BritRail Pass

My only previous rail pass experience was Eurail, so I thought ok, let's use the same affiliated company (ACP rail's Britrail.net website) since it was a good experience.

Bad idea.

ACP travel company's price is NOT necessarily the best deal for Britrail.  After I stupidly bought the pass from them, here are my lessons so you don't make the same mistake:

• Price shop.  Surprisingly the rail pass price is not the same from one company to another.  I found out Rail Europe would have saved me 30 USD vs. ACP travel/Britrail.net because their pass was cheaper, they didn't charge an extra handling fee, and shipping was free if I spent over a certain amount (which was true for me buying two flexi passes).
• Check travel books for legitimate recommendations, but still price shop.  After I already bought the pass, then I realized Fodor's, Rick Steves, etc. had different recommendations for how to buy the pass, and the prices were different!  You don't want to buy from a bogus company that will steal your credit card, but you don't want to get ripped off, either.
• Beware of timing restrictions.  The pass I bought must be validated within 6 months of purchase even though the flexipass is technically good for longer than that once it is validated. This doesn't make any sense if you, like me, don't live near England or happen to travel enough to conveniently drop by England to validate your pass and tuck it away for future use.  So in total, 6 months time is all I get from time of purchase to start using it, so luckily I didn't buy it too early.  However, all flexi days, once the pass starts being used, must be used within 1 month.

The only positive thing I can say was the pass arrived in 2 days via Fedex and came with a free magazine on Britain.  Nice but not worth 30 USD!

Of note, the pass can be validated at the Heathrow Express main ticket office if it is open.  It is right before the elevators to the Heathrow Express on-boarding.  That way you can use your rail pass to pay for the Heathrow Express if you were planning to use it for other train travel upon arrival.  Use for Heathrow Express alone may not be worth it since you will likely save money by buying Heathrow Express tickets in advance (i.e. 30 days or more online) or if you take the London Underground or train.

Electricity

If you plan to bring electric devices abroad, check if your device is compatible with the voltage in the destination country.

For example, my laptop charger module has a sticker that says it can handle 220 V.  Thus it does not need a voltage converter in Europe.

Most other devices, however, will need a voltage converter.  Otherwise you risk blowing up your device and/or blowing out the sockets and starting an electrical fire in your hotel.

Voltage converters are not the same as plug converters.  You will need plug converters if the plug does not match your device.

Voltage Converter
I bought a Swiss Gear brand voltage converter for about $35-40.  It came with several plug converters, but they were all 2 prong and were not comprehensive of all possible countries.

Plugs
My only three prong device is my laptop, which does not need a voltage converter for 220 V.  Thus I needed to buy a "grounded" (three prong) plug adaptor for my laptop to fit into the sockets at the various destination countries.

I also needed to buy plugs for the countries not covered in my Swiss Gear kit so that the voltage converter would be able to fit into the respective socket.  The E/F plug fit into these other plug converters to look like:
 Device --> voltage converter --> E/F plug --> other plug (i.e. J or L type)--> wall socket.

Thus besides from the plugs that came with my voltage converter kit, my ancillary plug collection consists of grounded plugs (which can also be used for 2 prong items) for:

• Austria, France and Germany- E/F type
• Switzerland- J type
• Italy- L type

Of note, Canada uses the same type of plugs and voltage as the US.

USB Plug
When I am not traveling with my laptop, I bring a USB plug so that I can plug USB devices into my voltage converter.

Customs and Flight Connection Time

Expect to go through customs the first time your flight lands in the foreign country and the last time you are in a foreign country prior to returning to your home country.

Thus if you are flying an airline with a hub in a certain country, your passport stamps will all be from that country even if you are going elsewhere as your final destination.

My experience with foreign customs has ranged from zero questions asked to a few cursory questions regarding what is the purpose of your visit, how long are you staying, where are you staying, is this your first time here.  It is the same for arrival and departure.

One warning- at Charles de Gaulle near lunch time, my terminal was down to one customs agent.  I had plenty of time for my connecting flight, but others were in a rush.  By being vocal to the agents manning the lines, they were able to cut in front of everyone else.  This is also a good warning that if customs lines are long, it can eat into your flight connection time.  I think I was in that line for a good half hour or so.  You have some but not total control of connection times at the time of your flight purchase.  I have had airlines change connection times on me multiple times especially since I buy my ticket in advance.

