And we will now continue with more random findings from my time in Europe.
European Listerine is definitely stronger than the US version
Yup, that's right. Arctic Mint also has less of a "sweet" taste. I wasn't really surprised by this discovery, but it was interesting nonetheless. Also, the european version is only sold in smaller bottles, and they dont yell at you on the label to take it twice a day. Mouthwash isn't really "in" in Europe. Although I did see a tv commercial for it.
Most European girls seem too good for their boyfriends. This is probably due to a lack of cool guys in Europe. I feel bad for them.
There is nowhere to get a late night snack, unless you feel like eating bar food. Is it after 8:30PM? You're pretty much out of luck. You can look around all you want, but you aren't going to find an open store to buy food. If you're lucky, you know of a vending machine somewhere...
The Euro is a creative currency. There are one and two Euro coins, and they are used very often, because the smallest bill is a 5. If you're used to dollars, you aren't used to using coins that much. This is also very weird when you often get change from transactions only in coins. The Euro bills are also different sizes, and the 50 doesn't properly fit in my wallet (it's too tall). Not that I walk around with 50s...
However, there is one thing that I find highly unnecessary: the two cent coin. Really? What a waste. There are 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 cent coins.
My favorite is the 2 Euro coin.
You can have a completely decent meal at a highway rest stop. I'm thinking of doing a food segment on this later, but for the meantime it is worth noting that I love French rest stops. They are often very well thought out, with activities and games for kids.
Oh good, a nice place to rest for now, because I like cutting things up into unnecessarily short chunks. Also, I lose my train of thought, and can't focus
Now to find a nice picture....
 |
| My favorite view... |
I missed my one year mark of this bizarre journal a few days ago on August 14th. Had I not been in France, I may have posted something here.
Well, I'm back...for about four days. And then I'm going back to Burlington. Of course, I'm still adjusting to NY, and the fact that I'm "moving out" this weekend is completely irrelevant to me.
Over the past week or so, I've collected a bunch of "conclusions" from the time that I've spent in Europe over the past 18 or so years... Some of them are more thought out, and others are plain random. If they end up taking a long time to explain, I may break them up into several posts...
Europeans drive better. I have come to the conclusion that this has a lot to do with the fact that a majority of them have cars with manual transmissions, and are therefore more "in touch" with their cars. In addition, there is less honking and impatience at traffic lights, because it is understood that it can sometimes be tricky to get a car in gear.
However, there is a negative side: They are often completely unable to keep right on highways. Constantly driven by a need to be first, or in front, no one moves over after passing someone. This leads to people in multiple lanes of traffic all driving at similar speeds, creating a moving wall.
On the speed limit: The highways are generally limited to 130 km/h, which is about 80mph-a rare sight in the northeast. Interestingly enough, not everyone drives that fast. Of course, this creates a major problem when you factor in the issue of people not keeping in the right lane when not passing.
When I first started driving this summer, I discovered that my mind/body has become accustomed to driving at 68mph (my standard cruising speed), and I was going slower than everyone else. Of course, as soon as I hop behind the wheel back here, I'll probably have to slow myself down.
Is it just me, or does that text above look smaller?
While we're on the topic of cars, if you think gas prices are high, don't forget that Europe has always been suffering way more. A gallon of gas? Just about $9. Yup, nine dollars.
I need to chunk this post, because I'm going to get distracted if it's such a long writing.
Here's a picture of some yummy chips I bought in Barcelona Airport (which is beautiful. more on that later)
