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It seems in my last article I confused so many people. I got a ton of emails from people saying “Hey, you wrote about living in Chile now you are writing about Europe, what gives?” I guess I should give you all more background on me but I figured you were here to read about places, not about my life experiences. The fact is I lived in Europe long before I began my life in South America, in Chile. I have lived all over to tell the truth. My desire to be out of America was just that great. I started to search and look for ideal places to begin a new life. I’m not one for research by reading; I like to get out into it. To me this is the best way to experience something and this is what I did. Anyways, let’s get to it. In the last article we left off at the train station. Now the Waterloo station, which is the outbound station for other places in Europe, is a vast sprawling wonderful station. It’s large and well lit, with shops restaurants and much to engage you while you wait for your train. Trains leave regularly for all points but the train to Paris is pretty much a regular staple. From London to Paris is a three hour run. It goes by quick. The trains are speedy and the seats are actually comfortable. Again, as I mentioned in my previous article, there are snacks and all manner of food to be had on board the train. The compartments, if you choose to sit in them, will seat about eight people, with sitting for four on each side of the compartment. You can use cell phones on board, at least till you reach the tunnel and once there, there’s not alot to see for the next two hours or so but it’s very easy to be entertained. Light conversation with a stranger, or some reading, will pass the time quickly.

The Eurostar goes under the English Channel and on to Paris. It takes only 20 minutes to go through the Chunnel, the total trip to Paris takes 3 hours.

If you’ve never been to Paris, you’re in for a treat. The city itself is very dingy and old but alas this is the charm of Paris, that it’s an old and run down type of city. Sure you can go to the Eiffel Tower which is a hop, skip and a jump away from downtown but again you want to see things that tourists don't see. You want culture, ambience and atmosphere. You want to try a French restaurant! Le Prevoyant located on 79 Blvd. Magenta is a great restaurant. The decorum is very cheerful and the food is excellent. 

It has a slight Italian flair to it and it’s nice and airy, with tables outside for dining. It is said a Parisian disdains eating indoors and prefers to take meals outside. In the evening it’s a very common sight to see people eating dinner on the balconies of their small apartments enjoying the air and the lights of the city. Paris truly is the City of Lights! 

Your best bet again for hotels is near the train stations. Hotels near attractions are spendy because of the convenience of being near the said attractions. As I mentioned in part one of this article just about all main train stations in European countries are located in the center of town and in this particular case downtown is best for hotels. Things stay open late in Paris but you need to be observant when out at night. The crime rate is low but things do happen and if one is not careful you could end up finding out just how exciting Paris can be……………..the hard way.

Paris is loaded with bistros and bars lining all the main streets. There are art house theatres all over also. For real culture, I would say take in a show instead of seeing the Eiffel Tower, the productions are all great and very colorful and seeing a stage performance of any type in Paris is a true thrill! 
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Le Boulevard at Paris

If you’re looking around Paris and you’re thinking of making it your potential home or a place you may wish to stay in for any extended period of time then remember one rule of living anywhere in France...................keep wine in your home at all times! I cannot stress enough the importance of this. There's an old saying in France and that is, it is impossible for two strangers to share a bottle of wine and not be friends by the time the bottle is finished. This is pretty much the attitude and way of life in France in general and especially in Paris. Disputes are settled with a few harsh words and alot of wine, so remember that! Paris itself is made up of so many different groups of people. You will find Algerians, Moroccans, Spaniards, Arabs, Africans, and even Americans and many other groups of people who call Paris "home". Paris is truly a neapolitan city. The real thing that makes Paris special is the architecture, the look of the city. The narrow cramped streets, the old buildings, the decay and the decadence; this is truly the character of Paris. If you want a real adventure, ride the bus from downtown to the Eiffel Tower, you can get a free bus map with the routes from my website, and it’d be a good idea to download it and look it over if you’re planning a trip to Paris, to familiarize yourself with street names and landmarks. Once you know a few places, getting around is very, very easy.

I firmly believe one should not be venturing off to a country if you don’t speak any of the native language, at least know some of the language or some words. Get a pocket book on French or any other languages for countries you may travel too and get familiar with a few words, but again don’t look at this as a reason to be discouraged, look at it as a challenge that you must meet.

Another great thing about Europe is that you can get anywhere in two hours or less on shuttle flights. Everything is a short hop away. From Paris we can take a shuttle flight and be in Munich in about an hour. The Munich airport is one of the most efficient airports ever built. It’s not very large but due to its efficient design can accommodate just as much traffic as La Guardia or San Francisco. It’s a very modern looking airport, lots of glass and steel.

Munich itself is a wonderful city, truly a mixture of old and new. There are many sites and things to see in Munich but I would suggest the Glockenspiel in downtown Munich. It’s basically a large open courtyard area where people like to congregate. There are restaurants all over and shops, but in my opinion the highlight of the square is the Mayor's building and the golden statue. Be in the square when the clock strikes on the hour. I will not give it all away but you can literally spend a whole day here doing nothing but looking around and window shopping.
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The highpoint of Munich is the beer halls. This is a country that takes its beer very seriously, so much so that there are actual beer laws and guidelines for how beer is made or served. In America a beer is a beer, but in Germany beer is art. Have a beer in Germany and that alone will make you want to move there. This standard of high quality is not just for beer only, for in Germany it is against the law to use preservatives in food. Your food is fresher and of much better quality than what you may find in your local supermarket in the u.s. If you’re thinking of living in Munich, my advice to you is look outside of town in the suburbs for a place. The truly fun areas can be far if you don’t have a car but the transportation system is very good, so you can live well without a car, but winters can be harsh and if you don't have a car then you could truly suffer. January and February are the coldest months, and the snow gets thick, the cold unforgiving. Remember what I said though in the first part of this article, Europe is a collection of so many countries and so many cultures it’s like each country is a separate world unto itself. So we can take a shuttle flight and within an hour or so be in Spain. In Spain the winters are cold too, but not as brutal as a German winter, hahahaa. Spain is truly a world unlike any other. You can fly as I mentioned but the real romance of travel in Europe is the Eurorail. Take a train. The ride into Spain is the most scenic you will ever see! As you cross the “frontera” (border) you’ll go through several mountain passes and these are truly breathtaking. You’ll see small villages and towns that are so rustic you’ll be tempted to tell the train conductor to stop and let you off so you can begin living abroad.