For return to the US from Europe:

• The customs process occurred upon arrival at the US airport.  For US citizens meeting certain criteria, the process is sped up a bit if you use an automated kiosk to take your photo and scan your passport in advance of talking to the agent.  Interestingly on my most recent trip, there was seemingly no rationale for who got diverted to the automated kiosk.  I had used it before but got sent to the human attendant line.
• Expect to queue up to talk to a US agent who will ask similar questions as above.   
• Expect to queue up again depending on what you wrote on your customs form regarding whether you have food on you, whether you touched livestock in Europe, etc.  Your bags may need to be scanned and searched to ensure there are not parasites or verboten items entering the US.
• Families travelling together can present together one time to customs; however, make it clear to the agents when you are exiting and he or she collects your form that all members of your group are accounted for.  Otherwise the agent could try to block any laggards from re-entering if they think they are sneaking past without a form.

For return to the US from Montreal, Canada, I found the automated machines at Montreal Trudeau airport to be defunct.  There was something wrong with the receipt scanner in the express machines that everyone flocked to when first arriving to the screening area upstairs.  Luckily there were more machines further along in the airport.  I was also intrigued that the customs process all took place in Canada such that arrival in the US was a breeze.

Thus to sum up- pre flight prep time is minimally different versus a domestic flight for your first departing flight.  Prep time is longer when you first land in the foreign country because of customs.  If you are connecting flights, there is nothing special after clearing customs.  For the trip home, except for Canada, I have experienced customs and concomitant wait times upon arrival home and not at the foreign airports.

Airport Security and Water Woes

If you are used to the US Transportation Security Administration screening process, I have found Canadian and European screeners to be similar or less strict.

For example, shoe removal is not required at Charles de Gaulle in Paris.

In Berlin, the screener had me turn on my camera so she could examine that it was indeed a camera.

One recent annoyance is regarding connecting flights.  I usually pack an empty water bottle to fill after passing through security in the US.  I have not had issues previously with connecting flights in Germany.  However, in France, the airport screener for my connecting flight would not let me take my water bottle through security, and they did not have a place for me to dump the water, either.  My choices were to drink it all or to fish out empty water bottles others had discarded (the agent helped me find one or two) and dump the water in them.  Since my water bottle is rather large, I had to overcome germaphobia and do a combination of both.  Thus be warned- despite having passed through the rigorous TSA screening, you may be subject to additional screening including liquid limits (water bottles, whatever you bought at the duty free store at the US airport) when being screened the second time for your connecting flight.

Internet and Phone

I always bring either a tablet or laptop to take advantage of free internet in hotels and airports.  At the major airports I have visited, you may need to provide a valid email address and perhaps your name in order to register online to access unlimited or limited (60 to 90 minutes) wireless internet.  At Geneva airport, per Swiss law, you need to positively identify yourself in one of several ways (scan boarding pass at designated kiosk, visit attendant at kiosk) in order to obtain an access code for free internet.

I have survived up to 1.5 week trips without mobile phone access.  I paid to use the hotel room phone in the rare instance I needed to make a local or collect call.  You can have your mobile carrier unlock your phone to allow use overseas if you have a plan that allows international roaming (often at additional cost).  You may need to buy a SIM card at your destination country.

Check in, Check out

Hotels
What do you do when your hotel check-in time is well after your arrival into a city?

• Large hotels often allow early check-in with no extra fees if they have clean rooms available when you arrive
• The hotel may allow you to leave your baggage in a storage room if they have one
• You may rent a locker at the train station

What do you do when your hotel check-out time is before wahen you plan to leave the city?  See points two and three above.  That way you have more time to sight-see before heading to the next city or to the airport.

Planes
American airlines tend to open online check-in 24 hours before the flight.  I noticed Air France allows check-in 30 hours before the flight, which is a wider window for you to try to check in early and nab a seat if you have not purchased a seat reservation.  I have never purchased a seat reservation and have not had issues traveling off-season to get the type of seat I want (i.e. window vs. aisle).

Monastery Stays in Italy

If you are a no-frills traveler interested in an unconventional place to stay in Italy, consider a monastery!

I learned about Monastery Stays from one of my travel books.  I booked all of my stays through the Monastery Stays website.

