To Europe people and those who have been

I didn't know... uh. Finnish. i guess it is. But i know Spanish and French so it wasn't a big deal to me. I'd hate to go somewhere like that. I just stayed to myself in Finland. Especially considering an Australian accent [assuming you have one. ] because some countries DO learn English as a second language early in school, but the slang and dialect used in Australian-English would make it even worse.

 

In Spain you must visit the Alhambra in Granada, and me, of course. Cheap stay if I have an available room.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alhambra

Also Seville is 250 km away and great to visit... not to forget Cordoba, 200 kms away.

So Andalusia is the place to visit for great food, tapas, fiesta and siesta. Flamenco and historical places. Very close to Africa, many ferrys from there to visit marocco.

http://www.andalucia.org/modulos.php?modulo=Index&nuevoidioma=eng

 

Yea, I've been lots of places but Paris has been my fave. The trains are definitely a great way to go - although there are some discount airlines that are worth checking out. We rented a car in France to do some touring around the south, but trains generally beat driving (I'm a New Yorker, though - so I hate driving in general and got rid of our cars when we moved here)

As far as the languages go, pick up some books to learn the basics, but virtually everyone speaks English. I'm almost fluent in French, and but found most people wanted to practice their English on me when I was there. I'd start speaking in French and they'd always like to reply in English. When we went to Rome we bought an Italian book and learned what we could, but it was pretty limited. I didn't chat with as many people in Italy, but as long as you know how to say stuff like "how much is..." and "where is..." you're fine. I'm a language buff, though - so I dig picking them up everywhere we go.

 

Spanish also has similiarities with Italian, so some of your Spanish may actually prove useful in Italy.

 

De nada, amigo.

Interrail is only for people who has lived at least the last six months in europe.

I think low fare flight companies are the cheapest way to travel. Also, for short distances up to 300 kms some countries have a good bus network which is usually cheaper and faster.

some low fare airlines are

www.ryanair.com
www.easyjet.com
www.airberlin.com
www.clickair.com
www.vueling.com

I have travelled with all but clickair, with not many problems.

Also,appart from andalusia, I would recomend Paris, Barcelona, Prague, Rome, Edinburg, Amsterdam and Berlin + Dresden (200 kms away from Berlin). I was there yesterday coming back from a wedding and enjoyed the place a lot.

My favourite search engine and cheap online travel agency is:

http://www.edreams.com/edreams/english/

I made regularly comparisons and has ever outbeaten in price anyone on the same flights. Plus it searches also the low fares companies.