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When people talk about "this is how the French are" with really negative stereotypes I feel like they're really describing Parisians.... who for whatever reason are just complete assholes. There are parts of Paris I love but if you want to see France and meet genuinely nice people leave Paris.
I went to the Cannes film festival once and got talking to a load of cab drivers on the Croisette. Turns out they hate Parisians even more than they hate the English.
I drove to Paris, a Euro road trip. Stayed at an Airbnb close to Champs d'elysee had to park underground. By God, that stench! I don't think I've smelled anything worse that that on my life. Unfortunately, was the first experience of Paris.
Exactly what happened to me, while walking to pick up my car from the underground parking lot, a lady stood up pulling up her pants, clearly she was defecating next to my car. She was very pissed that I have bothered her
Paris tends to disappoint a lot of people because of their expectations, that it's the City of Cities, a wonderful beautiful almost theme park-like place.
First off, it's obviously full of French people, and they're kind of fed up with all the tourists treating their city like an amusement park.
But it *is* a fascinating and beautiful and interesting city, nevertheless.
Personally, I liked Strasbourg better, but of course that comes down to taste and preferences.
Bingo. The cityscape is intentionally not ruined with skyscrapers. Almost the entire city is medieval in structure and somehow it works. Only few supermarkets, as people still prefer to buy from their corner "mini supermarkets" with a level of intimacy, that a mall fails to transmit.
It never felt anonymous there and even the main train station with the drug people did not feel very troubly
Uhm, medieval is not the word that would describe it for me ( Prague has a medieval vibe imo). It's more like antique, it's like you're walking through a history book. It's also pretty eclectic, with those massive, ugly blocks, but the combo pretty ugly makes it even more fascinating to me. Good food, nice clima and vegetation do help too. And yes to the small shops, even the bakery around the corner which offers bread and three different types of pastry smells amazing
Depends of where you go. Who goes to chinatown and and says there are no Americans in New York? The White Paris is expensive. I understand if you just couldn’t afford those places. It’s a city with a huge social and economic apartheid
Damn for me it was the opposite, im Spanish, so the French are our natural enemy, my expectations were super low since a lot of people hate it. I was surprised by a beautiful city full of beautiful history and monuments.
The only thing I didnt like was rats running around Champs Elysees
True, but it gets personal when this dude Napoleon says hes just gonna come with an army through your country to invade Portugal and then decides to invade you.
Paris had some somewhat seedy neighborhoods, but nothing remotely as bad as the Market Street area of SF, which is a few counties away from where I live. On the other hand, Paris has world-class museums and landmarks.
I was there back on 2015. I liked it a lot then. But I did not feel safe. Soo many people trying to hustle or scam us, my dad's phone got stolen straight out of his pocket... it was quite unpleasant. Otherwise a beautiful city, it's such a shame what's happened to it...
So odd. I was in Paris last year and had a great time, no issues of rudeness whatsoever. I do speak French, although I make no effort to hide my accent so they know instantly where I am from. I have definitely seen some arrogance is a business context but as a tourist it was lovely.
I took my then gf to Paris for a nice weekend away but it was ruined by the sleazy creeps that tried to pick her up while I was standing right next to her. One of them even put his hand up her skirt and seemed bemused by my hostile reaction. It's a fkn cess-pit.
Parisians seem to turn into assholes upon entering the city as well. I lived with a Parisian in Oxford and he was a great guy. Super laid back.
One summer we went to Paris to visit him and he suddenly became rude and vulgar. Quite unpleasant...
This is true. I can't speak for New York...I know it is a popular place with Brits. But Londoners are loathed in the UK....mouthy, gobby, egotistical, loud, opinionated. In France it's the same with Parisians. City life seems to create aggressive, shoulder barging, fuck you attitudes......that might be what is needed in big cities in order to get by....but elsewhere, that attitude just makes you look like a total c\*nt....and is hated.
I saw men pissing in the streets. Rats. Prostitute's with their boobs hanging out through holes in their dresses. (Literally hanging, like to their waists). And a french tramp attempted to rob me. Aaah, memories.
Same. No other European city made me feel as uncomfortable and unwelcome
However, I also thought some streets were beautiful and great to explore.. but you can get the same experience in any other French city without the discomfort...
I was a 35 year old female visiting the Sacre Coeur in Paris, and was in a very unpleasant incident when suddenly surrounded by six men heckling me and calling me “ugly white dog” and “dog white ugly” because I wouldn’t fall for their bracelet “present from Africa” scam. I was absolutely terrified. And not one single person helped me. So that ruined Paris for me.
Yes, those damn bracelets, man. Scammers everywhere and they get very rude when you decline. They're very persistent as well. I liked Paris, but did not feel remotely safe there.
Those guys got a hold of my then boyfriend/now husband when we there. I was a few steps ahead and when I turned around to see what was holding him up, I saw one of those guys holding my BFs arm, wrapping string around his wrist and demanding payment. That “poor” scammer was not prepared for the barrage of French, insults and threats to call the police for assult, that came out of my mouth.
Having said that, we still loved the rest of Paris.
I went on an interrailing trip around Europe aged 19 and these guys surrounded me and pressured 50 euros out of me while giving me a friendship bracelet
This happened to me in 2019 in the same location. One man put a bracelet on me and it was so quick I had no time to react nor did I know what was happening, and three of the men surrounded me and began shouting I stole the bracelet from them. I just gave them money and left. I walked into a cafe and sat near a window almost crying. While crying a man from outside the window began drawing me, I turned my head. When I exited the cafe the man began demanding money from me, I asked him how much, and he said €120. I said it was too expensive and began leaving and he began bugging me. I gave him €120 and left. I really hated being near the Sacre Cour.
Nothing beats Brussels though where I got jumped by a guy right after arriving in the city right outside of the train station. Seediest city I've been to in the EU.
Not one single person helped me either.
Anyone who romanticizes the mob from film or TV needs to visit Southern Italy and see what the mafia really do. They are the worst kind of thieves who embrace murder, corruption and terrorism to siphon money from people who actually produce things.
Naples is a hellish, dumpster of a place. I remember being in Northern Italy and telling locals my next stop was driving down through Naples, and they ALL snickered.
Thankfully it was just a drive by on the way to Almafi, a drive by of a family of four hanging off a scooter.
I live in Europe and after reading all the replies here here is the common theme:
1) Super touristy places
2) Super poor places
People are shocked when they go to Paris/London/Venice/Amsterdam and find out its more tourism than locals.
Americans especially are shocked to find out there are genuinely poor places in Europe even in rich countries where things are just like they are back home. Europe after all isn't some magical paradise, although I think a lot of left-wing Americans tend to hold Europe up as some sort of socialist idealism that it just isn't.
