We are finally back from a wonderful trip to Europe, which we will cherish for a long time to come.
During the 17th Century, young men from the European nobility and the wealthy upper classes would go on a tour of Continental Europe, called the Grand Tour. It was considered an essential Rite of Passage for a young man to understand art, culture and the roots of Western Civilisation. Our own tour closely mirrored the traditional Grand Tour, from Rome to Paris, through the most important centers of both antiquity and the Renaissance. Though a little late in life for a 'Rite of Passage', I suppose it is never too late to start learning and growing.
During the 17th Century, young men from the European nobility and the wealthy upper classes would go on a tour of Continental Europe, called the Grand Tour. It was considered an essential Rite of Passage for a young man to understand art, culture and the roots of Western Civilisation. Our own tour closely mirrored the traditional Grand Tour, from Rome to Paris, through the most important centers of both antiquity and the Renaissance. Though a little late in life for a 'Rite of Passage', I suppose it is never too late to start learning and growing.
On hearing about this trip, and the expenditure involved, a common refrain was that this would be a 'once in a lifetime' trip. However, I sincerely hope that this is just the first in many more such travel holidays.
This post marks the beginning of a new series covering our trip. This feature will be covered in two 'seasons' - the first on the planning and the second on the trip itself.
Season 1 will be on the experience of planning the entire venture. I decided to document this experience as many friends wanted the details of our itinerary for planning their own holiday. Of course, it is only the successful completion of the trip, and the hard lessons learnt, that gives me the confidence to give any advice on this matter. The posts on the planning phase are intended as a guide for friends and anybody else who is planning a 'Do It Yourself' Eurotrip, especially from India.
Season 2 will of course be part travelogue, part tourist guide, part journal, mainly for us to relive those wonderful memories, help others in deciding their itinerary and hopefully to inspire more to follow.
Finally, this series is likely to continue for a long time to come, considering the frequency of my posts :-).
Other posts in this series......
Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis
Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps
How to Fly to Europe on a Budget
Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget
Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap
Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide
Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary
How to Move Around Town Like a Local
Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates
Golden Tickets, Magic Passes and Hidden Entrances
Mady you still hoping that this isnt once in a lifetime trip but the first of the many!!!! I thought we had already started saving for Turkey, Greece, Egypt etc for 2017, in addition to the savings from this trip. Hopefully with the new pay commission and the recession in Europe (??), things will only be better. So start planning buy, we are piggybacking..........
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for the usefull and detailed information on travel in Europe.
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for the usefull and detailed information on travel in Europe.
ReplyDelete