Advantages:
- safe place to stay, generally run by nuns or priests
- relatively inexpensive although some small B&Bs and hotels may charge similar rates after you add in the Monastery Stays booking fees
- depending on the location you choose, free breakfast and internet may be included

Disadvantages:
- some of these monasteries have their own booking site, so check first, and you could save on the middleman booking fees
- not all of the clergy and staff at these small places speak English, so it is best to learn basic Italian
- these are NO FRILLS places- a very simple bed, no television, and there may be curfews, too

Of note, the places I chose allowed males and females to share a room, though you should check for each location (detailed on the Monastery Stays website).  There was no pressure to participate in any religious activities although you will doubtless hear bells when service starts and will see crosses, etc. in your room.

Overall I was pleased and would stay there again.

Bus Travel

Bus passes are often paired with museum access or discounts.  Depending on your plans and needs, check if the museum pass makes financial sense for you.

I have had multiple tourist information booth attendants only accept cash, so be prepared with cash should you encounter this problem, too.

Paris
- I made the mistake of buying the pass in advance and having it shipped to me in the US at great expense.  I should have bought it on arrival.
- Since my departing flight was very early in the morning, I had decided to take a shuttle to and from the airport.  In retrospect, I could have saved money by taking public transit after my afternoon arrival flight.

Germany
- Berlin: the Berlin card is a great deal because the entire entry fare to many museums is included, and others are discounted.  Plan your itinerary accordingly to take advantage of the days for which the card is active.
       - You can choose which zone(s) you need.  If you plan to visit the castles in    
   Potsdam (Schloss Sans Souci), you will need to include the outer zone.  I bought this
   extra zone and had to make sure my itinerary included Potsdam while the card was    active.  Otherwise, you can skip the outer zone and save money.
       - The card is available at the airport during certain hours, and they only take
   cash.
- Leipzig- there was a lot of construction around the public transit lines which did not even go to my points of interest anyways.  Thus I walked the relatively small tourist section of the city and skipped buying the transit/museum pass.

Switzerland
When you stay in a hotel in a certain city, such as Basel, Lausanne, or Geneve, you are entitled to a free transport card that covers local transportation for the duration of your hotel stay.  Check with your hotel front desk staff.
- The Geneva transport card issued by the hotel is good for train travel second class in Geneva, which means you can go to the airport for free if you leave the day you check out.  When coming from the airport, you can get a limited duration ticket for free travel to the city.
- In Basel, the two museums I visited shared one shared entry fee such that it did not make financial sense to buy the Basel card with half off museum prices.  Instead, I bought just the transport card for 9 CHF per person.  If you are staying at a Basel hotel, you could choose to buy the Basel card just with museum discounts since your hotel will provide a free transit card.

Austria

- Vienna- Transit on the S-bahn is free with a Eurail pass, but you would have to use one of your travel days.  I did not want to use one of my days for this, so I bought a travel card which included museum discounts for just under 14 Euro a person.  The booth is at the airport during certain hours and only takes cash.

- Salzburg- Transit is not included with the Eurail pass.  I bought the Salzburg card from my hotel front desk.  It includes free entrance to many museums.  Of note, it does not include the rooms in the fortress unless you visit early in the morning.  This was the most high tech card I encountered since it was barcoded and activated by the vendor.  One scans the card at each point of interest. It allows you to skip the lines for the funicular to the fortress.

Italy

- Naples- transit day pass is available from the attendant in the booth at the train station

- Venice- I had trouble using my credit card that day in the machines and even at the booth with the attendant.  I was told the communication lines with the credit card company must have been down.  Thus I had to pay cash for the vaporetto day pass.

- Milan- transit day pass was available for purchase from my hotel front desk

- Rome- transit day pass available from booths at the train station

Canada

- Montreal- the Opus card with weekly pass is available from one specific machine at the airport.  When you are inside the airport facing out towards the exit doors, the machine is on the left of the Opus/metro information attended booths.  The other machines do not sell weekly passes for people who do not yet have an Opus card.  This machine on the left will sell you an Opus card to which you can add a weekly pass, which will start on Monday.  If you are coming on the weekend, you should consider adding a weekend pass, too, if you plan to sightsee a lot before Monday.  The fare from the airport to the city covers public transit travel for 24 hours, so consider your time of departure from the airport and whether you still need the weekend pass.

- Ottawa- the day pass is available from the bus driver.  I took a bus from the train station to the city and back for a day trip.

Train and Ferry Travel

I have traveled with and without a train pass.  If you plan on hopping from city to city, especially in a country that does not require train reservations, the train pass may save you a lot of money.