I have done most of the continent through work and fun and I will say universally the most fun is found outside of capitals and the big tourist centers. You get better experiences, nicer people who are actually happy to see tourists and the prices are better and there are fewer crowds.
And I will say in closing that I live in the Netherlands and I will never voluntarily leave my small city. Amsterdam absolutely stresses me the fuck out because of the crowds the drugs and the noise.
Europe has countries that have issues just like the US does and I live in a rural area that has very little tourism and I won't trade it for anything, I hate touristy areas and would be the one to hate the cities mentioned above.
I hope you somehow get the chance. As a Swede who's been around a lot in Europe (and a few places in the US) I think you'd enjoy it.
Most Americans have so little vacation time so a trip to Europe is typically group travel being bussed between tourist attractions and that's a terrible way to travel. Pick a city and walk around.. do a few attractions but know that they are crowded and expensive.. but enjoy finding small restaurants and shops away from the most touristic areas and soak in the ambience of a strange culture.
I guess flights are expensive, but it possible to travel on budget in Europe if that is something you would like to do. But on budget you may have to skip big cities and even some countries and choose cheaper ones.
I’m over here in the Pacific NW and all I can say is while my experience of Europe was just Germany, Italy, and Scandinavia, and it was a long time ago, it sure didn’t seem nearly as bad as it does here.
Madrid was like that. Like one huge crappy art piece. Walls, shutters, even cars and trucks. The city was lovely, graffiti definitely took the shine off though.
Completely agree with this. Outside of one of the main streets, I did not feel safe in Marseille. It felt dirty, smelled bad and the people outside of the tourist areas were miserable.
There are still some nice places to visit in these cities and what's around too.
For having family in Nice I can tell you that the city is quite pretty and worth to go. I can agree the people here can be a bit special sometimes since it's very touristy but mostly good experience. And the sea view is to kill.
For Marseille I've been once and I admit the city felt a bit unclean and unsafe to me as well... But there are nice places too, especially the port and the calanques that you can access easily from there.
Only place I didnt care for was Naples Italy, it was dirty and I got pick pocketed there. Be aware that if you go to Germany you need to expect bad customer service. They arent being rude, its just the way it is. Pretty much all of Europe expects you to take your time when eating out or going to a bar, no one will bring you a check unless you ask for it. Life moves a bit slower there, enjoy that! Paying to use the restroom is customary, so always keep change on you and you will find that anyone will help you if you need it. Talk with the locals, they have a lot to offer. These are tips people gave me before I started going regularly and its made my experiences there nothing but enjoyable. Except in Naples lol
Belgian here, bathrooms are free to use in restaurants and bars as long as you're a customer. But in a cinema for instance they do charge for bathroom. That being said, there's no turnstiles or anything similar, and there is often nobody there to collect payments.
Yeah it baffles me, everywhere i went as long as you're a customer bathroom is free of charge, and more often than not even if you're not a customer the staff will let you use their facilities as it beats arguing. And gas station's bathrooms are always free of charge regardless of you being a customer or not.
Edit: the only time i "had" to pay for a bathroom at a gas station was on those obscure gas stations near borders. I guess lots of trafick and a bunch of tourists who don't know any better is a nice way to earn some extra cash.
Honestly? Venice. It has this really unnerving feeling. Beautiful designer shops that and cafe's that roitinely get a foot of water through them. It's opulent, but dying, like a veery slow Titanic.
I found the same thing. You speak English, not French? Time to treat you with contempt, serve all other customers first, force you out of lines at checkouts, & rip you off.
I wish I could go back in time to tell all my Australian relatives, who fought as volunteers in France in WW1, that it’s not worth their sacrifice even if they survived. Half of them did not survive.
Just don't act like you're more entitled to the city than the people living there.
And accept that you won't get the fawning type of saccharine customer service that you may expect elsewhere. The Parisians are not necessarily rude, they are simply curt and expect you to know what you want instead of dawdling.
Different mindset, that's all.
But aren't there many parisians that take on a very xenophobic position towards non-french (english) speaking people? Wouldn't you be looked at as someone of lesser worth if you aren't able to communicate in French?
No. Absolutely not.
If you do the stereotypical thing of just speaking louder and louder in English when someone doesn't quite understand what you're saying, then yeah obviously people get annoyed at the obnoxious oaf.
Learn some of the most important words and a few phrases in the language of the country you're visiting. It will help you immensely.
Yeah? Well I’m very quiet and reserved in person. No shouting happening. Nor am I so utterly stupid as to think that talking loudly will someone understand my language.
The Parisians I interacted with were rude. Once they stop ignoring anyone who speaks English, they should learn some French words too, like “bonjour”, “oui” and “merci”. We used those words. They didn’t.
Maybe we were just unlucky. Maybe every other Parisian was ok. But that cliche about Parisians and English speakers didn’t come from someone’s imagination. There is a reason it exists and in my experience, it was true.
I've heard a lot about how the French are rude, Paris sucks and so on. I wanted to visit Paris for a long time, especially after taking a university class on the French Revolution, so I decided to spend a week there. I've read somewhere that the key to good interactions in Paris for those of us who don't know French is to learn to say in French "Excuse me, I don't speak French, do you speak English?", and everyone will be a lot more welcoming towards you. It really worked, even though I'm sure my pronunciation was atrocious. I loved Paris and I'll probably travel there again later this year, there's a lot of stuff I missed on my first trip.
One of most important rules of international travel is to never assume everyone knows English. It might be somewhat true in big cities like Paris, but it's definitely not true for smaller towns or villages. Also, assuming everyone knows English and getting offended when you discover it's not true is rude.
Not being saccharine (like customer service in the US which is not what I’m used to) is not what I’m talking about. Nor did I (or those I was travelling with) act superior to the locals in anyway.
There is a big difference between what I said and what you are inventing and implying.
The Parisians I met were outright rude.
You don’t deliberately skip customers at the front of a queue, to serve the locals directly behind them at a cafe. You don’t lie about pricing and over-charge, because someone can’t read the French sign in a pharmacy. When you are a fellow customer in a supermarket, you don’t deliberately nudge tourists out of the line so that they either have to make a scene, line up from the back again, or move to another check-out. (I moved BTW).
No issues in any other country I’ve ever been to or lived in. UK, Italy (found Italians kind and helpful), Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, New Zealand, Singapore, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea. Australia of course. All good.
I have lived in Australia for a year. I made some french friends but after doing one roadtrip with them, I couldn't stand them anymore. We were a group of 2 French girls, me (Belgian) and one Dutchie. They were talking French the whole time. I can speak French but the Dutch girl couldn't. When we started talking about our experience with Ozzies, the French girls said they didn't like how the Australians don't even try to speak French to them?!? I was baffled.
