Europe In Winter
- Thread starter edschache
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Thanks, I dont post often, but when I do......
It's all still fresh in my mind as I went through Europe in May, was fun reliving it all!Travel thread would be great - I have about 90 pictures of different beer and I drank much more than that, lol. I had planned to do a bit of a blog but in the end CBF.
Amsterdam was another awesome location for beer, amongst other things...shame the OP isnt going there as well, I love that place.
Mrs Rumpole & I were in Spain this past Dec-Feb and found Spain's "El Corte Ingles" department stores chain a cheap (compared to Oz prices) and handy source for a variety of European beers. eg it can worth checking out the supermarkets within a nation's major department stores
That reminds me - if you want some serious shopping go to La Fayette in Paris. Some really cool stuff, along with some really stupidly over-priced designer crap...like watches 'worth' over $100k and phones 'worth' $40k. The place is huge though and its not all designer stuff made for oil barons, though that stuff is worth a look at - http://www.galerieslafayette.com/
Florian
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Performer at Notre Dame - this guy was amazing with a football
This guy is freaking me out! Thought it was a statue...
Now I can't help but imagining him loosing his ball and instinctively trying to catch it with his left hand
glennheinzel
Rukh
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I know you said that you've got Munich covered, but I agree with Foles that Bamberg is amazing. I did it as a day trip from Munich and really enjoyed the beers (they're not all smokey), the food and the town itself. Travel time was about 2 hours (each way) from Munich on the train using a Bavaria day pass (~20 Euros and covered a few people).
My brother lives in Munich and I'm in London so PM me if you need any further advice or if you want to catch up for a beer.
Rukh
Where to begin? Thanks all for the awesome input! I thought I was suffering from information overload before... now look at me - practically drowning in beer before I even get over there
going to check this out - might be the first place on the list for the next holiday to Europe... in 15years time... might try to squeeze in a day trip though.
ta - was getting around to figuring out the plans for some side adventures
sounds like an excuse to buy a faster lens for the camera. that said I've just replaced my dead 17-85 with an 18-200. considering a 10-22 but ideally I'd love the 24mm 1.4 or 14mm 2.8...
https://www.hotelprincipessaisabella.com/bookonline.htm
Yep on the list, good to get confirmation that they're worth seeking out though
Cannot thank you enough for your effort. The photos are awesome!
Our hotel is right across the road from the Mestre train station so finding our way back should be easy... right.... I generally have a decent internal compass but I'm willing to test the theory
There might be some PM action coming your way when I have a plan (or when I'm over there).
look-of-shock-emoticon other people are just typing advice.. your going there to do my research for me, legend! Next time I see you at NickB's place the drinks are on me (from his taps but I'll save you walking to them).
Gelato every day? you mean that's not normal here? I've already got a few of the more recommended places pinned on the map
Thanks again to everyone posting info! I will try to repay the debt by sharing anything I learn on my trip.
Site: "THE FOLLOWING ERROR(S) WERE FOUND - You have posted a message with more emoticons that this board allows. Please reduce the number of emoticons you've added to the message"
doh..... removing all signs of emotion....
going to check this out - might be the first place on the list for the next holiday to Europe... in 15years time... might try to squeeze in a day trip though.
ta - was getting around to figuring out the plans for some side adventures
I like your take on it better than the sad reality, which is no flash photography.
sounds like an excuse to buy a faster lens for the camera. that said I've just replaced my dead 17-85 with an 18-200. considering a 10-22 but ideally I'd love the 24mm 1.4 or 14mm 2.8...
https://www.hotelprincipessaisabella.com/bookonline.htm
Yep on the list, good to get confirmation that they're worth seeking out though
Cannot thank you enough for your effort. The photos are awesome!
Our hotel is right across the road from the Mestre train station so finding our way back should be easy... right.... I generally have a decent internal compass but I'm willing to test the theory
There might be some PM action coming your way when I have a plan (or when I'm over there).
look-of-shock-emoticon other people are just typing advice.. your going there to do my research for me, legend! Next time I see you at NickB's place the drinks are on me (from his taps but I'll save you walking to them).
Gelato every day? you mean that's not normal here? I've already got a few of the more recommended places pinned on the map
Thanks again to everyone posting info! I will try to repay the debt by sharing anything I learn on my trip.
Site: "THE FOLLOWING ERROR(S) WERE FOUND - You have posted a message with more emoticons that this board allows. Please reduce the number of emoticons you've added to the message"
doh..... removing all signs of emotion....