Advantages of train pass:
 - flexibility of not being tied down to a particular departure time
 - flexibility to hop on and off trains without paying for another ticket if you happened to go in the wrong direction or change your mind about where you want to go
 - Substantial discounts to attractions, for example, the Suisse pass comes with a discount for the Matterhorn Glacial Paradise and similar trips up the Alps
- Considerable cost savings if you use it enough.  For example, I had sticker shock from the several hundred Euros I shelled out for round trip tickets for two from Berlin to Leipzig via the DB train.  A six day pass covering Austria and Switzerland, 2nd class for 2 adults, cost me 490 Euros.   I used the pass to travel to two Austrian and 9 Swiss cities covered by the pass.

Disadvantages of the pass:
- The Eurail pass must be activated in a set time, so if you bought it in advance and changed your travel plans, you lose money
- Substantial up-front cost, and no refunds for lost or damaged passes (unless you buy some insurance that covers such a loss)
- Must be activated correctly; for Eurail pass, an error would mean finding the nearest Eurail office to straighten things out.  I luckily have not run into this problem although I did give the agent a post-it note with begin and end dates written European style for my flexi-pass activation.
- For countries that require train reservation, such as Italy, the pass may not make financial sense, so you must calculate the cost of your trips plus train reservation vs. the pass plus train reservations.

Train passes may not cover all trains you plan to use, so use the trip planner app or website to plan accordingly and buy your ticket separately when necessary.  For example, in Switzerland, the scenic trains and train to Zermatt are not covered by the Eurail pass.  I still found the pass useful for transiting between the various cities I was visiting.

What about first vs. second class?
I only traveled first class when there was no other option, for example, the Chocolate Train in Switzerland.  Otherwise, I was perfectly content with second class and had no problem getting a seat or having luggage space although the caveat is I do not travel during the peak summer months.

Advantages of first class:
- more room in the seats
- cabins often closer to where you first enter the platform which means less distance to haul your things. It does not impact distance to sprint if you are late because you can usually enter the first class cabin and gradually make your way through the connecting doors to the second class cabins.
- no upstairs trek for some trains, which have second class seats upstairs
- clientele and concomitant noise level.  I encountered rowdy teenage crowds in both Italy and Switzerland while traveling second class.  It is not to say that first class is immune to this; it is just practical economics that teenagers, most of whom have limited income, would be traveling in second class.

What about optional train reservation?
- In countries with optional train reservation, like Austria and Switzerland, even though the seats do have numbers, I have not yet had someone displace me because they bought that seat.  Even if they did, the advantage of traveling during non peak season is that there are plenty of seats to be had, and relocating is not a big deal.  My fellow passengers and I generally had enough room to place bags on adjacent seats (aka 'seat hogs') on the uncrowded trains.

What about luggage?
Luggage can be placed in several places depending on the train:
- underneath/between rows of seats not blocked by a metal bar
- overhead racks (if you can lift your bag that high)
- near your feet (if the train is not crowded; otherwise you are blocking other seats)
- racks near the door (generally larger long-distance trains)

You must be able to lift your luggage up the couple of steps to the train.  As mentioned, some second class trains have seats upstairs, so you would need to lift your luggage up a flight of stairs.

You will be hauling your luggage all over the train station when changing trains.

Although not related to train travel, note that many European smaller hotels do not have elevators.

In Venice, there are limits on how much luggage you can bring on the Vaporetto, and there are surcharges for exceeding the limits.

For all of the above reasons, I travel with a smaller sized roller bag and a backpack whenever possible.

How do I get tickets?
- I have found the machines in Italy, Canada, Germany, France, Austria, and Switzerland to all be very intuitive and to offer English instructions.
- I have bought tickets from a human in a booth in Italy en route to Pompeii.  Most agents speak at least some English.
- I encountered problems with my credit and debit cards in the machines in Venice which required a credit card pin.  Luckily a human was on duty.
- Likewise I encountered problems with my credit card with no pin at another train stations in Italy and had to buy tickets in person.  Most of the time, though, I had no problem using my credit card in the TrenItalia machines.
- Machines may let you buy tickets in advance.  Advance purchase saves money and guarantees you a seat if you are concerned about the train being crowded.  However, depending on the class of ticket you buy, it may restrict you timewise such that you lose your money if you are late, unless you bought a flexible or refundable fare.

Ticket validation:
- Remember to validate your train tickets when required, usually before entering the train!
- Validation boxes vary in color; I have found mostly orange and yellow boxes on the platform or just before entry to the platform
- In Rome, I ran into boxes that had jammed or run out of ink.  Do not be late for your train- give yourself enough time to run to alternate boxes if you encounter a problem with the nearest one.
- Train passes i.e. Eurail pass for trains not requiring reservation will be validated on board by the ticket agent, who will often check for passports, too.

