2. Do not walk on bike paths. If you must, MOVE if you hear people yelling in Dutch. They are yelling at you, and you may cause an accident - much like Shayla and I did five minutes after getting off the train in Amsterdam.
3. Shaving legs is overrated.
4. Deodorant is not.
5. There is no peanut butter in the entire country of Hungary. There are, however, about a dozen different types of Nutella.
6. Beer really IS cheaper than water.
7. Put detergent in the washing machine - after all, isn't that the point?
8. You likely won't know what you're eating. Just eat it anyway.
9. Yum Yum is the best brand of instant noodles. Hands down.
10. Austrian cake is to die for.
11. Don't feel bad about "borrowing" free breakfast from the hostels for lunch - it saves you a couple of Euros.
12. Get an ISIC card! It saves tons of money!
13. If you're in Amsterdam and want a coffee, go to a cafe. "Coffee shop" has a very different meaning.
14. 40, 000 really isn't that much in Hungarian money.
15. It is perfectly fine to simply nod and smile when someone randomly walks up to you and begins speaking German/Dutch/Czech/Hungarian. Unless they stop talking and anxiously await an answer. Then it's time to admit that you don't actually speak their language.
16. Stacking dolls are really, really cool.
17. German keyboards are hard to type on.
18. You CAN order a beer at McDonalds, a quarter-pounder is a Royale with cheese, and fries are eaten with mayonnaise (as stated in Pulp Fiction).
19. Schnitzel is NOT as good as it sounds.
20. Cold canned pasta isn't really all that bad. And instant noodles rarely ever disappoint.
21. Stopping and staring is a frequent occurrence.
22. There really are people out there who JUST DON'T GET IT. When you're visiting Dachau, a Holocaust memorial and concentration camp, it's not a good idea to complain about how unsatisfactory your cruise was - even if it really did suck.
23. Europe really IS as gorgeous as they say!
Questions? Comments? Criticisms? I'd love to hear them all!
the-wanderingjew@hotmail.com