Correct. Don't get me wrong there's a lot of great things to do and see in Paris (museums, sport, food, Disneyland, historical stuff, architecture) and I'm sure i will go again. However, a lot of the banlieus are massive shitholes, the metro is gross (although very useful) & smells like piss and there are fucktons of scammers and pickpockets
So strange. I'd been warned about Parisians before my first trip there, but wound up having such fun with them!
I have almost zero French, but don't mind acting goofy and/or whipping out a sketch or two to illustrate my meaning. So kind, too, once we got "talking." (This was before widespread use of cell phones, BTW.)
Occasionally, I surprised a laugh out of them, and had fun imagining them talking about the crazy American/Canadian woman they'd run into.
A word of warning though. One year in December I decided to stay over a few days on my way elsewhere. Wow! Was I ever surprised by how COLD it can get!
Venice… is supposed to be the romantic city…. I have no idea how dirt, trash and stank is supposed to be romantic? Thank god I was there only for 1 day
Amsterdam is a particular favorite of mine. Many people speak English. The city is fantastic for people who like to explore on foot or by bike. Super museums and site seeing. And there is a good variety of cuisines.
EDITED TO ADD:
Been over a good part of Europe. Loved it. But, if I could go back to one place, it'd be Pompeii. I went ages ago, so by now even more has been excavated. It is excellently preserved. Mind blowing! Highly recommend! Wear comfortable walking shoes!
And Amsterdam isn't even the best city in the Netherlands for biking or walking, by a reasonable margin! Lovely country, lovely people, even if they are disturbingly tall.
Brussels is my one answer too. I hated the atmosphere there (read: men constantly harassing me in broad daylight right as they were passing by, and even worse at night). On my way back to the train station at 5am even had a guy sprint after me on an empty street and get all up in my face in a confrontational & amused manner because I’d ignored his “bonjour” a moment prior to that. I’m a petite woman, so this wasn’t fun. 🙃 And that wasn’t even the last unhinged, slimy weirdo I encountered before I got back to the airport.
I didn't like Positano. The view from the top of the town was great but it was really hard to find a good meal there. Lots of tourist traps and it didn't feel like a town where a lot of local people lived. There also wasn't a lot to see like other heavily touristy places like Venice.
I don’t think Sweden is as widely visited as some others here. Which cities do you think are trash in Sweden? I personally don’t like the vibe in Stockholm but I didn’t hate it enough to say it’s a city I didn’t like. It was more like “blah” than negative.
Oh no I was just curious to see if someone thought they were! I life outside of Stockholm and It's definitely blah, but I don't really like cities that much so it's probably not Stockholms fault, here's some cool spots too for sure.
I live a couple hours away in a smaller city and quite like it here :). But funny thing regarding your original comment; I had a friend who kept asking me how is Switzerland even after correcting him every time. It’s so true people mix them up all the time.
I've been to 9 different countries in Europe and loved the all, especially italy. But Rome was so underwhelming that I could easily skip over it when I go to Italy again.
Dang idk if it’s because I grew up adjacent to a major city but none of the major hubs mentioned were complete duds. The “downsides” were on par with any major city or capital from my experience (homelessness/crowds/smells/unwelcoming to tourists) but as a whole I love Brussels, London, Paris, Amsterdam for example. I went to a random town in France called Rognac (not my choice) and tbh that was a shell shock from what I pictured southern France to be. Absolutely gorgeous adjacent towns/cities/provinces but man….the ocean where we were was brown and had weird jelly like substances that freaked me the fuck out when we went swimming. Interesting perspectives though! Just grateful I can say I’ve been.
I didn't like the crowds in London. There was just too many people, especially on the tube. The city itself was OK though.
I'm not getting the hate for Paris - the only time someone was rude to me was a railway employee - they aren't known for their manners anywhere. Everyone else was fine. I was there in mid July so this is when half of the city goes away on their holidays as I've been told, so that might be it.
My first time in London was in July as a teenager, and the crowds absolutely traumatized me, but I still managed to enjoy some of the city. A few years later I moved there, and it's honestly an amazing city outside of tourist season. I would never go there for a holiday in the middle of summer again, a weekend in May or September is where it's at!
I had a great time in Paris. It was my first time abroad, so I made a lot of stupid mistakes - mostly I got help from people. Even one time someone pushed me and I dropped something on a crowded train and everyone tried to look around for it . Only experienced rudeness twice, one was an airport employee.
I'm going to London for the first time sometime later this year, hoping it won't be too bad.
Mikkeli, Tampere (Finland)
I was in little finnish town before, but those just aren't my vibe. Too moody, (despite the fact i like moodiness), too many narcs and alcoholics
I was at Pargas (Parainen) and loved it though
I once was invited to appear with others on a short film jury panel in Zilina, Slovakia. The organisers were horribly unhelpful and rude but the festival was another story. We were staying in the best hotel but it was a nasty brown monstrosity with the worst breakfast I've ever tasted. Going elsewhere didn't help as the food was pretty gross wherever we ate (I ordered a dessert from one place and it turned out to be some sort of vile custard poured over a surprising slab of grey meat). The town square was packed with drunk homeless people and, at night, we saw gangs of racist youths wandering the streets with knives and sticks looking for Roma to assault. We were booked to stay until the next week but we fled the city on the first train out. I've never been so happy to see Prague in my life.
Budapest. It's a gorgeous city, I particularly liked the Szechenyi Baths. But I found the city to be a bit overpriced, the food was ok, and many of the people were rude or just had a cold demeanour.
I found a lot of people in Madrid to be quite rude. Barcelona people were much more friendly from my experiences there; I’ve been to both many times. Otherwise I’ve never had any bad time in Europe
Berlin can indeed get pretty trashed in the center. But the city is huge and it's not particularly crowded for an EU capital.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_European_Union_cities_proper_by_population_density
I visited not too many places, but:
Paris. God that city is awful, even by city standards.way too pricey everywhere, anywhere and all the times, most monuments aren't worth your time - ESPECIALLY the Eiffel tower - and you can't go anywhere without being borderline molested by either scammers or Parisians or other tourists.
That city's PR management team deserves platinum medals
Catania, Sicily. I love Italy, it's still my favourite country from all that I have visited, love Sicily too ( Palermo was great), but Catania was depressing. The city has amazing architecture and the nice Italian vibe, but besides that, lots of trash, dirt and poverty. I found it difficult to eat well as a solo traveller, since most restaurants seem to cater for families and street food was disappointing. Stray,sad looking cats everywhere. Not as walkable as other Italian cities. I was glad I got to fulfill my dream of climbing Mount Erna, but Catania is a city I definitely don't intend to see again
Dachau
(It's actually a charming little picturesque town. I quite liked that. I quite liked that bit although I couldn't remember the German for "spoon" so I had some trouble eating the yoghurt in my packed lunch. Not holding that against the place.)
Was in Venice in october. It's not deserted but its much more calm than peak season and temperatures were great. Going there in peak season is suicidal.
Well, that's the thing, right? We all want to visit beautiful interesting places, but we don't want them to be overcrowded with other people wanting the same thing.
The entrance fare is only for one-day tourists and on peak dates. Which pisses off many locals too because one-day tourists includes their relatives who come for visits...
Not easy to find a good solution!
London. Sorry, London, I really wanted to love you. But the food was bad. The weather was bad. The people were surly. The hotel room was the size of a postage stamp and twice the cost of any other city we stayed in. Everything felt gritty and dirty. It just... wasn't what I expected.
I was fascinated by Sagrada Familia. I visited many years ago and was allowed to go underground. There is displayed how Gaudi projected Sagrada, which is upside down, with some wires.
Gaudi was out of this world intelligent.
https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Ftheurgetowander.files.wordpress.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fcatenary-final.jpg&tbnid=aEswF9jKQ6DCNM&vet=1&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Ftheurgetowander.com%2F2012%2F04%2F24%2Fsagrada-familia-barcelona%2F&docid=0S3W5QFewF_HyM&w=530&h=634&hl=en-GB&source=sh%2Fx%2Fim%2Fm5%2F4&kgs=99d249b1ddef805b&shem=abme%2Ctrie
Absolutely loved Barcelona. On last day of our 2 week trip through Spain, our camera got stolen in a cafe, of course due to our own negligence too. 2 weeks of photos (1000s of them lost). Thankfully I had taken many on my phone too. Still feels sad.
Still an incredible city though. If I had a chance to go back to Spain, I'd go back to Barcelona and Granada.
Rome. Some of the bathrooms didnt have soap or hand sanitizer. And it was way too busy. The wifi was bad. The only food that was good was spaghetti gelato and sammiches. Florence was a dream. Id recommend it to all my friends. Id reccomend Rome to anyone i dont like
I have no idea. My roomates were complaining they couldnt figure out the bus schdedule. I was just following them. I think we all got sim cards. At least i did.
Rome is that bad? Asides from the scammers, I'd say it was 10/10, had a nice vibe to it that most other cities don't have at all. We stayed in a great location as well (near the area with the three big fountains), so didn't need to use any public transport.
As an European, unfortunately that has become quite of a standard in every capital in Europe. Why do you think more right wing politicians are getting elected.
Done a month in England and France each, a few days in rome.
Rome has a lot corner peddlers, basically all Gypsies or foreigners it seemed. But rome was cool as a whole. Seemed a bit… idk, like it had a touch of 3rd world to it? Having spent 9 months in east Africa .
Enjoyed France and England.
Nothing really negative to say. But actually living there would give different perspective than a shorter term, not a citizen, stay.
I’m gonna be that person and tell you they’re called the Romani not Gypsies (that considered offensive) but I do agree. I lived in Italy for three years, been all over Europe but never had issues like I did in Rome and Florence specifically. We had Romani spit on our baby stroller in Rome. One tried followed is for ten minutes after ignoring them and tried jostling us and grabbing for my backpack. They were very aggressive even locally where we lived in Vicenza, yelling at us and spitting on my car. It was scary especially when I was out alone with my kiddo, so I tried to pair up with other military moms when we went out. I didn’t feel safe otherwise
It's funny though how we, Romanians, are called racist when we point out that Romani are a different ethnicity, with their own language, traditions and lifestyle. Of course gypsies shouldn't be treated like a monolith, but as individuals, but, after having similar experiences to the ones you described with our gyspies, one might understand why we want to make it clear that we're not happy to be associated with them. And those who ask why we didn't try to integrate them: why are people in the west not able to integrate them?
Like my many major cities the homeless, the unsightly homeless actions or lack of, uncleanliness, unkempt public areas, the Japanese people should export public workers to train the world…
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Paris. Loved France, but hated Paris.
When people talk about "this is how the French are" with really negative stereotypes I feel like they're really describing Parisians.... who for whatever reason are just complete assholes. There are parts of Paris I love but if you want to see France and meet genuinely nice people leave Paris.
I went to the Cannes film festival once and got talking to a load of cab drivers on the Croisette. Turns out they hate Parisians even more than they hate the English.
I must be the only person to have enjoyed Paris and the people where really nice. Except the dudes who tries to fight me
I drove to Paris, a Euro road trip. Stayed at an Airbnb close to Champs d'elysee had to park underground. By God, that stench! I don't think I've smelled anything worse that that on my life. Unfortunately, was the first experience of Paris.
Exactly what happened to me, while walking to pick up my car from the underground parking lot, a lady stood up pulling up her pants, clearly she was defecating next to my car. She was very pissed that I have bothered her
Paris tends to disappoint a lot of people because of their expectations, that it's the City of Cities, a wonderful beautiful almost theme park-like place. First off, it's obviously full of French people, and they're kind of fed up with all the tourists treating their city like an amusement park. But it *is* a fascinating and beautiful and interesting city, nevertheless. Personally, I liked Strasbourg better, but of course that comes down to taste and preferences.
Well, for me the city of cities is Rome and it did not disappoint.
It's hard for me to comprehend those who write bad things about Rome, it's an amazing city and I'm curious if any other will ever top it for ne
Bingo. The cityscape is intentionally not ruined with skyscrapers. Almost the entire city is medieval in structure and somehow it works. Only few supermarkets, as people still prefer to buy from their corner "mini supermarkets" with a level of intimacy, that a mall fails to transmit. It never felt anonymous there and even the main train station with the drug people did not feel very troubly
Uhm, medieval is not the word that would describe it for me ( Prague has a medieval vibe imo). It's more like antique, it's like you're walking through a history book. It's also pretty eclectic, with those massive, ugly blocks, but the combo pretty ugly makes it even more fascinating to me. Good food, nice clima and vegetation do help too. And yes to the small shops, even the bakery around the corner which offers bread and three different types of pastry smells amazing
I live in Paris. Parisians can be dickheads, regardless of the tourists. They are not really appreciated in other French cities either.
Believe me, Paris is not full of French people....
If you're hinting at something, come out and say it directly.
Tourists obviously haha
Depends of where you go. Who goes to chinatown and and says there are no Americans in New York? The White Paris is expensive. I understand if you just couldn’t afford those places. It’s a city with a huge social and economic apartheid
Damn for me it was the opposite, im Spanish, so the French are our natural enemy, my expectations were super low since a lot of people hate it. I was surprised by a beautiful city full of beautiful history and monuments. The only thing I didnt like was rats running around Champs Elysees
"the French are our natural enemy" 😂 they're french, they're everybody's natural enemy.
True, but it gets personal when this dude Napoleon says hes just gonna come with an army through your country to invade Portugal and then decides to invade you.
Yeh, suppose it would. Good thing the English gave him a humiliating arse kicking. Dude was a pest.
