pedroswift's VirtualTourist Home Page

No quotes from rich and famous travelers.: just one from my daughter after we took her to Paris for a week and London for a week to mark her 21st birthday.... "All you guys do is eat, drink and look at things!"
Travel is that simple! Or is it?
Not quite! For my wife and me, it's selective "looking, eating and drinking". The hours of research before leaving home are rewarded with silver and golden experiences on the road. Would the hair on the back of my neck have stood on end as I climbed the steps of the Porta Nigra in Trier if I had not spent some time reading about the History of Trier? A little bit of knowledge turns a pile of rocks into a semi-religious experience!
Would I have shed a tear in the Alamo had I not read James A Michener's "Texas" before the trip?
So do the homework and reap the extra enjoyment. What a marvelous resource VT Travel Guides are for we avid holiday researchers!.. (Obviously under-utilized if some of the ill-considered questions on the Forum are any guide. Having typed that, I'll probably ask one myself without looking in the Travel Guide section first!)
eg. For Paris, France and other places one can't go past BeatChick with her links to many other enlightened travellers. Also nygaston with everything you want on Paris. Read France tips from E.CHARTOL & bookmark his forum postings on Paris!.
For Rome lacristina & mccalpin for Rome & Italy pages. see air/rail transport on Bill's Italy Page. see all of Bill's Rome tips.
For general travel tips K-nalla's Gonzo Tips are priceless!

I hope I can refrain from duplicating the multiple tips to be seen on the VT site.
I'll try to stick to restaurant reviews which have not been done before and unusual isoteric stuff that no one else will be remotely interested in ie not already done to death!

We keep going back. Not just to Paris : but to the lesser tramped areas.
Why France? Probably because we learnt French at school and when we took that initial trip to Europe naturally enough Paris was the first stop. We have never recovered from the thrill of that first encounter. Each visit evokes the emotions felt nearly a quarter of a century ago.
Being nautically orientated, we have taken to the inland waterways as a way of seeing some of those lesser known areas. I can recommend canal cruising. See some stuff on canal life on Bourgogne Page

Get a map! Before you go: not when you arrive! Down load and print or better still buy a Michelin , Bartholomew or Auto Club (etc) map.
When consulting your new map check out the "scale". This will help you understand the distances between cities. If you know the distance you may then guess the driving time. So often new vt posters ask questions like, "During my 3 day stay in Paris, can I drive to a nice beach for lunch and get back to my hotel in time for dinner?" A map could have saved the query. (but maybe not!! sob!sob!)
Don't neglect the web based navigational sites such as Mappy dot com which can provide you with a driving itinerary complete with road signs, distances, directions, times, road tolls (the lot).
Keep a Journal. Don't be one of those switched -off travellers who can not even recall what cities they visited on the big trip!!!Madam uses Travel Diary by the Book Company which is aimed at Australian & New Zealand users. She records the financial expenditure, daily temperatures & general weather as well as where and what. Tips on what to take next time are there to be consulted prior to the next trip!!
Never Ever make an overseas call from your hotel room. Learned the hard way on first trip to USA. 40 bucks charged without making a connection home!!?? see other VTer's stories.

Don't put it off "until you retire". That could be too late!
Says he who, since retiring, has had two visits to orthopedic hospital wards. One after spinal injury & one after ankle broken in three places. Luckily no long term reduction in mobility suffered. However the experiences have reinforced that adage "Do it while you can!!"

If you come from Brisbane, most other places are cold!? Many experts advise one to take clothes so one can "layer against cold". eg Thermal u/wear, three layers of this or that. I disagree!
For city tourism, we prefer to take one heavy jacket/coat to suit the outdoor conditions Plus light-weight rain proofing (folding umbrella & gortex jacket). Nothing worse than going to a department store, museum(or taking public transport) in winter & not being able to remove clothing(thermal underwear for example) in what is usually an overheated environment. Taking one heavy coat off is easier than peeling through the "layers".
Aussie visitors to Europe/NA during our summer ie their winter may wish to factor into their travel plan the reduced hours of day light(typically from 0830 to 1730) as well as the cold temps.

Do you have a passion? Music? Literature?History? Sport? Hobby?
Why not give your holiday a focus by concentrating on one (or more) of those passions or interests?
Example: Golfers (& I'm not one) would have to see the Ryder Cup and play at the Holiest of the Holy - The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews. Literature buffs have to do the Da Vinci Code circuit! Opera Buffs: La Scala??see Nemorino's Opera pages
We start our travel plan with the isoteric "interest" driving the route to be taken and providing major stopping points.... from there we research a wider range of other activities to pursue. We research the regional food specialities*: the wines: special events on the entertainment/sporting calendar etc. End result is a comprehensive plan with "not to be missed" places/events highlighted. * Patricia Wells, "Food Lovers Guide to France" &"FLG to Paris" for example.
Not spontaneous enough for you? Plans are meant to be broken! I hate to pre-book accom. I'd rather have the flexibility to take a side track on a whim or a suggestion from a local or a fellow traveller!

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"Cat"

What to Leave Behind

It arrived from the bush near our place 4 years ago. Took up residence. Now we can't even go away overnight without it going next door snivelling and complaining to our neighbour to ring the Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to dob us in for neglect!
I'm afraid to tell people that chat sauvage also demands egg whisked in its morning milk ( pan perdu with bread that is actually lost) & an hour after its evening meal it comes to the door meowing for the cheese course!??

packing tips