"When You're Hungry, Catch a Kungry..."

- quote adapted from Richard Wright

Budget minded veg*ns should not go hungry in their globe-trotting quests.  My general tips are:

• Look for accommodations with kitchens, for example, youth hostels, YMCA/YMCA, short-term rentals or apartments with kitchens
• Grocery store packaged foods often come with veg*n options and are less expensive than restaurants
• Check Happy Cow, Trip Advisor, Yelp, and similar websites for veg*n restaurants in your budget range and location
• Bring food as long as it is not restricted by customs and airport rules (e.g. liquids, gels, and pastes like peanut butter are generally forbidden from carry on; fresh fruits and vegetables cannot be exported to other countries)
• Granola bars fed me for many a breakfast, snack, and lunch
• Nuts and dried fruit provided fiber and sated my sweet tooth
• Dried peas provided protein and fiber
• Toasted seaweed went well with ramen noodles

Here is how I sated my appetite, by location:

Paris, France

• Baguettes and vegan pate
• Find a good boulangerie.  I regretted the over-priced and hard baguette from Paul's (bakery chain).  I found a good boulangerie on the street corner near my hotel in the 17eme arrondissement that sold baguettes for under under 2 Euro each.  They were fresh, hot, and way better than Paul's, in my opinion.
• I loaded up on Tartex vegan pate from a small deli/grocery near the national library
• Note on vegan pate: I have had no trouble so far with customs in the US regarding bringing cans of vegan pate in my check in luggage back into the US.  If it was real pate, it would be forbidden (mad cow disease and such).  Advantages of being veg*n!

Germany

• Prenzlauer Berg district in Berlin has numerous vegan dining options for <10-15 Euros for take-out dinner
• Veganz grocery chain has several locations, including in Berlin and Leipzig.  The latter locale had a huge selection of vegan pate.  See Paris entry above- bread and pate, yum.  It also had a little counter that sold drinks and take out items.  

Switzerland

• Migros has Quorn brand veggie faux meats in the refrigerated section
• Baguettes at Migros and Coop were between 2 to 3 CHF each.  Sandwich bread was cheaper at just above 1 CHF for a very small pack.

Vienna, Austria

• Veganz grocery chain has one location in Wien that had a selection of vegan pate smaller than those I found in Paris and Leipzig.  Still, combined with 3-packs of vegan bread rolls for just under 1 Euro for a pack, I was back on my bread and pate diet.
• Interspar had baguettes and other bread, though I would stay away from the bread covered with rock salt.  I do not know how one keeps from being hypertensive after eating one of those breads.  

Italy

• Universo Vegano is a vegan restaurant chain with very affordable dinner take out options.  I visited the Milano and Firenze locations.   I indulged a bit and splurged on vegan Sachertorte, tiramisu, and blueberry cheesecake.  The dessert selection varies by location, and I was very disappointed to not find cannoli at any location I visited, despite it being on the menu.  
• Multiple gelaterias have vegan options- check on Happy Cow, Trip Advisor, Yelp, etc.

Canada

• Vancouver- as the home of Daiya cheese, one cannot go wrong.  The Naam is a 24 hour vegetarian restaurant here which I thoroughly enjoyed.
• Montreal- 
• Vegan poutine is available at a couple locations
• Metro plus market had Gardein and many other faux meat options, plus pre-made wraps (hummus, baba ghanoush, eggplant/veggie) in the refrigerator section; again, varies per location. One location even had microwaves ostensibly for customer use.
• Petit Marche Vege is a Vietnamese take out restaurant and mini grocery at which I found:
• Veganized versions of traditional Vietnamese food, including pho noodle soup and desserts
• Vegan pate (made in Romania)
• Gardein
• Dehydrated faux veggie 'beef' slices
• Banh mi sandwiches with veggie mayo and mock meat for under 5 Canadian dollars each

Souvenirs

Don't fall for the tourist traps!

Examples of tourist traps:

• Airport gift shops
• Boutiques at the exit or entrance of a museum or similar attraction
• Train station shop

Once in a blue moon, I have found a good deal at a tourist trap.  For example, a duty free gift shop in a Munich airport once had a sale on gifts from neighboring countries and parts of Germany not included in my trip.  Thus it was nice to be able to buy souvenirs I would not have otherwise encountered during my travel.