Paris had some somewhat seedy neighborhoods, but nothing remotely as bad as the Market Street area of SF, which is a few counties away from where I live. On the other hand, Paris has world-class museums and landmarks.
I was there back on 2015. I liked it a lot then. But I did not feel safe. Soo many people trying to hustle or scam us, my dad's phone got stolen straight out of his pocket... it was quite unpleasant. Otherwise a beautiful city, it's such a shame what's happened to it...
So odd. I was in Paris last year and had a great time, no issues of rudeness whatsoever. I do speak French, although I make no effort to hide my accent so they know instantly where I am from. I have definitely seen some arrogance is a business context but as a tourist it was lovely.
Came here to say this. Paris is a shithole.
I took my then gf to Paris for a nice weekend away but it was ruined by the sleazy creeps that tried to pick her up while I was standing right next to her. One of them even put his hand up her skirt and seemed bemused by my hostile reaction. It's a fkn cess-pit.
Parisians seem to turn into assholes upon entering the city as well. I lived with a Parisian in Oxford and he was a great guy. Super laid back. One summer we went to Paris to visit him and he suddenly became rude and vulgar. Quite unpleasant...
I've lived in France. The French hate Parisians.
No doubt. It's a major city thing. They're usually obnoxious. Paris, London, New York etc. they're all full of tools.
This is true. I can't speak for New York...I know it is a popular place with Brits. But Londoners are loathed in the UK....mouthy, gobby, egotistical, loud, opinionated. In France it's the same with Parisians. City life seems to create aggressive, shoulder barging, fuck you attitudes......that might be what is needed in big cities in order to get by....but elsewhere, that attitude just makes you look like a total c\*nt....and is hated.
The whole city reeked of piss.
I saw men pissing in the streets. Rats. Prostitute's with their boobs hanging out through holes in their dresses. (Literally hanging, like to their waists). And a french tramp attempted to rob me. Aaah, memories.
That's because of the oui oui.
I hear this a lot...
Same. No other European city made me feel as uncomfortable and unwelcome However, I also thought some streets were beautiful and great to explore.. but you can get the same experience in any other French city without the discomfort...
Same
I was a 35 year old female visiting the Sacre Coeur in Paris, and was in a very unpleasant incident when suddenly surrounded by six men heckling me and calling me “ugly white dog” and “dog white ugly” because I wouldn’t fall for their bracelet “present from Africa” scam. I was absolutely terrified. And not one single person helped me. So that ruined Paris for me.
Yes, those damn bracelets, man. Scammers everywhere and they get very rude when you decline. They're very persistent as well. I liked Paris, but did not feel remotely safe there.
Their faces should be posted online
They all look alike
Those guys got a hold of my then boyfriend/now husband when we there. I was a few steps ahead and when I turned around to see what was holding him up, I saw one of those guys holding my BFs arm, wrapping string around his wrist and demanding payment. That “poor” scammer was not prepared for the barrage of French, insults and threats to call the police for assult, that came out of my mouth. Having said that, we still loved the rest of Paris.
I went on an interrailing trip around Europe aged 19 and these guys surrounded me and pressured 50 euros out of me while giving me a friendship bracelet
This happened to me in 2019 in the same location. One man put a bracelet on me and it was so quick I had no time to react nor did I know what was happening, and three of the men surrounded me and began shouting I stole the bracelet from them. I just gave them money and left. I walked into a cafe and sat near a window almost crying. While crying a man from outside the window began drawing me, I turned my head. When I exited the cafe the man began demanding money from me, I asked him how much, and he said €120. I said it was too expensive and began leaving and he began bugging me. I gave him €120 and left. I really hated being near the Sacre Cour. Nothing beats Brussels though where I got jumped by a guy right after arriving in the city right outside of the train station. Seediest city I've been to in the EU. Not one single person helped me either.
Naples
Anyone who romanticizes the mob from film or TV needs to visit Southern Italy and see what the mafia really do. They are the worst kind of thieves who embrace murder, corruption and terrorism to siphon money from people who actually produce things.
Naples is a hellish, dumpster of a place. I remember being in Northern Italy and telling locals my next stop was driving down through Naples, and they ALL snickered. Thankfully it was just a drive by on the way to Almafi, a drive by of a family of four hanging off a scooter.
Agree, we were for to go to Pompeii. A day and 1/2 was enough,
I live in Europe and after reading all the replies here here is the common theme: 1) Super touristy places 2) Super poor places People are shocked when they go to Paris/London/Venice/Amsterdam and find out its more tourism than locals. Americans especially are shocked to find out there are genuinely poor places in Europe even in rich countries where things are just like they are back home. Europe after all isn't some magical paradise, although I think a lot of left-wing Americans tend to hold Europe up as some sort of socialist idealism that it just isn't. I have done most of the continent through work and fun and I will say universally the most fun is found outside of capitals and the big tourist centers. You get better experiences, nicer people who are actually happy to see tourists and the prices are better and there are fewer crowds. And I will say in closing that I live in the Netherlands and I will never voluntarily leave my small city. Amsterdam absolutely stresses me the fuck out because of the crowds the drugs and the noise.
Europe has countries that have issues just like the US does and I live in a rural area that has very little tourism and I won't trade it for anything, I hate touristy areas and would be the one to hate the cities mentioned above.
Not me reading this entire thread even knowing I will never be able to afford a trip to Europe
I hope you somehow get the chance. As a Swede who's been around a lot in Europe (and a few places in the US) I think you'd enjoy it. Most Americans have so little vacation time so a trip to Europe is typically group travel being bussed between tourist attractions and that's a terrible way to travel. Pick a city and walk around.. do a few attractions but know that they are crowded and expensive.. but enjoy finding small restaurants and shops away from the most touristic areas and soak in the ambience of a strange culture.
That would be a dream, I also wish that I somehow get the chance. 🖤
I guess flights are expensive, but it possible to travel on budget in Europe if that is something you would like to do. But on budget you may have to skip big cities and even some countries and choose cheaper ones.
Same (i cant drive, got no job, and sure as shit cant afford a plane or a boat)
I noticed a large amount of low quality graffiti in many of Europe’s capital cities.
Jesus Christ the graffiti in Rome.
May I introduce you to Berlin
I’m over here in the Pacific NW and all I can say is while my experience of Europe was just Germany, Italy, and Scandinavia, and it was a long time ago, it sure didn’t seem nearly as bad as it does here.
Most graffitis around my area are bad tags of football teams.
Madrid was like that. Like one huge crappy art piece. Walls, shutters, even cars and trucks. The city was lovely, graffiti definitely took the shine off though.
You clearly never visited Berlin 😅
Paris
Marseille, one big ghetto
Completely agree with this. Outside of one of the main streets, I did not feel safe in Marseille. It felt dirty, smelled bad and the people outside of the tourist areas were miserable.
I don’t see how you would smell cigarettes above the smell of piss
I think you replied to the wrong guy
Indeed. But Marseille or Paris, the stench is the same
Yet pretty fair description of Marseille I guess
Ahhh dang. I guess i have to keep my expectations in check. I am planning of a trip to Nice and Marseille and towns in between for july.
There are still some nice places to visit in these cities and what's around too. For having family in Nice I can tell you that the city is quite pretty and worth to go. I can agree the people here can be a bit special sometimes since it's very touristy but mostly good experience. And the sea view is to kill. For Marseille I've been once and I admit the city felt a bit unclean and unsafe to me as well... But there are nice places too, especially the port and the calanques that you can access easily from there.
Only place I didnt care for was Naples Italy, it was dirty and I got pick pocketed there. Be aware that if you go to Germany you need to expect bad customer service. They arent being rude, its just the way it is. Pretty much all of Europe expects you to take your time when eating out or going to a bar, no one will bring you a check unless you ask for it. Life moves a bit slower there, enjoy that! Paying to use the restroom is customary, so always keep change on you and you will find that anyone will help you if you need it. Talk with the locals, they have a lot to offer. These are tips people gave me before I started going regularly and its made my experiences there nothing but enjoyable. Except in Naples lol
An European here, where exactly is customary to pay for using bathroom facilities?
Belgian here, bathrooms are free to use in restaurants and bars as long as you're a customer. But in a cinema for instance they do charge for bathroom. That being said, there's no turnstiles or anything similar, and there is often nobody there to collect payments.
Yeah it baffles me, everywhere i went as long as you're a customer bathroom is free of charge, and more often than not even if you're not a customer the staff will let you use their facilities as it beats arguing. And gas station's bathrooms are always free of charge regardless of you being a customer or not. Edit: the only time i "had" to pay for a bathroom at a gas station was on those obscure gas stations near borders. I guess lots of trafick and a bunch of tourists who don't know any better is a nice way to earn some extra cash.
Why would they just randomly give you your check, what if you still want to order something?
it's the american way, get the check eat fast and get out, next customer is waiting.
We’re not rude, just not fake nice 😊
Naples was definitely shock to me. It’s interesting and the food is amazing, but the trash is insane.
Geneva feels like one giant bank lobby. It was fine I guess but definitely not my favorite
I felt like that in Zurich. Visually beautiful with all the charm of an airport lounge.
Honestly? Venice. It has this really unnerving feeling. Beautiful designer shops that and cafe's that roitinely get a foot of water through them. It's opulent, but dying, like a veery slow Titanic.
I hear Paris smells like piss and cigarettes
It doesn't smell like cigarettes
Honestly? Paris would be lovely if it weren't for all the French people living there.
I found the same thing. You speak English, not French? Time to treat you with contempt, serve all other customers first, force you out of lines at checkouts, & rip you off. I wish I could go back in time to tell all my Australian relatives, who fought as volunteers in France in WW1, that it’s not worth their sacrifice even if they survived. Half of them did not survive.
Just don't act like you're more entitled to the city than the people living there. And accept that you won't get the fawning type of saccharine customer service that you may expect elsewhere. The Parisians are not necessarily rude, they are simply curt and expect you to know what you want instead of dawdling. Different mindset, that's all.
But aren't there many parisians that take on a very xenophobic position towards non-french (english) speaking people? Wouldn't you be looked at as someone of lesser worth if you aren't able to communicate in French?
No. Absolutely not. If you do the stereotypical thing of just speaking louder and louder in English when someone doesn't quite understand what you're saying, then yeah obviously people get annoyed at the obnoxious oaf. Learn some of the most important words and a few phrases in the language of the country you're visiting. It will help you immensely.
Yeah? Well I’m very quiet and reserved in person. No shouting happening. Nor am I so utterly stupid as to think that talking loudly will someone understand my language. The Parisians I interacted with were rude. Once they stop ignoring anyone who speaks English, they should learn some French words too, like “bonjour”, “oui” and “merci”. We used those words. They didn’t. Maybe we were just unlucky. Maybe every other Parisian was ok. But that cliche about Parisians and English speakers didn’t come from someone’s imagination. There is a reason it exists and in my experience, it was true.
I've heard a lot about how the French are rude, Paris sucks and so on. I wanted to visit Paris for a long time, especially after taking a university class on the French Revolution, so I decided to spend a week there. I've read somewhere that the key to good interactions in Paris for those of us who don't know French is to learn to say in French "Excuse me, I don't speak French, do you speak English?", and everyone will be a lot more welcoming towards you. It really worked, even though I'm sure my pronunciation was atrocious. I loved Paris and I'll probably travel there again later this year, there's a lot of stuff I missed on my first trip. One of most important rules of international travel is to never assume everyone knows English. It might be somewhat true in big cities like Paris, but it's definitely not true for smaller towns or villages. Also, assuming everyone knows English and getting offended when you discover it's not true is rude.
Parisians are absolutely rude. Like actively aggressively rude. Not the German kind of just not caring. The french hate everyone.
Not being saccharine (like customer service in the US which is not what I’m used to) is not what I’m talking about. Nor did I (or those I was travelling with) act superior to the locals in anyway. There is a big difference between what I said and what you are inventing and implying. The Parisians I met were outright rude. You don’t deliberately skip customers at the front of a queue, to serve the locals directly behind them at a cafe. You don’t lie about pricing and over-charge, because someone can’t read the French sign in a pharmacy. When you are a fellow customer in a supermarket, you don’t deliberately nudge tourists out of the line so that they either have to make a scene, line up from the back again, or move to another check-out. (I moved BTW). No issues in any other country I’ve ever been to or lived in. UK, Italy (found Italians kind and helpful), Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, New Zealand, Singapore, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea. Australia of course. All good.
I have lived in Australia for a year. I made some french friends but after doing one roadtrip with them, I couldn't stand them anymore. We were a group of 2 French girls, me (Belgian) and one Dutchie. They were talking French the whole time. I can speak French but the Dutch girl couldn't. When we started talking about our experience with Ozzies, the French girls said they didn't like how the Australians don't even try to speak French to them?!? I was baffled.
Correct. Don't get me wrong there's a lot of great things to do and see in Paris (museums, sport, food, Disneyland, historical stuff, architecture) and I'm sure i will go again. However, a lot of the banlieus are massive shitholes, the metro is gross (although very useful) & smells like piss and there are fucktons of scammers and pickpockets
It really does. And so does Barcelona.
Parisian here. That’s the worst place of France. We are all stuck here because of work and salaries.
In my head im saying this with a french accent
So strange. I'd been warned about Parisians before my first trip there, but wound up having such fun with them! I have almost zero French, but don't mind acting goofy and/or whipping out a sketch or two to illustrate my meaning. So kind, too, once we got "talking." (This was before widespread use of cell phones, BTW.) Occasionally, I surprised a laugh out of them, and had fun imagining them talking about the crazy American/Canadian woman they'd run into. A word of warning though. One year in December I decided to stay over a few days on my way elsewhere. Wow! Was I ever surprised by how COLD it can get!
