Eurotrip 2013 Overview of Countries

Austria: I found Austria to be beautiful (though could have been more so without the constant drizzle and looming clouds) and would love to go back to explore more of the cities I was in and the smaller cities around the country. Vienna seemed to be more modern with various modes of public transportation and a 21st century city skyline. Salzburg was very different, as it seems to stick more to its historic roots; limited but good public transit and the city still struck me as an old-timey village (which I liked). The only maps I could find (granted I didn't look very hard) in S were the hard maps at the bus stops, there were no paper maps to take with you so you can find your way later. I already mentioned how much I loved S for the castle on high, but one of the other reasons the city is great to visit is they have the Salzburg Card (I think you may have to order it before you go there but check on that) which is like a city pass allowing you access to all kinds of attractions and the public transport; essentially if you are going to S you need to get said card. Both hostels were great with the one in S (Yoho) showing Sound of Music daily. I would say the one downside that could be humanly controlled (we are still working on that weather control device I hear) was the amount of smoking done, inside and out. As seems to be the case in most of europe, here too there were bicyclists everywhere, which I also love seeing.

Munich/Oktoberfest: I fell in love with this city on my first jaunt around europe in 2007 and after visiting again, I still absolutely love the city and its people. I have yet to visit some key sites (olympic park, royal residence, etc.), but the ones I have seen both times (marienplatz, english garden, etc.) and the new places I discovered on this trip (other parts of the english garden and the gaudy part of town east of marienplatz) were great to check out. Oktoberfest is an incredible beast of a festival. The first day is crowded as all get out so I would almost avoid going that day, unless you just want to get accustomed to the atmosphere/energy and possibly go into some side biergartens. If you don't have reservations, you just show up early, find a table without reservations and hunker down. Trying to get into tents after ~5 or 6 was a horrible mistake as everyone in the city seemed to be trying to get into these tents so I would go before 3 or so. As is to be expected from the amount of beer flowing at this festival, the people you meet are incredibly friendly and fits right into the german beer culture of sitting wherever and your neighbors become your friends (at least that's what I have come to expect from my time/interactions there in Germany). As with many of the great cities in the world, the public transit is expansive and extremely useful, with people on bikes zooming by all across the city.

Switzerland: It is EXPENSIVE! I use the Doner index to get an idea of the cost in different countries/cities over in europe (for those who have been to europe and don't know what I am talking about when I say Doner Kebab, SHAME!). The cheapest Doner I came across (and it was definitely not the best I have had) in SZ was ~8-9$ while the ones I had in the rest of europe is ~5$ maybe. When people told me SZ was expensive I figured a 20-30% premium from europe; I clearly was wrong and should have mentally prepared myself for a 80% premium. That being said, the countryside/mountain views were definitely as amazing as people described. People there were nice just like the rest of europe. Coincidentally, I feel that L was the least diverse city of the trip while Z seemed to be the most. Granted I am not getting an appropriate sample size in my walkings around the city but that is the feeling I get. Z seems to have a nice and small old town but the city itself sprawls quite a bit. For such a big/popular city, I found the hostel availability in Z to be pretty lacking and the one I stayed in was pretty dirty (probably one of the dirtier ones I have ever stayed in) but it was fine and the drink prices were really cheap compared to some other bars around the same area so not too bad. L on the other hand keeps to its old timey vibe and offers great access to exploring the mountains.