More often than not, though, I have had buyers' remorse after spending money at a tourist trap.

How much does a postcard cost?

If the cost of a postcard is a reliable metric of souvenir costs (I have yet to study this theory), the cheapest postcard I have ever bought was in 2005 in New York City.  I paid 5 US cents.  Granted, the printing qualitty was sub-par, and it was the standard small size.   The most expensive standard size and print postcard I have ever encountered was in Switzerland in 2016.  I paid 1.20 CHF and even saw some tourist traps selling the same ones for 1.50 CHF.   However, I found a couple gems in Zermatt and Geneve selling postcards for 0.50 CHF.  Yes, you can get cheap postcards in Switzerland!  You might have to search the racks in the back of the store (as was my experience in Zermatt; the storefront ones were already decently priced at 1 CHF), or you might have to walk a little further away from the main tourist drags (as in Geneve).  Do not be hoodwinked into paying 1.50 CHF!

Where have I found good deals for souvenirs?

• Grocery stores
• Discount stores (e.g. dollar store or equivalent)
• Specialty stores

Here are examples by location:

Florence, Italy

• Several "dollar" stores in the city that charge 1+ Euro per item.  I found:
• Lip gloss and nail polish made in Venice, Italy.  
• Household items (cheap imports from China)
• Some marzipan, chocolate, and goodies from Austria

Montreal, Canada

• Multiple chains of "dollar" stores, with Dollarama being the most ubiquitous.  They charge 1+ Canadian dollars.  I found:
• Canadian flags, keychains, hats, plastic sunglasses, etc.
• Excellent selection of greeting cards in French.  Beats paying $4 per card at the pharmacy.
• Sketchy selection of food.  The bread looked ok...I would stay away from the unrefrigerated hummus.
• Nail polish made in USA for a Revlon subsidiary
• Selection varies per location as some stores are larger.

Berlin, Germany

• Fassbender & Rausch chocolate store- example of 'specialty' store whereby going to the source and buying directly from the manufacturer is better for selection and perhaps price vs. going through a middleman.  I found: 
• Chocolate bars for under 3-4 Euros
• Sculpted chocolates- ladybugs, motorcycles, bears, and more!

Switzerland

• Coop and Migros grocery stores.  I found:
• Chocolate bars labeled 'budget' for as little as 0.50 CHF
• Nicer bars in the 2-5 CHF range
• Wine, liquers, pastries of wide variety
• The one Migros I visited did not sell alcohol
• Coop tended to be in more convenient locations to train stations
• Prices varied by location even within the same chain
• Cailler chocolate factory
• Huge selection, including customizable boxes if you want only certain kinds of chocolates in a box, sold by weight
• Discounts for large purchases of select chocolates
• Prices same or less than Coop or Migros prices for many bars, and much wider selection

Austria

• Interspar grocery stores.  I found:
• Same chocolates as at the tourist traps (Sisi, Mozart chocolates) for less! Alas, it was too late of a discovery for me as I had fallen for the tourist trap, but don't be like me!!!
• Wine, liquers, pastries

Berlin - Hotel de France

My go-to site for finding lodgings is Tripadvisor.

From the aforementioned site, I found the Hotel de France.

It is a gem of a hotel located in the outskirts of Berlin in the Wedding district.

Pros:

• Inexpensive
• Staff speaks multiple languages, notably French, English, and German
• Close to Rehberg U-bahn stop which takes you downtown in about 30 min. from which you can connect to all tourist stops
• It is closer to the airport than the downtown hotels.  The bus to/from airport stops only a few metro stops away from the hotel
• The room is clean.
• It is in a safe mostly residential neighborhood.
• It has a restaurant and is next to a movie theater (kino).

Cons:

• If you like to regularly return to your hotel midday to nap or to quickly retrieve things, it is not conveniently close enough for that relative to the major tourist attractions
• The hotel room door takes some getting used to.  I've stayed at a lot of hotels in the US, and I've never had to deal with such a fastidious door.
• The elevator is small.
• The internet works...most of the time.  Once it was off-line most of the day on the weekend, and when it was back up, it only worked in the lobby area.   
• If you like to live near exciting nightlife, this is not the place for you.  It is next to a church and seems to be a residential neighborhood.  I got food, entertainment, etc. elsewhere and only returned here to sleep.