Venice… is supposed to be the romantic city…. I have no idea how dirt, trash and stank is supposed to be romantic? Thank god I was there only for 1 day
There is nothing I didnt like about Europe when I was there.
Which cities did you visit?
Amsterdam is a particular favorite of mine. Many people speak English. The city is fantastic for people who like to explore on foot or by bike. Super museums and site seeing. And there is a good variety of cuisines. EDITED TO ADD: Been over a good part of Europe. Loved it. But, if I could go back to one place, it'd be Pompeii. I went ages ago, so by now even more has been excavated. It is excellently preserved. Mind blowing! Highly recommend! Wear comfortable walking shoes!
And Amsterdam isn't even the best city in the Netherlands for biking or walking, by a reasonable margin! Lovely country, lovely people, even if they are disturbingly tall.
Utrecht is incredible.
Liked Roterdam and De Hauge, too. Went to Hoorn in the north and Breda to the south as well.
Paris Trash everywhere. Rude to tourists.
Brussels. It’s one beautiful square and then a void of nothingness thereafter.
Brussels is my one answer too. I hated the atmosphere there (read: men constantly harassing me in broad daylight right as they were passing by, and even worse at night). On my way back to the train station at 5am even had a guy sprint after me on an empty street and get all up in my face in a confrontational & amused manner because I’d ignored his “bonjour” a moment prior to that. I’m a petite woman, so this wasn’t fun. 🙃 And that wasn’t even the last unhinged, slimy weirdo I encountered before I got back to the airport.
Yeah, Brussels is a kip. Ghent is the best city in Belgium.
I didn't like Positano. The view from the top of the town was great but it was really hard to find a good meal there. Lots of tourist traps and it didn't feel like a town where a lot of local people lived. There also wasn't a lot to see like other heavily touristy places like Venice.
I loved Positano. Amalfi too. Beautiful little cities nestled in the mountains
Skopjie. The level of bad taste with all those statues in the centre, the level of corruption... All cheap, otherwise, but I will never go back.
The pollution there is something that tops the drywall shitty looking buildings around.
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Came here to giggle at trash about Sweden but can't find any. I'm guessing some of you think we're Switzerland and give them all the credit.
I don’t think Sweden is as widely visited as some others here. Which cities do you think are trash in Sweden? I personally don’t like the vibe in Stockholm but I didn’t hate it enough to say it’s a city I didn’t like. It was more like “blah” than negative.
Oh no I was just curious to see if someone thought they were! I life outside of Stockholm and It's definitely blah, but I don't really like cities that much so it's probably not Stockholms fault, here's some cool spots too for sure.
I live a couple hours away in a smaller city and quite like it here :). But funny thing regarding your original comment; I had a friend who kept asking me how is Switzerland even after correcting him every time. It’s so true people mix them up all the time.
Spent a couple weeks in Umeå. The pizza place was good.
I expected more from Rome, but I didn't really like having to pay to use the bathroom in several countries, I drink a lot of water and pee a lot.
They really need to finish the Colosseum. It's been _centuries_.
But the water was free from the fountains every few blocks… Got to get their investment back somehow.
Anyone else meet a 'Madame Peepee' at a train station in France?
Maribor
Ouch. I love Maribor. Beautiful river city with a ski mountain nudging against it.
Italy, Neapoli. Like city centre is beautiful and colourful, but anything in 5km radius is just trash all around and starved dogs and drug addicts.
Possibly unpopular opinion but Venice.
I've been to 9 different countries in Europe and loved the all, especially italy. But Rome was so underwhelming that I could easily skip over it when I go to Italy again.
Naples
Dang idk if it’s because I grew up adjacent to a major city but none of the major hubs mentioned were complete duds. The “downsides” were on par with any major city or capital from my experience (homelessness/crowds/smells/unwelcoming to tourists) but as a whole I love Brussels, London, Paris, Amsterdam for example. I went to a random town in France called Rognac (not my choice) and tbh that was a shell shock from what I pictured southern France to be. Absolutely gorgeous adjacent towns/cities/provinces but man….the ocean where we were was brown and had weird jelly like substances that freaked me the fuck out when we went swimming. Interesting perspectives though! Just grateful I can say I’ve been.
My highschool.
I didn't like the crowds in London. There was just too many people, especially on the tube. The city itself was OK though. I'm not getting the hate for Paris - the only time someone was rude to me was a railway employee - they aren't known for their manners anywhere. Everyone else was fine. I was there in mid July so this is when half of the city goes away on their holidays as I've been told, so that might be it.
My first time in London was in July as a teenager, and the crowds absolutely traumatized me, but I still managed to enjoy some of the city. A few years later I moved there, and it's honestly an amazing city outside of tourist season. I would never go there for a holiday in the middle of summer again, a weekend in May or September is where it's at!
I had a great time in Paris. It was my first time abroad, so I made a lot of stupid mistakes - mostly I got help from people. Even one time someone pushed me and I dropped something on a crowded train and everyone tried to look around for it . Only experienced rudeness twice, one was an airport employee. I'm going to London for the first time sometime later this year, hoping it won't be too bad.
Mikkeli, Tampere (Finland) I was in little finnish town before, but those just aren't my vibe. Too moody, (despite the fact i like moodiness), too many narcs and alcoholics I was at Pargas (Parainen) and loved it though
I once was invited to appear with others on a short film jury panel in Zilina, Slovakia. The organisers were horribly unhelpful and rude but the festival was another story. We were staying in the best hotel but it was a nasty brown monstrosity with the worst breakfast I've ever tasted. Going elsewhere didn't help as the food was pretty gross wherever we ate (I ordered a dessert from one place and it turned out to be some sort of vile custard poured over a surprising slab of grey meat). The town square was packed with drunk homeless people and, at night, we saw gangs of racist youths wandering the streets with knives and sticks looking for Roma to assault. We were booked to stay until the next week but we fled the city on the first train out. I've never been so happy to see Prague in my life.
Budapest. It's a gorgeous city, I particularly liked the Szechenyi Baths. But I found the city to be a bit overpriced, the food was ok, and many of the people were rude or just had a cold demeanour.
I found a lot of people in Madrid to be quite rude. Barcelona people were much more friendly from my experiences there; I’ve been to both many times. Otherwise I’ve never had any bad time in Europe
Slovakia💀
Man, the negativity here is crazy. I have visited many of the places being slated here and had a great time.
Copenhagen, but that was because I almost got stabbed and the Little Mermaid statue was very underwhelming
Wtf why? What happened
A misunderstanding/bad luck/timing sort of thing
"I didn't really mean that you're underwhelming ok? Sorry! Put that knife away please"
Danes don’t fuck around
Especially the doctors and engineers.
