Sam03h | No Category | 04/24/2009
My Favorite travel experience was when I traveled Europe in the summer of '05 as a sophomore in college. It was by far one of the best decisions I have ever made... just to forget about everything and study abroad for 5 weeks through FSU's study abroad program. The classes were only 2 days a week, so the other 5 days were dedicated to traveling Europe. The best part was visiting Croatia. We rented a car and drove 400 miles south almost to the furthest point of the country. The whole way we stopped every 50-100 miles to check out the coast and beaches. Its really a beautiful country and the local merchants are very hospitable. A must visit... and one I can't wait to do again.
I was fortunate enough to spend 5 days in France when I was studying in Switzerland. I chose this country over Spain, so I had very high hopes and expectations. I visited Paris, Nice, Caen, and Normandy (which I will blog about inside their respective locations). Overall I was not a big fan of the country although it has many bright spots. I found locals to be rather rude and inhospitable.
I didn't enjoy Paris nearly as much as the hype led me to believe. I would much rather spend a romantic get-a-way in Switzerland or the Italian Riviera(at least now I know for sure). However, if you do venture to France make sure you check out Normandy. It is a region with beautiful coast that was also home to the D-Day assault of WWII. LOTS of history, great scenery, and a nice vacation to the site seeing of Paris.