<p>So jealous! You’re going to have a wonderful time! One thing I like to do in a new city is take the hop on - hop off bus. It brings you past all the “important” sites and gives you a real sense of geography. Usually the tickets are good for 24 hours and you can also buy extended ones. To my eye, it looks like one of the companies owns franchises in different cities; I wonder if you could purchase something like a “season pass” for multiple cities if you contacted them?</p>
<p>Here’s my take on your itinerary:</p>
<p>Spain (Madrid then Barcelona): I’ve been to both. Loved Barcelona, not so crazy about Madrid, but I have a cousin who did (at least) a year abroad there and she thinks I’m wrong. Grenada and Toledo are nice day trips from Madrid. In Barcelona, the Ramblas is fun - go to the Boqueria and walk around the market, but what I really liked was the medieval quarter just off the Ramblas. Even with tourists wandering around, you can easily imagine it a thousand years ago. One side trip I didn’t do, but wished I had, was to Montserrat, where there is an abbey on the mountain. Apparently the choir is amazing. I liked the Miro museum, but I’m a huge fan of Miro. I had heard about pickpockets being a problem in Spain but did not personally have any problems. Be careful, though!</p>
<p>France (I’m only interested in Paris although I’m open to suggestions!): Paris is nice, but if you only go there, you’re missing much of the French experience. Moi, j’adore Perigord/Dordogne! This is a little tricky to do without a car, but I think seeing the prehistoric caves like Lascaux would be well worth it. (Frankly, Lascaux is a fake and in my opinion not worth it, but if you can see Font de Gaume and Combarelles in Les Eyzies de Tayac, that’s a trip worth taking. Peche Merle is also nice.) There are trains, but I’m not sure about them, since I rented a car. Maybe visit somewhere like Nice?</p>
<p>Closer to Paris, you of course will want to visit Versailles. Go early in the day before the tour busses arrive, and be sure to trek out to the little village, Hameau de Marie Antoinette, that M.A. had built to pretend she was a peasant. It’s also possible to visit the gardens at Giverny where Monet painted his water lilies.</p>
<p>Italy (so many to choose from! Definitely Rome/Vatican, Florence): Definitely yes, to both. I’d add Venice to your itinerary. A magical city, and one where I hope to return for more than a day trip in the future. Pickpockets and ripoff artists are rampant in Italy so redouble the precautions you’re already taking. I was robbed on a city bus in Turin, and several people I was travelling with were as well in Florence. My daughter was robbed - by the owner of the hostel - in Rome. (We think it was the M&J hostel near the main train station in Rome; apologies to M&J if we remember incorrectly.)</p>
<p>Austria (Vienna): Vienna is nice! If you’re not a huge fan of opera, you can sit outside the opera house and they broadcast the program for free for passersby who sit in the chairs provided. Must do Mozart’s house. If you like classical music, you can spend a wonderful few hours at the Museum of Music. Vienna also has bicycles you can rent by the hour, which is a fun way to see the city. The hop on hop off bus will take you out to the Schonbrunn Palace, which also has the zoo there.</p>
<p>Vienna is a great city, to be sure, but if you’re headed there for an alpine experience, you’re going to be disappointed. Take the train over to Innsbruck. THOSE are Alps! And there’s the opportunity to take a variety of trains and trams up the Karwendel Alpine Park, where you can sit on top of a mountain and appreciate the amazing view with very little effort on your part. My friend who lived in Vienna for several years calls Innsbruck a “provincial town,” but that’s exactly why I like it. If you’re a Sound of Music fan at all, break up your trip from Vienna in Salzburg and go on one of the Sound of Music bus tours - kitschy but a fun couple of hours. Mozart’s birth house is also here.</p>
<p>Germany (Munich and Berlin): I’ve not been to Berlin but I’m told it has a good music scene. I haven’t been to Munich for a looooong time, but my most memorable visit was to the Dachau concentration camp located an easy bus ride outside town. A concentration camp is decidedly NOT a tourist destination, but I think it’s an important stop for any human, regardless of your religious beliefs. It will be meaningful, and probably depressing; you shouldn’t schedule a party for that evening. But I think you should do it.</p>
<p>Amsterdam: Anne Frank House. No doubt you read the book in school, and seeing the house makes it come alive. When I was in college, we went to Amsterdam for the hash bars; I’m sure there’s still a thriving industry. The “red light” district appeals to some. I liked the Netherlands; it’s a “comfortable” culture for me.</p>
<p>England (London (have a friend here), Bath? Manchester?): Hurrah! If you’ve been travelling alone all this time, you’ll be delighted to see your friend!! I love London and there are lots of off-the-beaten path things to do here - Denis Seavers House is just one. Make reservations in advance for the Key Ceremony at the Tower of :London. This is the ceremony where they lock up the tower for the night, and they’ve done it for hundred of years (they skipped a year during bombing in WWII). It’s free but you need advance tickets. Oxford is a fun day trip (you can see where they filmed the Harry Potter Great Hall scenes on a tour of Christ Church), and the "real Downton Abbey is nearby. If you decide to go to Stonehenge, know that they don’t let you get right up to the stones any more.</p>
<p>Scotland (Edinburgh): Great choice! You can go to the café where JK Rowling wrote much of HP1. Visit the ladies room; there are wonderful inscriptions on the walls. Royal Mile, Edinburgh Castle. Have you read any of the Alexander McCall books located in Edinburgh? There are day tour coaches that take you to the highlands (well, part of them) and to whiskey distilleries; my D (the one from Rome) got some great photos from that (after recovering from visiting the distillery at 9 AM).</p>
<p>Ireland (Dublin): Temple Bar area, Guinness factory tour. Any chance you can get out into the countryside?</p>
<p>That’s more than you expected, I’m sure! Please keep us updated after you return. And speaking as a mom, PLEASE take all those security warnings seriously. Make a copy of your important documents and leave them with someone at home. Carry only one credit card and keep the other one hidden in a separate place. Yes, those security belts are dorky but there’s a reason they’re still around. Pickpockets are smarter than you think. Don’t use your cell phone on the platform of the train station or subway. Don’t put your bag on the back of your chair or the floor under the table. Don’t assume your hostel is safe (this one really hurts). Sometimes it’s worth spending money, like for a taxi back at night.</p>
<p>As a woman travelling alone, as a young person travelling alone…a little paranoia can go a long way. There are nasty people out there whose livelihood depends on you being casual about enjoying the trip of a lifetime. Make sure it’s you, and not them, who enjoys your trip. /mom</p>
<p>Have a wonderful trip - it will become a lifetime memory for you! </p>
I know there are many members of CC who are well traveled so I figured I’d ask. Travelling from place to place takes some planning which I’m doing now, slowly but surely. </p>