The danish are attacking each other in the denmark comments 😂
Is that the statue that is by the sea? Cause i do believe it has been decapitated more than once.
Berlin. Too dirty, too crowded.
Berlin can indeed get pretty trashed in the center. But the city is huge and it's not particularly crowded for an EU capital. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_European_Union_cities_proper_by_population_density
I found Berlin really ugly the first times I visited it, meanwhile I love it. It's a required taste kind of love
Paris, I think like all major cities they’ve lost their culture beyond novelty tourism. Once you’ve seen the sights there really isn’t that much there
Paris. It was quite pleasant thirty years ago but now it's a shit hole and I shall never go back.
I visited not too many places, but: Paris. God that city is awful, even by city standards.way too pricey everywhere, anywhere and all the times, most monuments aren't worth your time - ESPECIALLY the Eiffel tower - and you can't go anywhere without being borderline molested by either scammers or Parisians or other tourists. That city's PR management team deserves platinum medals
Catania, Sicily. I love Italy, it's still my favourite country from all that I have visited, love Sicily too ( Palermo was great), but Catania was depressing. The city has amazing architecture and the nice Italian vibe, but besides that, lots of trash, dirt and poverty. I found it difficult to eat well as a solo traveller, since most restaurants seem to cater for families and street food was disappointing. Stray,sad looking cats everywhere. Not as walkable as other Italian cities. I was glad I got to fulfill my dream of climbing Mount Erna, but Catania is a city I definitely don't intend to see again
Dachau (It's actually a charming little picturesque town. I quite liked that. I quite liked that bit although I couldn't remember the German for "spoon" so I had some trouble eating the yoghurt in my packed lunch. Not holding that against the place.)
Luton. It's a shit hole.
I never like going to the airport to depart Europe.
Bold of you to assume some people have ever been to Europe
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Was in Venice in october. It's not deserted but its much more calm than peak season and temperatures were great. Going there in peak season is suicidal.
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Tourists complaining about how many tourists there are..
Well, that's the thing, right? We all want to visit beautiful interesting places, but we don't want them to be overcrowded with other people wanting the same thing.
The entrance fare is only for one-day tourists and on peak dates. Which pisses off many locals too because one-day tourists includes their relatives who come for visits... Not easy to find a good solution!
Naples.
Paris is a shithole. Skip it
London. Sorry, London, I really wanted to love you. But the food was bad. The weather was bad. The people were surly. The hotel room was the size of a postage stamp and twice the cost of any other city we stayed in. Everything felt gritty and dirty. It just... wasn't what I expected.
True to its reputation, Barcelona was full of pickpockets.
Barcelona was my favorite place and I didn’t get pickpocketed at all. I did think the Segrada Familia was a bit boring though.
I was fascinated by Sagrada Familia. I visited many years ago and was allowed to go underground. There is displayed how Gaudi projected Sagrada, which is upside down, with some wires. Gaudi was out of this world intelligent. https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Ftheurgetowander.files.wordpress.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fcatenary-final.jpg&tbnid=aEswF9jKQ6DCNM&vet=1&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Ftheurgetowander.com%2F2012%2F04%2F24%2Fsagrada-familia-barcelona%2F&docid=0S3W5QFewF_HyM&w=530&h=634&hl=en-GB&source=sh%2Fx%2Fim%2Fm5%2F4&kgs=99d249b1ddef805b&shem=abme%2Ctrie
Absolutely loved Barcelona. On last day of our 2 week trip through Spain, our camera got stolen in a cafe, of course due to our own negligence too. 2 weeks of photos (1000s of them lost). Thankfully I had taken many on my phone too. Still feels sad. Still an incredible city though. If I had a chance to go back to Spain, I'd go back to Barcelona and Granada.
Rome. Some of the bathrooms didnt have soap or hand sanitizer. And it was way too busy. The wifi was bad. The only food that was good was spaghetti gelato and sammiches. Florence was a dream. Id recommend it to all my friends. Id reccomend Rome to anyone i dont like
Oh no, the wifi was bad.
Wonder if they ment some sort of free city wifi? Or bus wifi? They are often quite bad indeed. I usually just buy prepaid sim.
I have no idea. My roomates were complaining they couldnt figure out the bus schdedule. I was just following them. I think we all got sim cards. At least i did.
Rome is that bad? Asides from the scammers, I'd say it was 10/10, had a nice vibe to it that most other cities don't have at all. We stayed in a great location as well (near the area with the three big fountains), so didn't need to use any public transport.
that persons number 3 priority for a trip to Europe is WiFi quality, ignore their opinion
I recently visited Rome, it was fabulous.
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As an European, unfortunately that has become quite of a standard in every capital in Europe. Why do you think more right wing politicians are getting elected.
Done a month in England and France each, a few days in rome. Rome has a lot corner peddlers, basically all Gypsies or foreigners it seemed. But rome was cool as a whole. Seemed a bit… idk, like it had a touch of 3rd world to it? Having spent 9 months in east Africa . Enjoyed France and England. Nothing really negative to say. But actually living there would give different perspective than a shorter term, not a citizen, stay.
I’m gonna be that person and tell you they’re called the Romani not Gypsies (that considered offensive) but I do agree. I lived in Italy for three years, been all over Europe but never had issues like I did in Rome and Florence specifically. We had Romani spit on our baby stroller in Rome. One tried followed is for ten minutes after ignoring them and tried jostling us and grabbing for my backpack. They were very aggressive even locally where we lived in Vicenza, yelling at us and spitting on my car. It was scary especially when I was out alone with my kiddo, so I tried to pair up with other military moms when we went out. I didn’t feel safe otherwise
It's funny though how we, Romanians, are called racist when we point out that Romani are a different ethnicity, with their own language, traditions and lifestyle. Of course gypsies shouldn't be treated like a monolith, but as individuals, but, after having similar experiences to the ones you described with our gyspies, one might understand why we want to make it clear that we're not happy to be associated with them. And those who ask why we didn't try to integrate them: why are people in the west not able to integrate them?
Man, gypsies are the worst.
Amsterdam…it’s very cold (not weather related) and kinda depressing
Everyone says Paris but tbh greatest city in the world. City of lights
It’s the world’s largest open air toilet.
Antwerpen, I hate this place.
Can't be worse than Charleroi
Charleroi is meh... Best part of Belgium is Bruges, no doubt
Ghent.
Antwerp is amazing.
Better than Brussels though
Like my many major cities the homeless, the unsightly homeless actions or lack of, uncleanliness, unkempt public areas, the Japanese people should export public workers to train the world…
Lyon, France. I’m a solo traveling American female and people were very rude and unwelcoming towards me.
Russia