End of Prog Blog-Jet Lag

What a fabulous trip! This trek was my 5oth birthday present from Captain John and we couldn't have had a better time--it was a homerun. We got First or business class on ALL of our flights and miraculously had wonderful weather everywhere we went. Prague was great, Budapest was an unexpected delight and Paris was the icing on the cake.

Paris

We got back Monday afternoon and I'm afraid my body is still in vacation mode. The 8 hour plane ride back has me all confused about when to sleep and eat and my mind is still not ready to tackle my stack of mail, piles of laundry and the other responsibilities of the real world.

Tomorrow (Tuesday), I head back to Knitwits with one finished sock for Capt'n John, 18" of entrelac scarf and a still unfinished Color Affection shawl. I didn't get much knitting done and I didn't see any yarn shops in Europe. In fact, I didn't even see anyone knitting the whole trip.

It was my intention to blog everyday and document the sights, sounds and flavors of the journey. My intentions were good but the execution was terrible. Most of my photos included fingers or other unintended objects and the food was always halfway eaten when I remembered that I wanted to photograph it. Internet connections were the other glitch--I'm just not IT savvy enough to download, transfer and connect yet.

Ed and Regina Fort

For those of you that are thinking about a European vacation, DO IT!...but here is some advice.

1. Take one carry one suitcase per person and make sure that you check the acceptable size and weight restrictions on all of the carriers. We flew from Budapest to Paris on EasyJet and my suitcase was the only one that didn't need to be checked. They charge an additional 30 Euros for a checked bag and they aren't very lenient--purses and laptops must fit in the ONE bag.
2. Keep small change in your pockets. Most WC's will charge you to use the facilities.
3. We ended up buying an International Data Plan for John's iPhone after a few days so we could use the map functions and google stuff. The plans are fairly inexpensive and are prorated by days and not by how much data you use. 
4. Our travel companions, Ed and Regina Fort, researched hotels on the internet and got great deals on 4 and 5 star accommodations. They read all of the customer reviews looking for comments on noise, convenience, cleanliness, etc.
5. Late April is a great time to go to Europe. Spring Break is over and peak travel season rates seem to start on May 1st.
6. We downloaded Zuti apps on our phones, high quality mapping apps for Apple iPhones, iPod touch, iPad & Android. Clear scrollable detailed maps of the worlds transport systems that show you the routes to take from one destination to another.
7. With the exception on one skirt, I wore everything in my suitcase and I was not "that person" struggling with the suitcase the whole time. The must have items were KU fleece Jacket, raincoat/windbreaker, Cuddl duds, big colorful scarf that Sarah Haney gave me for birthday and gloves. I was never without the gorgeous, oversized scarf--it was perfect for taking the chill off and looked great.
8. Take the "hop on, hop off" guided tours and get a great overview of the city before you head out on your own. In Budapest, our tickets were good for two days and we used it as transportation for most of our stay.
9. Don't stress out over blogging, taking pictures and knitting! You're on VACATION!