Just enter your destination on Google Maps and the results will show you bus and metro options from your location. The public transportation system is very developedĮverything you need to know about your next bus or train is just a Google search away. Maybe consider carrying a hiking backpack or a rucksack! 3. We had a very hard time in Venice carrying our suitcases up and down the numerous bridges to our hotel from the train station and vice versa.Īnd as mentioned above, there are no escalators and lifts at train and metro stations, so taking a large suitcase on your Europe trip may end up giving you shoulder and back pain. You may have to drag them on cobbled streets, and may even carry them when crossing multiple bridges in Venice. You will have to carry your luggage up several flights of stairs. Pack lightĪ large majority of hotels, hostels, and B&Bs in Europe are in old buildings, and you cannot expect an elevator. And there are no escalators! You climb up and down the stairs multiple times in order to move across the halls. The Louvre museum in Paris is so big that it can take you a whole day (even 1 day isn’t enough) to cover popular halls. So be prepared to walk and climb up and down the stairs. Most public places like train stations, metro stations, museums, and tourist attractions also don’t have an escalator or elevator. Elevators and escalators are not common here Let’s start! 15 Things to Know About Travel to Europe 1. This is why I have come up with a list of things that you should know about Europe if you are used to Costa Rican life. So when I visited Europe last month, I found some things to be absolutely contrasting. I have been living in Costa Rica for 2 years now, and I love the kind of life my husband and I have built for ourselves here. It took me some extensive research, countless phone calls & messages, and numerous moments of “I can’t do it anymore” to be able to plan a 15-day trip to Europe. We said goodbye with hopes that our paths will cross again one day.It had been a childhood dream of mine to visit Europe, and it finally came to fruition last month. What a blessing to experience fellowship with other Christians in places all around the world. They were such welcoming hosts and shared so many interesting tidbits about their journey to and life in Costa Rica as missionaries. | A nativity handmade by our dear artist friend, Shari Lynn, and given as a gift to the Balke family |įour hours flew by as we ate, talked, laughed, and had a most memorable evening getting to know each other. We “found” the Balke’s through the Candle in the Window network we joined a number of years ago, and when I contacted them about meeting up they graciously invited us to their home for dinner. That’s about how it feels to get from point to point in Costa Rican farm country. As a Kansas girl, I‘m used to plotting directions in straight lines with a ruler, so I may never get used to seeing two locations separated by a mere 15 kilometers requiring a route that looks more like a toddler scribbled with a crayon between them. Shortly after 5:00 we were back in our trusty 4×4 traversing the narrow roads to the home of the Balke family several ridges over. | Dusk settles over the city of Grecia, Costa Rica in the distance | A few other hikers coming from the opposite direction took him up on his offer to guide them to the top. Once there, our guide, Luis, gave a few pointers and then indicated that he was going back up. A lovely wooded trail led us past one falls that was visible in the distance and to the floor of the forest where we arrived at the base of the second waterfall. Nervous glances along the way and his removing of branches that appeared to have been carefully placed to obscure the trail entrance made us question the legitimacy of the operation, but we were committed and up for the adventure. | Los Chorros Waterfall outside of Grecia, Costa Rica | He showed us to the baños in his hut, where Julian also spotted his weed joint, and then we were off on the path with his two dogs trailing us. Through cryptic language he communicated that it would cost us 3,000 colones to park, plus a voluntary donation, and that he would lead us to the waterfall himself. A shirtless, moccasin-clad Tico met us as we turned into the drive and let down a rope that was blocking the entrance. Our brief tour complete, we continued to the next stop: Los Chorros Waterfalls. | On our way down to the Los Chorros falls with our local guide and his companion |
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |