris. If you are planning a visit to Europe, how could you
not spend at least a few days in Paris? It is probably the most chic
city in the world, with its beautiful architecture, cafes, churches,
monuments, art galleries and more. Walk along the Seine or take a
bateau mouche to see the city from the river, climb the Eiffel
tower, visit Notre Dame, Sacre Coeur, eat, drink and be merry.
Rome. Like London Rome is noisy, crowded and amazing. It has
great food and great wine combined with thousands of years of
history. Visit the roman forum, Vatican City, the Coliseum., the
Fontana di Trevi and the Pantheon. As with all these cities, the
only hard decision is what to miss out if you only have a limited
time. You could live in Rome for a month and only scratch the
surface.
Venice. Simply, the most beautiful city in the world. It has
to be seem to be believed. After visiting St Mark’s Square and the
main tourist sites, I would suggest leaving the normal
tourist areas and wandering through the back streets to see
something of the real Venice. Even during the long tourist season
these are relatively empty, and you will stumble across many hidden
gems, not only architecturally but also gastronomically.
Berlin. In common with the other cities, there is a lot of
interesting history attached although Berlin is different in that
much of it is more recent. You can follow the track marking out the
Berlin wall, see the last remaining bits of wall (now preserved),
Checkpoint Charlie, the last remaining watch tower and so on. There
are also an astonishing number of museums and beer halls within easy
reach, and of course the Berlin State Opera.
Finally, a little bit of language helps. English is widely spoken,
especially in the tourist areas, but people appreciate it if you
make an effort in their language. This doesn't have to be more than
hello, goodbye but it usually gets a good response. You will also
find that in places where you might expect an understanding of
English, such as the metro in Paris, it can surprisingly be absent.
>
About the author:
Frank Middleton is a
freelance author and writes occasional articles for
http://www.linguata.com a site with a practical realistic and fast
approach to
learning words and phrases in a foreign language, using a
combination of
sophisticated testing and simple games.
You may
also be interested in...
Festivals in Europe
Interesting
Things About Europe
European Vacations, Major Countries
to Visit
|
>