Munich, Germany

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A great hotel to stay at is the Apartamentos Plaza Basilica, located at Comandante Zorita 27 al 31 (Tel. 91-535-36-42). It’s just a ten minute cab ride away from the train station. What I like about this hotel is that it’s discreet. From the outside you would never know it was a hotel. It’s a red brick building and very rustic. It looks like it’s an office complex of some sort. They’re only concerned with your privacy and comfort at this hotel. The rooms are all built like small apartments. This particular hotel is designed for a long term stay and it spares no expense in elegance but at the same time being quite reasonably priced. Very spacious, and well furnished, it’s more of an apartment than a hotel room.

Rooms have small kitchens, living rooms, with separate bedrooms and also a wet bar. The bathrooms are beautifully tiled and will make you feel like you are at home instead of in a hotel. The hotel is very quiet and located in the artsy part of town. There are shops and stores all around and naturally several local bistros. If you plan on going to Madrid make this the hotel you stay at.

Of the many sights to see one of the most impressive and most mysterious can be found at the Parque del Oueste, north west of the Royal Palace. Here you’ll find the most bizarre building in all of Madrid: an ancient Egyptian Temple. Don’t ask for an explanation, no one seems to have one but it’s truly a marvelous sight. Just a hop, skip and a jump away is Casa del Campo, Madrid's largest park. It’s beautiful and a great place for a picnic.

Don’t worry about getting to these sights, the local transportation system, fondly referred to as the “Metro” is excellent. In fact, you can easily get around this city on foot, cable car or bus. Oh yes, you read that right, I did say cable car, like a touch of San Francisco in Spain! This is a very scenic city with a lot to offer and if you’re thinking of making Spain your potential home, it has many advantages.

I warn you now though, if you’re invited over to someone’s house for dinner, you need to know, in Spain they have dinner very late. In fact the average time for dinner in Spain is about 11pm at night! The work day there is a bit different. Most businesses get going at about 10am and the average work day is from that time till about 7pm in the evening, and this is why dinner is so late. It’s really a different way of life in Spain but a very good life indeed.

Just about an hour and forty minutes away is at the southern most point of Spain is a beach town called Malaga. This presents many other options for you also. You can spend lazy days on the golden sand beaches enjoying the waves and the casual pace of things. This is truly a romantic spot and one where even someone on a budget can manage to have an excellent time. The buildings are old and rustic and many of the hotels are old but then this is a town that is known for its beaches, so don’t be too overly concerned with the accommodations, the charm is in the age of the town and the beauty of the beaches!

Personally, I would take the train from Madrid to Malaga. The station with trains going to Malaga is an open air station, nice in its design, almost futuristic. The train ride itself is just about the perfect length of time, close to two hours but very pleasant. You can smell the ocean air as you get off the train and you’ll inexplicably be drawn to the nearby beach. The only comparison to this town is to liken it to Malibu, California. It’s very sun washed and elegant, at the same time being retro and charming.

If you’re really adventurous you can head over to the port and take a ferry boat to Morocco. It’s a bit of a ride but there’s a bazaar once you arrive in Morocco that’s like no other in the world. There’s no limit to what you can buy or see there and I mean NO LIMITS. I won’t go into details, I’ll leave that for your imagination but remember as I always say in my books, you aren’t in Kansas anymore and life is very different abroad.

Well, I’ve only scratched the surface, I’ve done so on purpose, so that you’ll be more inclined to want to venture out and discover your own part of Europe that appeals to you. Again, if you’re looking at it as a potential place to live, there are a lot of choices. You may first want to start by going to my site and downloading the United Nation’s list of top 50 countries to live in. 

Many of the countries that are the tops to live in are European. Iceland was ranked number 2. Spain was number 19, and Chile was number 43, Germany was number 18. Well, again you may wish to just go to my site and download it for yourself. It also has the list of worst countries to live in too, which is good for comparison purposes. It’s free and in PDF format.

If you’re considering living abroad you need this list. It’s a good place to start to give you ideas on potential places to live. Besides that, you would be very surprised to see what country came in as the number one place to live; it was not the u.s. These countries were all rated based upon three areas, education, health and income. The criteria doesn’t get anymore real than that.

Speaking of Chile, I’ve gotten a ton of emails asking me if I’m going to do a follow up article on living in Chile and the answer is, I guess I’ll have to with all the questions and continued interest I’m getting. So look for that possibly coming up soon. This time I may just write about beach front living. Best towns to live in. What to avoid and what to look for, that type of thing, but we’ll see. Chile is a vast country and I could literally write about it for months to come. I mean I’ve not even gotten into areas like the south of Chile, or Patagonia, the “Brigadoon” of Chile, but again, we’ll see.
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I invite your questions, comments or ideas and you may contact me at any time or just stop by my site to see what’s new. Which reminds me, there’s a minute and a half downloadable video clip you can get from my site giving you a peek at what Chile looks like. You may be surprised by what you see! Check it out, and remember……………think abroad!  Find me at http://www.howtwovideo.com/travelogue  Email: steel-industries@email.com

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