Most of us have had the experience of arriving in a strange place and not knowing a soul. In away, it's what travel is all about: liberated from the routine, on your own. But unless you'vecommitted to seeing Europe through the moving tinted window of a tour bus, pretty soon you're goingto want to get past the initial strangeness and get with it. And to really be able to do that, youneed someone to invite you in, show you where the action is. When that actually happens, whatcould have been just another cute postcard turns into a new chapter in your life.
Going to Europe is infinitely more complicated--and ultimately more rewarding--than just going ona road trip. Without some help, you may repeatedly find yourself surrounded by a numbed-out tourgroup, scratching your head and wondering what all the fuss is about. We sent out our team of 15writers with just that in mind. Go to where the action is, we instructed them, and tell us how tofind it.
Of course we tell you how to see the Parthenon in Athens, but we also tell you where to chowgreat vegetarian food in a glitzy disco in Prague. Definitely don't miss the new Tate in London, ourwriters tell you, but you may also want to surf an artificial wave in the Isar River in Munich.We've tried to find the hottest scenes in Europe--where traditions are being reinvented daily--andmake this guide into the equivalent of a cool friend to show you the ropes.
So, welcome to the new Europe, on the verge of mighty unification. The European Union (EU)--andthe euro's arrival as a common currency--is already making many happy, others nervous, and theentire continent abuzz witha different kind of energy. As the grand tour of Europe meets the InfoAge, the old ways are having to adjust to a faster tempo.
But even as the globe is shrinking to the size of a dot com, Europe remains a vast vast placewith enough history and art and monuments to fill endless guides--so we had to make a choice. Wewanted Hanging Out in Europe to live up to its title, so we decided to specialize and notonly show you the best spots to eat, shop, sightsee, party, and crash, but also give you a real feeling for each place, and unique but do-able ways to get to know it better. We decided to makethis volume (the first in what will grow into a larger series) focus on the 32 most happening cities(or regions) throughout Europe, from Glasgow to Istanbul, Stockholm to the Riviera. We felt it wascrucial to have the room to go deeper, and to tip you off as to how to do the same, so that afteryou see the sights, you'll almost certainly end up in a place where you'll get to know the secret tothe best travel--the locals.
Aside from the basics--neighborhoods, eats, crashing, stuff (shopping), culture zoo(sightseeing stuff), and need to know (the essentials)--we cover the bar scene, thelive music scene, the club scene, the gay scene, the visual arts scene,and the performing arts scene, always giving you the scoop on where to chill out and where toget wild. We take you on some beautiful walks and show you great places to hang (sometimes for nomoney). Things to Talk to a Local About actually gives you some fun conversation openers. (InGalway, try "Hey, what's up with the JFK and Ché Guevara obsession around here?")Fashion tells you what people are wearing. Wired lists websites for each city--somegeneral, some cool, some out-of-the-way--so you can start checking things out immediately. It alsotakes you to the best cybercafes in each place. Rules of the Game lays out local liquor andsubstance laws and also gives you the vibe on the street. Five-0 does a quick sketch of copsin each city. Boy meets Girl dares to speculate on that most mysterious of travel adventures.And Festivals & Events lists just that.
Our adventurous team of writers (average age, 24) and editors let you in on the ongoing party. Wewant to make sure that your time abroad is punctuated by moments when you've sunk deep enough intothe mix (or danced long enough to it), so that you suddenly get it, you have that flash of knowingwhat it's like to actually be somewhere else, to live there--to hang out inEurope.