Would I stay here again?  Yes, if price was a deciding factor and also for the convenience of proximity to the airport and U-bahn.  If I could find another comparable place closer to the vegan restaurants in the Prenzlauer-Berg Schoenhauser Allee, I'd consider staying there, too.

Tower of Babel

What's the best way to immerse yourself in your destination?  Learn the language!

If you've already studied foreign languages in high school or college, you're all set.

If you need a refresher or want to pick up a new language, here are the resources I found useful:

• Textbooks
• These are useful for learning grammar and spelling and for practicing writing and reading skills
• My sources: Amazon.com for used textbooks (old editions are sufficient), used book sales
• Specifically, I own or have read all or part of:
• Italian- Oggi in Italia
• German- Alles Gute!, Neue Horizonte, Deutsch Sprache and Landeskunde
• Online learning modules from Mango Languages are available for free from  many public libraries.
• Mango consists of self-paced modules featuring a seemingly intimidating conversation at the beginning of the lesson that is your 'goal' as you work to deconstruct the dialog during the lesson.  
• There is a lot of repetition, which is useful for learning
• The English and foreign language are juxtaposed and color-coded
• You can click on the word to hear it repeated as much as you would like
• If you have a microphone, you can record and compare your accent to the standard reference
• Units 1 and 2, if available for your language of interest, are part of the library subscription package.  They cover very basic material.
• Subjects include- greetings, shopping, sightseeing, eating out, weather, direction, basic medical terms
• It took me about 10 months total to complete both Units 1 and 2 for two languages. I completed about 1-2 lessons per weekday and 2-4 lessons per weekend day, with an occasional day or a week of break.
• Each lesson takes about 10-20 minutes to complete.
• Units 3 and 4, if you're interested in more in-depth learning, require individual subscription which is currently under $180 a year. 
• Subjects include- arts, history, more medical terms, customs, hotel, chores, sports
• Audio learning (CD-roms)
• Pimsleur has 5 levels of several major languages.  These levels may be split depending on what version you have, i.e. IA and IB  = level I.
• Level I for the one language I tried consists of 30 lessons split among 18 CD-roms.
• It comes with a reading booklet consisting of a list of vocabulary words.  The words correspond with past or future lessons.
• Each lesson takes 30 minutes to complete.  The last 5 minutes is devoted to reading the vocabulary list in the 'reading' booklet.
• Pimsleur also has smaller collections, for example, of Swiss German which consists of ~10 CDs
• I used Pimsleur after already having learned the basics with Mango and textbooks.  If you try Pimsleur by itself, I think your grammar and spelling skills will be deficient.  It depends on how you learn best.  I'm quite a visual person, so seeing the words and how they're spelled makes a lot of difference to how I learn, so Pimsleur is not good for the visual learner.  Pimsleur is good auditory reinforcement of words that I previously learned audiovisually.
• A disadvantage is that I cannot get the CD to save where I left off when using a CD player, so I end up having to finish the 30 minute lesson so as to not have to repeat material.  If you use a computer or other device with a time tracker, you can resume at the time where you last left off.

Travel Books

Here are the books I found most or least useful by destination.  My favorite source of these books are:

• Public Library
• Used book or rummage sales (e.g. held by library or local charity)
• Amazon.com

Italy
You can't go wrong with any of the Rick Steves' books.  I personally preferred getting the individual books for each city so that I could abandon them en route if I needed luggage space.  I like the flexibility of packing several smaller books vs. one gigantic, heavy book.  Plus, for the cities I really liked and hope to return to some day, I saved those books while donating the others for cities I don't plan to visit again.  The comprehensive tome that covers multiple major cities is like an encyclopedia and is too heavy to lug around for day trip traveling.

In addition, I also liked Eyewitness Travel's Milan and the Lakes since I did not find a city-specific Rick Steves book that covered Milan as well as this book did.

Montreal
Secret Montreal
If you want to go off the beaten path, I highly recommend this book.  Several of the 'secret' sites are free or inexpensive public art or building facades.

Switzerland
Cadogan Guides Switzerland
It features more detail on cities like Basel than other tour books.
I found Rick Steve's book to be woefully inadequate.  It is heavy on Eastern Switzerland and misses a lot of cities.  It is very cursory and overall a disappointment.

Paris
I used Fodor's books (top 10 and comprehensive books) as well as websites for free things to do in Paris.

Berlin
Besides Fodor's and Rick Steves' books, I also used Lonely Planet's Berlin City Guide.