Venice
This place has a good range of beer, I forget the name, but its on Fondamenta Diedo
And today's lucky numbers are: 45.443352, 12.332177
pbrosnan
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Venice
doesnt look like you have long here, but I'd recommend catching the Vaporettos to get around, get a 1 or 2 day pass from a newsagent. If you are loaded use water taxis. Walk around and get lost...you will probably do this without trying, but its a great way to stumble across some cool little places.
St Marks Square - get there early to avoid crowds. The tower is worth the wait, we didnt get into the Basillica because the line was huge, The Doges Palace was great though and was not crowded. The museum at St Marks is also pretty cool. You can actually buy a pass that gets you into a lot of the landmarks for much cheaper so head to the info box near St Marks Square.
Head to Murano for the glass making and an abundance of glass related shops. If you are into art then head to the Guggenheim, there are lot of art shops and other museums close by.
There is a brewery on Venice, but I never found out where it was, though I did try their beer near the Guggenheim museum and it was pretty damned good - http://www.birravenezia.it/
This place has a good range of beer, I forget the name, but its on Fondamenta Diedo
The view from St Marks Tower
Venice at night
Now....on to Paris....and do I have the beer store for you! (and some other tidbits)
Great photographs, thanks for that. Nothing like European beer prices ... I'm off to the low countries and UK in November for a couple of weeks of Chimay++.
newguy
To err is human, to arrr is pirate
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I bought a wide angle specifically for the trip, and I was really glad I did. There's no way to capture any decent sense of the scale or grandeur inside some of the places we visited. I actually was wishing I had picked up a fisheye lens, to tell the truth.
all my pics were taken with a 18-55 kit lens, but yeah I do wish I had my new 1.8 35mm (50mm focal length on DX body) prime lens with me as that is perfect for low light and street photography.
Your hotel in Rome is nowhere near where I stayed, so my suggestions for food are pretty much useless.....I'm sure you'll find an abundance of good places to eat though, as with anywhere just look for the where the locals are eating!
Venice is a rabbit warren in places, but I'm sure you will find your way back to your hotel........eventually What looks like a short distance on the map can quite often take you much longer than expected.
One more tip about Paris - use the Subway! It is sooooo good, I was really impressed at how easy it was to get around. You can get a tourist pass but that seemed like a bit of a ripoff. We started with that and ended up just buying single passes, we found we'd use 2-3 tickets per day as the single trip could sometimes be used twice if you used it within a certain time. The tourist pass only works out cheaper if you use more that 4 tickets each day from memory. Beware of pickpockets, we saw them everywhere - they stand near the train doors and at the exits to the subway. I found Parisians to be really helpful and friendly, completely different to the arrogant stereotype.
Your hotel in Rome is nowhere near where I stayed, so my suggestions for food are pretty much useless.....I'm sure you'll find an abundance of good places to eat though, as with anywhere just look for the where the locals are eating!
Venice is a rabbit warren in places, but I'm sure you will find your way back to your hotel........eventually
What looks like a short distance on the map can quite often take you much longer than expected.One more tip about Paris - use the Subway! It is sooooo good, I was really impressed at how easy it was to get around. You can get a tourist pass but that seemed like a bit of a ripoff. We started with that and ended up just buying single passes, we found we'd use 2-3 tickets per day as the single trip could sometimes be used twice if you used it within a certain time. The tourist pass only works out cheaper if you use more that 4 tickets each day from memory. Beware of pickpockets, we saw them everywhere - they stand near the train doors and at the exits to the subway. I found Parisians to be really helpful and friendly, completely different to the arrogant stereotype.
Ok, I'm back so I thought I better give a bit back by posting about what I learnt on the trip for anyone else searching the forums for info.
Rome - awesome. Very cool place in general but the beer was a real surprise. There's still not a huge range of fantastic Italian beer but there were a few surprises. The real surprise however was how good Open Baladin & Ma Che Siete Venuti A Fa both were (along with a few other little places). The side of town where Ma Che Siete Venuti A Fa was our favourite part of town and despite staying on the other side of town (right near villa borghese) we ended up over here a few times. If you're in the area check out Fior di Luna (gelato and chocolate), the arancini ball shop just to the left of it for a snack and the pub further along Baccanale for a feed. We walked everywhere.
