Travel
AN AMERICAN’S FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF EUROPE
I can finally say I’ve been to Europe.
People were always so surprised when I would tell them I’d never been to Europe. The scenario always played out the same:
“What do you mean you’ve never been to Europe?! You’ve been in Asia for over 2 years!”
I’d quickly remind them that Asia isn’t Europe, to which they’d reply “yeah… but still…” —like it was some prerequisit to visit Europe before any other continent.
But now that’s changed. Now I’ve been to Europe and can finally say what I had previously concluded before I’d even stepped foot there: Europe is nice.
I know what you’re probably thinking… What that’s it? Nice?
And it was nice, there was great food, beautiful landscapes and rich history all to be explored. Each country was so different from the last, but for the most part, it was exactly how I thought it would be.
It’s a perfectly fine part of the world to travel in, but for me, it just lacked that special something. That connection, that exoticness. It certainly was no Asia. That doesn’t mean I didn’t like Europe, because I did. There were some cities I absolutely adored and thought I could see myself moving there, and then there were some cities I thought I would adore that turned out to be just disappointing. Maybe I just didn’t give them enough of a chance.
Maybe forty days isn’t long enough to get an accurate feel for Europe, but it was certainly long enough to leave with a few impressions of each country we visited. So here’s a look at my first* impressions of Europe through the eleven, yes, eleven, countries I visited over these past six weeks:
*WHILE THESE ARE MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS, THEY ARE NOT NECESSARILY THE IMPRESSIONS I STILL HAD AFTER SPENDING TIME THERE.
UNITED KINGDOM
Visited: London
#1) London is ridiculously over priced, how can people afford to live here??
#2) I totally didn’t think I’d like London, and while I still don’t quite understand why everyone loves this city, I love this city!
#3) It was bright and sunny every day… and here I thought London was supposed to be rainy!
FRANCE
Visited: Paris, Nice
#1) They love to sit outside cafes for hours…to judge every person who passes by.
#2) Parisians are unhelpful ( at least to English speakers). They’re also crazy. I mean, really, who wears leather jackets and silk scarves when it’s 100 degrees outside?? Oh, right, refer to number one.
#3) Why does everything smell like pee?? Why do I have to pay for toilettes that are dirty and unkept? And look at me, complaining; how Parisian is that!
NETHERLANDS
Visited: Rotterdam, Amsterdam
#1) Everyone is healthy and seemingly obsessed with juice. #NotComplaining.
#2) Bicyclists are scary!!
#3) The Netherlands doesn’t have that much to do, yet I love it anyways. Just not Amsterdam.
GERMANY
Visited: Boppard, Bingen, Rüdesheim, Munich, Füssen
#1) Bavaria was my favorite part of Germany and it’s not as horrible and touristy as people claim it is.
#2) Everyone keeps speaking to me in German… do I look German?
#3) Based on my personality, and apparently looks, I am so definitely German.
CZECH REPUBLIC
Visited: Prague, Kutná Hora, Český Krumlov
#1) Walking around the Old City, I feel like I’m in a fairytale!
#2) As you get further away from Prague the atmosphere and colors begin to turn more grey…
#3) Český Krumlov might be even more picture-perfect than Prague. It’s a shame most people never get to visit this charming UNESCO town.
SLOVAKIA
Visited: Bratislava
#1) Why do they call it the ‘Blue Danube’ when it isn’t blue?
#2) Bratislava is highly underrated as a capital city. It has ridiculously old buildings, a good economy, a great tourism infrastructure…yet hardly any tourists.
#3) Everywhere is a palace. Seriously. On the tour we went on it seemed that every building he was pointing out in the Old Town was once previously a palace.
AUSTRIA
Visited: Salzburg, Vienna
#1) Austria seems like a less strict version of Germany.
#2) It’s a very livable city, but not a very good city for tourists. Most of the attractions are related to fine art and music, which is great, but everything to do costs money!
#3) When you don’t want to pay admission to an expensive museum, go get dessert instead!
ITALY + VATICAN CITY
Visited: Venice, Rome, the Vatican, Florence, Siena, San Gimignano, Pisa, Cinque Terre
#1) Trains on strike, commuter chaos… How does this country function??
#2) You can tell a person is Italian without even hearing their conversation simply by watching their hands.
#3) The regions of Italy are so different from one another, I could spend a lifetime just exploring this beautiful country. And maybe eating my way around it too.
MONACO
Visited: Monte Carlo
#1) Everything is so tall and shiny! It’s like an actual city here.
#2) The cars… oh, the cars!
#3) Monte Carlo Casino is very small, I had no idea it was that small. Regardless, the inside architecture and design is stunningly beautiful.
SPAIN
Visited: Barcelona
#1) Gaudí is simply a genius. Maybe a little crazy, but the line between genius and crazy is fine already isn’t it? Seriously though, can you imagine seeing a building like Casa Batlló back in the early 1900s? That’s over 100 years ago when they were still using horse-drawn carriages. Just think about that.
#2) Barcelona has so much to offer and so much to do. It’s such a beautiful city with an interesting culture.
#3) I love this city, can I move here?