It’s embarassing to me almost that I’m 41, love European history, but have never been overseas. There have been times I had the money, times I had the time, but never the twain did coil. I’m about to sell my house and when I do I am going to put $X,xxx (the x’s depending on how much it sells for) into a European tour fund and as Gawd is my witness I’ll get there while I’m still young enough to walk and stuff.
What really irritates me are people who have been to Europe and gotten nothing out of it. “Yeah, there’s some big house that belonged to a king’s girlfriend or something, whatever, but the beaches there sucked!” Makes me want to kill.
Anyone else who has never been abroad but who wants to/plans to?
ETA before someone beats me to it:
That’s “has never been abroad but wants to/plans to”, not “has never been a broad but wants to/plans to”. Either is completely fine with me but only the former’s thread relevant. No puns please.
I’ve never been, but I only kind of want to. I can’t get past nervousness about a long flight. And taking a ship would be worse. Cooped up breathing all those other people’s germs!
I would go if I could get ‘knocked out’ for the flying, like they used to do Mr. T. I would love to see the ancient public works of the Roman Empire, for example, and the dykes of Holland. (No puns!) Also on my list would be the great museums, and tours of the cities known for their architecture.
I’ve never been there, and I’m kind of interested to see what it’s like, but that said, if I get the opportunity to travel overseas, I’ll probably go back to Asia.
I’ve been to N and S America, Asia, Australia and all through Micronesia, but never to Europe. Honestly, I don’t really care too much about it. It’s way down my list of places to go.
I am of European descent, but I really don’t care much about going there. I’d happily go if someone paid my way, but if I’m paying I’m going to Africa first, then other places in Asia.
I’d like to, but when I’m on vacation I sort of just want to veg by the beach with a book and a drink with an umbrella in it. I’d imagine that if I went to Europe I’d be running around sightseeing so much that I wouldn’t be relaxed at all when I came home.
My wife was raised in a family that runs an international gourmet foods importer/distributor company. She has literally been to Europe 50+ times and is only 35 years old. I didn’t go until 1998 after we married and I had to travel to Milan to meet her party there by myself. I was a little nervous before I went but it was painfully easy. I took a red-eye flight that arrived about 8am local time and I just had the name of the hotel. I just asked for help and bought a map. I took a train to the main station and walked outside and instantly saw the Golden Arches of McDonalds which was good because I really needed to use the bathroom and McDonalds is great for that. Little known fact: It turns out that Milan has more McDonalds than you have ever seen anywhere in your life. It is also not a glamorous city serving a role like the Cleveland of Italy.
Every single person under 50 in Western Europe speaks English as far as I can tell. I don’t speak a word of anything other than some Spanish. I have walked miles upon miles day after day in cities like Paris and never had a problem. I grew up believing that European travel is something you plan for once in a lifetime and then just hold your breath and jump. It isn’t like that. You just buy a ticket and go wherever you want. Some things will seem exotic at first but that is true traveling between some parts of the U.S. as well.
I haven’t been…yet. The dude and I haven’t had a proper honeymoon yet (we were dirt poor when we eloped, and still are for the time being) but we’re supposedly going on a two-week trip to Italy as a late honeymoon (me: classics major, him: history major, mostly medieval/early Church).
Right now it’s just a big pipe dream, but as we both intend to be attorneys I’m not too worried about it not becoming reality. It just might take us a while to get settled enough to go. We have a lot of places we want to go, including all over the Americas and I think I have to see India before I die.
No, and I really really want to. I want to see pretty much all of Europe, and most of Western Asia. I think my first foray will be a Mediterranean cruise, but I have no idea when I will be able to do it.
Kenya. Tanzania. Rwanda. That part. I’d like to climb Kilimanjaro, see the Serengeti Plain, gorillas. That’s the kind of travel I like to do. I want to see things I’ll never see anywhere else. Castles, museums… meh. I like them, but there everywhere.
Been around South America and the States somewhat, and really Jones to hit Canada and Alaska, but Europe?
Eh, Europe is like an “Etch-a-Sketch” to me. I’m interested in stuff that no longer exists. In fact, its been re-written probably a dozen times. “Hey, look! Its a ‘Car-Park’ now!” :rolleyes: I would surely enjoy a season-long tramp (like the DeadHeads did) with the Formula One circuit, but its pretty unrealistic, logistic-wise. And that brings up another problem: The wife would want to visit librarys and theaters, I’d want to hit the local track, car factory or racing museum. I’m married, so my idea of a good time has become irrealvant.
Anyway, I center my travel plan around whats cheap and has the best beer. Needless to say, I don’t go far from home anymore, especially with the price of gas.
No and I have no desire to. If I were to go to another country, it would be one where the American dollar is as strong as a bull-yak, women are easy and have dark almond-shaped eyes, cannabis plants grow as high as a house, and there are no mass graves containing the remains of my ancestors.
I have followed the philosophy of “Go to Europe when you’re young enough to tolerate the looong plane trip and hardy enough to traipse around stone-paved cities all day long sightseeing”. Save the easier, closer-to-home destinations for when you’re older and your digestive system won’t tolerate the rich food or wine of the old world.
You’re still a youngster, Sampiro. I took my first trip to Europe when I was 45 and I had a blast. I hope you do, too.
I’m 51, and I’ve only been out of the country once…at age 10, to Canada. I can’t even afford a passport right now, but I’d really love to visit England someday. When the bluebells are blooming.
