Cars-you really don't need one in most of Europe. I can understand if you live in a small rural town far away from any major city. However, unless you commute to any of these big cities on a daily basis you really don't need a vehicle. The main reason for this, is that the countries over here have such fabulous public transportation. And wherever the trains, buses or trolleys can't get you a bicycle or rollerblades can. Since we come from Southern California we're really not used to using public transpo on a daily basis for our immediate transportation needs. Yet in Europe, having a car can be more of a hassle than anything else. The only time we've needed a rental car was in Provence (France) and that was mainly to explore the other nearby towns. Also we're using one in Iceland to travel around the country. I've never felt this greater sense of freedom by not having a vehicle. It's feels good not to find a parking spot, pay for parking, fill up a tank with gas, and deal with traffic. As an added bonus, you never need a designated driver because you can take public transport back to your hotel or hostel. Lastly, when you stay out too late or past the last subway ride you can always do as the Europeans do and walk!
Another point about cars-if you do have one it will be a small one. Fiats and mini coopers (or something similar in size) are the norm. You don't see large vehicles like Escalades or mini-vans. Occasionally you see a Range Rover, but that's the biggest car. Darius said he saw a truck in Amsterdam but that's about it. I have seen some people with multiple children so I'm thinking they either strap in two car seats in a Mini Cooper (is that possible?) or they walk/take public transpo.
Museums/Monuments: Are almost always free to anyone who resides in the European Union. Some places also offer free entrance if you are under 18 years of age, between 23-29 or over the age of 60 and anyone with a disability. Also, most places have a reduced fee for people from other countries that are teachers or students. Back home most of our museums have a fee. We do have some museums that have one day a month where admission is free. The Smithsonian is free as well. But can you imagine what it would be like if EVERY museum was free every single day to anyone who lives in the US? Would we be more likely to visit museums more often than we go see a movie? What if children had the chance to grow up visiting the Mona Lisa every weekend or observing Picasso's and Van Gough's masterpieces during play dates? I wonder what kind of change (if any) that would have on our country. I will say that I love walking into museums in Europe and looking around at all the people inside them.
Rooms/Beds/Elevators/Shower: they are a lot smaller than we're used to. Maybe because in America we tend to be wider and with more girth? I've seen really tall Europeans but even then the shower/baths are still very narrow. A twin bed feels as wide as my hips. In San Diego, we think we make good use of living space in our houses due to small square footage but that's nothing to the smaller apartments and houses over here. Europeans have a way of making everything fit (and maybe because they don't buy as much crap as we do?).
Airport Security: The strictest security award goes to....France! And with good cause. They recently had some terrorist/negative events that caused loss of life so maybe their increased security is due the attack on their satire magazine office or maybe they are always this strict.
When we arrived in Paris, we were shocked to see so many military personnel at the airport. They were dressed in full combat attire including a combat helmet and rifle. At one point while trying to walk through the airport to exit we came to a crowd of people. They had been stopped by the military security and they were shouting for everyone to stop, turn around and to leave the area immediately. There were about 10 military officers on either side trying to clear out a space. You don't have to tell me twice to clear out if you have a gun. We pretty much power walked in the opposite direction as quick as we could. We heard an announcement asking if anyone had left their luggage unattended in that area so we assume that was cause for clearing out the area? We didn't stick around to ask questions.
When flying out of France to Spain we also noticed the airport security was very strict with liquids and medications. Every other country (including ours) is hit or miss when it comes to liquids. Some people in our group consistently had large bottles of liquids that passed security and other times were trashed. It was rare that we were asked to remove our liquids from our carryon bags at all. It's a habit of mine to keep my liquids in a quart sized ziplock and another ziplock with our liquid medications (nasal spray, anti-itch meds, bio-freeze, etc). However, in the last few countries I had a couple bottles (larger than 3 ounces) of cough syrup or expectorant in my backpack. I anticipated getting caught and asked to throw it away but it never happened and we needed it so I kept putting it in my bag. France however was the exception. They made EVERYONE remove their liquids from their carryon luggage. They also required it to be in a clear bag (One of us had liquids in a non-clear bag). They scan your bag for liquids and if they find anything they open your bag and the bags of your family members. They found the cough syrup and said it was strictly forbidden to carry on the plane. I promptly apologized as the flight agent continued to remove all my items from my backpack. Every pair of socks and all our paperwork were looked over with a fine tooth comb. The agent asked who I was traveling with and I pointed to my husband. They proceeded to go through all of his belongings as well. They told him that the small plastic jams and Nutella containers we have for sandwhiches are considered liquids and must be in a clear ziplock bag. Luckily, Super Nel still had room in his liquids bag for all the Nutella and peanut butter. When it comes to safety, France doesn't F%$& around-pardon my French (pun intended). However, you know what? It did make me feel safer about getting on that airplane. I'm always a little more scared when someone shows me a knife, pair of scissors or wine bottle they got through security back home (I've seen all 3 items clear security in the USA).