Cinque Terre - nothing on the beer front as most stuff was closed and I was sick but a great part of the world to visit. Stay at Cademandin apartments
Venice - meh. The one pub I planned to check out from advice here was closed. In general Venice didn't float my boat. We walked everywhere and never get lost. You can tell when you get off the main path because there is suddenly no one. Wander the backstreets and don't worry about getting lost. We didn't bother with any vaporetti rides. We did find one decent place to eat down in the academia area "Al Vecio Forner".
Vienna - ok place. Didn't drink much beer here but plenty of random hot drinks (mulled wine equivalents but avoiding the grape factor)
Prague - WOW. While it's a bit touristy (particularly the christmas markets that are all run by the same company all across town) in general a wonderful place. If you go here you MUST eat at the staropramen brewery. We had the best meal we've ever had and several drinks on two separate occasions and both times the bill was less than $40. There is also a great little local place in between all the tourist places where we (2 of us) ate lunch for about $12 with drinks (can't remember the name but I'll find it on street view). Public transport here was easy and cheap with a 72 hour pass.
Plzen - Brewery tour was ok but a bit rushed. Nothing overly interesting other than the scale of the operation.
Munich - Awesome. All day in museums and then retreating to a different beer hall for dinner each night.
Paris - meh. Some places look at you like you're a hobbo if you order beer instead of wine.
Brussels and Brugge - YUM! A country that specialises in out there beers and great chocolates. What more do you need to know - just go already! Cantilon brewery tour very worth while, it is self guided so no rush like all others. You just wander through the brewery while they work around you. Oh and the beer is awesome.
London - ok. There are some nice pubs around with some decent beer but a lot of the pubs are owned by massive breweries so it'll be the equivalent of seeing XXXX gold and James Squires everywhere.
Rome, Prague, Munich and Brussels would be my beer road trip if I did it again with Cinque Terre as a rest point.
If anyone wants more details just PM me.
Cheers,
Ed
Rome - awesome. Very cool place in general but the beer was a real surprise. There's still not a huge range of fantastic Italian beer but there were a few surprises. The real surprise however was how good Open Baladin & Ma Che Siete Venuti A Fa both were (along with a few other little places). The side of town where Ma Che Siete Venuti A Fa was our favourite part of town and despite staying on the other side of town (right near villa borghese) we ended up over here a few times. If you're in the area check out Fior di Luna (gelato and chocolate), the arancini ball shop just to the left of it for a snack and the pub further along Baccanale for a feed. We walked everywhere.
Cinque Terre - nothing on the beer front as most stuff was closed and I was sick but a great part of the world to visit. Stay at Cademandin apartments
Venice - meh. The one pub I planned to check out from advice here was closed. In general Venice didn't float my boat. We walked everywhere and never get lost. You can tell when you get off the main path because there is suddenly no one. Wander the backstreets and don't worry about getting lost. We didn't bother with any vaporetti rides. We did find one decent place to eat down in the academia area "Al Vecio Forner".
Vienna - ok place. Didn't drink much beer here but plenty of random hot drinks (mulled wine equivalents but avoiding the grape factor)
Prague - WOW. While it's a bit touristy (particularly the christmas markets that are all run by the same company all across town) in general a wonderful place. If you go here you MUST eat at the staropramen brewery. We had the best meal we've ever had and several drinks on two separate occasions and both times the bill was less than $40. There is also a great little local place in between all the tourist places where we (2 of us) ate lunch for about $12 with drinks (can't remember the name but I'll find it on street view). Public transport here was easy and cheap with a 72 hour pass.
Plzen - Brewery tour was ok but a bit rushed. Nothing overly interesting other than the scale of the operation.
Munich - Awesome. All day in museums and then retreating to a different beer hall for dinner each night.
Paris - meh. Some places look at you like you're a hobbo if you order beer instead of wine.
Brussels and Brugge - YUM! A country that specialises in out there beers and great chocolates. What more do you need to know - just go already! Cantilon brewery tour very worth while, it is self guided so no rush like all others. You just wander through the brewery while they work around you. Oh and the beer is awesome.
London - ok. There are some nice pubs around with some decent beer but a lot of the pubs are owned by massive breweries so it'll be the equivalent of seeing XXXX gold and James Squires everywhere.
Rome, Prague, Munich and Brussels would be my beer road trip if I did it again with Cinque Terre as a rest point.
If anyone wants more details just PM me.
Cheers,
Ed
