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We'll likely have 14-16 days in total so I guess we'll be pushing it with our itenerary.

Mister opinionated here: If you are "peak bagging" then maybe not, but if you want to soak some of the trip in, then, yes, I'd say you are pushng it. But that's coming from the Jim that wants to vicariously wander the countryside in a hire cae (actually, I get to do this in May. Woohoo!)

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We both speak fluent English... but nothing else other then a few french words learned in junior High in the early 90s.

It is the effort that counts, IMO. A Berlitz book, some earnest, stupid looks, a willingness to hold out a handful of money and let someone else pick out what is appropriate.... all is good.

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My main thoughts were the Berlin wall, we have seen pieces of it during previous trips to PEI and Ottawa and have both been very intrigued by it.


I got to see the wall when it was. Yes, intriguing in a Darth Vader sort of way. Stranger, rolling through bricked-up East Berlin stations on the U-Bahn, walking through Checkpoint Charlie. I haven't been back...adn wonder if I would find it as interesting now that it is no longer an island.

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Amsterdam is something I have always wanted to check out for the Red Light district (window shopping only and niether of us are into smoking anything

No need to smoke.

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but I still think it would be a neat place to check out the shops and stuff).

It is unique. You could completely ignore the red-light and edible hashish aspects and still have an interesting visit. Lots of walking, lots of canals, lots of streetcars, museums. Very nice.

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The only real reason for Paris is to at least see the Eiffel Tower so that can be scratched off the list very easily.

I have been up the tower 5-6 times since 1974 and I give it very high marks, It is completely unique. That being said, and I think Matthew said this, the Eiffel Tower is far, far, far from the #1 reason to visit Paris. As cities that are walkable and subwayable (is that a word) and just absolutely chock full of sights, culture, streetlife, food, people, bread, beer, music, art, shopping, history, style....what am I missing? ... Paris sits in exclusive company (and ahead of, IMO) with New York and London. The Eiffel Tower just helps take it all in.

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The UK would be nice as we should be able to communicate fairly easily there as we have Newfie accents all around us which are (in a lot of cases) more like the English accent across the pond then North American English!

Yes, that's true. Those buggers drive on the left, though, d'you know??

Seriously, a few times I have wound up in the UK at the end of a trip wher you can go "Whew! Sompleace where I can make myself understood!" (sort of)

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We both love to eat new and differnt foods! And I love to drive and SWMBO is an excellent navigator (another bonus is that if we get lost we don't get mad, we make an adventure out of it!).

The bitchin good thing about secondary roads in (what I've seen of) Europe is that you can set a general goal for the day -- let's say we want to wind up somewhere near Rouen or Besancon -- and drive along without super-tense concentration on which turn to take. Just keep looking at those Besancon===> signs at the intersections and roundabouts and it all works out. If you are saying you like food and like to drive, Jim's boas would be to leave Berlin until next time and get a rent-a-car in Munich, Strasbourg or Lyon and dip south for a few days.

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Her main things to see would be castles. She is fascinated by them!

Now this gets tough. You've got your castles along the Rhine, picturesque as you float down the river, but generally inop. Then you have the showcase castles of the UK as mentioned here (only been to a few). Then there's the over-the-top Neushwanstein-type (sp?) castles (seen 'em, never visited) but which would take a serious side trip. Then there's palaces in like Versailles (an easy day trip from Paris, being my fave and I think the uber-uber-palace) or those palaces (not-quite-castles) along the Loire (some of them very nice, particularly for people into gardens...does Villadry come to mind?)

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[As I see it right now I think we might end up exploring the UK only. With our time limit and some of the stuff we want to see (and as newbies to any continent other then our own) and the fact that English is quite widespread this might be our best bet for our first trip. If we could time it right with the empeg meet and hook up with a ride to the UK that would be more then perfect!

Please keep the ideas coming, I greatly appreciate all of this so far.

With 16 possible days, you could spend a *lot* or time driving up and around the UK. My bias would be to fly open jaws into someplace like Paris, Amsterdam or Frankfurt and diddley-bop a little on the south side of the English Channel.

But don't listen too much to what *other* people want to do!!

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Rene (and Siobhan!)

Love that name.
_________________________
Jim


'Tis the exceptional fellow who lies awake at night thinking of his successes.