All about Geld - Argent - Dinero - Euro - $$$

Check to see if your bank has any partner banks in other countries to save on transaction fees.  For example, I have used these banks which partner with my American bank:
- Scotia Bank in Canada
- BNP Paribas in France
- BNP in Italy
- Deutsch Bank in Germany

Make sure you notify your bank in advance that you will be traveling so that your card isn't blocked.  You may be able to set up a travel notice online.

Request your credit card pin in advance of your trip.  Some automated machines in Europe require credit card pins, e.g. at public transit stations.  It may NOT be something you can request on the phone or online during your trip.  They mail it to you a couple weeks after you submit your request.

My bank charges a ~$7 transaction fee plus their conversion rate for foreign currency orders. It takes about 2 business days to arrive at a local branch for pickup.  You can request small bills, large bills, or a mix.  No coins are provided, though.

Check with your financial institution to see if they have travel credit card deals.  For example, my travel card has no foreign transaction fees and also accumulates points related to travel spending which can be redeemed towards future credit card payments which do not have to be related to travel spending.  It's like a rebate for a portion of your travel expenditures.

Bring your 1-800 number help line with you in case you lose your card(s).  Store it separately from your cards.  I had the misfortune of losing my cards once while overseas, and it was a lifesaver to be able to call collect (at bank's expense) to be able to report the loss right away.  Luckily my travel companion had their cards such that my frozen accounts did not damper my ability to cover expenses for the rest of the trip.

Flights

I buy my flights at least 6 months in advance.

International (from USA)
For international flights, among existing companies I have flown Air France, Lufthansa, and United.

My favorite is Air France

Pros: huge selection of French movies, decent food, decent customer service

Cons: from the US most flights go to Paris, which, given recent security concerns, one may view as a risky place to which to travel.

Lufthansa has had recent bouts of sudden strikes which can leave passengers stranded.  Their food is so-so, their movies are way better than United but not as good as Air France.

United sometimes doesn't even provide individual seat-back movies for international flights!  Avoid if at all possible.

Word to the wise: Regardless of what your chosen airline is, beware of codeshare flights, i.e. you buy a flight from airline X but due to its partnerships even though it has a flight number for your preferred airline, in FINE PRINT it will say "operated by ZZZ Airlines" which might be the evil company you despise.  Beware!  I lost a lot of time and maybe a few gray hairs due to computer problems between Lufthansa and United.  I had bought what I thought was a Lufthansa flight, but United was operating it, and United's computer system reversed the flight order sent by Lufthansa's computers such that I could not check in for my flight 24 h prior to departure.  Needless to say I got bounced around like a ping pong ball on the phone and even at the airport.  Caveat empor!  It took one heck of a savvy United agent to decode my flight so that I could *finally* check in.  And, to boot, the code-share companies don't correctly transfer or receive your diet order, so vegans can expect to starve, slowly, on the 10+ hour flight unless you call ahead to confirm they got the info correct (assuming they correctly identify you as their customer for the correct flight number...see above how even 24 h before flight no guarantees that will even happen).

I have paid just above $1200 round trip to Europe off-season in winter and usually around $1500-1600 for sort of off season fall trips.  In peak season like summer, expect to pay more.

Domestic (USA)
For domestic flights in the US, among existing companies I have flown American, United, Southwest, and Jet Blue.

My favorite is Southwest.

Pros: free check-in luggage (with limits), reasonable fares, free snacks, open seating, usually upbeat staff (though I've had a rude attendant once), free on-board online TV if you have a laptop, tablet, or other device that can connect, decent on-board magazine with interesting stories

Cons: sometimes rates might not be the lowest; only goes to major cities in US

The other major airlines tend to be pricier, nickel and dime you for on-board food (though United is now providing snacks but still of inferior quantity and quality vs. Southwest), luggage, flight change fees, etc. and they are notorious for poor customer service, overbooked flights, etc.

The latest Transportation Security Administration news is they're cutting down on security agents, so folks should get to the airport at least 3 hours prior to departure for domestic flights.

In their heyday I used to snag a Southwest deal for $49 one-way trip along the west coast and a cross-country trip for $200!  Nowadays one-way cross country trips are $200 if you're lucky.

Welcome! Herzlich Wilkommen! Bienvenue! Benvenuto!

Follow me in budget travels across the globe while maintaining my pocketbook, sating intellectual curiosity, and maintaining a primarily vegan diet.  From the preliminary planning to the logistics of transportation and the activity itinerary, you will learn from my experiences and avoid my mistakes!