on hold

I have realized there is no way I can keep up this blog and my journal, so this one will be done after the journey is over. If anyone has any questions before that time, feel free to email me at charissa@sassyartist.com.
Blessings,
Charissa

Planning for the weather

Go to http://www.wunderground.com/tripplanner/index.asp to find out what the weather has been like for the city you are visiting during the same days in previous years. They compare the weather the last 8 or 9 years to give you an idea of what to expect. I found out that my trip will range from under 40 to over 60 degrees (yeah - Barcelona!) during the days, with the nights dropping to the 20s in some places. I'm wondering now if I should have packed my winter coat. But because of the bulk, I had decided not to and it is now about a 45 minute drive away. Do I want to drive an hour and a half and then have to haul my coat around? My plan had been to go with layers: t-shirt, sweatshirt, fleece jacket, gloves and scarf. I may come to regret it (and I'm sure you'll hear about it in this blog!) but I think I'm going to stick to the layers plan. I love my coat but it really is too bulky to be carrying around, especially since I'm already nervous about hauling all my camera stuff around. My security devices didn't come for my computer and camera, so I'm a bit concerned about being robbed. The last thing I need is to be dealing with one more item in my arms (when I've been climbing up a hill and am too hot to be wearing a coat!) Well, I'm going to go work on my housing arrangements...

Itinerary: flights and train super cheap

My itinerary was totally set by money. I decided which cities I wanted to see and then went to EasyJet.com. I figured out which cities went directly to other cities I wanted to see and then found the cheapest route. Not only was the order determined by EasyJet routes, but the time schedule for moving from city to city was made according to the cheapest days to fly. EasyJet has a calendar view where you can see the lowest fares for each day. I only flew on days, and at times, that were super cheap. But that means, for instance, that I'm heading to the London airport at about 5:30 am for my flight to Rome. Before booking the flights, I made sure that the bus or train would be running that early. I also chose my time to go to Bath by when FunFares were available. I got my round trip ticket from London to Bath for 6 GBP (about $10). My six flights came to a total of around $300, including all taxes, etc. So here is the itinerary that I ended up with:

March 2nd: London for 5 nights (Saturday night in Bath)
March 7th: Rome (and surrounding areas) for 7 nights
March 14th: Geneva for 1 night
March 15th: Barcelona for 6 nights
March 21st: Paris for 5 nights
March 26th: Return to Nice

Credit card blockage

Wow! I leave in less than 48 hours and I am so not ready. This is one of my mistakes you can learn from, I'm sure! Make sure your credit card company knows you will be making purchases overseas. I'm using my mom's card and I am already in France. For some reason I was able to book all my flights over the internet with no problem but I had a $6 charge with an American internet company and they blocked the card and called my mom. So I had to get a friend to book my train ticket (which was less than $10) because the card had not been unblocked yet. Hopefully I can use the card tonight, as I still don't have my rooms lined up.

Why another blog? What's the point?

The point is that I don't want to bore my friends too much :0) Several people have asked how I'm doing my tour of Europe so cheaply, so I thought I'd do a blog of tips about traveling cheap in Europe. I'll write as I go, so you'll get to learn both from my planning and from my mistakes. This blog is primarily for the details, prices and planning - things my friends don't want to hear unless they are thinking of taking their own trip. For photos and my journal about all the cool things going on, check out my other blog: http://splashofjoy.blogspot.com

The travel guide I'm depending on the most is Rick Steves' Best of Europe - which was a fantastic gift from my dear friend, Nicole. I also did research on the internet and had some people offer suggestions from personal experience.