Movie Theatres and Malls: hardly see any of these in Europe. Have I seen them? Yes, but there aren't as many as I feel we have back home. There are a ton of shops and places to buy clothes, lotions and other goods but these are usually independent stores or chain stores that are not in a mall. If you think about it, shopping and watching movies are somewhat sedentary lifestyle activities. I feel like the space in cities in Europe is used to create more cafes or parks or places to walk to and explore. Again, these are observations my friends, husband and I have made. I could be wrong-maybe there are more malls and movie theaters and I just don't see them. The biggest mall I've seen was in Poland. On a Sunday in Kraków, the mall was the place to be after 5pm when most of the town shut down.
Medical offices/Hospitals/Pharmacies: back home in San Diego we have huge hospitals and plenty of them. I have seen some huge hospitals out in Europe as well as a few Urgent Cares or clinics. But I wonder if most Europeans don't require a hospital visit as much as in America? I know our health systems are as different as night and day. At one clinic in Provence, it said on the door in French and English that office CONSULTATION hours (I'm assuming that's walk-in hours) are from 1400-1600 Monday-Friday and the rest of the time was reserved for home visits. I couldn't believe doctors still come to your house?! How awesome is that?! I can't even imagine what it would be like if my doctor came to my house. Would I have to dress up? Clean the house? Offer her something to drink? Hide all the booze? I honestly don't know. But I like the idea of it. Also, I wonder if doctors get a different story when they visit their patients in their homes. When doctors ask "Do you smoke?" it's pretty hard to lie and say "nope" if your house reeks of cigarette smoke.
I have not seen any public hand sanitizer stations. Back home I call it "magic soap." You know when you're at the grocery store and they have hand sanitizer machines or disinfectant wipes provided? I can't find any anywhere in Europe-not even at airports. They like to use good old fashioned soap and water. I wonder how many super-bugs we've created with all the antimicrobial liquids we use in America. I'm a true germaphobe and even I have found myself eating food after touching money without using magic soap. I wonder what the incidence of MRSA like bacteria infections are in Europe compared to USA.
Also-there are pharmacies in every block. Ok maybe not every block, but in big cities it feels like it (reminds me of Hawaii with the ABC stores). Pharmacies are more than just medicine. People go there to get sunscreen, toothbrushes and Chapstick. Pharmacies seem to replace what Target or Kmart are back home. And I've noticed some of the pharmacists know their customers. I like the idea of walking into my nearest Rite-Aid and having the pharmacist say "Hi Andy-we have this new face cream I think you should try. It has sunscreen in it." That probably will never happen but my local Rite-Aid is 7 times bigger than these local pharmacies.
Medications: I have visited a pharmacy in every country we've been to. I guess that happens when you travel during the cold time of year and your body is just not used to it. I've noticed that even though I'm buying over the counter medications (no prescription needed) the pharmacists are hesitant to sell me two different types of medication if they make you drowsy. In one case I was buying something similar to benedryl for our allergies and a night time cough syrup for Super Nel. The pharmacist was concerned that we might take both together. The main ingredient is different but since they cause drowsiness she was really worried we'd over do it. I thought this was kind of thoughtful. Back home I've bought a Costco size bottle of benedryl, nightquill, advil PM and night time robitussin all at the same time without so much as a second glance.
Energy Saving: Europe wins the go green award. All the lights tend to be motion sensored or on a timer. So when you get off the elevator at a hotel the hallways are pitch dark until you walk down them. The motion sensors turn the lights on. The same is true in the bathroom. If I'm sitting too long the lights turn off until you move again. Almost every toilet has the water saving flush option and they never have toilet liners (too wasteful).
Almost every bathroom uses a hand dryer vs towels. Some countries use a cloth towel roll that you pull the towel down to get a clean part of a cloth towel to dry your hands. This roll is washed and rerolled and then refilled in the bathrooms. Think about how many trees they save by doing this.
Cover charge: Most restaurants we've visited include some kind of cover charge. This can be anywhere from 0.50€ to €1 per person. Most restaurants in Spain and France do a version of the prix fix menu. So you pick an appetizer (first dish) and main dish (second dish) and a drink and dessert are included. This ends up being the better deal because you can try a variety of dishes in your group if you do this deal.
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