One great reason to study in France is the fall reading week! Toussaint (All Saints) takes place in the week leading up Nov. 1, which meant that after only four weeks of classes this year, I had a week off. And I took advantage of it.
Ten days of travel took me throughout Switzerland and Austria, and my only regret was that there were no beaches, although the mountains were a suitable replacement. I travelled with fellow Carleton student Alison Ward, who is also in Grenoble on exchange. Here’s some advice from me on travelling in Europe: trains, planes and hostels . . .
1. You look like a prissy sissy if you carry a rolling suitcase, so get a backpack (one that fits you)
I was shocked when I entered my hostel room and saw two suitcases big enough for me to curl up inside. Their owners were two American girls studying in Rome who were on a week’s break from school. Needless to say, the size of their suitcases was a bit excessive. And while the wheels did save their backs the discomfort that ours experienced, there is a reason why it is called backpacking through Europe. You do not go “suitcase-rolling” through Europe because: a) many of the streets are cobblestone and it is not worth that effort; b) the trains often don’t have too much room for suitcases; c) you look like a prissy sissy who can’t live without modern comforts. So, invest in a sack. Preferably one that fits your back too, since you will be lugging it often for an hour or two at a time as you wander throughout the train station to find a map, and then throughout the city to find your hostel.
2. Eurail = flexibility and a good investment if you plan your trip
My Eurail pass was a great investment, especially considering we carefully planned our trip and figured out the number of days we would be travelling. We figured five days of train travel to get us to five cities (including one ticket purchased in France without the Eurail pass). This allowed us to buy a 5-day regional pass for Switzerland/Austria, which was only about 200 € (or roughly $320). The pass allows you to just jump on any train, and comes with a timetable of trains between the bigger and mid-sized cities in countries all over Europe. So at a moment’s notice, we could look at the timetable for a train to our next city and just jump on board — no lines for tickets! Once onboard, the ticket-collector will stamp your pass as a usage. For overnight trains, you need to book a reservation though, which leads to my next piece of advice . . .
3. Overnight trains save you on accommodation for a night
Our overnight train was the best idea: we got to spend a full day in Lausanne, Switzerland and a full day in Vienna, without wasting 11 hours of daylight on a train. Instead we killed that 11 hour train trip asleep. It was also quite a comfortable sleep, even without having proper beds. Being the broke students we are, we cheaped out and did not reserve a sleeper car. However, our train was divided into six-seat compartments like on Harry Potter, and the two opposing seats slide down into a bed. When you slide all six down (like we did), you have one giant bed. You could have to share this with six people, which may be awkward, but you will make do. We lucked out and the two of us only shared with two other students, and it wasn’t awkward at all to sleep with strangers.
4. Trains are stressful — ask questions
Although you can get yourself on the right train at the right time easily enough with the handy dandy timetable booklet, you should double-check simple things like ensuring you are on the right car (which is often listed on the door) or if you are on the fastest train, as a slower route could double your time spent on the train. Most people we encountered did speak a bit of English, despite the fact that we were travelling through areas that spoke German. Also, to avoid further travel stress, look up how to get from the train station to your hostel before you leave; it is usually listed on their website. If you can’t figure it out, head to the nearest tourist info point — usually located in the train station. This is also a good place to get a map of the city and a list of sites to see, although the hostels will also give you this information.
And even when you discover that you can’t pick up your ticket that you reserved online because you ordered it through the French train company and they don’t have a ticket booth in Geneva, and that the only train back home that day is “delayed indefinitely” and it is already 5 pm: don’t panic. It will all work out. Even if you have to get on the first train that comes and sit there not knowing if you will make your connection, you will discover that when you arrive at your connection they will have buses waiting to drive you home. Things usually work out, and if they don’t, you can always work out a back-up plan. That’s why you travel with a partner, so one can sleep on the train station floor while the other stands guard. That’s my back-up plan.
5. Be prepared: hostels come in all shapes and sizes, so don’t judge it by its front door.
We got incredibly lucky and did not have any terrible hostels. We also booked through a reputable hostel organization, which may have saved us from the dingier places (rumour has it there is a 23 cent hostel somewhere). However, we did stay in a 24-bed hostel in Vienna for 9€ a night. This was our cheapest accommodation and when we arrived to discover that it is inside an old club, the prospects weren’t great. However, the place was actually very clean, and the room divided into four by curtains, so that there were actually only eight people sleeping in our quarter. However, all of the hostels did have bunk beds, so if you are travelling with someone who has to use the bathroom often in the middle of the night, make them sleep on the bottom bunk.
6. Take photos of everything – 305 photos is not enough
Despite having taking 305 photos, I still regret not having taken more photos of just everything around me: the full plaza in Vienna on the day of their national holiday, eating sausages and whipped cream desserts at those celebrations, and the awesome people we met at hostels. It is so hard to tell people about all the experiences of travelling, but it is actually the small moments that you remember the most – like the crazy Australian whose story of getting arrested in Amsterdam began “So I may have had sex with a prostitute,” or the giant whipped cream-filled flakey log dessert that kept getting cream on our noses as we ate it. So take pictures of everything and edit later.
7. Grocery stores are a great way to save
Lunch every day consisted of a loaf of bread, dried meat, and some type of cheese, all bought from a grocery store. Coupled with a breakfast of yoghurt, fruit, and more bread, this often cost us less than 10€, which meant we had a bit more to splurge on dinner. Also, although Switzerland is super expensive (hostels, meals, clothes, everything), their hostels have kitchens, and other countries may have hostels with kitchens too. This is also a good way to save and a good way to eat well. I am happy to say that we did not have to resort to eating at McDonald’s once.
8. You don’t need to pay money to see a place
Alison taught me this one. She hates guided tours, so we didn’t do any, anywhere. We actually often only had a day and a half in a place, so we spent most of the first day just wandering around to see what there was to see, and then the second day going into whatever was most interesting or the cheapest. I think our two highlights were probably attending the opera in Vienna (classy, no? And only 3€ for a standing spot) and our walk around the lake at Fuschl (which at least produced some of the most spectacular photos). Churches are often free and gorgeous. But as my mom always says: if you want to do something, do it, as you don’t know when you will go back. Keep in mind there are many ways to see a place. Eating local dishes is a good way to get a sense of a different culture, and visiting local museums or historic sites is a great way to learn the history of the place. Learning about the Habsburgs at Schronbrun Palace made me realize the elegance and prominence Austrian once held — which was a good thing to learn about during their national celebrations! (We arrived in Vienna on “Austria Day,” which was a two-day celebration.)
9. Plan ahead for cheap flights
Although I am a firm believer in backpacking through Europe via rail, there are ways to hit the skies for good deals, particularly if you plan ahead. Ryanair and Easyjet only fly into and out of a limited number of places, but it is possible to get flights as low as 5€, and 30€ flights are very common.
10. Travel with a buddy
I am not suggesting this from a safety and security stand point (although it is safer to travel with a buddy), but a buddy does immensely add to your enjoyment of your trip. Traveling inevitably means hours spent on trains or wandering relatively aimlessly around strange cities. It is always good to have someone to chat with during these times. Plus, then one of you can sleep on the train while the other listens for your stop, right Alison? So long as you both want to visit the same cities and can stand each other’s company, you are good to go. A buddy doesn’t mean having to give up control of your trip; you can always split up once you get to your hostel so that you both get to see the sight you are interested in. To be honest, the best moments are better appreciated when they are shared. It is good to have someone to pinch you, reminding you that this is reality and that you are actually in Europe. Plus then you have someone to take photos of you to show that you were actually in these places.