catalonia

I happen to work near the port of Barcelona in one of the tallest buildings in the area near the metro station Drassanes and thought I’d put a small guide together to help the tourists of this great city to be safer.

• Avoid looking too touristy – anyone with a camera around their neck instantly becomes a magnet for the muggers in Barcelona.
• Buy a national newspaper or pick up a copy of the local newspaper 20Minutos, Qué or ADN – a cheap and effective way to not stand out in the crowd. Obviously you may want to put your brand new Nikon camera away as you might be cancelling out this idea by showing your camera off, too!
• For the girls, try wearing your bag crossed over your body instead of hanging it from your arm or shoulder – this makes it difficult for a thief to snatch it and leg it!
• Be extra vigilant on the metro – Barcelona’s underground system. Try to pick a carriage which is less than busy as the busy carriages usually have a few unsavoury characters who travel in 2’s, 3’s and 4’s ready to snatch your wallet or bag at the slightest of opportunities. A favourite of theirs is the “enclosure method” usually used while people are getting off or on the metro. You’ll be pushed around in the effort to exit the train or find people shunting you around in order to get off. You might find yourself a little lighter after the experience as your wallet or bag has been “lifted” in the process!
• Las Ramblas has many street artists these days and they are all very good. However, there are people lurking around these artists as they tend o attract crowds. Here presents the perfect opportunity to have your stuff pinched while you are enthralled by the show.

10 hot tips to help stop being mugged in Barcelona

Listening to: Aleesha Dixon

Berlin is a huge and beautiful European capital, but when you travel with children to a big metropolis, you have to respect their special needs and wishes. You just can’t ignore what your children want. Fortunately, it offers a wide range of possibilities for the kids. In addition to special kids-programs in theatres, cinemas and museums, a walk through the capital can be a beautiful experience for both you and your children, Only Berlin can offer you this!

Is your child a complete whirlwind? Don’t worry, there are many chances in the city for those children who need to get rid of excess energy: from playgrounds and zoos, to boat trips, walking tours, museums or cinemas… ¡Everything you want!

Find out more about travelling to Berlin with children here.

Listening to: The Jam

Beer is a tradition in Germany and a ritual that the Germans can not give up as well as being an integral part of their culture. After the Czechs and the Irish, the Germans are the biggest beer drinkers. The historical importance of German beer comes from a law called “Reinheitsgebot,” which was enacted in 1500 which still remains in force in some German cities today. It prohibited the use of poor quality materials in the production process of this great beverage. Because of the importance to the Germans and their culture, it would be guaranteed an affordable price.

German Beer Drinking - a tradition

Learn Spanish Review

Rocket French review site

Probably the most famous thing to do once in Paris is to visit the famous Eiffel Tower. It’s breathtaking once you are at the top and it’s also very cheap – about 4 Euros. The view as I’m sure you will agree once you see it is quite spectacular and on a clear day with no clouds you can easily see for 30 miles or more! Many Parisians and tourists alike choose the Eiffel Tower and its surrounding areas for romantic reasons. You will often see people having a picnic beneath the tower or proposing to their loved one on top of it! It is a beautiful site in the evening, too with the tower lit up in a beautiful display of lights.

There are many things to do in Paris and if you are an art lover then you are in luck. Your trip to Paris would not be complete without a visit to the famous Louvre museum. Here is where you’ll get a chance to see the famous Mona Lisa by the great master Leonardo Da Vinci. Incidentally this famous painting is also called La Gioconda. You could quite easily spend a weekend here as the museum has over 300,000 works of art. If you are an art lover I would recommend a day ticket to the Louvre because you can come and go as you please and also visit the nearby monuments and this will diversify your day trip to the Louvre. Having said that, many people would want to spend an entire week at the Louvre museum visiting its many paintings and works of art so a day ticket for real art lovers might not be for you!

As with any large and popular city Paris has many other things for you to see and do and I would thoroughly recommend planning your trip to Paris well in advance. This is mainly because a large amount of the attractions and monuments have waiting times especially if you go in peak times. It is best to have a plan “B” as it were and plan some alternative things to do just in case!

If you are looking for things to do in Paris you will need to plan at least a weekend in this wonderful romantic city and it doesn’t matter whether you are coming with your partner or family, a weekend trip is an absolute must.

There are many ways to get to this wonderful city these days with cheap flights to Paris daily by most of these airlines being the normal way to get there. More and more people are now taking the London to Paris train with Eurostar as this only takes about 2 hours and 30 minutes from Waterloo and you get avoid those problematic airport check-ins.

Once in Paris you are going to need accommodation and one of the best ways to visit this charming city is by renting an authentic Paris apartment . This will let you see Paris from a different perspective and will also give you more freedom to enjoy your stay with none of the hassles of a hotel.

Learn French Like Crazy